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These guys who sent the card you see have signed a cohabitation pact in happiness. They punched it (the card) in Munich, Germany, at the Jewish Museum! Yes, yes, make the connections…- Details
USA: In the ritual celebration that takes place every year at the White House, this year the candles were lit by the President of Israel Reuven Rivlin in the presence of the President of the USA Mr. Barack Obama and his wife. "Whether it is defending the dignity of refugees, or fighting anti-Semitism or any other form of discrimination and intolerance against any religion, or supporting our ally, the State of Israel, we must raise our voices for security and the dignity of every human being. This is the challenge we are called to face in this year's Hanukkah season," said American President Obama.
ENGLAND: The ceremony to celebrate Hanukkah this year was hosted in the Parliament of England and was under the auspices of the Minister without Portfolio Mr. Robert Halfon. The ceremony was attended by 80 MPs and friends of the BOD of England (BOD) who were welcomed by its president, Mr. JonathanArkush. The candles were lit by representatives of the Government, the opposition, Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis and the chairman of the BOD.
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We are republishing Rabbi DAVID ROSEN's interview with Margarita Pournara, which was published in the "ARTS" insert of the SUNDAY DAILY 1.11.15, and in the electronic edition of the newspaper:
In Greece we almost ignore the term "religious diplomacy", commonly the public charm and attractive extroversion that a doctrine can have on believers of other religions. But if one gets to know Rabbi David Rosen up close, one realizes that he perfectly embodies the crucial role of the bridge builder. Indeed, in recent years, when the interreligious dialogue is flourishing, personalities of such stature, such as our ecumenical patriarch Mr. Bartholomew, they are indeed doing great work on the world chessboard in matters of fine balance. One would venture a conclusion: while traditional intellectuals and people of the spirit are perplexed by the signs of the times, some religious leaders are redefining the conversation about what unites us rather than what divides us.
Rabbi Rosen, director of Interfaith Affairs of the American-Jewish Committee (AJC American Jewish Committee), was in our country a few days ago, to take part in two international meetings held in Athens. The first was organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on the topic of "Religious and Cultural Pluralism and Peaceful Coexistence in the Middle East", and the second, on the topic of "Spiritual Centers and Diaspora", was held under the auspices of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the American-Jewish Commission ( American Jewish Committee-AJC), in the context of the 25th Anniversary of Full Israel-Greece Diplomatic Relations. We met him at the home of Israel's ambassador Irit Ben-Abba. Presentable and warm, he agreed to speak on a wide range of topics, including anti-Semitism, one day before another case of desecration occurred at the Athens Israelite Cemetery in Nice.
More: RABBI DAVID ROSEN INTERVIEW: A WORLD WITH RELIGIOUS TENSION
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An exciting one video uploaded to you tube in these days of violence in israel. As characteristically writes the user Eitan Chitayat, who uploaded the video: "With all this violence against us, the hatred, the encouragement of murder, the abusive words, the missiles, the knives, the stones and the deafening silence of the world, maybe the As Jews we have forgotten that we should be proud of our cultural heritage, achievements and spirit. Just like every other person on this planet. And we shouldn't be ashamed of them.
Stand up, speak freely and hold your head up. We will get through this because we love life and are strong and smart and funny and beautiful and talented and adaptable and resilient and educated and hardworking and positive and so much more. We are ok. Actually we are more than OK. We rock"! This video is a little reminder." WATCH THE VIDEO
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by DIMITRIS K. APOSTOLOPOULOS*
The prosecution of Germans, who were responsible for cruel reprisals and inhumane crimes against the Greek people during the Occupation, is one of the most difficult chapters in the history of the first post-war period. The guilty, with few exceptions, were not punished for their actions. From the early 1950s, the desire of both the successor to the Third Reich, the Federal Republic of Germany, and Greece to settle the issue of war criminals to the benefit of bilateral relations became clear. The two sides, however, differed on the method. Athens agreed to refer the cases to the German authorities on the condition that the German Judiciary would take over the matter. For its part, Bonn preferred to close the issue once and for all with a political decision of the Greek government, without judicial proceedings.
In 1952 (with Law 2058) the Greek Justice had already sent about two hundred related cases to the German authorities for further prosecution and it still had about six hundred war criminal cases remaining. In December 1954, Athens proposed to refer another 250 cases, but Bonn, which wanted to close the issue without its own actions, rejected the proposal - arguing that the implementation of the Greek proposal would not only significantly burden the German Judiciary, but it would also cause publicity. In the bilateral negotiations of June 1956, Germany requested that the prosecution of war criminals by the Greek authorities be temporarily suspended in order to prepare the German Judiciary to settle the matter.