One of the oldest public menorah’s in the world was fully lit on in San Francisco’s Union Square to celebrate the eighth and final night of Hanukkah.
Hundreds of members of the Bay Area Jewish community gathered in front of the giant wooden menorah set up next to Union Square’s huge Christmas tree. They came together on Wednesday as a group to revel in traditional dance and music to observe the holiday .
Rabbi Yosef Langer, who founded Chabad of SF in 1980, led the lighting ceremony. He also helped start the annual menorah celebration in Union Square in 1975 with the help of Bill Graham, the legendary music promoter who brought big rock n’ roll names to San Francisco.
“This is the first public menorah in the world outside Israel,” Langer said in a speech. “The menorah is the vehicle that brought us out of slavery. Let’s dance the night away here in Union Square!”
The tradition of lighting an additional candle on a menorah for eight days during Hanukkah dates back more than 2,000 years ago when Jewish people rededicated their temple after it was taken over by Greek rule. Although it was later destroyed by the Greeks, Jewish people repaired it and celebrated by lighting an oil lamp inside it.
The oil was only supposed to last for one day, but it managed to last for eight.
“The whole story of Hanukkah is one that is beyond nature,” said Rabbi Moshe Langer, Yosef’s son. “The Jewish people put their trust in God that He was going to help rekindle the menorah and help reinaugurate the temple. That is what helped the miracle happen and that is how the one small jug of oil that was only supposed to last for one night lasted for eight nights.”
First: Rabbi Yosef Langer gesturing while a band plays in celebration of the eighth and final night of Hanukkah. Last: A crowd watches as the eighth candle on Union Square’s giant menorah gets lit during the final night of Hanukkah on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2024 in San Francisco, Calif. (Alise Maripuu/Bay City News)
But many members of the Bay Area Jewish community see Hanukkah more importantly as a way to bring people together, regardless of religion or race.
“This is a public expression of Jewish pride. We are sharing the light with all the different cultures, races and religions here in Union Square,” said Rabbi Shimon Margolin.
Margolin is the executive director of the Russian-speaking Jewish Community of the San Francisco Bay Area.
“Here you have the Christmas tree and also Arabic music playing at the ice-skating rink while we celebrate Hanukkah,” he said. “That’s what the Jewish community, religion, and tradition stands for. This is the symbol of religious tolerance and religious freedom. That’s what we’re here to celebrate.”
Before the lighting of the menorah, religious leaders held a prayer calling for the safe return of Jewish hostages who were kidnapped by the Hamas terrorist group from Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
Paloma Aisenberg , who was visiting her parents in the Bay Area, attended the ceremony. Her parents walked around holding up signs that read “Bring them home,” with pictures of some of the hostages who have not been released.
“We can celebrate, but we also have to remember that the fight is not over and there’s still people that are separated from their families,” Aisenberg said. “While we can celebrate the joy and the light, which is super important, it’s also really important to carry the hostages with us and to not forget that this is still a very real thing. People haven’t seen their families in over a year.”
Langer slowly walked through the maze of the crowd, holding a flaming torch while Jewish dance music played in the background. Police officers followed behind him as a safety precaution.
For the entire ceremony, officers and security guards stood around the perimeter of the event. In 2023, antisemitic hate crimes rose by 53% in California compared to the previous year, according to the California Department of Justice.
Eli Tsives, a college student at UCLA who is involved in the school’s Jewish community, said he was proud of the Bay Area’s Jewish population for taking part despite potential safety concerns.
“We have to stay connected to our culture, religion, and our traditions,” Tsives said. “I think it’s amazing that we’re having so many people come out, even though a lot of people are saying it’s not safe to come out and be in large crowds. This is a Jewish event, so everyone who’s here is being very brave and courageous.”
After allowing every attendee to touch the handle of the torch, Langer and other Chabad of San Francisco leaders climbed to the top of the 22-foot tall, three-ton menorah.
As each of the eight candles were lit, prayers and songs were recited by the crowd. Everyone erupted into cheers once the menorah was fully lit.
