Showing posts with label Rachel's tomb. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rachel's tomb. Show all posts

Wednesday, October 28, 2015

Get a Menorah in Time for Chanukah! ✡ "Seven Lamps Are Upon It" - ISRAEL365,

I see and behold - there is a menorah of gold with its bowl on its top; its seven lamps are upon it, and there are seven ducts for the lamps on its top.

ZECHARIAH (4:2)
 

רָאִיתִי וְהִנֵּה מְנוֹרַת זָהָב כֻּלָּהּ וְגֻלָּהּ עַל רֹאשָׁהּ וְשִׁבְעָה נֵרֹתֶיהָ עָלֶיהָ-שִׁבְעָה וְשִׁבְעָה מוּצָקוֹת לַנֵּרוֹת אֲשֶׁר עַל רֹאשָׁהּ

זְכַרְיָה ד:ב

ra-ee-tee v'-hi-nay m'-no-rat za-hav ku-la v'-gu-la al ro-sha v'-shiv-a nay-ro-te-ha a-le-ha - shiv-a v'-shiv-a mu-tza-kot la-nay-rot a-sher al ro-sha

Today's Israel Inspiration

Our Sages in the Talmud refer to Jerusalem as "the light of the world." The symbol of this holy spiritual light was the Menorah (Temple lamp) which emanated light through the unusual windows of the Sanctuary. The windows were made narrower on the inside - bringing less sunlight into the Sanctuary, but maximizing the spiritual light that burst forth to the world. Enlighten yourself this season with a beautiful Menorah from the Land of Israel.
 

This Israeli Arab Woman Deserves a Standing Ovation!

We're spellbound by this speech before the Israeli Knesset by Sara Zoabi, a proud Muslim ISRAELI who urges her fellow Israeli Arabs to wake up and realize that Israel is a paradise with equal rights, freedom of speech and worship.
 

Christians Stand Up for Rachel's Tomb as a Jewish, not Muslim, Holy Site

Last week, UNESCO approved a Palestinian resolution to change the status of Rachel’s Tomb and the Cave of the Patriarchs from Jewish to Muslim sites. A Christian group is fighting this "disinformation that attempts to destroy the Israelite connection to these holy sites."

Bronze Dreidel

This beautiful bronze dreidel is decorated with colorful jewels and engraved with a skyline of Jerusalem. It is decorated on all four sides with the four Hebrew letters corresponding to the phrase “a great miracle happened here.”

Today's Israel Photo

Today's photo shows the golden Menorah which sits at the top of the steps leading down to the Western Wall. Incredibly, this Menorah is biblically-accurate, made of pure gold according to all the specifications of the Torah, ready and waiting to be used in the future Temple!
 

Yesterday's Photo Trivia

You got it! Yesterday's photo showed an Israeli soldier who just finished his beret march at the top of Masada. In Hebrew, "Masada" means "fortress." This is one of Israel's most popular tourist destinations!

Thank You

Today's Scenes and Inspiration is sponsored by Nancy Blank of Germantown, Maryland. Todah rabah!
 

“I LOVE Your Website”

It’s great to hear from so many of you - stay in touch and let us know where in the world you are enjoying Israel365!
 
Shalom, I LOVE your website and look forward to reading it everyday. Thank you for all your hard work pulling together the news and life of Israel. - Debbie and David Brant

Israel 365 has and continues to be a blessing to me everyday. I think of and pray for Israel continually and am assured from God's Word that He will protect and keep this blessed nation always... Dale and Ethel Baker
Shalom,
Rabbi Tuly Weisz
RabbiTuly@Israel365.com
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Monday, October 26, 2015

Hebrew Music Monday ✡ "A Vine-Tree Among the Trees" - ISRAEL365

Therefore, so said the Lord God: As a vine-tree among the trees of the forest, which I have given over to the fire to be consumed, have I placed the dwellers of Jerusalem.

