Israeli President Reuven Rivlin on Wednesday morning went into the President's Residence garden together with Sephardic Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef, to make the blessing on flowering fruit trees.
Rivlin said, "The President's Residence is honored to host the Sephardic Chief Rabbi for the annual blessing of the trees. This blessing refers both to the Torah, and to the Land of Israel.
"We have returned to our land, and to our homeland, and put down roots here. The beauty, the ability, and the creativity the land gives all who live here is one of the most important things we have here in Israel."
Rabbi Yosef said, "Honored President, we are blessing the trees, and this strengthens our faith in G-d. A person takes a seed, sows it, places it in the ground, and three days later it puts down roots. Eventually, the seed grows into a tree which bears fruit.
"Each fruit has a different taste, and provides different vitamins. These are the miracles of creation. This is the reason why one makes a special blessing the first time each year one sees a flowering fruit tree."
Rabbi Yosef also blessed Rivlin with health and long life.
Rivlin thanked him warmly, and blessed the entire nation of Israel with fruitful and flowering days.