An old joke waiting to be told:
How many Jews does it take to open the Ark and take out the Torah? Normally, the answer is one. Ok, I’ve seen in some synagouges two. How about three?
Background: The synagouge service on days were the Torah includes an honor called “peticha” which litterally means “opening”. The honor is bestowed on a member or guest to go an open the Ark where the Torah scrolls are kept. He then takes out one of the Torahs and hands it to the Chazan (cantor) who brings the Torah to the bimah where it is unwound and read.
Three beats one: I was visiting a synagogue in Chicago. This is a typical modern-orthodox American model. Here, the ceremony is as important as the actual prayers. Spotted as a guest, I was asked by the gabbai to go and take out the Torah and hand it to the chazan.
I walked up to the Ark and I saw two other men standing there as well. I turned back to the gabbai and asked what gives. He said each of the men would open one of the doors of the Ark and I would then take out the Torah.
Punchline: I said, “if you need three guys to open the Ark, how many men does it take to do Hagbah (lifting the Torah after the reading)?”
In case it wasn’t already clear, in Israel we are used to brass-tacks prayers. No time for ceremony. Just like the Israeli people. We are an open and warm people, and we don’t stand on ceremony.
Share your experiences What have you noticed different in your experiences in the Diaspora than what you are used to in Israel? Likewise, if you are from the Diaspora, what do you notice different when you visit the Holy Land?
Those who attended the Shemeshfest Sukkot festival last week at the Bet Shemesh ampitheater were treated to a talented local rock group named “Rockiah” – the English name of the band is a play on their Hebrew name ???? (The Earth’s Firmament), and their American rock music roots.
Rockiah are Yehudah David (vocals, guitars), Zvi Newman (bass), and David Epstein (drums). Eli Krantman joined them on backing vocals.
Yehudah, Zvi, and David all live in Ramat Bet Shemesh and are olim from the USA.
I spoke with Zvi about the origins of Rockiah and what they hope to accomplish. Zvi told me they are all married with kids and come from different backgrounds, but their music speaks one language.
“Rockiah is about fusing the raw power of rock music with the spiritual inspiration of the Jewish mekorot (written sources). Yehudah is influenced by Van Halen and other power-pop artists, so his guitar playing is among the wildest on the scene. Dave’s drumming is influenced by punk, so we have a harder-driving sound in our shows – and his aggressive fills make you take notice. I’m influenced by John Entwistle of The Who, so the bass surprises the crowd with “stolen” solos that bubble up from underneath. And Yehudah’s singing overflows with pure heart and soul.”
“Rockiah’s music is written entirely by Yehudah, while the lyrics are straight out of the Psalms and various prayers. It’s meant to be lively and catchy for the audience, and it’s challenging for the musicians – the chords change every few seconds, so we have to be on our toes. Also, we love to improvise solos off the top of our heads – but all of this is meant to augment the uplifting, danceable essence of the songs. You can drive, work, jog, or clean the house to Rockiah, and come out of it very inspired.”
“At the end of the day, we try to give a fresh and energetic musical foundation to the experience of the holy as espoused by the lyrics. The Jewish content takes rock to a higher plane.”
Rockiah - Bonei Yerushalayim
Rockiah is now promoting its new CD and plan to join the performance circuit. Their debut album, Bonei Yerushalayim, was released just a couple weeks ago and is available online at shemeshmusic.com and at GalPaz stores. You can hear sample tracks at shemeshmusic.com before purchase. You can also learn more about Rockiah on their Facebook and Myspace homepages.
As a citizen of Bet Shemesh for the past 14 years, I can tell you that nothing swells our civic pride more than the awesome Jewish Rock Festival that Jonty Zwebner has brought, along with the Bet Shemesh municipality, to our fine city.
Moshav Band Performing at Bet Shemesh Festival in 2003
It began about a decade ago as a one night event with five or so groups playing in front of a couple thousand locals. It has blossomed more recently into a big two night festival with many thousands (perhaps 15,000, maybe more?) jamming into the outdoor amphitheater with most of the top names in Jewish Rock, such as Moshav Band, Soulfarm, Adi Ran, Reva L’sheva, Lenny Solomon, and many, many more. As a result, the national media have taken notice.
A 50 yr old woman was killed last night while crossing highway 38 near Mesilat Ziyon . A man driving from Bet Shemesh hit her as she crossed the right near the busstop. He pulled to the side of the road and called the Police.
