Knesset Member Proposes Commemorative Day for the Rebbe

By COLlive reporter

Member of the Israeli Knesset Dan Illouz of the governing Likud party submitted a bill seeking to establish an annual day to commemorate the memory and work of the Rebbe, “whose presence and work in Jewish communities worldwide are felt day by day, hour by hour, in every corner of the globe.”

According to the bill, this special day will be observed each year on the Hebrew date of the 3rd of Tammuz, yartzeit of the Rebbe.

According to this proposed law, the day will be marked in the Knesset, state institutions, and education system, with dedicated time for studying the Rebbe’s spiritual and educational work and vision – “the greatest leader that the Jewish people have seen in the 21st century,” according to Illouz.

“The Lubavitcher Rebbe tirelessly worked to strengthen Jewish identity throughout the world,” Illouz said. “He was a man of both thought and action, an educator, and a spiritual leader of global stature who greatly influenced the education of ethics and values, and is considered one of the greatest Torah scholars of recent generations.

“My family was greatly influenced by the Rebbe,” he added. “They were strengthened through his emissaries even in Canada, and began observing Shabbos and living a religious lifestyle because of him.”

Illouz, 37, served as a Jerusalem city council member. He was born to Moroccan Jewish parents in Montreal, Canada and has a degree in law from McGill University and a degree in public policy from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He made Aliya at the age of 23.

“It is reasonable to assume that I would not be here as a Member of Knesset in Israel without him,” he said.

Referring to Education Day USA, which is declared annually by the sitting president on the Rebbe’s birthday, Illouz said: “In the United States, this day is already established, and it is proper and fitting that we honor his legacy here in Israel as well.”