How to celebrate Hanukkah alongside Chabad this week in Columbia

Aarik Danielsen, Columbia Daily Tribune
·2 min read
Rabbi Avraham Lapine, left, director of Chabad at Mizzou, watches as Maurice Gipson, vice chancellor of diversity, inclusion and equity at the University of Missouri, lights the shamash candle last year at the MU Student Center.
Rabbi Avraham Lapine, left, director of Chabad at Mizzou, watches as Maurice Gipson, vice chancellor of diversity, inclusion and equity at the University of Missouri, lights the shamash candle last year at the MU Student Center.

Chabad Jewish Center of MU and Mid-Missouri invites the Columbia community to share its light, and participate in its celebration of Hanukkah with events Sunday and Monday.

This year's celebration of Hanukkah begins Sunday, Dec. 18 and runs through Monday, Dec. 26. Hanukkah marks both the return of the temple to Jews after Maccabean revolution in ancient Jerusalem, and the miraculous persistence of light in the temple. Oil that should have lasted one night burned for eight.

"Hanukkah is not just the commemoration of a situation past, but its message and lessons relate to each and every one of us today. In short, Hanukkah is the celebration of the small over the many, the seemingly weak over the strong," Chabad co-director Rabbi Avraham Lapine said in news release. "It is about determination and faith and trusting that when we are doing the right thing with the end goal in mind, we can overcome all challenges in our way."

Sunday afternoon, members of Chabad will host a Hanukkah craft session for kids at Columbia Public Library; the event will include storytelling, the chance to stuff a plush dreidel or menorah and other crafts and snacks.

Monday at 4:30 p.m., the organization will host a public menorah lighting in front of Columbia City Hall. Mayor Barbara Buffaloe will light the middle candle of the nine-foot menorah, and attendees can enjoy donuts and chocolate gelt, or candy coins.

"On Hanukkah we publicize the miracle that took place by lighting our menorah in places where all can see," Chabad co-director Channy Lapine said in the release.

"For Jewish people this is especially powerful to know that even if they are a minority, they should always be proud of who they are and what they represent. And whenever faced with adversity or challenge, we should never try to fight the darkness directly but rather add light as the light will instantaneously make the darkness disappear."

Chabad exists as a "conduit to engage Jewish students and community members," its website notes. The Chabad House is designed to be a "place where Jews of all backgrounds and degrees of observance can enjoy exploring their Jewish heritage in a warm, welcoming and accepting environment."

To learn more about Chabad, visit https://www.jewishtigers.com/.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Celebrate Hanukkah with Chabad this week in Columbia