Watch A Live Chanukah Rally

Children will watch mesmerized as the mighty King Antiochus plots to entice the Jewish people to forget about Hashem. The highlight of this year’s Chanukah rally is a musical performance with acting by a talented cast including Zvi Hershkowitz and Choni Milecki.

The audience will hold their breath as they watch the brave Maccabees stand up in what seems to be an impossible fight. “Our goal is to empower children with confidence and determination to take on their Yetzer Hora,” says Shimon Hecht of NCFJE.

The victory of Chanukah can teach today’s Tzivos Hashem soldiers strategies for victory. “Antiochus is long gone, but today’s kids still battle dark forces—the modern culture that surrounds us,” says Rabbi Yerachmiel Benjaminson, executive director of Tzivos Hashem.

The day’s program will also include an interactive game, an announcement of the Chanukah Menorah contest winners and the past month’s mission raffles, and a promotion ceremony to honor the hard work of all the kids who have been been completing missions to earn medals and go up in rank. “We have the ultimate mission to bring Moshiach, and it’s these chayolim who will make it happen,” says Rabbi Shimmy Weinbaum, general of the Chayolei Tzivos Hashem brigade who has been leading efforts to transform everyday kids into dedicated soldiers.

The basis of the day’s program is the Rebbe’s sicha, as Mrs. Nechama Turk, screenwriter, explains. “We want to bring the Rebbe’s message to life, so that the kids in our audience feel how they are the maccabees of today.” The program will culminate with the lighting of the Rebbe’s Menorah.

“Requests to join this rally have been more overwhelming than any other year,” says head of communications Esther Zucker. “There is simply not enough room in 770 for all of the children in crown heights!” Two programs, one following the other, will take place—both packed beyond capacity.

That’s why it’s a good thing the rally will be broadcasted live, shared with Tzivos Hashem bases all over the world. Some schools have taken the necessary steps to join the program live as well.

“It’s been an incredible team effort to put this incredible program together,” says Weinbaum. Technical producer Shamai Chain has been working with Director of Jewish Films Yanki Teitelbaum and Moshe Berghoff of Chabad.org to insure the broadcast from 770 and the other locations will be a smooth one.

To truly appreciate the rally, make sure to download the sicha and learn it before—it is guaranteed to enrich your Chanukah experience.

Save the date: the first day of Chanukah, Wednesday, Chof Hay Kislev (December 13, 2017), The rally will begin at 2:15 p.m. EST. You can watch the rally on chabad.org/rally or right here on COLlive.