Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Get a FREE Map of Israel! ✡ "Jacob Arrived Safely"

And Jacob arrived safely [in] the city of Shechem ... and he bought the part of the field where he had pitched his tent from the sons of Hamor.

GENESIS (33:18-19)

וַיָּבֹא יַעֲקֹב שָׁלֵם עִיר שְׁכֶם ... וַיִּקֶן אֶת חֶלְקַת הַשָּׂדֶה אֲשֶׁר נָטָה שָׁם אָהֳלוֹ מִיַּד בְּנֵי חֲמוֹר

בראשית לג:יח-יט

va-ya-vo ya-a-cov sha-laym eer sh'-khem ... va-yi-ken et khel-kat ha-sa-de a-sher na-ta sham a-ha-lo mi-yad b'-nay kha-mor

Today's Israel Inspiration

The city of Shechem, located in Samaria, is mentioned 60 times in the Bible, and is one of three locations in the Land where an actual land purchase is recorded in the Bible. The other two are Abraham's purchase of the cave in Hebron (Gen. 23:8-17) and King David's purchase of the Temple Mount (II Samuel 24:24). And why are these three areas the most contested in the world today?! Learn more of the real story of the Land of Israel with a free pocket-sized booklet that includes 13 colorful maps.

Israel: Fighting for YOUR Freedom

This must-see video shows how Israel's fight for Judea and Samaria is YOUR fight for freedom.  Just miles away from Hezbollah, Hamas and ISIS, Israel is on the front line against a universal enemy.

But Whose Land is it Really?

Christian Friends of Israeli Communities helps to answer the question, “Who lives in Judea and Samaria, aka the ‘West Bank’, and why do they choose to live there?”

Passover Haggadah

With this Passover Haggadah, Elie Wiesel and his friend Mark Podwal invite you to join them for the Passover Seder — the most festive event of the Jewish calendar. Read each year at the Seder table, the Haggadah recounts the miraculous tale of the liberation of the Children of Israel from slavery in Egypt, with a celebration of prayer, ritual, and song. Wiesel and Podwal guide you through the Haggadah and share their understanding and faith in a special illustrated edition that will be treasured for years to come.

Today's Israel Photo

Zev Rothkoff's awe-inspiring photo overlooking Shechem in Samaria, with the city of Shalem to the right.

Yesterday's Photo Trivia

Thanks to everyone who responded to yesterday's photo trivia. Yehuda Poch's photo featured the Keshet (Rainbow) Cave in the Galilee. The Keshet Cave is one of the most beautiful natural wonders in the land of Israel, and a popular spot for rappelling adventurists.

Thank You

Please help us continue to spread the beauty and significance of the Land of Israel!

“Your News and Articles are Not Only Thought Provoking But Professional”

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 in New Tazewell, Tennessee, in the US. I have a great love for Israel, the birth place of my faith. Thank you for a little bit of it each day. Kathy Burrow

Thank you always my friends from the House of Jacob :) Your news and articles are not only thought provoking but professional, and as always the Truth is so much more refreshing than liberal media lies. Chag Sameach Purim to all the Jewish people around the World! ... David Michael
Shalom,
Rabbi Tuly Weisz
RabbiTuly@Israel365.com

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Prophetic Dream: A Great Birthing in 2016 Depends on This - Jeremiah Johnson

