Haddonfield to light Hanukkah menorah

Haddonfield is having its first-ever public Hanukkah celebration, sparking a debate on whether religious ceremonies should be held on public ground.

Haddonfield Talks, an online discussion forum on the Yahoo Web site, has been buzzing with activity since the borough granted a request by a group of residents to allow a menorah-lighting ceremony to take place on x-mas Day. The first night of Hanukkah falls on Dec. 25 this year.

“There’s a lot of activity out there, a lot of discussion,” said Ilise Feitshans, who spearheaded the effort. “It can only be good to have that kind of back and forth.”

Like the annual x-mas tree-lighting ceremony, sponsored by the Haddonfield Celebrations Association, the Hanukkah celebration won’t cost the borough a dime. The ceremony will be sponsored by Chabad Lubavitch of Camden and Burlington Counties and the ShopRite at Garden State Pavilions in Cherry Hill is providing food.

“I think it’s wonderful,” Haddonfield Commissioner Edward Borden said. “I’m delighted that our community recognizes the importance of the Festival of Lights in our holiday celebration. I’m glad that there are people out there willing to sponsor it.”

Since the Supreme Court ruled the Constitution permits religious ceremonies on public ground, several communities have started lighting a menorah, including Atlantic City, Toms River, Medford and Cherry Hill.

“The menorah is originally a religious object, but the message is a universal one — a bit of light to overcome the darkness,” said Rabbi Yitzchok Kahan, who will conduct Haddonfield’s ceremony with Rabbi Mendel Mangel, the Chabad’s director.

Edie Hammond, a Haddonfield resident and former member of the vestry at St. Bartholomew’s Church of Cherry Hill, was a vocal supporter of the event.

“The Bible encompasses most of the Torah, so without Hanukkah, there would be no x-mas,” Hammond said.

Others took some convincing.

Feitshans said she had to attend three commission meetings to get her request approved.

“The commissioners, initially, were against the idea,” said Feitshans, whose father is a Methodist and whose daughter attends a Quaker high school in Philadelphia.

Feitshans said she hopes those who are against public religious displays will change their minds when they see different faiths gather to light the menorah.

“It’ll really be a sense of unity with the two holidays coming together,” Feitshans said. “This is what religious freedom is.”