As he waited for the police to arrive, on this dark and dangerous road, several cars passing after him hit the woman laying without noticing.
The residents of this small moshav have been petitioning the transportation ministry for years to change this dangerous road. There are two busstops on either side of this major artery linking Bet Shemesh to the main Highway 1. Often, passengers are let off on one side of the road and need to cross to other side to catch a different bus.
This Youtube video was added in March 2008, with the title “IT’S A QUESTION OF WHO AND WHEN WILL GET HURT WHILE CROSSING THE ROAD (# 38) TO ENTER MOSHAV MESILAT ZION, AND THE AUTHORITY IS DOING NOTHING!!”
You can see just how dangerous it is to cross that road during the day. Imagine how much more so when attempting to cross at night. The result last night was tragic.
We’ve all been watching the recent developments of Wall Street with a keen eye. How, if at all, will it affect us individually? Will Israel be dragged into a recession as well as the rest of Europe?
An inevitable part of the US’s historic $750 billion bailout package is the huge amount of paper that the government has to print. The money has to come from somewhere, and usually that means selling more treasury notes and bills, or bartering paper with foreign governments.
With all that new money hitting the markets, you’d expect the dollar to drop in value. However, the world economy follows the USA like a herd to a shepherd. All the talk about Euros, shmooros… When you want a safe currency in times of crisis, you don’t look to Europe with one of its EU members (Iceland) on the brink of bankruptcy, nor do you look to China or Japan, as they are having their own crises. You buy dollars. And that’s exactly what’s been going on since the US bailout plan was passed.
As a result, major and 2nd tier currencies alike have lost approx 5% in value against the US Dollar in the past week. In Israel, the drop was sudden and major. Two week ago, the Shekel (NIS) was trading against the USD in a range from 3.48 to 3.50. Almost overnight, the Shekel devalued against the dollar to 3.70. That’s a 5 percent change.
That’s very good for Israeli exporters, tourism, and for Israelis who’s salary is linked to the dollar, and for technology companies who raised funds in dollars.
That’s very bad, however, for importers, most Israelis who do not have linkage on their salary, and just about every consumer. Prices will start to rise at the supermarket, which will in turn reduce consumption, and bring on inflation, and then recession.
Much of the strength of the Israeli economy over the past few years has been related to the strength and new found autonomy of the Israeli currency. Breaking with the norm of the past 60 years, for example, Real estate was being quoted in Shekels. Israelis had a new sense of pride in our national currency.
Now with this recent crisis, and the fall of the Euro as the other viable currency alternative to the almighty dollar, it appears Israel’s economy will be waiting for the other shoe to drop.
I remember as a kid in Chicago how I used to walk around the house (and neighborhood) and try to find the best spot for reception on my shortwave radio. In those days, tuning in to Israel Radio was like catching an ephemeral glimpse of far away land. At 4pm in the afternoon, I would tune in Reshet Bet and listen to the 6am Boker Tov announcement which included the incredible recital of the Shema and then the top of the morning news.
Nowadays, perhaps the mystery and anticipation are gone, but the fun is still there. Now you can listen to many thousands of radio stations around the world with a simple click of a link on your internet browser. In fact, now that I live in Israel, I listen to Chicago radio stations with the same nostalgia as I did as a kid tuning in from the other side of the world to hear the sounds of Israel.
Here are the most popular Israel Radio selections available for you to tune in live now. Simply click on a link, and your Windows Media Player will open and begin to play the selected channel.
The internet makes it easy for you to watch live tv from anywhere in the world.
There are several Israeli TV Channels who stream their stations live, or offer daily rebroadcasts of news and other shows. When you click on the link, your Windows Media Player will open and begin playing the selected channel.
1. Channel 10 This is a very popular Israeli channel that is available on cable. The internet broadcast is usually live during the mornings and evenings Israel time.
2. Channel 1 IBA News (English) Daily rebroadcast of the half hour long evening English news program.
3. Channel 1 Mabat News Daily rebroadcast of Israel’s most popular evening news (in Hebrew).
4. Knesset Live See what’s going on at Israel’s parliament. They also offer news programs and interviews on political issues.
5. Machon Meir – Religious Classes Online. Catch a live shiur!
6. Shopping Channel TV Shop till you drop (in Hebrew).
This article was posted yesterday on techexposures.com and it definitely gives us something to think about what’s in store for the hi-tech industry in Israel during the coming months.
I attended a conference of about 40 CEOs and founders of start-ups last week in Herzlya, Israel. The focus of one of the meetings was to discuss the current financial crisis and how it will affect the operations and viability of these companies.
