Loudspeakers played "Hanukkah, Oh Hanukkah" and children ran around in dreidel costumes Sunday night as hundreds packed into Campus Martius in Detroit to celebrate the first night of Hanukkah, kicking off the Festival of Lights, by lighting a giant menorah.
The annual Menorah in the D event, which started back in 2011, brings together Jewish leaders and state officials, as well as metro Detroit residents of all faiths.
This year, Danny Fenster, a Michigan journalist who recently returned home after spending six months imprisoned in military-ruled Myanmar, helped light the candle.
It marks the release of ancient Jews, the Maccabees, who freed themselves from the oppression of Greek King Antiochus IV.
Antiochus IV massacred Jews and desecrated the holy Second Temple. During the Maccabees' rebellion and determination to restore the temple, a small amount of lamp oil, just enough to last one night, miraculously lit up the temple for eight days and nights, representing hope and the power of light over darkness. The eight candles on the menorah represent each of the eight nights.
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"It wasn't a theme I thought about before the timing of my release and the timing of this event, but I think there's that obvious connection with bringing light to darkness in journalism," Fenster told the Free Press on Sunday. "The things that I was arrested for, being part of the news organization that's trying to shed light on a very dark regime, seems obviously resonant to me."
Fenster said he's doing great and is so thankful to be back home with his family.
"I can't imagine a better community to come home to," he said. "And it's just made an already great, joyful situation even more joyful. Just had a lot of love and appreciation back home here in Detroit and metro Detroit, in the Jewish community and the wider community. It's just been incredible."
State Sen. Jeremy Moss, D-Southfield, said Fenster's return is a miracle in and of itself and is emblematic of the spirit of Hanukkah.
"This is just really a modern-day miracle when you think about it," Moss said. "We had this incredibly discouraging and disheartening news going into one weekend, that Danny would be sentenced to many years of hard labor, and then waking up just a few days later to learn of his release is a miracle."
The event celebrating the much-older miracle was both in-person and streamed virtually to ensure everyone who wanted to participate in the festivities was able. The event was put on in partnership with the Jewish Federation of metro Detroit, The Shul and Chabad in the D, among others.
Standing at 26 feet tall, the menorah rests near the glowing Christmas tree downtown, and their shared lights illuminated the park Sunday evening.
"On each of the eight nights of Chanukah, we add another candle – generating more and more light," Rabbi Kasriel Shemtov, vice president of Chabad Lubavitch of Michigan, said in a news release. "Like a flaming candle, all you need to do is touch another person with an act of kindness and sincerity and their flame will be ignited as well. One candle at a time, one soul at a time, the world becomes a brighter, warmer place."
Although anti-Semitism still runs rampant around the world, Moss, Michigan's only Jewish state senator, said the menorah lighting is a chance for the Jewish community to celebrate who they are.
"Hanukkah is about your outward display of Judaism: we put the menorah in the window, we light the candles for our neighbors to see," Moss said. "Hanukkah is this very public display of our religious values and who we are as a community. So to have this very public display, in the middle of downtown, in this very thriving part of the city, is very important for us to share who we are as a community, be proud of who we are as a community, but also display that we are part of the broader community here, too. We fit in amongst all of the holiday displays in this central part of the state's biggest city."
In addition to lighting the menorah, Campus Martius on Sunday was full of street performers, face painting stations, marshmallow roasting pits and hot cider offerings, among other things.
After last year's menorah lighting being online due to the pandemic, David Flaisher was excited to be back in person. He's come to every lighting since they began 10 years ago.
"I like the candle lighting," he said. "Everyone's happy, everyone's in a good mood. You don't see too much of that."
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Shemtov said the message of Hanukkah is not constrained to the next eight days and it should inspire hope year-round.
"When we dismantle and store the physical structure, we become the flames of the menorah and carry their message in our hearts and our community all year," Shemtov said. "It gives us hope when we need it most, and it gives us the tools to become a light for others in need."
Contact Emma Stein: estein@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Hanukkah event brings light to darkness, honors Danny Fenster
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