EZEKIEL (15:6)

לָכֵן כֹּה אָמַר אֲדֹנָי יְ-הוִה כַּאֲשֶׁר עֵץ הַגֶּפֶן בְּעֵץ הַיַּעַר אֲשֶׁר נְתַתִּיו לָאֵשׁ לְאָכְלָה--כֵּן נָתַתִּי אֶת יֹשְׁבֵי יְרוּשָׁלִָם

יחזקאל טו:ו

la-khayn ko a-mar a-do-nai e-lo-heem ka-a-sher aytz ha-ge-fen b'-aytz ha-ya-ar a-sher n'-ta-teev la-aysh l'-okh-la kayn na-ta-tee et yo-sh'-vay y'-ru-sha-la-yim

Today's Israel Inspiration

Grapes are one of the seven biblical species of the Land of Israel and teach us a vital life lesson. Just like grapes must be totally crushed in order to produce quality wine, it is through our trials and tribulations that we can reach our highest potential. In today's verse, Ezekiel prophesied that the inhabitants of Jerusalem would be destroyed just as a vine that no longer produces grapes is burned for fuel. The message of the grape, however, is that the pain and anguish will eventually bring out the best in them, and inspire them to return to the Almighty. Time and again, Israel's enemies rise up to destroy, yet the Jewish nation attaches itself more deeply to the Land with renewed faith. Now is the time to plant roots in the Holy Land and come closer to the Almighty.

Hebrew Music Monday:
The Peacemaker

Enjoy this classic Hebrew song "Oseh Shalom" ("He Who Makes Peace"), an all-time favorite and so easy to sing along to!

Thousands Arrive at
Rachel's Tomb

Thousands of Jews flooded Rachel’s Tomb in Bethlehem on Friday morning, the day before her Yahrtzeit, in a clear and poignant reaction to the Palestinian resolution passed by UNESCO last week declaring it a Muslim site.

Israeli Hebrew Music CD

Israeli musician Elie Deutsch brings together a fresh and invigorating sound with this great new album "Yedid Nefesh." This album features pop-rock songs about modern life in Israel, inspired by ancient Biblical verses.

Today's Israel Photo

Beautiful grape clusters in the Land of Israel by Yehoshua Halevi.

Thank You

Today's Scenes and Inspiration is sponsored by Jerry Standley of Houston, Texas. Todah rabah!

“Enjoying Being a Part of Israel365”

It’s great to hear from so many of you - stay in touch and let us know where in the world you are enjoying Israel365!

I am enjoying being a part of Israel365 even if from far away. As a Christian I know the roots of my belief are Israel and her people. To be a part of what God has declared "God blesses those who bless Israel' is an honor and a true blessing. Israel is and always has been an amazing land filled with amazing people who have endured much. You are forever in my heart and my prayers. Shalom! Julie Hockema from London, England

I just wanted to let you know the things you do for Israel and all over the world to keep us in touch with the holy land. I learn more about Hebrew words and their translation. I appreciate your service and commitment. May God bless Israel and its people. Stella Matukwamba from Tanzania
Shalom,
Rabbi Tuly Weisz
RabbiTuly@Israel365.com
Copyright © 2015 Israel365, All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email because you signed up for daily Israel Scenes and Inspiration on our website,www.israel365.com.

Our mailing address is:
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Friday, October 23, 2015

UN Body Helps Palestinians 'Rewrite' Biblical History - CBN News

Western Wall (The Kotel) in Jerusalem, ISRAEL

UN Body Helps Palestinians 'Rewrite' Biblical History



JERUSALEM, Israel -- A United Nations body declared two Jewish biblical holy sites to be Islamic and accused Israel of mistreating Palestinians on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old City.
Israel says UNESCO is helping Palestinians to rewrite biblical history and transform the Israeli-Palestinian conflict into a religious one. UNESCO has become an instrument in the hands of the Arabs and the Palestinians.
The U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization passed a resolution Wednesday declaring the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron and Rachel's Tomb in Bethlehem are an integral part of Palestine. Earlier, they claimed both as mosques.
Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon said the declaration helps Palestinians promote their political narrative.
"It is an attempt by the Arab side, and by the Palestinians, to change history and pretend as if those places, which are holy places for Judaism, which have been holy places for Judaism for thousands of years, are actually Palestinian or Muslim holy places," Nahshon told CBN News.
Historical evidence indicates that the biblical forefathers -- Abraham, Isaac and Jacob -- were buried in the Cave of the Patriarchs, along with their wives.
The site of Rachel's Tomb is believed to be the burial place of the biblical matriarch, Rachel, the favored wife of Jacob.
The resolution stopped short of including the Western Wall as part of the al-Aksa compound, as Palestinians had hoped. It would have renamed the Western Wall Plaza "al-Buraq," after Mohammed's winged horse.
"Even such an organization -- such as UNESCO, which has become a puppet in the hands of the Palestinians -- there is a limit to what you can do. But I have no doubt that they will try again," Nahshon said.
The resolution also accuses Israel of "aggression" on the Temple Mount. Yet Palestinians have repeatedly attacked police and visitors to the Temple Mount, the holiest site in Judaism.
The current wave of terrorism is a reaction to what they say are Israeli attempts to change the status quo. Israel denies any changes there.
"This Palestinian initiative is certainly related to what we live here on the ground -- Palestinian violence, Palestinian incitement -- and also the attempt to transform a conflict into a religious conflict," Nahshon explained.
Earlier, Palestinians set fire to the tomb of the biblical patriarch Joseph. Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas condemned that arson attack, but Nahshon said it's a sign of what would happen if Palestinians were in charge.
"The Palestinian arson of Joseph's Tomb demonstrates very clearly what would be the fate of Jewish holy sites if they were under Palestinian control," he said. 
Dr. Cornelius Bekker, from Regent University, said Christians should care because it's their history, too.
"The history of Israel is about God's choice," Bekker explained. "God chose Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph, the very tomb here that's now been set on fire. And so we feel a kinship with Israel because it's about God's choice and it's our history. Jesus was a Jew, Paul was a Jew, [members of] the early Church were all Jewish."

