Hindu and Jewish communities celebrate festivals together
Around 100 members of the Jewish and Hindu communities gathered in Sydney for a joint interfaith Chanukah/Diwali event organised by the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies (JBD) and the Hindu Council of Australia.
President of the Hindu Council of Australia, Prakash Mehta, Jewish Board of Deputies president David Ossip, JBD chief operating officer Lauren Alagh and CEO Darren Bark
The event was an opportunity for the two communities to reflect on their close friendship and achievements over the past year and to celebrate their respective Festivals of Light.
Attendees enjoyed musical performances, speeches, a video about the close cultural links between the Jewish and Hindu communities, traditional food, and the menorah lighting.
Earlier this year, the JBD and the Hindu Council were instrumental in making it an offence to publicly display the Nazi symbol in NSW without a reasonable excuse.
JBD president David Ossip told J-Wire, “It was a wonderful event which highlighted the warm ties that the NSW Jewish community enjoys with the Hindu community. We greatly value the close relationship which has developed between our two communities and as 2022 comes to an end, I thank the Hindu Council of Australia for the work we have undertaken together over the year on so many fronts, including our joint campaign to persuade the Parliament to criminalise the display of Nazi symbols.”
