As Jerusalem Day begins, I share these reflections on the holy city – what it means and what it has meant to different people and different traditions.  Like the city itself, the various comments both compliment and contradict each other.  My personal reflections for this Yom Yerushalayim, Jerusalem Day, will be posted later. “For three…

President Obama issued the following statement in recognition of Israel’s Independence Day – Yom Ha’atzmaut, in Hebrew.  Like so much of what the President has done regarding Israel, the words are all right, (the unbreakable bond between our two nations, the necessity to pursue peace for the security of our two nations and that of…

Today is Yom Hazikaron, Israel’s Memorial Day – a day on which, pretty much regardless of politics, everybody in Israel, or who cares about Israel, takes note of the losses of those who have fallen.  Israel is a small country, and one in which most people serve in the military, so unlike in America, the…

Today, March 17th 2011, is Ta’anit Esther, the Fast of Esther, observed before Purim which begins this Saturday night. This is one of those years when the fast before the feast feels especially needed and especially important. The practice is based on the words found in the biblical Book of Esther, 4:15-16, “Then Esther sent…

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