Rabbi Elchonon Baron, aJewish activist who works towards furthering Jewish causes, sat down withblogger Jonathan Braun to discuss the Lithuanian government’s recentrecognition of the Vilna Gaon’s 300th anniversary of the birth of Vilna GaonElijah ben Solomon Zalman. See FullDetails about the Lithuanian government’sannouncement.
On a sunny summer dayin Jerusalem, as prayer attendees and visitors at the Western Wall donned masksto protect against the coronavirus, Rabbi Baron collected his thoughts.
He expressed hispleasure that the new and free Lithuanian government had finally recognized itsjoint history with the Jewish people and the contribution which the Jewishcommunity had given to Lithuania and to the world, pointedly in the heritagepromoted and developed by the Vilna Gaon and his disciples.
“However sadly,” saidRabbi Baron. “It is ironical that the same Lithuanian government which isgiving that gesture of appreciation to the Jewish community, is also ignoringthe rights of both the living Jewish descendants of Lithuania and the dead, byactively promoting a terrible desecration of the most important and largestJewish cemetery in Lithuania (the Old Vilna Jewish Cemetery at Piramónt in Šnipiškės/ Shnípishok) by planning to buildthe VilniusCongress Centre (a conference centre), on the site of the samecemetery as the Vilna Gaon was buried and on which his family are still buried.”
Rabbi Baron is part ofan action group which is spearheading a campaign to stop the construction ofthe conference centre (Vilnius Congress Centre) by the Lithuanian government.You can learn more about the campaign on the Save Vilna website.
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Website:savevilna.org
JonathanBraun
