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The Hebrew month of Av, is the saddest in the Jewish calendar. It is the extended time when we mourn the destruction of our 2 temples, the 15th century expulsion of Jews from Christian Spain, and grieve over the Great Deportation, when the Nazis sent nearly quarter of a million Warsaw Jews on trains to … Read more

Most Israelis knew Shlomo Hillel as Speaker of Israel’s Knesset, Minister of Police, and Minister of Internal Affairs. Few realized he was one of the most daring spies the country has ever known. It is thanks to Shlomo Hillel that in the middle of last century, over 120,000 Iraqi Jews escaped safely from Iraq and … Read more

In May 2021, Israel mourned the passing of one of the greatest archaeologists, our country has ever seen. Only 64 on the day of her death, Dr Eilat Mazar spent her life with a trowel in one hand and a bible in the other, a heritage passed onto her by her grandfather, the Biblical archeologist … Read more

A joke that usually gets a laugh claims that the smallest book in the world is the book of Jewish athletes.  There is a kernel of truth to this. Throughout centuries of diaspora, Jewish people were banned from taking part in anything that would suggest equality with their gentile neighbours  – and that included sports. … Read more

There are quite a few pages in the VaYikra (Leviticus) listing permitted and forbidden foods. Christians skip over the book, because it seems so foreign, has unpronounceable words, and is dry and boring. But for us, VaYikra is the book that shows us how to live in what to eat.  To the non-Jewish person, sometimes … Read more

The Israeli desert is riddled with the remains of ancient structures that once surrounded waterholes for the convoys of camels and their Nabatean tradesmen. Ancient sources testify of groups of up to 10,000 camels and riders who twice a year would traverse the desert from Yemen, up through the Arabian Peninsula, then head West across … Read more

In April 2021, fresh ground was plowed in the Orthodox Jewish world in Israel when Shira Marili Mirvis, a mother of six, was appointed as the country’s first ever Orthodox female rabbi (rabbanit) for a community in Judea and Samaria, in the rapidly growing town of Efrat. Judaism is rich and complex. The necessity to … Read more

Twenty percent of the Israeli population have physical or psychological disabilities, so it was a very welcome step, when 32-year old Shirley Pinto, took up her position in June 2021 as the first ever deaf member of the Knesset.  Raised in one of Israel’s poorest neighbourhoods, Pinto’s story is remarkable. Her father is deaf, and … Read more

Like every other victim of Palestinian terrorism, Yael Shevach’s life was also changed in a moment beyond recognition when her 35-year old husband, Rabbi Raziel Shevach was brutally murdered in a drive by shooting outside his home. In the couple’s village in the middle of Samaria, Rabbi Shevach was a central figure, overseeing circumcisions and … Read more

It’s pretty special that any politician would drum up hundreds of thousands of views on social media and that the speaker would become an Internet sensation, but that’s exactly what happened 6 years ago when George Deek spoke to a  modest audience in the House of Literature in Oslo. His speech has been described as … Read more

April 2021, marked a year since the passing of the cherished Rabbi Avraham Yeshayahu Heber.  At only 55, his death from Corona caused great sadness in Israel and throughout the Jewish world. A very knowledgeable and learned man, the rabbi was best known for his incredible gift of giving. His life as a 42-year old … Read more

Following the kidnapping of Gilad Shalit followed by three other Israeli soldiers during July 2006, Lieutenant Noam Gershony, a pilot of an Apache helicopter in the Israeli Air force, was deployed to the northern border. Along with his copilots, he was briefed on the escalating military situa­tion. To locate the kidnapped soldiers, Israel was sending … Read more

From Nelson Mandela who unforgettably said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the word,” to Blues guitarist BB King who quipped, “the most beautiful thing about learning is that no-one can take it away from you,” many a figurehead has summed up the important of education. What is true … Read more

The wisdom of the Talmud says that the person who saves a life, saves an entire world. This saying, made iconic by the movie Schindler’s List, is also a principle that stretches beyond the physical saving of a person’s life,  it is a tenet of Judaism.  Such is the case with David Lange, who back … Read more