One of the CEOs commented that he had just raised several million in capital for his start-up and that the money had hit their account only three weeks ago – just on the cusp of Wall Street’s meltdown. He said he felt like Bruce Willis in Die Hard as he ran as fast as he could from a burning skyscraper that was about to explode. He remarked that had the deal been delayed for even a week, he probably wouldn’t have been able to close the round, or that the terms would have been severely altered.
In attendance were also partners of some big name VCs. One of the VCs (who is headquartered in Silicon Valley) told us that he has already instructed his Israeli portfolio companies to begin firing employees. In his words,
“It is not enough for the CFO to tell me that they didn’t hire the 3 that were in budget. They also have to fire existing employees”.
He believes that this (recession) downturn will last throughout 2009 and into Q1 of 2010.
Another VC thought that the amount of deals in 2009 would be lower, but that there will still be dealflow, and that this is actually a good opportunity for raising smaller sums (e.g. $200K). The bigger VCs have traditionally avoided investments of less than a few million dollars. Now it appears that many VCs will be ‘competing’ with angels and private equity groups to find the gems out there for $500K or less initial investment, with an eye on sustaining them until a Series A round can be raised in better market conditions.
The affects of the fallout from Wall Street in the coming months are too early to measure, but it’s clear that most sources of new funding will dry up at least until the credit crisis has passed. Existing companies will have to squeeze their purse strings tight, and possibly begin proactively laying off to ensure enough capital remains to keep the mother ship afloat.
Now that Sir Paul McCartney has come and gone, the road has been paved for other 66 year old rockers to step foot upon the Holy Lands of Tel Aviv.
Laurie Anderson (O Superman, Brave Heart) is an experimental musician who is also the wife of famous (Jewish) 60s and 70s rocker, Lou Reed. Laurie will be playing Nov 3-4 in Tel Aviv at the Heichal Tarbut and at the Moadon Redding in “Little” Tel Aviv.
Her husband, Lou Reed, is said to be accompanying her on this trip, and may join her onstage. Lou Reed is one of my favorite rockers from the late 60s and 70s. He was part of the legendary group Velvet Underground, which had some success with Sweet Jane and Rock and Roll. His solo career is best remembered for his signature hit Walk on the Wild Side, and the collaborative effort, Perfect Day. Lou was born to Jewish parents in 1942 in Brooklyn, NY.
One can only hope that these tickets will be a little easier to come by, and won’t break the bank as much as did Sir McCartney last month.
Israel has worked hard to shed its old image of producing cheesy ethnic insider, one or no-joke movies.
Today’s Israeli movie scene has produced some very creative, critically acclaimed on an international level. There are many dozens of quality films that have been produced in Israel in the past decade.
Highlighted here are five of the top modern movies filmed here in Israel in recent years. All of these films are must-sees.
1. The Band’s Visit – 2007 ????? ??????? IMDB Listing
This movie won Best Picture in 2007 in Israel’s equivalent of the Academy Awards. Starring popular and acclaimed Israeli actor Sasson Gabai, (The Impossible Spy, Rambo III, Made in Israel).
Synopsis: An Egyptian Police Force band come to Israel to play at the inaugural ceremony of an Arab arts center, yet end up lost in the wrong town with a similar sounding name.
Film critic Roger Ebert gave this film four stars and sums it up well:
They are in the middle of the Israeli desert, having taken the wrong bus to the wrong destination. Another bus will not come until tomorrow. “The Band’s Visit” begins with this premise, which could supply the makings of a comedy, and turns into a quiet, sympathetic film about the loneliness that surrounds us. Oh, and there is some comedy, after all.
2. Beaufort (2007) – This Oscar nominated film for Best Foreign Picture is the story of a group of Israeli soldiers stationed at an outpost prior to the withdrawal of forces from Lebanon in 2000. This movie cuts into the pathos of Israelis and their understanding about war, life in the Middle East, and obligation to country. New York Times review aptly remarks that this is not so much a war movie as a study on human nature and inner feelings.
The men spend most of their time inside its heavily fortified walls, trundling down coffin-shaped corridors in spacesuitlike combat gear and bracing for the next round of attacks from an invisible enemy. Their lives are governed by tedium, claustrophobia and anxiety, and yet they clearly feel something like affection for the bleak, isolated place that has become their home.
