Independent Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut closed on the purchase of a new home in Stamford on Tuesday and celebrated by affixing mezuzahs to its doors. As soon as the ink was dry on the documents, the three-term senator and one time presidential candidate asked Rabbi Yisrael and Aviva Deren, co-directors of the Stamford-based Chabad-Lubavitch of Fairfield County, to come by to assist with the mezuzahs and with the necessary steps to kosher the condominium's kitchen.

Lieberman announced in June that he was moving from his long-time home of New Haven, Conn., to Stamford, where he grew up, to be closer to his children living in New York City. He recently returned from a congressional trip to India, China and several other Asian countries, and while he was overseas he e-mailed Deren expressing amazement at the work of Chabad-Lubavitch emissaries every place he visited.

Using the Hebrew term for the emissaries, he told Deren on Tuesday: "My love for the shluchim just keeps growing and growing."