The Walkway Over The Hudson was adorned with a large menorah from Chabad Lubavitch of Mid-Hudson Valley Monday afternoon during a ceremony. Poughkeepsie Mayor John Tkazyik was given the honor of lighting the first candle.
“The message of a menorah is something to shed light, to radiate warmth,” said Chabad’s regional director Rabbi Yacov Borenstein.
“By kindling everyone becomes a candelabra to spread out and give and share with acts of goodness and kindness.” According to Rabbi Borenstein, this message is universal throughout all communities and faiths, “even non-Jews can also have their actions contribute to make this world an illuminated world.”
Rabbi Borenstein noted that the Walkway spot was chosen because of its exposure to the community and he hopes that the lighting ceremony will become an annual event.
Similar Chabad menorahs are being installed and lit across the Hudson Valley this week.
(Source: MidHudsonNews.com)
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U’faratza, U’faratza
U’faratza, U’faratza
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Tzfona V’negba!!
Why is this a good thing? It is not. These large public displays of our religion when we ARE STILL IN GOLUS in a Christian nation (that has afforded us to practice our religion in peace BH) and the demands for these public displays are wrong. Though it may seem nice on the surface, it is totally the wrong way to go. This may be hard for some people to digest because theyv’e had to accept and smile upon this practice for many years already, but it is the sad truth.
How come no crowd?
#2 If one person becomes frum because of these public menoras, then the lubavitcher rebbe was right for asking for them.
Fact is, that many people have become frum as a result. I just met a family this weekend at a hotel, a father, mother and ka’h 12 children and 15 grandchildren. They told me their story how 35 years ago they (young couple) became frum as a DIRECT result of seeing a menorah on top of the car of the local chabad rabbi.
In the last 72 hours, I have become the BIGGEST fan of these lubavitch outreach “ploys”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2. Is 100 percent right.
#2 is absolutely correct. There is no basis in halacha for such displays. Halacha says to light at home [and in shul].
We cannot make up our own halachas – and copy the goying with their, lehavdil, displays.
Why is everyone screaming about halacha? None of these Lubavitchers are claiming that it is halacha to do a public display. They are simply follwoing their Rebbe’s advice and trying to instill a sense of pride in certain Yidden, who for whatever reason, don’t have much.
Furthermore, when a secular yid sees a “religious looking” Jew in a civil ceremnoy, it can make the religious Jew appear more approachable, thereby allowing the secular Jew to engage the religious jew in conversation (something most secular Jews are afraid of doing to “religious looking Jews” that have never even giving them a smile.
As a frum Jew who was mekarev by a Chabad Rabbi at a University in small town Ontario (and I’m still litvish) I can attest to the success of such endeavours.
fact is even though a good thing came out of it as in that family doesn’t prove it is right. We have Halacha as our guide and there is no halacha to have chnnuka lights in the streets. Sometimes in the darkness of golus good things come out of bad.
What a sad comment chain. 1 3 and 4 for it right.
The others need to re-evaluate their mindsets. Like #4 said, my whole family would not be frum today if not for a public menorah display on a highway 25 years ago!!
Besides that there IS halachis basis for this, since when is it illegal to go beyond “halachic basis”? There have been public displays going back to Bais Hamikdash era. Were not copying goyim, were following age old jewish traditions!!
#8 which halacha did u read that states “You are not allowed to put up a menorah in public as long as were in golus.BTW in order for us to get out of golus we need more yidden to do mitzvahs. Now having read comments 1,3,4,and 7 you can see how many yidden did begin keeping Mitzvahs. Halacha does require that we do all we can to get other yidden to do so.
#2 – America is not a christian nation. It is a country of freedom, where anyone can believe anything they want.
To everybody else –
1) There are rishonim who hold there is an inyun of pirsumay nisa by goyim, and even according to the rest of the rishonim, there is definitely an inyun of persumay nisa by non-frum yidden.
2) Yes, there is no halachic chiyuv to light public menorahs. But why on earth is it “totally the wrong way to go”?! It is a beautiful display of the continued existence of our people, despite the attempts of everyone from the yevonim to the nazis to chas v’shalam wipe us out. We should be shouting our thanks to Hashem from the rooftops, not hiding in basements!! And even if someone want to personally light menorah in public, what possible problem can they have with those who do?
Your absurd comments are the EXACT reason that the public lightings are more important than ever. They are equally important for the frum crowd as they are for the not yet frum crowd. Stop being ashamed of your yiddishkeit! It was never meant to be hidden inside. A golus mentality has unfortunately taken hold of so many of you. After so many years, how can we blame you? You’ve gotten used to golus. Chazal and the rishonim all spoke about how important it is for Torah to affect the world and prepare the world for moshiach. You needn’t look further than the last 2 perakim of Rambam, hilchos melachim. Or even aleinu where Yehoshua writes “Aleinu lshabaiach…lsaken oilam bmalchus SH-D-I or even the posuk “vrau kol basar yachdaiv…”
The point of Torah and mitzvos is to bring moshiach and change the world – to make it into a dira btachtonim. How on earth are we supposed to prepare the world for moshiach’s imminent coming when the goyim know nothing about Torah or Hashem? The point of the lag bomer parades, the sheva mitzvos mivtzoim, the menorah lightings, and all the other publicity is to wake up all the yidden and teach them that golus must not be the norm. Stop being afraid of change. This isn’t normal. Wake up and start living with moshiach!
And then put a menorah on your car. : )
I felt compelled to add that the chochomim who have a halachic problem (really it’s an excuse) to attack these unbelievable lightings should look at what poskim of all camps say. There are many mainstream non-Chabad poskim who pasken it is mutar. See Mishna Berura 671:69 or Kaf Hachaim 671:65.
If making a brocha in shul on a menorah is not just mutar but the halacha, where virtually everyone is already yotzei with their own menorahs, kal vchomer when there is a large likelihood that there are yidden who will not otherwise light a kosher menorah. Not only that but there are poskim of the opinion that pirsumi nisa is also by goyim so certainly there is what to be someich on even if bvadai everyone at this lighting already lit themselves.
I don’t know about the one on Mid-Hudson, but the one on the Red Square looks amazing!!