York Liberal Jewish Community (YLJC) held two Chanukah lightings this year with major historical significance and attendance from dignitaries including the Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell.

YLJC gathered on the first night of the festival within the walls of Clifford’s Tower, the site where more than 150 Jews took their own lives rather than renounce their faith in the infamous pogrom of 1190.

And in these current difficult times for the Jewish community worldwide, the congregation gathered again on the final night to light both memorial candles and the chanukiah at Jewbury, the medieval Jewish cemetery set up in the 1170s, where the 150 bodies of those who died at Clifford’s Tower are believed to have been buried in haste.

It is believed that this is the first time that kaddish – the traditional Jewish prayer for the dead – has been said and memorial candles lit at this historic Jewish cemetery for those who died at Clifford’s Tower.

The memorial candles were passed around by special guests the Archbishop and his Chaplain, the Deans of York Minster and of Ripon Cathedral, the Lord Lieutenant of North Yorkshire and York’s Lord Mayor’s and Sheriff’s Consorts – before being used to light a series of chanukiahs.

Prayers for the dead were led by Rabbi Elisheva Salamo, newly appointed Rabbi of York Liberal Jewish Community.

Rabbi Elisheva said: “In this time of great darkness, it is so important to be able to share light with other people. Sometimes, the greatest steps towards peace and well-being for all humankind come from the deepest places of sadness, fear, and persecution. As we pray for those Jews buried hastily after the massacre at Clifford’s Tower, we honour those who suffered, and then use our desire for none to suffer again to creating hope, dialogue, and connection. Had I died at Clifford’s Tower, I would want to know that centuries later, the light of my soul could illuminate the candles of rededication.”

The Archbishop then spoke about the inspiration found in the Hebrew Scriptures where people’s faith gave them resilience and hope in times of suffering, and about his own hopes and prayers for a better world. Reflecting on the event, he said: “It is good that people of different faiths can come together and seek peace – with each other and for the world.”

The ceremony at Jewbury took place in the Council’s undercroft public car park, known to have been built above the Jewish Cemetery, together with the Sainsbury’s supermarket, in the 1980s. It is thought that circa 500+ Jews continue to lie undisturbed under the combined Sainsbury’s parking area. It is hoped that one day a more suitable memorial will reflect the sanctity of the Jewish cemetery here, as has been undertaken at Clifford’s Tower by English Heritage.

• Pictured L-R: Nigel Goodwin (Sheriff’s Consort), Joy Cullwick (Lord Mayor’s Consort), Lilian Coulson (YLJC), Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell, Rabbi Elisheva Salamo (YLJC), Jo Ropner (His Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant for North Yorkshire), Dean Dominic Barrington (Dean of York Minster), Dean John Dobson (Dean of Ripon Cathedral), Shaan Bloch (YLJC) and Howard Duckworth (YLJC).