Tell the Story of Israel ✡ "I Will Gather You" - ISRAEL365

Therefore say: Thus saith the Lord GOD: I will even gather you from the peoples and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered and I will give you the land of Yisrael. Ezekiel 11:17  (The Israel Bible™)   לָכֵן אֱמֹר כֹּה אָמַר אֲדֹנָי יְהוִה וְקִבַּצְתִּי אֶתְכֶם מִן הָעַמִּים וְאָסַפְתִּי אֶתְכֶם מִן הָאֲרָצוֹת אֲשֶׁר נְפֹצוֹתֶם בָּהֶם וְנָתַתִּי לָכֶם אֶת אַדְמַת יִשְׂרָאֵל יחזקאל יא:יז la-khen e-mor koh a-mar a-do-nai Ha-shem v'-ki-batz-ti et-khem min ha-a-mim v'-a-saf-tee et-khem min ha-a-ra-tzot a-sher nif-tzo-tem ba-hem v'-na-ta-tee la-khem et ad-mat yis-ra-el

Today's Israel Inspiration Today's verse refers to God's promise to the Jewish people that there will come a time when He will gather the nations of Israel from all four corners of the earth to which they have scattered and return them to the Holy Land. This particular reassurance has never been so crucial as it is now when the world's Jews face discrimination and persecution, simply for being Jewish. God's guarantee is also evidence that although countless nations may make every effort to disregard Judaism's connection to Israel, such as in the recent UNESCO fiasco whereby two dozen countries denied any Jewish link to Jerusalem, God always remembers the deep bond between the People of Israel and the Land of Israel. CFOIC Heartland puts forth every effort to ensure that this message is one that will never be refused nor forgotten ever again. Tell Israel's story with a free map from CFOIC » Take a Journey Through Biblical Israel! Watch and experience the heart and soul of Biblical Judea and Samaria: the Jewish people thriving in the Land promised to them by God!   Watch » Ancient Papyrus Proves Jewish Jerusalem Radiocarbon dating determined the papyrus was from the seventh century BCE, at the time of the First Temple, which predates the Dead Sea Scrolls by hundreds of years!   Read more » ISIS, Iran and Israel   Renowned and daring Middle East correspondent Chris Mitchell delves into the immediate crises facing the region in this jam packed book. Mitchell uses twenty years of his first hand experiences to inform his interviews about the diplomatic errors, and the terrifying motivations driving ISIS and Nuclear Iran towards their murderous agenda.   Part of our Clearance Sale! All Clearance: Buy 1 Get 1 FREE! »   Today's Israel Photo Growing up in the ancient city of Jerusalem, one precious child is fortunate to walk the streets of her ancestors each and every single day, proof of prophecy coming to light in our days!  Photo by Noam Chen.   See more photos by Noam Chen » We apologize to our readers for the error in yesterday's verse transliteration, which should have read: "ge-ver kha-kham ba-oz v'-eesh da-at m'-a-metz ko-akh" If you enjoy your Israel365 daily email newsletter, please consider donating to one of our causes or buying products from our store and blessing the Land and the People of Israel.   Thank You to our latest Tree Donors! "Todah Rabbah" to Stanley C. from Saint George, Barbados; Tamara L. from Illinois; Connie S. from New Mexico. Plant a Tree in Israel »  Thank you to our recent Aliyah Donors! "Todah Rabbah" to Robin M. from Maryland; Linette S. from India; Richard L. from Illinois. Donate to our Aliyah Fund »  Thank you to our Israel365 Store Customers! "Todah Rabbah" to Ralph W. from Fernando A. from Madrid, Spain; Margaret M. from Alberta, Canada; Janice M. from Oregon. Shop the Israel365 Store »   Thank You Today's Scenes and Inspiration is sponsored by Christopher Townsley from California.   Sponsor a day in honor of a loved one » “Your People are My People” It’s great to hear from you and make new friends from all over the world. Please send me an email and let me know how you are enjoying Israel365 (don’t forget to say where you are from!).   Stay in Touch » Your people are my people , your history is my history, we have a common root somewhere along the line ! I love Israel and its people, and I love Israel365 ! To all of you who work so hard to produce and send it into my 'in box'  so faithfully, I thank you , and pray the Lord's blessing rest upon you! Shalom. From Hazel Ruddle, Bexhill on Sea East Sussex, England (UK)     Shalom, Rabbi Tuly Weisz RabbiTuly@Israel365.com