Empowering others to become the best they can be is a Biblical precept and the nuclear essence of all inspiration. It is also the epitome of Israeli American comedienne, Molly Livingstone.    It was in 2005, after returning from a youth trip to Israel that Molly decided to leave the comfort of Boston and immigrate. … Read more

In a humble apartment on the seventh floor in the coastal town of Hadera, Slyva Zalmanson and her daughter Anat enjoy a cup of coffee together overlooking the Mediterranean. The walls of their home are covered with exquisite paintings of rabbis, composers, waterfalls and beautiful young women. In one tiny room converted into a studio, … Read more

The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls months before the birth of the modern state of Israel, was arguably the greatest archeological and historical find in history. Not only did it verify that the land of Israel had been the national homeland of the Jewish people for millennium, it confirmed the authenticity of the Bible. … Read more

Avraham Yoffe’s life, reads like one of swashbuckling fiction. Born by the Sea of Galilee in the early 20th century, at aged 16 he had already joined the Haganah, Israel’s pre-state Jewish paramilitary organization which operated during the British Mandate and went onto become the IDF.  In the thirties Yoffe served in the Special Night Squad, … Read more

In the 1980’s world of Israeli music, Yehuda Poliker’s melodies and lyrics usherea new era of contemporary music. Growing up in a slum neighborhood in the coastal town of Haifa, Poliker is the son of Greek Jewish Shoah survivors who were sent on a Nazi train from Thessalonica all the way to Auschwitz.  His parents … Read more

Every few hundred years a great Jewish scholar arises whose works, opteachings impact both secular and religious Jews. The prolific author and commentator, Jerusalem-born Rabbi Adin Even-Israel Steinsaltz –  was one such man. Even though his father was a great grandson to a famous Hasidic rabbi, his father chose to be an atheist communist. In the … Read more

During the days when snow sometimes falls on the higher peaks throughout Israel, those citizens who live in the white-brushed peaks, make the most of the rare weather and rush outside to build snowmen. But for the thousands who live where snow does not graced the region, people get in their cars and travel miles … Read more

On the eastern bank of the Kidron Valley, opposite the City of David is an Arab village called Silwan. For those unaware of history, the pastoral houses give a sense of Palestinian antiquity, and it is scenes such as this that the media often zoom in on to ‘prove’ the longevity of the Arabs to … Read more

Tourism in Israel is a significant part of our little country’s economy and during these months of a global pandemic it has taken a hard knock. Both Jewish people from the diaspora who come to visit family and also Christian tourists, have all found themselves locked out of a country in lockdown.  To circumvent the … Read more

With all the hundreds of dishes available in a culture with so much Jewish diversity, it is no small feat that the humble felafel has never waned in popularity. In fact, such is its reputation, that there is a saying among Israelis that, a tourist hasn’t really experienced Israel, until they have eaten felafel.  On … Read more

In 1963, while Dr. Elaine Solowey and Dr. Sarah Sallon were still in their respective USA and England, war hero and archeologist, the late Professor Yigael Yadin, was carrying out the first ever excavations at Masada. Iconic in Israeli history, Masada is the fortress overlooking the Dead Sea built by King Herod in which  the … Read more

Ethiopian music is hip in Israel, partly thanks to Ethiopian-born Gili Yalo who with his family fled Ethiopia in 1984 to come home. Gili remembers that emotional day. As part of Operation Moses, an Israeli airlift that rescued 8,000 Jews from famine war-torn Ethiopia, the five year old arrived in the Promised Land on his … Read more

Care for others is paramount in Jewish life and a central principle of Judaism. It stems from the example of Abraham’s hospitality in feeding the visitors who came to his tent and also HaShem’s example of care by coming down to check up on Abraham after he had his little operation. The caring for others … Read more

On the political Left, Abie Nathan was championed as a man of peace, and on the political Right, he was deemed “a bit of a weirdo.” Whatever or whoever he really was, Abie Nathan lived a life committed to his cause.  Born in 1927 to a Jewish family in Persia, when Israel’s War of Independence … Read more

