LITHUANIAN AND JEWISH COMMUNITY MEMBERS SHARED TRADITIONS OF CELEBRATING CHANUKAH AND CHRISTMAS EVE
On December 11, members of local Lithuanian and Jewish communities gathered to the Embassy of Lithuania in Washington DC to share the traditions of celebrating Chanukah and Christmas Eve. „Chanukah/Kūčios Celebration“ was one of the first initiatives of the informal forum for mutual understanding that was formed in November between the Washington DC Lithuanian and Jewish communities. The Forum aims to strengthening communication between Jewish and Lithuanian communities, educating and engaging youth, and reviving Jewish- Lithuanian heritage projects. During the well-attended celebration children played games, sang Chanukah and Christmas songs, made crafts, presentations of their traditions and feasted on traditional meals.
Bishop Barry C. Knestout, Roman Catholic Bishop, and Rabbis Deborah Bodin Cohen, Adam Raskin, Elhanan Schnitzer and Ken Cohen wished everyone peace and joy.
Žygimantas Pavilionis, Lithuanian Ambassador to the U.S. encouraged members of the Lithuanian and Jewish communities to have a more active cooperation: “I would like to see all cultural communities that have lived in Lithuania since a long time ago to be the ones creating modern Lithuania,” said Pavilionis.
Diana Vidutis, Chairman of the Washington Lithuanian community and Harley Felstein, Founder of the Jewish Lithuanian Heritage Project and the Sunflower Project invited the members of both communities to continue working on common projects in the future.
The youth exchange program is another common project of the nformal forum for mutual understanding.