Wednesday, October 21, 2015

United Nations Just Gave Rachel's Tomb and Patriach Caves to Islam - Tzippe Barrow/CBN News

The Al-Asqa mosque.
The Al-Asqa mosque. (Reuters)


United Nations Just Gave Rachel's Tomb and Patriach Caves to Islam


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UNESCO passed a resolution Wednesday declaring two biblical Jewish sites, Rachel's Tomb near Bethlehem and the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron, Islamic holy sites.
An earlier draft of the resolution, sponsored by six member nations of UNESCO's executive board—Algeria, Egypt, Kuwait, Morocco, Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates—included the Western Wall, known in Hebrew as the Kotel, calling it an extension of the al-Aksa Mosque and therefore a Muslim holy site as well. The revised version dropped that claim.
The resolution also accused Israel of "aggression and illegal measures" on the Temple Mount that affect Muslim's freedom of worship and access to the al-Aksa Mosque. It further accused Israel of attempting to change the status quo since 1967, literally the opposite of what Israel is trying to do.
The majority of UNESCO's 58 member nations have historically supported Palestinian resolutions so Wednesday's vote was not totally unexpected.
For Bible-believing Jews and Christians, the idea that these biblical sites somehow morphed into Islamic sites is ludicrous.
The Bible records that Abraham purchased the cave and the field next to it some 3,700 years ago as a family burial site (see Genesis 23-25), with the exception of Jacob's second wife, Rachel, the mother of Joseph and Benjamin, who was buried near Bethlehem (see Genesis 35:16-20).
Meanwhile, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon arrived in Israel Tuesday to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.
"I think it's time to tell the truth about Palestinian terrorism," Netanyahu said in his initial remarks to the U.N. chief. "It is not about the settlements; it is not about the peace process. It is about the desire to destroy the State of Israel, pure and simple."
Abbas, he said, has joined the ranks of ISIS and Hamas in propagating the lie that Israel is "threatening the Aksa Mosque." The international community should hold him accountable for incitement and support Israel's right to self-defense, he said.  
Ban, for his part, said he is "deeply troubled," in fact "concerned," about "instances of inflammatory rhetoric."
"We need to keep the situation from escalating into a religious conflict with potential regional applications," Ban said, admitting that he understands Israel's anger at daily terror attacks, and he also appreciates the "genuine concern about peace and security" that terrorism generates.
In a letter Tuesday to UNESCO Director General Irina Bokova, B'nai B'rith International strongly condemned "the attempt to rewrite history," calling it a "malicious resolution" and urging her to steer the executive board clear of such a "vile proposal."
 
"The creeping but undisguised historical revisionism and territorial, cultural and civilizational appropriation taking root at UNESCO ... make clear which side in the conflict is truly inciting religious tensions and seeking to alter the status quo in Jerusalem," the letter stated.
Bokova's earlier statement to UNESCO's executive board "to take decisions that do not further inflame tensions on the ground and that encourage respect for the sanctity of the holy sites," is not reflected in Wednesday's vote.
A Palestinian mob recently torched Joseph's Tomb and attacks on Israelis visiting Rachel's Tomb and the Cave of the Patriarchs are not unusual. It remains to be seen how UNESCO's latest resolutions will play out.