Will the church ever unify against abortion?
Will the church ever unify against abortion? (Flickr)
The Father spoke to me and said, "Jeremiah, the primary area that is upon my heart in this hour is the issue of abortion. I have given you a dream that must reach the four corners of the United States. The church must unify on this issue. I am giving them four years to do it. If they will, a great birthing will take place in 2016. He then took me to the same factory that I had been to before regarding abortion. He showed me the same dream again. Here is the dream.
Let My Babies Go Dream
I began to walk down the same dirt road that I had traveled on two nights ago. As I walked, the Spirit of God said to me, "Just as I have shown you the thrones that men and women sit upon in their homes and in my churches and think that they worship me, so I will show you the cries that come before MY throne day and night."
I walked up to a huge factory where a line of men and women filled the street. The factory was dark and the hair on my body was standing straight up. Most of the women that were in line trying to get into the factory were very pregnant; others of them were carrying small children. As I made my way to the front of the line, I heard screams coming from inside, blood curling screams. There was an inscription in the top of the door that read, "House of Horror."
As I walked inside, I realized that this factory was an enormous abortion clinic, and I began to weep. There were hundreds of cribs in this factory. The factory floor was about as big as a football field. As I began to look inside the cribs, I saw very small babies with snakes wrapped around them. It was horrifying. I moved from crib to crib watching these snakes choke and kill these babies. I noticed that the women that were dropping these babies off were dejected, defeated, and overwhelmed. I stared into their eyes and pleaded with them, but their minds and hearts were already made up.
All of the sudden, the House of Horror began to shake. It felt like a tremendous earthquake was unearthing the foundation of the factory. Then came a booming, loud, and fatherly voice that said, "LET MY BABIES GO!"
At the sound of the Father's voice, I cried out violently and said, "Father what is this, what is this House of Horror? Who are these snakes?" He said to me, "This house of horror and houses like this in the earth are what have my full attention in this hour. The snakes are the spirits of suicide and death. They are methodically killing off the next generations. The dejected, defeated, and overwhelming look that you see on those women's faces are what happens when they come into agreement with the lies of the deceiver."
I left the factory weeping. I was inconsolable. I began saying to the Father, "but I just want to see Your house Papa! I want to see what is inside Your factory!" And He said to me, "So have you asked, so shall I show you." I turned down a dirt road and there before me was a glowing factory. It was made of gold and pearls. There were angelic hosts that were guarding it day and night. There was also a line of people out in front of this factory, just like the house of horror, except none of the women and men had children and none of the women were pregnant. I thought that this was peculiar.
As I approached the entrance to this glowing factory, the Father's factory, before me was a beautiful and radiant inscription that read, "House of Hope." As I walked into this factory, I heard laughing; hysterical laughter. I began to look around inside the Hope factory and realized that the sound was coming from the cribs. I said to the Father, "These babies are too young to laugh like this." He said to me, "Jeremiah, this is the laugh of the redeemed that no man can contain or deny."
I began to take notice of the babies in the cribs very carefully. I wanted to make sure that there were no snakes in these cribs. As I looked down into all the cribs in the Hope factory, I noticed that in each and every one of the cribs, there was an inscription woven into the crib bed where the babies were lying. The inscriptions on the cribs read, Isaiah 66:9 "Shall I bring to the point of birth and not give delivery?" says the LORD. "Or shall I who gives delivery shut the womb?" says your God.
I began to shout aloud in the hope factory and I rejoiced over these babies with laughter, dance, and singing. I joined with these young ones in the "laugh of the redeemed." As I paraded my way around, the Spirit of God spoke to me and said, "Jeremiah, I want you to tell the people what you have seen and heard. I want you to shout this from the north, to the south, and to the east and the west. Gather my sons and daughters from afar, for I am raising up the spirit of adoption in the earth specifically amongst my bride. Even as I am bringing many sons and daughters to glory, so I am going to sovereignly begin to place the murder of the innocent at the doorsteps of many, many hearts in this hour. Houses of horror will begin to rise in the earth. I hear their cries Jeremiah. I will not turn my ears and eyes away from my precious ones. Watch the White House. My people will gather there to fight for Hope. People from all over the nation will gather to fight for the lives of the innocent ones. Watch and see. There will be many in the earth that will begin to adopt. I am even now championing this cause in the earth. I am touching sons and daughters and planting inside of them a heart to adopt from my House of Hope. None of the women and men that you saw lined up outside My House of Hope had children or babies because they were coming to my house to adopt."
As the Father finished speaking to me, I began to find my way to the entrance of the factory. As I walked outside, I began to thank everyone in the line. I said, "The Father wants to personally thank you for coming to His House of Hope, for championing this cause in the earth, for it has come before His throne and He will not watch and wait any longer." I began to notice women in their 50s, 60s, and 70s standing in the back of the line. I said, "Father? Them too?" He said to me, "Yes Jeremiah, shall these women not also partake in my invitation to adopt in this hour?" I walked away from the Hope factory rejoicing, but also filled with sadness as I once again noticed the factory of horror that I had walked into earlier that night. Then I awoke.
Jeremiah Johnson is the servant leader of Heart of the Father Ministry in Lakeland, Florida. A gifted teacher, book author, and prophetic minister, Jeremiah travels extensively throughout the United States and abroad as a conference and guest speaker. Jeremiah and his wife, Morgan, reside in Florida with their two children: Bella Grace and Israel David.
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Christian Printer in Ireland Takes Hard Stand for Bible, Refuses to Print Gay Ceremony Invitations

Christian Printer Takes Hard Stand for Bible, Refuses to Print Gay Ceremony Invitations

A Christian printing company in the Republic of Ireland has become the latest business to take a stand for traditional marriage, based on firmly-held religious convictions.
A Christian printing company in the Republic of Ireland has become the latest business to take a stand for traditional marriage, based on firmly-held religious convictions. (Emily Cox/Flickr)
A Christian printing company in the Republic of Ireland has become the latest business to take a stand for traditional marriage, based on firmly-held religious convictions.
Beulah Print & Design declined to print invitations for a gay couple's civil partnership ceremony.
The incident comes after calls by the Council of Europe for member states to support the principle of reasonable accommodation.

