LENOX, Mass. — At a community Hanukkah celebration at The Mount, Jewish Federation of the Berkshires President Arlene Schiff opened the festivities with a recognition of the victims of Sunday's mass shooting in Australia and praise for a hero who helped stop the killing.
"We stand in solidarity with the Jews of Australia and other Jewish communities around the world who are lighting candles tonight, continuing Jewish life and tradition, standing proud in the face of hate," Schiff said. "And we honor the upstander, Ahmed al Ahmed, the Muslim man who disarmed one of the gunmen and was shot twice.
"He could have hidden but did not, and Jews are alive because of his bravery."
The death toll has climbed to 15 and dozens were injured when two men opened fire at a celebration of the first night of Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights. Ahmed tackled one of the gunmen and wrestled his firearm away.
State Rep. Leigh Davis, D-Third District, also took a moment to honor the fallen at Bondi Beach and praised Jewish Federation of the Berkshires for working toward its mission of nurturing and sustaining the Jewish community locally.
Davis said efforts are underway on Beacon Hill to protect that community.
"It's times like these we have to realize that anti-Semitism is on the rise, and it's not going away without us focusing on it and doing such things as creating a special commission on combating anti-Semitic behavior like we have done at the State House," Davis said. "This is a moment that we need to come together and recognize that, as a community, we are stronger together. And when we focus on the light, we can get past the fear."
On Sunday morning, the Jewish Federation of the Berkshires posted on Facebook that the event was going forward as planned and that, while there was no known threat locally, security was in place for the menorah lighting.
"As Dara [Kaufman] noted in her email message earlier today, we will never allow hatred to deter us from practicing our faith and traditions," Schiff said. "We will use every tool at our disposal to ensure our community is safe and our lights burn even brighter."
In North Adams, Rabbi Rachel Barenblat Drew Zuckerman of Congregation Beth Israel of the Berkshires explained the history of the holy days, with the help of her son, Drew Zuckerman.
"Around 200 years before the birth of Jesus, a foreign Empire took control of Jerusalem. The Greco-Syrians, led by a king named Antiochus, defiled our sacred temple and banned the practice of Judaism," she said.
Zuckerman continued, "After a brutal and bloody conflict, we gained control of Jerusalem. We cleaned and rededicated the temple, but we could only find one little vial of sanctified oil to light the eternal flame that represents God's presence. We lit the flame anyway, and the fire lasted all week until new holy oil could be made."
The city added the menorah to its holiday celebrations in 2018. Zuckerman, now 16, has been lighting it every year since.
Hanukkah celebrates by lighting a candle on the menorah each night for eight days to commemorate the event, though nowadays the "candles" are often electric or LED.
Barenblat described it as a "small miracle," but said theologian Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel had taught that in "a dark room, even one little flame can bring a lot of light."
That light in the darkness is needed more than ever, Zuckerman said.
"For many people today, the world feels like a very dark room, the rise in anti-Semitism, the rounding up of immigrants, the assault on trans rights, the normalization of hate speech," he said, plus the news that morning of the shootings in Australia.
"Hanukkah reminds us that in the darkest times, we rededicate ourselves to bringing light."
Hanukkah means dedication, said Barenblat, and as the temple was once rededicated to sacred service, today was a time to rededicate ourselves to "upholding human rights and dignity, standing up for the immigrant and refugee, cultivating empathy and an ethics of mutual care."
The Williamstown menorah at the bottom of Spring Street will be lighted on Monday with the second candle. Barenblat said this was a scheduling decision as it has been hard trying to get to both communities, plus there had been a Hanukkah celebration at the temple earlier.
She was heartened that "there are so many celebrations in North County now."
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