Benzion Netanyahu, 1910-2012
PM Netanyahu with his father, Benzion Netanyahu
Our deepest condolences to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu on the passing of his father, Benzion Netanyahu, this morning. Several years ago, the Prime Minister said of his father:
You taught me, Father, how to correctly view reality, how to understand what it contains within it and draw the necessary conclusions. It certainly wasn’t an easy thing for you, because there were always those who did not see as you did, ridiculed, laughed at or belittled your conclusions. But I believe that in this, as well, you taught me to distinguish between the important and the unimportant, and concentrate on the important.
In Judaism, upon learning that someone had died, we say Baruch Dayan haEmet, which translates to, “blessed be the Judge of truth.” This phrase acknowledges that the deceased has passed out of the realm of human judgment and into the realm of God’s judgment. Only God can know a person’s soul but, if our prayers carry any influence, we believe Prof. Netanyahu merits a place among the righteous in olam habah – the world to come.
Comments (13) »Monday, April 30th, 2012 at 7:43 AM | Rabbi Jonathan Greenberg
Chicago stands with Israel!
Just a block away from The Fellowship‘s headquarters, the City of Chicago celebrated Israel’s independence day at Daley Plaza. There was a performance by Re-Vital Israel, a renowned theater dance group, and a flash mob was put together (watch the video below!) — all in honor of Israel’s 64th birthday!
This week in Chicago there was also a ceremony for Israel’s Remembrance Day that took place at Beth Hillel Congregation of Bnai Emunah. The event was co-sponsored by Jewish United Federation of Metropolian Chicago and the consulate general of Israel to the Midwest.
We’re proud that our hometown stands with Israel!
Thursday, April 26th, 2012 at 3:54 PM | Stand for Israel
More miracles to come
There’s an old joke about Jewish music – both folk and liturgical – that you really only need two or three chords so long as they’re in a minor key. It does seem like a lot of our music is sorrowful. But, well, so is a lot of our history. Culture reflects reality.
I’ve always been struck by the Israeli national anthem, Hatikva. Not because it’s beautiful (which it is) or deeply touching (which it is), but because it is simultaneously sad and uplifting. I’m no expert on national anthems, but the few that I know are all basically upbeat.
Hatikva
As long as in the inner heart
A Jewish soul still yearns
And onward, toward the ends of the East
And eye still gazes toward Zion
Then our hope is not lost
The hope of two thousand years
To be a free people in our land
The land of Zion and Jerusalem
The original version (the words of which are slightly different) is from a poem written in the 1880s by Naphtali Herz Imber, a secular Jew from Zloczow, now Zolochiv, in present-day Ukraine. In the 1880s, of course, there was no State of Israel, so the lyrics make perfect sense.
Comments (10) »Thursday, April 26th, 2012 at 10:49 AM | Rabbi Jonathan Greenberg
A message from Bibi on Israel’s 64th Independence Day
Thursday, April 26th, 2012 at 8:33 AM | Stand for Israel
Israel turns 64 – What a blessing!
Independence eve in Tel Aviv's Rabin Square
Israel is celebrating its 64th Independence Day this year! And, similar to the many 4th of July celebrations I enjoyed while growing up in New York, Israelis will be out barbequing in parks, beaches, backyards, and picnic spots.
In Israel, signs of the upcoming Independence Day can be felt the moment that Passover ends. Every year on the day after Passover, everyone takes their Israeli flags out of storage and hangs them alongside their homes, cars, lamp-posts – nearly any visible place where you can attach a blue and white Israeli flag.
Israeli Independence Day is celebrated lightheartedly with good food, music, and dance, yet in so many ways it is a very serious day for the Jewish people. Everyone here in Israel is acutely aware of the dangers we face as a nation, and no Independence Day is taken for granted. Even as a little boy living in New York, I understood the significance of the State of Israel for the Jewish people, and before reaching grade school I had already told my mother that one day I would return to Israel.
That dream came true when, seven years ago, my wife and I left our families and loved ones in the U.S. and made aliyah to Israel. While we greatly miss our relatives and friends in the U.S. who cannot attend our children’s birthday parties, school plays, and other events, we’re grateful when we hear our children speak Hebrew and sing songs about Jerusalem. Our children’s relationship to Jerusalem was not learned from story books or photographs. To them, Jerusalem is their home, their birthplace – and that is such a source of joy to us.
As I picked my daughter up from kindergarten today, she was carrying an Israeli flag. Like everyone in her grade we sent her to school wearing blue and white today, and like everyone in her class, she came home singing songs about the Holy…
Read More » Comments (13) »Wednesday, April 25th, 2012 at 2:57 PM | Amichai Farkas
"informing, equipping and mobilizing individuals and churches to support the
State of Israel"
State of Israel"
Recent Posts
Paratroopers at the Western Wall, 45 years later
Iranian official: Iran still committed to "full annihilation" of Israel
Indivisible Jerusalem — An interactive, panoramic view of the Holy City
Jerusalem Day Quiz
Photo Friday celebrates Yom Yerushalayim