Beaufort Part 1:
Beaufort Part 2:
Beaufort Part 3:
3. Ushpizin (2004) – IMDB Listing Starring Shuli Rand and Michal Bat Sheva Rand (who are married in real life).
“Ushpizin” is groundbreaking on more than one count. It is a rare collaboration between secular and ultra-Orthodox Israelis and one of the first movies filmed in the insular Jerusalem neighborhood Mea Shearim with ultra-Orthodox actors.
Shuli Rand won the Israeli Academy Award for Best Actor in this film. This film also has an excellent musical score, including the popular “Atah Kadosh” from Israeli Religious Rocker Adi Ran.
4. The Syrian Bride (2004) – Clara Khoury stars in this semi-political, semi-humanitarian, semi-comedic film of a young Druze woman (Arab, but not muslim) who lives in a Druze village in the outermost portion of the Golan Heights, on the Syrian border, who travels to Syria to marry a Soap Opera star there. This tragic comedy touches on the heart strings as she says goodbye for good to her family, since she will be leaving Israel for Syria, to live with her new husband, in a country that Israel is at war with. Syrian Bride was nominated for 7 Israeli Academy Awards.
5. Medurat Hashevet (Campfire) (2004) – Set in 1981 in the early days of Israeli settling (occupation) of Judea and Samaria (The West Bank). Directed by Joseph Cedar (Beaufort), drew fire from the right-wing settler movement as the film portrays them as opportunists looking for good real estate deals rather than being motivated by political and religious beliefs. The Israeli secular crowd loved this film.
Its broader political implications within Israel notwithstanding, “Campfire” offers an outsider an intimate portrait of family members living in uncomfortably close proximity and straining against one another during a difficult period of transition. Rachel, a tough, attractive woman whose husband died of cancer a year earlier, is tugged this way and that by conflicting desires. She longs for the security and companionship of the community. But because her first marriage was unhappy, she is unwilling to settle for another husband who won’t deliver the romantic fireworks the first one didn’t provide.
Winner of 7 Israeli Academy Awards, and nominated for another 8.
Honorable Mention: Etz Limon (Lemon Tree) (2008) – Directed by Eran Riklis (Syrian Bride). This year’s most popular film. Based on a true story, a Palestinian widow cultivates a lemon tree grove next to her house. Her new next door neighbor, Israel’s Defense Minister, Israel Navon, threatens to have the tree grove uprooted because of security concerns. This is another tragic-comedy-tear jerker-veilied left-of-center-political film. The acting is very emotional, but the message is a bit over-the-top left wing borderline propaganda siding with the Palestinians.
This film was nominated for 7 awards at Israel’s Academy Awards, and won at the 2008 Berlin Film Festival.
The crowds, the energy, the excitement. Those of us who are fortunate to live in Israel and live in or close enough to Jerusalem, know that this coming week of Sukkot is perhaps the best time of the year.
Just like in ancient times when the Temples stood, throngs of Israelis visit Jerusalem from all over the country, along with Jewish tourists from the Diaspora. The electricity in the air is truly amazing.
Sukkot is one of the three Festivals which include Pesach (Passover) and Shavuot that Jews are commanded to literally go up with their feet (“aliyat regel”) to Jerusalem. It is a positive commandment described in the Torah that all of Israel should rise up to Jerusalem and be seen by His Temple. Today, we are not commanded to go Jerusalem on these three festivals as the Temple no longer stands, however, it is customary, particularly for observant Jews, to visit Jerusalem at least once during the 7 day Festival (the 8th day, Simchat Torah/Shemini Hag Ha’atzeret, is actually a different holiday that G_d gave to the Jews as an extra show of His appreciation for the Chosen People.
In this photo, throngs of visitors to Jerusalem’s Old City push their way to the Western Wall on the day of the renewed ceremony “Birkat Kohanim”, where thousands of Kohanim bless the nation as was done in ancient times.
Blessing the four species at the Western Wall
A central part of the Festival of Sukkot is to take four species from the land, an Etrog, Hadas, Arava, and Lulav (Citron, Myrtle, Willow, and Palm Branch) and to make a blessing on them. The reason is not given in the Torah, however it is a positive commandment for all of Israel.
A Very Large Lulav and Etrog
Jews are commanded on Sukkot to live 7 days in a Sukkah, which reminds us of the Children of Israel who lived forty years in sukkot (temporary dwellings) ‘booths’ in the desert on their journey from Exodus of Egypt into conquering the Land of Israel.
