BATON ROUGE - Dozens gathered outside the State Capitol on Sunday evening for the lighting of the first candle, marking the start of Hanukkah.

"We're very blessed to be able to live in a country and a time where our religious freedom is celebrated, and we're very grateful to be able to inaugurate the first night of Hanukkah here in front of the State Capitol building," Rabbi Peretz Kazen said.

However, members of the Jewish community say that this year is very emotional because of the recent attack in Australia during a Hanukkah celebration.

"Times may be difficult, and there may be challenges, we may feel a sense of defeat, but what we do is we get up, we brush off, and we have to celebrate. We celebrate by increasing in light and giving the gift of spirituality and love and care."

This year's celebration at the Capitol had increased security.

"It's very emotional for me personally and for us as a community. When we woke up this morning and saw the news, we were even unsure how to handle the event tonight, and we just felt the answer to this type of darkness is to absolutely have the event," Chabad at LSU & Greater Baton Rouge Program Director Mushka Kazen said.

Sunday evening's lighting brought many together to shine a light in the world.

"It's okay to cry and to feel scared or sad for a moment, but then channel that into action, and Hanukkah is the perfect time because each night, we add an additional candle and we add more and more light into the world," Kazen said.

Attendees of the event say that despite the cold temperatures in Baton Rouge on Sunday, being around people of their faith brings them warmth.

"In a city like Baton Rouge that doesn't have the biggest Jewish population, it's great to have a place and an event where we can all come together," Caleb Applebaum said.

Rabbi Kazen said that the events in Australia left the Jewish community scarred, but full of resolve.

"It's a very sad situation to hear what happened in Australia. It breaks my heart, and I think every Jewish person will think the same. Being here and being able to be in community and being able to be free, it means a lot," attendee Alex Betech said.