In a rare and highly symbolic move during wartime, the hall of the German Bundestag saw an unusual sight today as 150 of the Rebbe’s shluchim and other rabbis from countries across Europe gathered in the parliament building in Berlin for a special event hosted by the German authorities.

The rabbis, representing a wide range of communities and traditions throughout Europe, convened as part of a special conference organized by the Rabbinical Centre of Europe and hosted by Berlin’s Chief Rabbi and shliach, Rabbi Yehuda Teichtal.

Seated around long tables beneath the building’s modern glass dome, they held discussions on the pressing challenges facing Jewish communities across the continent, including the sharp rise in antisemitism, strengthening support for the Jewish people during the war, and reinforcing Jewish education and shlichus among the younger generation.

A highlight of the gathering was a special video address by Israel’s Chief Rabbi, Rabbi Kalman Bar, who spoke to the assembled rabbis and shluchim and encouraged their work strengthening Jewish life across Europe.

At the conclusion of his remarks, the shluchim sang “Ani Maamin” with deep emotion in the very building where, more than eighty years earlier, the Nazi regime used Germany’s parliament as a symbol of its power and persecution of the Jewish people.

“To gather here in the Bundestag, eighty years after the Holocaust, is not something to be taken for granted,” Rabbi Teichtal said with emotion. “Germany is sending a clear and unequivocal message of support for the Jewish people. At the same time, this gathering reflects the ongoing resurgence of the Jewish people and the flourishing of Jewish life in Germany in general, and in Berlin in particular.”

The event carried deep symbolic meaning, especially in light of the ongoing war in Israel and the sharp increase in antisemitic incidents across Europe. Many of the participants noted that being hosted in the German parliament itself was a powerful statement of opposition to hatred and a show of support for Jewish communities throughout Europe.

Earlier in the day, the rabbis visited Berlin’s famous Brandenburg Gate, where they posed for a group photo as media cameras and television crews captured the moment. They sang “Ani Maamin” and “Oseh Shalom” before breaking out into a spirited dance to the Rosh Chodesh Kislev niggun.

“Am Yisroel Chai is not just a slogan,” Rabbi Teichtal said. “These rabbis, who successfully lead Jewish communities across Europe and who stand here today, are the greatest answer to the Nazis and the brightest expression of the Jewish people’s continuity.”

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