Jewish leaders welcome Germany’s new president
by BERLIN (JTA) -- If past actions are a prediction for the future, then the recent election of Johannes Rau as Germany's next pres, Rau, the son of a Protestant minister, has been "very active for much of his life in Jewish-Christian dialogue and has lots of c
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In his acceptance speech, Rau promised to uphold the values of not only Germans, but of "humanity."
"I will never be a nationalist, but definitely a patriot," Rau said. "A patriot is someone who loves his fatherland, but a nationalist is someone who hates the homelands of others."
A member of Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's Social Democratic Party, the 68-year-old Rau will replace the Christian Democratic Union Party's incumbent, Roman Herzog, on July 1.
Herzog, 65, who in his five-year term earned the respect of Jewish organizations worldwide, in May received a humanitarian award from the Anti-Defamation League for fighting bigotry, xenophobia and anti-Semitism in Germany.
The position of president is largely ceremonial, but it carries moral weight and is known as the voice of Germany's conscience.
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