Israel’s national anthem, HaTikvah, (The Hope) is rumored to be among the most beautiful in the world, a sentiment expressed by Jews and non-Jews alike. In May 1948, following the cataclysmic events of the Shoah, came the unfathomable political establishment of the Jewish homeland. The ceremony was concluded with HaTikvah, the new national anthem of … Read more

Two of the most popular icons in Israel, singer Shlomi Shabbat and actor Yehudah Barkan both became sick with Corona. The 66-year old singer pulled through and was released from hospital. The 75-year old actor was not so fortunate. Yehuda Barkan succumbed to Corona and his death brought a wave of national mourning.  Yet the … Read more

On October 8th, 2020, eleven Muslim and Jewish women sat around a table in Jerusalem and talked warmly with each other about the likes of their families, business and peace. This, the inaugural meeting of the Gulf Israel Women’s Council was co-founded and hosted by Fleur Hassan-Nahoum, the very popular Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem and … Read more

Amal Elsana Alh’jooj has lead an extraordinary life. She grew up in a Bedouin village in the Negev Desert. In the traditional Bedouin community, boys are favored over girls so according to her parents – as Amal reminisces – the arrival of a baby girl amounted to a near tragedy. Her mother and father were … Read more

Right in the heart of downtown Tel Aviv, is a building 3 stories high. It is not an office block, or shops, or apartments, but the former home of Matilda and Daniel Recanati, a Greek-Israeli Jewish family of a dynasty of bankers, that is now a center for Israeli civilians and soldiers suffering from Post … Read more

With over 1500 songs to his credit, the most prolific American songwriter of all time is Israel Beilin, known more widely as “Irving Berlin.”  Over a century ago, Berlin’s parents emigrated from an antisemitic Belarus and settled in America. His father had been the cantor at the little shtetl’s synagogue. Berlin, entirely self-taught, became a … Read more

In a divided world where journalists bravely (or stupidly) put themselves on the forefront of criticism, it is rare that a reporter would garnish respect from both sides of the political divide.  Such is the case with Zvi Yehezkeli. Aside from once being voted among Israel’s most handsome men, he is Israel’s most famous Arabist: … Read more

Christine Hon has fought for everything she has achieved, and what she has achieved, and how she has achieved it, is nothing short of extraordinary: Christine is the first Circassian lawyer in Israel. She is also the only woman in her village who owns a private law firm.  Originating in the Caucasus, many of the … Read more

Pinhas Rutenberg was born in 1879 in the Russian city of Romney. It was a city of wealthy farmers, upon which, the unique kibbutz experiment would be based. As a child, Rotenberg received a traditional religious education and went on to study in the secular Hebrew high school. Pinhas excelled and was later accepted to … Read more

We have all experienced a moment that changes our lives forever – for good or for bad. Dutch-born Israeli Dov Frohman, has known moments like these, and he has experienced them to the extreme. Two decades before the outbreak of World War II, Poland was rife with antisemitism and unfair taxations imposed upon the Jewish … Read more

Religion and politics are an inseparable part of the fabric of Israeli society. Every Israeli citizen knows what religion their neighbors are, and due to the vibrant dialogue where it is opinions that count, people know who their neighbors vote for. The gap created by these differences is sometimes a difficult one to bridge. This … Read more

Like most Israeli men, Rami Levi wears T-shirts and blends in with the other majority of his causally dressed countrymen. An ordinary guy, he could be mistaken for a cab driver, a gardener, a felafel seller, or anyone’s neighbor.  But nothing about what Rami Levi has done is “ordinary.”  Born to a Turkish family of … Read more

Israelis are in the fortunate position of being able to understand the Bible in the original language. They are also in the rather bizarre position of knowing that when they post on Facebook, tweet on Twitter (or order that Pizza with a double topping of cheese) they are doing so in the language of the … Read more

