Israel Active

Israeli startup Let’s Bench allows party organizers to print personalized Grace After Meals benchers (birkonim) (booklets and cards) for their celebrations.  Family photos can be incorporated throughout.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry is placing a replica of the Second Temple menorah (candelabra) on permanent display at UNESCO’s headquarters in Paris. The statue, similar to that on Rome’s Titus Arch, will also include a written explanation in English, French, Hebrew and Arabic.

Israeli archaeologists and student volunteers have unearthed a 2nd-century road near Beit Shemesh that connected the Roman settlement at Beit Natif with Jerusalem. Coins were also found including from the Great Jewish Revolt in 67 CE and others from 29 CE and 41 CE.

The Founder and Editor of this newsletter was interviewed by Kevin Howard of the Christian Friends of Israel.  The program was broadcast on 200 radio stations in the USA alone.  You can listen to it here – Click on the following link and then press [page down] to see the line “Proclaiming the Good News” and then click on the green arrow.

Whether it’s a gang of small girls dressed like superheroes or a crew of grown men dressed as fairies, it’s a clear sign that Purim is here, and the entire country is celebrating.

Only in Israel - Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh fixed a new mezuzah at the new Jerusalem offices of Israeli biotech NovellusDx. He also spoke about how vital it was to heal the sick. (2021 update - NovellusDX is now named Fore Biotherapeutics or ForeBio  see )

Haifa Egged bus driver Ataf Tatur found a wallet containing $20,000 in a bag left on his bus.  Ataf and the Egged branch director called the owners who came to collect the bag.  An Egged spokesperson said "This is the accepted norm in Egged, and it is what we expect from those behind the wheel".

Jerusalem’s "Modest Fashion Day" was Israel's first major fashion show for Orthodox Jewish women who require conservative outfits. Israeli models hit the catwalk in front of hundreds of Orthodox women and fashionistas, wearing long sleeves and dresses down to their ankles.

Harry Goldstein of North London Friends of Israel (NLFoI) says that the way to support the Jewish State is to be visible.  NLFoI members stand in busy shopping streets or local festivals, with leaflets, literature and Israeli flags. They make a strong statement - that they are ordinary, local people.

Nefesh B’Nefesh is holding its annual Israel Aliya Mega Event on Sun 26 Feb at John Jay College in Manhattan. Some 1,500 potential Olim are expected to attend, making it the biggest Aliya event of its kind. Additional Aliyah Fairs will be held in Toronto, Montreal and Los Angeles.