Plant a tree by Zoom
No matter how far away you may be, KKL-JNF can plant a tree for you in the Tzora Forest near Beit Shemesh. You can fully participate in the ceremony online, together with members of your family anywhere. Visit the plantatree site, choose a date/time and get a link to the tree-planting ceremony.
The end of the pandemic?
On Thursday, Jerusalem residents woke up to the sight of a huge rainbow stretched across the whole of Temple Mount and the Mount of Olives. The director of Midreshet Kidmat Yerushalayim said, “... on this festive day of Tu B'Shvat may it symbolize the end of the deadly coronavirus…”
Israeli Covid patients rescued from Nigeria
When 3 Israelis fell ill with Covid-19 in Lagos, Nigeria, the local Chabad went into action. They completed all the complex paperwork and organized the first ever El Al plane to land in Nigeria to take the Israel’s home before Ben Gurion Airport was closed to all flights.
Jordan river unites faiths
Last week’s article on the Jordan River landmine clearance should have mentioned that the baptism site is also where the Children of Israel crossed into the Promised Land and where the prophet Elijah is said to have ascended to Heaven. Photos are from last year’s Jewish tour.
Returning Jewish artifacts to Israel
Before Covid, Israeli Rabbi Eliahu Birnbaum traveled the world collecting Jewish relics found in junk shops and synagogue genizot (repositories for discarded holy items). Hundreds of objects telling the history of the diaspora are now displayed at Ohr Torah Stone in Eftat, Israel.
Unit for women EMTs
More than 1,000 of United Hatzalah’s volunteer paramedics are women. Around 100 of them serve in UH’s special unit for religiously orthodox women. They attend emergencies where the patient would be uncomfortable being attended to by a male EMT. And delivering babies is all part of the job.
Reaching out to the Jewish world
Israeli Diaspora Minister Omer Yankelevich has been holding virtual Kabbalat Shabbat services with Jewish communities around the world. They include Abu Dhabi, Mumbai, Warsaw, Lausanne, Baku and Helsinki. Zoom has made it possible to globally share live music and learning.
Israel’s oldest Indian Jewish community
Hundreds of India’s Bnei Menashe community have just arrived in Israel. But Israel’s 8,000 Cochin Jews can trace their Indian roots all the way back to the times of the biblical King Solomon. The Cochin Jewish Heritage Center is situated in Nevatim, a moshav in the Negev Desert.
The fruits of Land
To celebrate the Jewish New Year for Trees, this article summarizes the annual harvest of the Jewish State. It includes 55,000 metric tons of grapes, 60,000 tons of pomegranates, 2400 tons of figs, 32,000 tons of dates, 4.5 million bottles of wine and 16,000 tons of olive oil. Read also about Israel’s trees.
Oldest seal
Originally thought to be a replica, a bulla (impression of a seal inscription) was bought for 10 old shekels in the 1980s. In ancient Hebrew, it says it belongs to Shema the servant/minister of Jeroboam who ruled the Kingdom of Israel from 788 BCE to 748 BCE. Technology shows it to be the oldest seal ever discovered.