New York Governor Kathy Hochul Lights World’s Largest Hanukkah Menorah on Fifth Avenue

“Hanukkah is a reminder of strength, resilience and the ability to find light in the darkness” (New York Governor Kathy Hochu)

New York Governor Kathy Hochul participated in the lighting ceremony of the world’s largest Hanukkah candlestick (“Hanukkiah”) on Fifth Avenue in New York City on Monday evening. Just before Rabbi Shmuel Butman, director of the Lubavitch Youth Organization, lit the candles in the chandelier, the governor addressed the crowd: “Hanukkah is a reminder of strength, resilience and the ability to find light in the darkness,” she said. “And if there was ever a time in our history in New York when we needed to find light after the darkness, it is now,” referring to the increase in anti-Semitic incidents that punctuate the city for many months.

AP Photo/Kathy WillensThe world’s largest Hanukkah menorah, after its lighting in New York

Hochul also addressed the New York Jewish community: “I want to make sure everyone knows that I am working hard to keep you all safe. We are making sure that wherever you go to worship and celebrate this big party, you will be safe because there is no place for hatred in the great state of New York.”

For fifty years, the largest menorah in the world, erected in Manhattan, has become an iconic symbol in the United States. Each year, the ceremony of lighting the Hanukkah candles on this candlestick is broadcast by major American media, integrating this event significantly into Jewish life and enriching the cultural heritage of the country. “The lesson of the Menorah is as powerful as it is timely: Like Judah Maccabeus who did not negotiate with the enemy, we should not do so either,” said Rabbi Butman during of the event.

2023-12-12 19:15:03
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