In the shrinking Jewish community in the city of Rivnica in the Transnistria region of Moldova, there was great excitement this week: Chabad emissaries arrived in the city and lit a Hanukkah candle with dozens of the city’s Jews.
This, as part of the extensive activity carried out by the Jewish community in the country led by Rabbi Zosha Abelsky, together with the emissaries.
The location was no accident: under the house where the “Hatzadik of Rivnitz” used to live, Rabbi Chaim Zanvil Abrahamovich ztzel, who was the only rebbe left after the Holocaust in the countries of the former Soviet Union.
Until the Holocaust, Jews made up 38% of the city’s residents, but today only a little more than 100 of its 50,000 residents live there. Most of them are adults, aged 60 and over.
After the exciting lighting, a holiday meal was held in the synagogue in the city. Leib, one of the elders of the community, excitedly said that he still remembers the lighting of the Hanukkah candles by Rebbe Maribnitz ztzel, his holiness and blessings that spread far and wide.
Last week it was announced that one of the new, and probably also the most interesting, places where the Hanukkah was lit for the first time this year is in the city of Bandari – one of the two largest cities in Transnistria.
Rabbi Menachem Mendel Gotzel works regularly in Haval, giving Torah lessons and assisting with humanitarian aid, with the assistance of the head of the Jewish community, Mark Finkelson, and with the backing of the local government.
Rabbi Abelsky: “In total, we held about 30 events for all the Jews of Moldova and Transitria, with the aim of bringing the joy of Hanukkah to as many Jewish hearts and homes as possible. Also in view of the power outages and the challenges that the war in neighboring Ukraine poses to us. We will continue to shine in order to banish the darkness from here as well.”