Commitment to God

The owners of Beulah print said that because of their Christian faith they could not print material for John Keirans and Jonathon Brennan's civil partnership ceremony.
A statement released by the company stressed that their decision was not a personal attack on the customers, whom they had happily served for four years, but was due to their opposition to same-sex marriage.
It reads: "We, at Beulah Print, are Bible-believing Christians who are committed to standing by our conscience and God's Word.

'Love'

"We have never hidden our faith from our customers and represent the gospel at every opportunity. We are not against homosexuals; however, we do not support same sex marriage, which printing wedding invitations would do.
"We believe the love of God is extended to all people and that He has called us all to walk in the light of His word, for He is the way, the truth and the life."
The co-owner of the company, Noel Tuite, said that they had turned down requests to print material depicting nudity before based on the same convictions.

'Reasonable Accommodation'

Last month, the Council of Europe overwhelmingly backed a report into intolerance against Christians, which highlighted a need to improve "the principle of reasonable accommodation."
The body, which represents 47 European countries, stressed that Christians in particular need to be protected so that they are not penalized for their beliefs.
It came after recent attacks on Christian businesses which declined to provide a service which contravened their religious convictions.

Cases

In Northern Ireland a Christian-run bakery is facing court for declining to provide a pro-gay marriage campaign cake.
Ashers Baking Company is being taken to court later this month by the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland, a taxpayer-funded quango.
Simon Calvert, Deputy Director of The Christian Institute, responded to media reports on the incident and defended Beulah Print's actions.

Christians Targeted

Mr. Calvert said: "It would appear Beulah has been happy to serve them for years and only in this instance have they been unable to help.
"Here we have Christians acting perfectly gently and reasonably in declining an order.
"What next? Are we going to tell Muslim printers to print cartoons of (Muhammed)? Or ask an environmentalist marketing consultant to promote fracking?
"Or is it only Christians who are told to endorse views they disagree with?"

WATCH: 'I Love Lucy's' Little Ricky Found Jesus

WATCH: 'I Love Lucy's' Little Ricky Found Jesus

Keith Thibodeux was Little Ricky on 'I Love Lucy.'
Keith Thibodeux was Little Ricky on 'I Love Lucy.' (YouTube)
Keith Thibodeux is most noted for his role as Little Ricky on the classic I Love Lucy television show.  
But there's more to the story than what you saw on TV. After what he calls an "embittered" time in Hollywood, Thibodeux decided to turn his life around. 
Watch the video to see what he's up to now.

