site.btaPresident Plevneliev Attends Celebration of Hanukkah

President Plevneliev Attends Celebration of  Hanukkah

Sofia, December 27 (BTA) - "Throughout my mandate I shared the festal days of all the major religious denominations in Bulgaria and I have felt a welcome guest, just as Christians, Muslims, Jews and others have felt welcome in the homes of their friends and neighbours. Let us preserve the tolerance and respect between all members of society we have inherited from our forefathers," President Rosen Plevneliev said. He was speaking at Monday's solemn ceremony of the kindling of the lights for the Festival of Lights (Hanukkah) at the Central Synagogue in Sofia, the Press Secretariat of the Head of State said.

Plevneliev kindled the distinct candle on the menorah candelabrum, which is a message for peace, understanding and success.

Bulgarian citizens have repeatedly shown that their hearts are open for the sorrow of others, that they are ready to share with their brethren even the little that they have, Plevneliev said. He expressed gratitude to the Shalom organisation for their initiative titled "Do good, help Hitrino", which is a true gesture of solidarity and humanism.

The Bulgarian President wished that the lights of the Hanukkah candelabrum and the Christmas tree should make people recall that everyone can find the strength to overcome the hopelessness of darkness. He also called for resurrection of goodness and for a preserved honesty in relations between people.

The fact that there are two identical monuments dedicated to the salvation of Bulgarian Jews in World War II shows that they will always be a reminder that even the smallest community, even a single person, can make the world better and more just, the President recalled.