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Utahns light downtown menorah to mark the start of Hanukkah

(Steve Griffin | The Salt Lake Tribune) Rabbi Benny Zippel of Chabad Lubavitch is joined by the public as he lights a giant menorah for the first night of Hanukkah, the Jewish eight day festival of lights outside, Abravanel Hall in Salt Lake City Tuesday December 12, 2017.

Rabbi Benny Zippel of Chabad Lubavitch of Utah was on hand Tuesday night to light the menorah on the Abravanel Hall Plaza in downtown Salt Lake City.

It was the first night of the eight-day Jewish celebration known as Hanukkah — or Festival of the Lights — which commemorates the rededication of their holy temple after the Maccabean victory over Syria in the second century B.C.

“The menorah serves as a symbol of Utah’s dedication to preserve and encourage the right and liberty of all its citizens to worship freely, openly, and with pride,” Zippel said in a news release. “Specifically, in America, a nation that was founded upon and vigorously protects the right of every person to practice his or her religion free from restraint and persecution.”

Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams was the scheduled guest of honor for Tuesday’s event.

This year, the menorah on the plaza will be kindled nightly on all Hanukkah weeknights.

“The message of Hanukkah is the message of light,” Zippel, who is organizing this year’s Hanukkah events, said in the release. “ ... We are delighted to be able to provide downtown Salt Lake City with just a little more light, with our nightly menorah lightings.”