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End of a 2,700-Year Exile: Israel Marks 8 Million Shekels for Return of India’s Lost Tribe By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz - BREAKING ISRAEL NEWS

End of a 2,700-Year Exile: Israel Marks 8 Million Shekels for Return of India’s Lost Tribe

By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz May 26, 2016  BREAKING ISRAEL NEWS

“Thus saith the Lord GOD: I will even gather you from the peoples and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered and I will give you the land of Yisrael.” Ezekiel 11:17 (The Israel Bible™)

MK Rabbi Dov Lipman and Israel Retruns Founder Michael Freund at Ben Gurion Airport together with the Bnei Menashe children who made Aliyah in 2014. (Photo: Nir Kafri)

It is truly a blessing to the nation when their tax dollars go towards bringing about a Biblical prophecy. This was the case when the Israeli government set aside eight million shekels to settle 712 members of the Bnei Menashe, a religious group from India which claims Jewish roots, in the Holy Land. The decision was reported in Israeli media on Sunday.

The Bnei Menashe tribe, which numbers around 9,000 members, last had contact with the Jewish people thousands of years ago, according to their oral history. They are distinct and separate from the community of Indian Jews known as Bnei Israel, who arrived in Israel in 1952. The Bnei Israel did not need to undergo conversion and genetic testing has recently substantiated their unbroken genealogical connection with Israel.

The Bnei Menashe live in northeast India, in an area situated between Myanmar and Bangladesh. Also known as the Shinlung, the Bnei Menashe have an oral tradition, passed down for 2,700 years, which describes how the Assyrians invaded the Northern Kingdom of Israel in 721 BCE and took them into slavery.

According to their tradition, they escaped slavery and fled to Persia, and then Afghanistan. The Bnei Menashe later migrated toward Hindu-Kush and Tibet, eventually reaching Kaifeng in East Central China around 240 BCE.

In 100 CE, the Bnei Menashe were expelled from China. Some fled down the Mekong River into Vietnam, the Philippines, Siam, Thailand and Malaysia. Others went to Burma and west to India.

The Bnei Menashe have always observed mitzvot (Torah commandments) and lived as Jews in every respect, and there are over 50 synagogues throughout northeastern India. Several hundred members of the community have already immigrated to Israel, and thousands more clamor to join them.

Israel’s Absorption Ministry gave responsibility for the aliyah and resettling of the 712 Bnei Menashe members to Shavei Israel, a non-profit outreach organization that helps people around the world who are descendants of Jews in order to strengthen their connection with Israel. Shavei will make arrangements with the local Indian government and fly the community from India to Israel. After the Indian Jews arrive, the organization will also be responsible for all aspects of their integration.

Michael Freund, founder and chairman of Shavei Israel, first heard of the Bnei Menashe 15 years ago when he was working as a deputy in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s communications office. Freund received a letter from the Bnei Menashe, claiming they were the long-lost descendants of the tribe of Menashe, and one of the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel. They asked for his help in returning to the Promised Land.

Shavei Israel founder and director Michael Freund (Photo: Michael Freund, Facebook)

Though Israel is eager to help long-lost brethren return to their homeland, the absorption process is difficult and has not always been successful. Almost the entire population of Ethiopian Jews was brought to Israel in multiple airlifts, but their integration into Israeli society suffered serious shortcomings.

Freund explained the challenge of resettling long-lost Jews in Israel. “When we started Shavei, I saw the need for establishing a comprehensive absorption model together with the government,” Freund told Breaking Israel News.

“A lot of time and planning went into this model. We consulted with experts in the field and as a result, the Bnei Menashe are considered a model for success,” Freund explained. “All of the communities have asked for more immigrants from the group, and other communities have heard of the success of the program and have asked to take part.”

Over 3,000 Bnei Menashe and tens of thousands new immigrants from other communities have make aliyah to Israel, with the help of organizations like Shavei and the Israeli government.

The prophetic project has diplomatic implications, as it brings Israel and India even closer. In October last year, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the Bnei Menashe a “living bridge between our two peoples” in his speech at the special Knesset session in honor of the president of India, Pranab Mukherjee.