The Federation of Jewish Communities of Ukraine is organizing extensive holiday activities. Photo courtesy of the Jewish Community of Dnepr/Facebook.
By MOR SHPAIER
JNS
Jewish communities in Ukraine are preparing to celebrate their third Chanukah under wartime conditions, hoping that light will dispel the darkness brought by the ongoing conflict. The Federation of Jewish Communities of Ukraine (FJCU) is organizing extensive holiday activities, continuing a tradition since its establishment in the 1990s.
Chabad To Aid Federation
The light of Chanukah will reach 169 Jewish communities in the country, even in some places with only a few Jewish residents. Working through the federation, Chabad emissaries will operate in cities and districts nationwide.
Despite freezing temperatures, Jewish Relief Network Ukraine (JRNU) warehouses across Ukraine are packing thousands of festival kits for distribution to the Jewish population.
Central candle-lighting ceremonies will be held in city centers, with the main national ceremony taking place in Kyiv’s Maidan Square with public officials and foreign ambassadors in attendance. These ceremonies will be made possible through special permits from authorities to allow Jews to celebrate Chanukah publicly, despite the war with Russia.
Billboards announcing lighting ceremonies are being displayed in major city centers as part of the religious obligation to publicize the miracle of Chanukah.
Ukrainian Heros
This year, “Heroes of Ukraine,” Jews who were wounded on the Russian front and received medals for heroic combat actions, will be honored with lighting the central menorahs, recognizing their representation of the fight for freedom and personal sacrifice.
In cities under bombardment, central menorah-lighting ceremonies traditionally held outdoors will move inside synagogues.
“We are at war, with daily bombings,” said Rabbi Nachum Ehrentroi, rabbi of the city of Zaporizhzhia, on the banks of the Dnieper River in the country’s southeast. “It’s life-threatening for people to gather on the street; it’s absolutely forbidden.
“We will hold large lighting ceremonies every evening in the synagogue with an expected attendance of 450 Jews. We have a shelter in the synagogue adjacent to the lighting area, and in case of an attack, God forbid, we can immediately go down to the shelter,” he said.
Given the severe economic situation in Ukraine, food packages will be distributed to Jewish families, brightening Chanukah for thousands, alongside kits containing personal menorahs, kippot, Ukrainian-translated Psalms books and educational holiday games for children.
The food packages contain staples, including flour, oil, long-life milk, pasta, rice, baked goods, natural juices and sweets. Some products are manufactured in Ukraine under the kosher supervision of the Ukrainian Kashrut Committee U.K.
FJCU Chairman Rabbi Meir Stambler said: “Despite the escalating war, Chabad emissaries are doing everything to bring light into this great darkness. As then and now, we hope for miracles in the war with Russia and pray for victory in the Holy Land, for the swift return of the hostages, and for the coming of the Messiah.”
Originally published by Israel Hayom.
