The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, will celebrate Chanukah on Monday 19 December by lighting the flame on a large menorah in front of the European Commission’s headquarters in the Brussels EU quarter.
As part of the cultural agenda of Brussels, the city’s Mayor Philippe Close will light the second candle of Chanukah.
The event is seen as a strong sign for the European Jewish community in the wake of the EU’ clear commitment to ensuring a Jewish future and fostering Jewish life as laid out in the EU Commission’s new strategy for combatting resurgent antisemitism and fostering Jewish life in Europe.
European ambassadors and civil servants are expêcted to attend the event.
The lighting, which is organized in partnership with the European Jewish Association and the City of Brussels, will take place on Monday at 18:00 on Schuman Square and will be followed by a concert from the singer Haim Tzvi.
Chanukah, the Jewish festival of lights, is one of the most popular Jewish holidays worldwide. Candles are lit over 8 days to remember the miracle of one day’s worth of oil lasting eight following the reconsecration of the Temple in Jerusalem. Its message of hope, light and emancipation resonates are universal and timely. Celebrations worldwide are attended by heads of states who often light their own candles.
In addition to Monday’s lighting, Chanukah will also be celebrated the next day in the European Commission with the presence of the European Commissioner Janez Lenarčič, honoring Hias Europe, the world’s oldest refugee organisation, first established in the 1880s to help Russian Jews fleeing from pogroms resettle in the United States. Since then, HIAS Europe has had a strong presence throughout Europe, resettling hundreds of thousands of European Jews fleeing from violence and conflict. Today, HIAS Europe is a global humanitarian organization with thousands of employees in 22 countries dedicated to helping forcibly displaced persons, irrespective of their background. During more than a century of activity, HIAS Europe has helped more than 4.5 million people escape persecution worldwide »
EuroChanukah is organised every year by the European Jewish Community Centre (EJCC).
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, will celebrate Chanukah on Monday 19 December by lighting the flame on a large menorah in front of the European Commission’s headquarters in the Brussels EU quarter.
As part of the cultural agenda of Brussels, the city’s Mayor Philippe Close will light the second candle of Chanukah.
The event is seen as a strong sign for the European Jewish community in the wake of the EU’ clear commitment to ensuring a Jewish future and fostering Jewish life as laid out in the EU Commission’s new strategy for combatting resurgent antisemitism and fostering Jewish life in Europe.
European ambassadors and civil servants are expêcted to attend the event.
The lighting, which is organized in partnership with the European Jewish Association and the City of Brussels, will take place on Monday at 18:00 on Schuman Square and will be followed by a concert from the singer Haim Tzvi.
Chanukah, the Jewish festival of lights, is one of the most popular Jewish holidays worldwide. Candles are lit over 8 days to remember the miracle of one day’s worth of oil lasting eight following the reconsecration of the Temple in Jerusalem. Its message of hope, light and emancipation resonates are universal and timely. Celebrations worldwide are attended by heads of states who often light their own candles.
In addition to Monday’s lighting, Chanukah will also be celebrated the next day in the European Commission with the presence of the European Commissioner Janez Lenarčič, honoring Hias Europe, the world’s oldest refugee organisation, first established in the 1880s to help Russian Jews fleeing from pogroms resettle in the United States. Since then, HIAS Europe has had a strong presence throughout Europe, resettling hundreds of thousands of European Jews fleeing from violence and conflict. Today, HIAS Europe is a global humanitarian organization with thousands of employees in 22 countries dedicated to helping forcibly displaced persons, irrespective of their background. During more than a century of activity, HIAS Europe has helped more than 4.5 million people escape persecution worldwide »
EuroChanukah is organised every year by the European Jewish Community Centre (EJCC).
Chief of European Jewish Association says Major EU Conference on Shechitah is “Too Little but not Too Late.”
The European Jewish Association were participants at a major gathering in Brussels of Jewish leaders, civil society leaders, jurists, politicians and special envoys at European Commission Headquarters today. 2022
Chairman of the European Jewish Association, Rabbi Menachem Margolin, said in a statement:
“The Conference held today by the European Commission is too little but not too late.
“We are proud to be the Jewish voice of Europe and to fight on issues that some regard as unpopular.
“We thank the Commission for agreeing to our repeated pleas and finally addressing the issue of Freedom of Religion in Europe, in this case on Religious Slaughter. It is a much-needed step in the right direction.
“However, today’s conference must not give anyone the feeling that the issue can be marked with a tick or glossed over with well-meaning words.
“We expect, going forwards, that the European Commission will make every effort to secure the support of all European governments for legislation that would enshrine the issue of religious freedom in law to ensure the continued existence of Jewish life in Europe.
“Make no mistake, the issue of the Freedom of Religion, whilst not grabbing the headlines that antisemitism does, is every bit as important. Because without this freedom to practice, and to live a Jewish life, there can be no Jewish future in Europe.
“We stand today at a crossroads, whilst conferences like this are too little, they are a reminder that it is not too late to go in the right direction.”
We at the EJA also like to start the New Year on the right footing. And what better way to do that than to gather our friends and supporters together.
In co-operation with European Parliament vice-president Nicola Beer and the Czech presidency of the European Union, our sister organisation the EJCC and with speeches from Ambassadors of Israel, the US, Czech Republic, and parliamentary and diplomatic attendees from across the continent, we talked about the importance of the holiday, heard the Shofar, dipped apples into honey and spent a lovely evening eating and drinking with our political and diplomatic friends and supporters, all accompanied by a piano performance by piano maestro and friend of the EJA Tzachi Solsky.
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It’s a challenging time for Jewish communities in Europe. Anti-Semitism is on the rise as populism and the politics of the lowest common denominator are gaining traction. Our communities often need round the clock protection and our practices and customs such as keeping Kosher are under pressure from increasing political interference.