Today, many strictly observant Jews still abide by this commandment and dwell in their sukkot for all seven days. Others prefer to sleep in their houses.
One of the truly amazing sites in Israel during the Sukkot holiday is to see so many sukkot attached to homes, apartments, businesses, schools, shopping malls, restaraunts, and every where else (even on the beach!). We wish all Israel a happy and enjoyable Sukkot Holiday!
The Arabs in Jerusalem can be seen wearing many different head dress styles. The keffiyeh means “kerchief” or scarf in English.
Many Palestinian men and women wear keffiyeh of cotton and wool mix, which lets them dry quickly and help keep the head warm in winter. The keffiyeh is usually folded in half, into a triangle, and the fold is worn across the forehead.
Palestinian Keffiyeh
The black-and-white keffiyeh is a symbol of Palestinian heritage.
Simple White Scarf - unfolded
The red-and-white keffiyeh is worn throughout the Arab regions, but is most strongly associated with Jordan, where it is known as shmagh mhadab.
Red keffiyeh with black agal - rope circlet
A kefiyeh can also signal a person’s status in society. It has been used by Bedouins throughout the centuries and was used as a symbol of honor and tribal identification.
Here are some different examples of keffiyeh worn by Arabs in Jerusalem.
At the suk
Schoolchildren with keffiyeh
Black modest dress
White simple scarf
Many Christian Arab women also cover their heads. Their head coverings usually signify their religious order and are not worn as symbols of nationality. In recent years, some Palestinian Christian Arab men and youths, have begun to wear Palestinian national keffiyehs as scarves if not as head coverings.
Christian Arab headress
Keffiyeh is often spelled kefiyah, kaffiyah, keffiya, kaffiya, and kufiya depending on dialect and region.
Israel is a country with little natural resources coupled with expensive sea-based transportation of imported goods. What can be done to keep the cost of energy and products down? In short – recycling and use of renewable energy.
Cleaning Solar Panels
With the hot and sunny climate, Israel is the ideal location for widespread use of solar energy. Nearly all homes today are installed with solar panels for heating household water. Soon, the Israel Electric Company will begin a pilot program to allow individuals to collect energy from solar panels and send them to the Israel power grid, and get paid!
Israel established in the late 90s a government ministry (????? ??????) to deal with environmental issues. This ministry – Eychut Hasviva, has worked diligently over the last 5 years to establish many new recycling programs. All plastic and glass bottles under 1 liter in size are purchased with a deposit fee, with convenient recycling ‘vending machines’ at the supermarkets for return and cash payback.
Most major cities in Israel now have collection points for larger plastic bottles (over 1 liter), and a new pilot program has been initiated for paper materials collection in designated bins.
Plastic Recylcing Bin
According to the Israel Export Office hybrid car sales have risen 300% since 2007. Brace yourself, Israel has committed to creating a green / electric car network by 2011. Imagine if all the power needed to run Israel’s cars was harnassed from the rooftop sun collectors and sent to the Israel Electric Company for a net gain in GDP with no additional outlays. What a way to reduce foreign energy dependence and to reshift the power balance in the Middle East.
Is it Awe or the Atonement that gets us nervous? Either way, this Thursday is the most special day of the year. It’s the day above all others when G_d is listening and expecting you to fess up. What better way to prepare for this day than with a visit to the holy sites in Jerusalem?
I visited the Kotel yesterday. The Western Wall is on the top five list of the Jewish people’s holiest places.
This wall was built over 2,000 years ago towards the end of the 2nd Temple era. It was one of the retaining walls that surrounded the Temple which sat atop what is today the Al-Aqsa Mosque (with the golden dome).
A well-known Jewish custom is to place notes to G_d in the cracks between the bricks. This man decided to go mobile and phone in his prayers
Western Wall - Jewish custom - notes to G_d are placed in the cracks.
Reva L’sheva was (and is) one of the premier Jewish rock bands, fusing their influences from Reb Shlomo Carlebach and the Grateful Dead into a Jewish Soul Rock experience. Like the Diaspora Yeshiva Band before them, Reva L’Sheva is a pioneering Jewish music experience that shuns the traditional (and lame) vocals-centric, horn-accompanied Yeshiveshe music.
Like many bands, Reva L’sheva has had several lineups, although it always has centered around the band’s lead-vocals, guitarist, and front-man, Yehuda Katz.
Here’s me with the band in 2002 at Newark Airport, awaiting a El-Al flight to take us home in time for Sukkot. That’s Yehuda on my left.
