In the first episode of Together with Rabbi Yonah we speak with the incredible and inspiring Eli Beer about his experience surviving COVID19. Eli is the President of United Hatzalah in Israel, the volunteer paramedic organization.
Thank you God for Israel. Thank you God everyday for the miracle of Israel that my ancestors longed and prayed for. Thank you for the miraculous salvation and the start of the Great redemption of Israel and the world.
God, protect the defenders of our Sacred land armed with rifles and prayer books. Protect Israel from baseless hatred from our enemies and ourselves.
God, Raise up Israel as a light unto the nations bringing peace and salvation to the world.
God, although we are not deserving, we are impatient. The birth pangs of Redemption are painful and we pray for an end of these 2,000 years of waiting.
Lift up our weary spirits. Fulfill your promise today. Gather the rest of your dispersed children of Israel who are spread to four corners of the Earth. Gather those who are spiritually distant. Gather those who have forgotten You. Gather those who don’t know who they really are. Gather those who love You and those who don’t recognize You.
God, You show us the signs of this impending redemption with Israel’s flowering, miraculous technology, and the bountiful harvest. Look God and see what I see — the hills and valleys, study halls and houses of prayer, rising buildings and tech start-ups — Israel is blooming. The barren sand is turning to soil. The fertile land overflowing with ripe fruit and fragrant honey. Your precious and Holy Torah once again emanates from Zion to the rest of the world.
God, make this the appointed time. Sound the great shofar for the redemption. Raise the banner of freedom; raise the banner of liberation; raise the banner of justice; gather us today from the ends of the Earth. Please God, resist being dissuaded by our narrow vision because deep down we know Israel is our spiritual home. You know because You engraved it on our hearts. Our souls yearn for home. Our souls year for redemption. Our souls yearn for peace and unity, for harmony and salvation. Redeem Your people. Why make us wait any longer?
Blessed are You, who gathers together the dispersed People of Israel. Amen, selah.
A group calling itself “We Don’t Need no Roger Waters” are calling for a boycott of musician Roger Waters. The Change.org petition wants a worldwide boycott of Waters until he renounces antisemitism and the unjust boycott of the State of Israel. The group has launched a website and Facebook page, and will be releasing a movie this summer.
The former frontman for Pink Floyd has increasingly used his rock-star status to defame and call for the boycott of Israel. He infamously flew a pig drone painted with swastikas and Stars of David at his concerts in 2013. Waters screens anti-Israel film clips during his live shows and viciously attacks any artist that chooses to perform in Israel.
Waters isn’t just anti-Israel, say his detractors, he’s actually a Jew-hater. They are firing back against his supporters by countering that Waters is not just anti-Israel, but actually a racist who espouses bigotry and anti-Jewish conspiracy theories.
According to the filmmakers, “Wish You Weren’t Here is a shocking, explosive and compelling film by award winning filmmaker/No.1 NY Times bestselling author Ian Halperin.” The film sets out to answer such questions as is Roger Waters an anti-Semite?
Halperin, who is the son of a Holocaust survivor, traveled for two years researching his story, and the film includes interviews with leading figures such as including Ambassador Ronald S. Lauder, Pope Francis, Haras Rafiq, Palestinian and Israeli leaders, U.S., British and French government officials, The Chief Rabbi of Ukraine, Alan Dershowitz and Dr. Charles Small.
Instead of using music to build bridges and foster peace, it seems that Waters is actually another brick in the wall.
The double murder of Rabbi Yaakov (44) and Natanel Litman (18) on Friday, November 13th, was quickly overshadowed by the immense and horrific massacres across Paris later that night.
But even without the massacre, the names and stories of Israelis murdered in the past few months get lost behind the next group of names of victims.
Four more Israelis were killed in terror attacks today.
Inspired by the @ParisVictims Twitter account, created by Mashable to publicize the lives of each one of the 129 people killed in the horrific attacks on November 13th, 2015, we have launched @israelivictims to memorialize Israelis killed in terror attacks.
The @parisvictims account has quickly amassed more than 44,000 followers.
If you would like to help with this effort, just contact rabbi @ picoshul.org.
We pray to God that we don’t have to add any more names, and for a quick recovery of all the victims.
May God comfort all the mourners, and Hashem yikom damam.
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Rabbi Yaakov (44) a gifted teacher and Natanel Litman (18) a volunteer paramedic HY”D were murdered on Friday, November 13, 2015.
The Litmans were driving to pre-wedding Shabbat celebration for one of their daughters, Sarah Tihyeh. The family car was ambushed by Shadi Ahmed Matawa of Islamic Jihad, and maybe others, near Otniel in the hills south of Hebron.
Five other members of the Litman family were lightly wounded in the shooting, including Noa, three daughters aged 5, 9, and 11, and a 16-year-old son. On Saturday, Noa said an ambulance from the Palestinian Red Crescent Society stopped at the scene of the attack before Magen David Adom paramedics arrived, but left without offering assistance. Dvir, the 16-year-old son, called MDA and also said the Red Crescent ambulance left the scene.