In honor of Jerusalem Day, following is one of my favorite quotations of S.Y. Agnon, who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1966, from the collection of his short stories “Within the Walls”, (the Hebrew follows the English translation; I take responsibility for the latter): There are places in Jerusalem that are familiar…Continue readingOccupy Oneself with Jerusalem
Starting Sunday evening, May 9 through Monday, May 10 we observe “Yom Yerushalayim” – Jerusalem Day, marking the day on the Hebrew calendar when the Old City of Jerusalem (and especially the Kotel – the Western Wall), was liberated during the Six-day War and became part of one united Jerusalem under Israeli control. For many…Continue readingLight and Jerusalem / אור וירושלים
The State of Israel is celebrating its 73th year of independence this week (April 14 eve-15 in 2021), which is always preceded by a very sombre Memorial Day – Yom Hazikaron. This year we memorialized the 23,928 soldiers that fell in defending the State. The dramatic events leading up to the Declaration of the State…Continue reading10 Curious Facts About the Birth of the State of Israel
Where is ‘Wilfrid Israel’ Street in Jerusalem? Sorry, you could look on Waze or Google Maps, but you won’t find a street in Jerusalem (or elsewhere in Israel) named for Wilfrid Israel: a remarkable Jew, and proud German, who saved many more Jews than Oskar Schindler – before and during the Holocaust. However, in the…Continue readingWilfrid Israel: The Humble Hero of German Jewry
(a composite from the Hebrew press, February 18, 2021) Maher Ibrahim (see picture below) is a Muslim who lives in the bedouin village of Daburiyya at the foot of Mt. Tabor. He works as the head nurse in the Covid-19 ward in Ha’Emek Hospital in Afula in the north of Israel. Recently he found himself…Continue readingA Muslim Nurse says “Sh’ma Yisrael” for a Dying Jewish Patient
Joe Freedman, Ed.D.(In honor of International Holocaust Memorial Day, January 27) “A good name is better than fragrant oil” (Ecclesiastes 7:1) Did you know that Jerusalem has a street named: רחוב צביה ויצחק“Rehov Tziviya ve-Yitzhak” (Zivia and Yitzhak street)? Jerusalem – as well as most cities in Israel – is super meticulous about naming streets.…Continue readingZivia and Yitzhak Street: A Holocaust Survival Story
