This story is part of In Keeping the Faith, a series exploring modern faith.

It’s the eighth day of Hanukkah, and roughly 100 people are gathered on the Max and Mae Simon Jewish Community Campus to commemorate the last day of the holiday. They sang, they read scriptures and they lit the menorah. In addition to members of the Jewish faith, people from different religions and a few city and state government leaders joined to show support for their neighbors.

Days earlier, on Dec. 14, 2025, two gunmen opened fire at Bondi Beach, in the suburbs of Sydney, Australia, during a celebration of Hanukkah. The Islamic State claimed to have inspired the attack that killed 15 people and injured dozens.

“Tonight is a night of unity. Tonight is a night of solidarity. Tonight we stand shoulder to shoulder as a Jewish community, and in the face of great darkness, we will bring light,” said Rabbi Benjamin Sendrow of Congregation Shaarey Tefilla.

In the front row, Marsha Millikan, a member of Congregation Beth Shalom and Indianapolis Hebrew Congregation, sang loudly.

Growing up as a young child in Chicago, Millikan moved from a neighborhood that was heavily populated with Jewish people, to an area where her family was only one of a few. As an adult, she stopped practicing her faith for 30 years, but found her way back.

“There’s lots of people who have participated in this religion more than I have, but I feel like it’s all back in my heart now,” she said.

As a member of Congregation Beth Shalom, Millikan has visited Hindu and Lutheran congregations to learn about their religion and vice versa. “We just all have to come together like this,” Millikan said. “We should try to get and know one another and show that we’re not so different.”

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Brett Phelps is a community photojournalist for Mirror Indy in partnership with Report for America and Catchlight Local. Contact Brett by email brett.phelps@mirrorindy.org.

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‘In the face of great darkness, we will bring light’

by Brett Phelps, Mirror Indy
October 16, 2026

<h1>‘In the face of great darkness, we will bring light’</h1> <p class="byline">by Brett Phelps, Mirror Indy <br />October 16, 2026</p> <br /> <figure class="wp-block-image alignfull size-full"><img src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/BP_Faith-Project_JCC_03.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-93284" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Marsha Millikan (right), a member of Congregation Beth Shalom and Indianapolis Hebrew Congregation, attended a menorah lighting ceremony on the eighth day of Hanukkah on Dec. 21, 2025, at the Max and Mae Simon Jewish Community Campus in Indianapolis. </figcaption></figure> <p>It’s the eighth day of Hanukkah, and roughly 100 people are gathered on the Max and Mae Simon Jewish Community Campus to commemorate the last day of the holiday. They sang, they read scriptures and they lit the menorah. In addition to members of the Jewish faith, people from different religions and a few city and state government leaders joined to show support for their neighbors.</p> <p>Days earlier, on Dec. 14, 2025, two gunmen opened fire at Bondi Beach, in the suburbs of Sydney, Australia, during a celebration of Hanukkah. <a href="https://apnews.com/article/australia-shooting-sydney-bondi-beach-31f711f09f677d0f88091ece25f651c1">The Islamic State claimed to have inspired the attack that killed 15 people and injured dozens</a>.</p> <p>“Tonight is a night of unity. Tonight is a night of solidarity. Tonight we stand shoulder to shoulder as a Jewish community, and in the face of great darkness, we will bring light,” said Rabbi Benjamin Sendrow of Congregation Shaarey Tefilla.</p> <figure class="wp-block-image alignwide size-full"><img src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/BP_Faith-Project_JCC_04.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-93285" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">“I believe that the light of people of goodwill will triumph over the darkness of evil,” Rabbi Benjamin Sendrow (pictured left) of Congregation Shaarey Tefilla said during a menorah-lighting ceremony on the eighth day of Hanukkah on Dec. 21, 2025, at the Max and Mae Simon Jewish Community Campus in Indianapolis.</figcaption></figure> <p>In the front row, Marsha Millikan, a member of Congregation Beth Shalom and Indianapolis Hebrew Congregation, sang loudly.</p> <p>Growing up as a young child in Chicago, Millikan moved from a neighborhood that was heavily populated with Jewish people, to an area where her family was only one of a few. As an adult, she stopped practicing her faith for 30 years, but found her way back.</p> <p>“There’s lots of people who have participated in this religion more than I have, but I feel like it’s all back in my heart now,” she said.</p> <div class="wp-block-cover alignfull has-parallax" style="padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);padding-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);min-height:150vh"> <div class="wp-block-cover__image-background wp-image-93282 size-full has-parallax" style="background-position:69% 0%;background-image:url(https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/BP_Faith-Project_JCC_01.jpg)"></div> <p><span aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-cover__background has-background-dim-0 has-background-dim"></span></p> <div class="wp-block-cover__inner-container"> <p id="h-"> <div class="wp-block-columns alignwide"> <div class="wp-block-column"> <h2 id="h-listen-to-millikan-as-she-recounts-being-discriminated-against-as-a-child-for-her-faith-and-how-she-found-her-way-back-after-years-of-not-practicing" class="wp-block-heading has-background has-huge-font-size" style="background-color:#000000ab">Listen to Millikan as she recounts being discriminated against as a child for her faith and how she found her way back after years of not practicing.</h2> <figure class="wp-block-audio"><audio controls src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/BP_Faith-Project_JCC-Audio.mp3"></audio></figure> </p></div> <div class="wp-block-column"></div> </p></div> </p></div> </div> <p class="wp-element-caption wp-caption-text caption-nogap">As a member of Congregation Beth Shalom, Millikan has visited Hindu and Lutheran congregations to learn about their religion and vice versa. “We just all have to come together like this,” Millikan said. “We should try to get and know one another and show that we’re not so different.”</p> <figure class="wp-block-image alignfull size-full"><img src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/BP_Faith-Project_JCC_02.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-93283" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">People of different faiths and elected officials joined their Jewish neighbors in lighting the menorah on the eight day of Hanukkah on Dec. 21, 2025, at the Max and Mae Simon Jewish Community Campus in Indianapolis. They wanted to show solidarity following the targeted attack of a Hanukkah celebration in Bondi Beach near Sydney, Australia.</figcaption></figure> <p>This &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://mirrorindy.org/in-the-face-of-great-darkness-we-will-bring-light/&quot;&gt;article&lt;/a&gt; first appeared on &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://mirrorindy.org&quot;&gt;Mirror Indy&lt;/a&gt; and is republished here under a &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/&quot;&gt;Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;img src=&quot;https://i0.wp.com/mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/cropped-Mirror-Indy-square-logo-1.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;amp;ssl=1&quot; style=&quot;width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;&quot;&gt;</p> &lt;img id=&quot;republication-tracker-tool-source&quot; src=&quot;https://mirrorindy.org/?republication-pixel=true&amp;post=93313&amp;amp;ga4=G-X0R0QW371R&quot; style=&quot;width:1px;height:1px;&quot;&gt;&lt;script&gt; PARSELY = { autotrack: false, onload: function() { PARSELY.beacon.trackPageView({ url: &quot;https://mirrorindy.org/in-the-face-of-great-darkness-we-will-bring-light/&quot;, urlref: window.location.href }); } } &lt;/script&gt; &lt;script id=&quot;parsely-cfg&quot; src=&quot;//cdn.parsely.com/keys/mirrorindy.org/p.js&quot;&gt;&lt;/script&gt;

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