Israel Embassy Hanukkah party features White House spokesman, Pittsburgh rabbi
The party occurred between White House Hanukkah receptions, which Dermer and Sanders attended as well.
By MICHAEL WILNERAll Rabbinic commentaries agree that the light of Hanukkah candles may not be used for our own benefit - we are not even permitted to use the light from the flames to read in a dimly lit room(photo credit: REUTERS)
WASHINGTON — An annual Hanukkah reception at the Israeli embassy in Washington this year included White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Tree of Life Rabbi Jeffrey Myers as honored guests.Both figures lit candles on a menorah on loan from the synagogue located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which witnessed a massacre of its congregants in October.At the event, Israel’s ambassador Ron Dermer praises continued bipartisan support for Israel— including aid commitments made under former President Barack Obama and the work of Rep. Ted Deutsch of Florida, who also lit a candle— while hailing the Trump administration as the most favorable to Israel in history.The party occurred between White House Hanukkah receptions, which Dermer and Sanders attended as well.At those affairs, US President Donald Trump received a politically-friendly crowd and touted his support for Israel, his opposition to Iran, and his commitment to the Jews worldwide.“We reaffirm our unbreakable solidarity with the Jewish people,” Trump said.
