An eight-foot menorah is on display in Billings this year in observance of Hanukkah, a Jewish holiday that represents resilience in the face of oppression.
On Wednesday night, Rabbi Shaul Shkedi of the Chabad Center oversaw a community menorah lighting in the Yellowstone County Courthouse park.
“The whole holiday of Hanukkah is about increasing in light,” Shkedi said ahead of the event. “And our world does have darkness in it, but to dispel darkness, you just need to increase a little bit of light and the darkness falls away by itself. Light in this sense here refers to education and doing good deeds and showing others goodness as well.”
Chabad of Billings is part of an Orthodox Jewish movement with centers across the state. It opened a location in Billings earlier this year.
Other Montana communities are also holding public menorah lightings this year, including Bozeman, Great Falls, Hamilton, Helena, Missoula and Whitefish.