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UN Vote Would Make Western Wall a Muslim Site - Tzippe Barrow/CBN

Men pray at the Western Wall in Jerusalem.
Men pray at the Western Wall in Jerusalem. (Flickr/Creative Commons)


UN Vote Would Make Western Wall a Muslim Site


Join us on our podcast each weekday for an interesting story, well told, from Charisma News. Listen at charismapodcastnetwork.com.

The Palestinian Authority's latest proposed U.N. resolution, sponsored by UNESCO, claims the Western Wall, known in Hebrew as the Kotel, is part of the al-Aksa Mosque and thereby a Muslim holy site, rather than the last remaining vestige of the Jewish Temple(s).
Sponsored by six member nations of UNESCO's executive board—Algeria, Egypt, Kuwait, Morocco, Tunisia, and the United Arab Emirates—the resolution also claims P.A. ownership of Rachel's Tomb near Bethlehem and the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron.
The majority of UNESCO's 58 member nations have historically supported Palestinian resolutions.
For Bible-believing Jews and Christians, the idea that these historical Jewish sites somehow morphed into Muslim sites is nonsense.
The Bible records that Abraham purchased the cave and the field next to it some 3,700 years ago as a family burial site (see Genesis 23-25), with the exception of Jacob's second wife, Rachel, the mother of Joseph and Benjamin, who was buried near Bethlehem (see Genesis 35:16-20).
Israel's Foreign Ministry condemned the petition.
Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely called it another "shameful and deceitful attempt" to rewrite history, predicting it would "fail the test of reality."
"The Temple Mount and the Western Wall in Jerusalem are the cornerstones of Jewish history. They are historical facts no one can dispute," Hotovely said, adding that Abbas is continuing the legacy of former PLO chairman Yasser Arafat to distort history and work against Jewish-Arab coexistence in Israel.
Meanwhile, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon paid a surprise visit to Israel Tuesday to meet with Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Israeli U.N. Ambassador Danny Danon also arrived in Israel Tuesday to sit in on Ban's meeting with Netanyahu. Danon will return to New York to attend Thursday morning's Security Council meeting.
Ban condemned "the dangerous escalation in violence" in Israel, Jerusalem and what he calls "the occupied Palestinian territories."
The U.N. chief said he understands Palestinian anger over the "continued occupation and expansion of settlements," and their disappointment at the inability to end the conflict.
Ban criticized Israel's "apparent excessive use of force," while admitting that security is a priority when children are afraid to go to school and anyone on the street is a potential victim (of an attack).
Meanwhile, B'nai B'rith International strongly condemned "the attempt to rewrite history" in a letter to UNESCO Director General Irena Bokova, calling it a "malicious resolution" and urging her to steer the executive board clear of such a "vile proposal."
Co-signed by B'nai Brith International President Allan J. Jacobs and Executive Vice President Daniel S. Mariaschin, the letter maligns the "blatant hypocrisy that has been percolating with UNESCO."
"The creeping but undisguised historical revisionism and territorial, cultural and civilizational appropriation taking root at UNESCO...make clear which side in the conflict is truly inciting religious tensions and seeking to alter the status quo in Jerusalem," the letter stated.

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Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Israel's History - a Picture a Day - Maison Bonfils' photographs

Israel's History - a Picture a Day (Beta)


Posted: 24 Aug 2015

A preview of Bonfils' photographs

Three thousand pictures taken by the Maison Bonfils photographers of Beirut from 1867 to the 1910s are part of the private Fouad Debbas collection in Beirut. Last year, the collection was digitized and posted online by the British Library's Endangered Archives Program.  

We have posted several Bonfils' photographs in the past from the Library of CongressGetty, and New York Public Library collections. But nowhere in the world has such an extensive collection of Bonfils' photographs been collected and made public.  We thank the Debbas family and Ms. Jody Butterworth, the curator of the British Library's Endangered Archives Programme, for their efforts. 

We present here just a preview of this very important collection:



Jews praying at the "Wailing Wall" (Debbas Collection, British Library)
Rachel's Tomb on the way to Bethlehem (Debbas Collection, British Library)

Rachel's Tomb, not the village of Sanur

Elsewhere in the Debbas Collection this picture is captioned "Village of Sanur in the modern-day West Bank."

Obviously, it is another Bonfils photo of Rachel's Tomb.






The bustling Jaffa Gate outside of Jerusalem's Old City. The Hotel Fast was built in 1891. The photo was
taken prior to 1898 when a breach was made in the wall for the German Emperor's carriages.
(Debbas Collection, British Library)

We plan to present more of the collection in coming weeks accompanied by our historical essays.

Click on pictures to enlarge. Click on caption link to view the original.