THIS WEEK'S TRIBUNE  THIS WEEK'S TRIBUNE Hundreds join B’nai Brith and Chabad in Parliament Hill Sukkah
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Hundreds join B’nai Brith and Chabad in Parliament Hill Sukkah |
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Written by Lynne Cohen
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Tuesday, 13 October 2009 |
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OTTAWA – About 200 MPs, B’nai Brith members, Chabadniks, staff and officials, as well as invited guests enjoyed an almost rain-free sukkah party on Parliament Hill in the quaint East Block Courtyard last Tuesday evening during Cholamoid Sukkos.
While a klezmer musician walked among the crowd playing his accordion and dark clouds threatened to storm overhead, attendees, drinking red wine or chardonnay and nibbling on lox, bagels, pasta, tuna salad and pastries, wandered in and out of the small 20-foot by 20-foot area sukkah erected for the occassion.
Sponsored by B’nai Brith Canada and the Canadian Federation of Chabad Lubavitch, the two-hour party included only two very short speeches.
“The Jewish people stayed in sukkot when we wandered for 40 years in the dessert,” said Rabbi Chaim Mendelshon, national director of public affairs for the Canadian Federation of Chabad Lubavitch. “The sukkah – though very fragile – helped keep us warm when wind was cold and cool when it was hot. But though it provides some shelter, the sukkah is a vulnerable building. We know that it is G-d that protects us always.”
Frank Dimant, CEO of B’nai Brith Canada, asked why “this basically secular organization is here at a religious event?” He answered: to remind the government of Canada that the Jewish community is fragile – like the sukkah – and needs to be protected.
“Not all Jews live under a government that they can rely on for safety and security,” he said. “Not every country has the kind of government that Jews can go to for help. Canada is about the strongest sukkah in the world.”
One Chabad rabbi at the party told the Jewish Tribune that the Conservative government under Prime Minister Stephen Harper was doing so well in the polls because of its attitude towards the Jewish community.
“The Torah says ‘those who bless Israel will be blessed and those who curse Israel will be cursed.’ I don’t think it is a coincidence that Harper is so popular right now.”
Though none spoke publicly at the event, MPs from every political party – including a cabinet minister or two – privately expressed their delight at participating in the Jewish holiday. |
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 21 October 2009 )
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