Alert, smart, a natural sheepdog, aggressive yet faithful and trainable, everything about the Canaan dog suggests this is the dog of the Bible. Yet the story of the renaissance of this dog, now the national dog of the State of Israel, is like the survival of Israel, nothing short of a miracle.  The story begins … Read more

Even though wine has been produced in the Land of Israel since Biblical times, Bouquet, Blend, Terroir and Grand Cru, were terms that Israelis little once cared for. The finesse of wine culture was reserved for the likes of continental Europe, South America and California. Israelis were content with one brand of sweet Kiddush wine … Read more

Many Jews in Europe have favored the violin as their instrument. The choice is rooted in convenience. Escaping from pogroms with the likes of a piano was a lot more cumbersome than just grabbing a violin.  At the age of four, Bronisław Huberman was given that most Jewish of instruments by his poverty-stricken Polish parents. … Read more

A household name, she is affectionately known throughout Israel as “Safta (Grandma) Jamila.” Born and raised in a Druze family in the Galilee village of Peki’in, Safta Jamila’s life reads like a fairy tale.  Her early years were of wretched poverty. Married at 16, by the time she was 21, she was already a mother … Read more

For the last few years, a quarter of a million Israelis have been studying a chapter of the Bible a day, for five days a week. Known simply as “929” (after the number of chapters in the Hebrew Bible), via a website and an app, the program offers various commentaries, thoughts for the day, the … Read more

In 1947, 24-year old Gavriel Sissmann boarded a Mossad ship with his fellow Shoah survivors to sail to British Mandate Palestine. The ship was Intercepted by the British and redirected to Cyprus. While in a DP camp Sissmann joined the clandestine Jewish Haganah. Two years later he reached the Promised Land.  As with all immigrants, … Read more

The date palm is mentioned in the  Bible several times, but ever since the exile of the Jewish people to Babylon, the tree died out in the Land of Israel. It was only in the 1930’s when Ben Zion Israeli, an ardent Ukrainian-born Zionist wanted to plant a Biblical garden in honor of Rachel Bluwstein, … Read more

With her father, five brothers and thousands of other Ethiopian Jews, three-year-old Pnina Tamano-Shata trekked on foot under the blazing sun across an African desert from Ethiopia all the way to Sudan. Operation Moses, a clandestine and daring escapade that took two months, was done in coordination with the IDF, Mossad, Sudan and the CIA. … Read more

n English, if someone is referred to as a Philistine, it describes someone with bad table manners, or the lazy person who sits in front of the TV drinking beer who has never picked up a book in his or her life. There is a misnomer that Philistines were rude and uneducated. The Philistines first … Read more

There is always construction going on in Israel, whether it be to house new Jewish immigrants coming from the four corners of the world, or infrastructure needed for a thriving economy. It was during the clearing of the ground to lay the foundations of a hotel that the ancient town of Migdal was discovered.  Migdal, … Read more

Due to the slaughter of Jews and Muslims that the Crusaders perpetrated on their bloody crusades in, and on their way to, “liberate the Holy Land,” they are not very highly thought of in Israel or throughout the Middle East. Their stay in Israel was a comparative mere two hundred years, and according to historians, … Read more

Unless you are Israeli, or a keen bird-watcher, you have probably never heard of him. But not only is he legendary as the Birdman of Israel, Yossi Leshem has also quietly saved lives.  After serving in the Israeli Air Force, Yossi, a bird enthusiast, set up a field school in Har Gilo, a neighborhood in … Read more

Simcha Blass, a Polish Jew who immigrated to Israel a decade before World War II, changed the world forever.  Growing up in Warsaw, antisemitism and poverty that impacted him and his other fellow Jews prompted Simcha to “check out his future,” in the Jewish homeland which was then under the control of the British. Before … Read more

Like many improbable ideas, Israel sending a spacecraft to the moon was also born in a bar. In 2011, while sipping beer in a suburb of Tel Aviv, three young friends, Yonatan Winetraub, Kfir Damari and Yariv Bash, decided that all they needed to send a spacecraft to the moon was a meager $100 million … Read more