Yesterday we were all confronted by the terrible news of a terror attack at Chabad-Lubavitch of Bondi’s Chanukah celebration in Sydney, Australia. It is with deep sadness that we share the news that 15 of our brothers and sisters were murdered at the joyous event, including beloved Chabad emissary Rabbi Eli Schlanger. He was 41.

We pray for the victims’ families and for the full and speedy recovery of those injured in the heinous, cowardly attack.

As Chanukah makes its way around the globe, it is vital that governments and local law enforcement pay special care to their Jewish communities, ensuring their continued safety and security. Anti-Jewish violence is a clear and present danger, and it is the duty of every civilized society worthy of its name not to equivocate in words or, more importantly, in actions.

From its distant perch, Australia has always held the distinct honor of being the first major Jewish community to usher in the physical and spiritual lights of Chanukah. Today’s attack was an attempt to extinguish it, and though the flame flickers, the menorah’s light burns yet. And it is our responsibility, each and every one of us wherever we might be, to carry forth that flame and use it to illuminate our surroundings.

How? In Rabbi Schlanger’s own words in a 2025 interview with Chabad.org on rising antisemitism in Australia: “Be more Jewish, act more Jewish and appear more Jewish.”

Proudly light your menorah this evening and for all the nights of Chanukah, but don’t stop at that. If you know someone who does not have a menorah, please do whatever you can to help them light one. Gift them with a menorah and candles, or feel free to reach out to your local Chabad and ask for a Chanukah menorah kit to pass along. An easy How-to guide can be found here. Don’t underestimate the vital role each individual has in rectifying the darkness brought into the world by the Sydney attackers and their ilk.

The lights of the Chanukah menorah, wrote the Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory, remind us that illumination begins at home, within oneself and one’s family. But it does not stop there.

“Such is the nature of light that when one kindles a light for one’s own benefit, it benefits also all who are in the vicinity,” the Rebbe wrote. “Indeed, the Chanukah Lights are expressly meant to illuminate the ‘outside,’ symbolically alluding to the duty to bring light also to those who, for one reason or another, still walk in darkness … .

“Let us pray that the message of the Chanukah Lights will illuminate the everyday life of everyone personally, and of the society at large, for a brighter life in every respect, both materially and spiritually.”