Chief Rabbi of Israel lit the first Chanukah candle at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate, joined by Germany’s president, transforming a symbol of persecution into light, unity, resilience, and solidarity against anti-Semitism • Full Astory, Photos, Video
Fighting Hate With Light: German President Joins Israel’s Chief Rabbi at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate
By Chabadifno Reporter
The event was held as part of the “Journey of Light” organized by the Rabbinical Center of Europe (RCE), marking the festival of Chanukah in Jewish communities across Germany. The headline event took place in Berlin, led by its Chief Rabbi, Rabbi Yehuda Teichtal, a member of the RCE, and was accompanied by events in Hamburg, Bremen, Hanover, and Munich.
The ceremony was attended by Rabbonim, community leaders, public officials, Holocaust survivors, and many guests.
The Brandenburg Gate — once a symbol of persecution, oppression, and institutionalized anti-Semitism — was transformed into a stage of light, faith, and renewal. The Chief Rabbi of Israel, Rabbi Kalman Ber, lit the first Chanukah candle, dedicating the occasion first and foremost to Holocaust survivors and to the Jewish generation that chose to continue living, believing, and kindling light precisely in the place where others once sought to extinguish it.
In his remarks, the Chief Rabbi delivered a clear and resolute message in the face of today’s challenging global reality, particularly against the backdrop of terror attacks and acts of hatred targeting Jews. He called on governments and the free world not to surrender to violence and terror, emphasizing that, especially in difficult times — and especially on the very day the world learned of the brutal and murderous attack in Australia — the lighting of Chanukah candles is a moral statement: “we illuminate the darkness and reject the shadows that evildoers seek to impose upon the world.”
Adding to the emotional moment was a significant surprise: German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier arrived especially to attend the ceremony, expressing deep solidarity with the Jewish nation and with the Jewish community in Germany. His presence at this time and place was widely seen as a clear declaration against anti-Semitism and a strong commitment to historical memory and to a shared future of dignity and security.
“The Journey of Light of the Rabbinical Centre of Europe is meant to strengthen Jewish communities, to give them support during a challenging period,” Rabbi Aryeh Goldberg, CEO of the Rabbinical Centre of Europe, said. “And to raise a clear Jewish voice of faith, responsibility, and hope — even, and perhaps especially, in the very places where there were once attempts to destroy it.”
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