July 27, 2012
By royal invitation of Cambodian King, Norodom Sihamoni earlier
this month, Chabad-Lubavitch representative to Phnom Penh, Rabbi
Bentzion Butman, attended an official celebration of the country’s Arbor
Day. The celebration took place on the farm of Jew ish community
member, Mr. Kobi Simon,in the Siem Reap province.
Rabbi Butman,
who was honored with a seat on stage next to the king, had the
opportunity to personally interact with the monarch and thank him for
the warm hospitality the kingdom offers Jewish residents and visitors.
“I blessed the King on behalf of the Jewish community with
aspecial Jewish blessing said upon seeing royalty,” Rabbi Butman said.
“His Majesty the King responded emotionally to the blessing. He is a
spiritual person and expressed real interest in its meaning. I wasn’t
comfortable taking much of his time and initially tried to explain it
briefly, but he insisted I say more. The King’s crew was surprised at
the length of our conversation.”
Rabbi Butman then accompanied the
King’s entourage on a tour of the greenhouses during which he explained
the Judaic interpretation of a farmer’s special partnership with G-d.
“He was very receptive to the idea, and thankful.”
Concluding
the tour, the King gave Rabbi Butman a silver jewelry box as royal
present and a sign of mutual respect between the Jewish community and
the Cambodian royal house.
The Chabad House of Phnom Penh caters
to 160 local Jewish residents and a steady stream of Jewish visitors,
backpackers, tourists and business people.
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