Sukkot and The New Europe: Parallel Themes

Father and son, Chabad representatives Rabbis Shimon and Mendel Samama, put up the first sukkah in Strasbourg, home to the European Parliament.

Joining them in the sukkah at a cocktail reception on Sunday were government representatives of the European Council and of the Court for Human Rights. Among them, the Israeli Ambassador Gilber Ross, and Permanent Representative of Bosnia and Herzegovina to the Council of Europe, Ambassador Igor Gaon, who participated in the mitzvah of lulav, and then shared in a toast of L’chaim!

“Sukkot represents the unity of the Jewish people,” said Rabbi Samama, reflecting on the four species that are held together in the mitzvah of lulav and etrog. Rabbi Samama explained that the mitzvah is symbolic of a unity that transcends differences, drawing a parallel with the goals of the new Europe, “which is effecting a transformation for the improvement of humankind.”