The Shemitah Unraveled: What 2015-2016 Could Bring - Rabbi Jonathan Cahn

The Shemitah Unraveled: What 2015-2016 Could Bring

Rabbi and New York Times best-selling author predicts what the Shemitah will bring in 2015.
Rabbi and 'New York Times' best-selling author predicts what the Shemitah will bring in 2015. (Charisma News File)
As the world waits to see what the end of a seven-year biblical cycle known as the Shemitah may bring this fall, New York Times best-selling author Rabbi Jonathan Cahn issued a warning to prepare for economic calamity, war in the Middle East or even worse.
"I will state a warning which I have stated before," Cahn told hundreds of people gathered at the Prophecy in the News conference in Orlando, Florida, this weekend. "Whether it comes in this time parameter of the Shemitah or the year following or not, I believe a great shaking is going to come to this land and to the world that will involve the collapsing of the American economy ... and the removal of its blessings and prosperity.
"Whether it begins with the economic realm or not, I believe it's going to be bigger than the economic realm and it may have the effect of famine or cutting off infrastructure for a time. The shaking doesn't have to take place in the Shemitah (year), but I believe we need to be ready."
Cahn's warning has to do with what is known as the biblical Shemitah, or the Sabbath Year. During this year, according to Exodus and Leviticus, there was to be no working of the land. The last day of the Shemitah, Elul 29, is considered the "wipeout day" when all debts were "wiped clean." The Shemitah is meant to be a blessing, but when Israel turned away from God it became "a sign of judgment on a nation that has driven God out of its life."
In The Mystery of the Shemitah, Cahn described how this biblical pattern is connected to numerous events in modern history, including the rise of America to superpower status, World Wars I and II, the return of the Jewish people to their ancient homeland, the Six-Day War and even the rising of the World Trade Center.
He also noted a pattern of judgments at seven-year intervals in September 2001 and 2008 marked by the greatest crashes in Wall Street history, up to that time. The first occurred on Sept. 17, 2001, just a few days after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, and the second occurred on Sept. 29, 2008. Both occurred on the biblical day of Elul 29, the very day appointed to wipe out the financial accounts of a nation. The next one occurs on Sept. 13.
"For years, financial observers have been mystified why it is that all the greatest crashes tend to take place the same time of year," Cahn says. "When is it? September to October. What if we take the greatest crashes in history. Do any of them take place at the end of the seven-year cycle of the Shemitah at the time of the wipeout and the answer is, 'Yes.' Every single one of them does. And the thing is the phenomenon is increasing. It's intensifying."
While the current Shemitah runs from September 2014 through this September, Cahn told the audience that the "Super Shemitah"—or the year of Jubilee, the year at the end of seven cycles of the Shemitah—begins this September and runs through September 2016.
"What people don't realize is one of the missing keys of end-times prophecy is the Shemitah," says Cahn, author of The Harbinger, which has sold more than 2 million copies. "What's the end of end-times prophecy? The Tribulation. How long is the Tribulation period? Seven years. It's a cycle of Shemitahs that goes back to Daniel's 70 sevens, which is linked to the Shemitah and linked to the judgment of Israel and the 70 years of judgment. Every seventh year is a Shemitah, but every seventh Shemitah is a Super-Shemitah, which we call the Jubilee ... ."
Despite these patterns, though, Cahn says God is in no way bound by the cycle.
"Now nothing has to happen, but if it follows the course of most times when people predict things like this they're wrong, but if it follows the course here's what would happen. According to the pattern, each time it happens, there is war in the Middle East. No. 2, there is a major war focused on Israel—World War I and the 1967 Six-Day War. No. 3, that war results in an end-times restoration of the next step of end-times prophecy."
In the book of Genesis, the Shemitah began with the Pharoah's prophetic dream of 14 cows—seven healthy and seven sick. God revealed to Joseph that the seven healthy cows represented seven years of prosperity, while the sick were the seven years of famine to follow.
"God gives a warning to Egypt to tell them what is coming," Cahn says. "The turning point is that seventh cow."
During his talk, Cahn pointed to a sign with biblical roots that went viral on newswires Sept. 25, 2014—the very day the world entered the current Shemitah: a cow with the number seven on its head.
"The pattern of the Shemitah is ... it begins so undramatic you barely notice it," Cahn says.
Here are the signs that Cahn revealed about the beginning of the Shemitah last year, on or around Sept. 25.
"This is the beginning of the ending of the American Age," Cahn says. "We are seeing things we have never seen in human history."
Could this be the beginning of the end of the ages—not just America?
"It is no accident. The Bible says woe to those who call evil good and good evil. It is no accident that at the same time the nation is calling evil good, it's calling good—like you, like believers—evil. What's happening now is you're hearing more and more of Christians being persecuted for simply trying to stay true to their faith. Everything is coming to a head."

EXCLUSIVE: Interview With Iranian Convert to Judaism

EXCLUSIVE: Interview With Iranian Convert to Judaism

Tuesday, March 10, 2015 |  Elizabeth Blade   ISRAEL TODAY
As the events of the past few months have demonstrated, anti-Semitism hasn’t gone away. In fact, it’s getting stronger. While many Jews prefer to hide their identity for fear of persecution, some people are ready to sacrifice everything they hold dear in order to become Jewish.
Israel Today spoke to one such person, a young Iranian woman living in Germany who fell in love with Judaism and Israel. Her real name cannot be revealed for security reasons.
Israel Today: You were born a Shia Muslim. How is it that you fell in love with Judaism and Israel?
Tannaz: I was born in Tehran back in the 1980s to Muslim parents, though they never saw themselves as such. With the eruption of the Islamic Revolution in 1979 life became very difficult for them. My father, who’s an intellectual, felt particularly in danger given the fact that the new regime of the ayatollahs didn’t tolerate people like him. Witnessing public punishments, tortures, blood and executions, my parents didn’t want their kids to grow up in an Islamic state that radiated fear. That’s why they decided to flee to Germany, hoping that one day – when the Islamic clerics are toppled – they will come back to Iran. This, however, hasn’t happened.
Even though I totally integrated into German society and identify myself as German, I never felt truly connected to this new home, although I am very grateful to this country for giving me and my family much needed shelter. I started looking for my real identity.
IT: And you found it in Judaism, even though it’s so unpopular to be Jewish nowadays?
Tannaz: I was never taught to hate the Jewish people or Israel, the opposite is true. My father has always told me stories about his Jewish friends that he left in Iran.
IT: But to actually become a Jew?
Tannaz: It was only the beginning of the process. My love for Israel intensified the more I learnt about this country. Six years ago, when I was still attending college, a friend of mine who was doing research about Israel invited me to visit the country and I couldn’t resist the temptation. But I was in for a bumpy ride because the moment I landed at Ben Gurion airport, I was taken in for questioning that lasted eight hours. The officer, who checked my German passport, noticed that I was born in Tehran and was convinced that I was working for the Iranian intelligence service.
IT: How did you go through this humiliation?
Tannaz: It was a very traumatic experience and at some point I called the German embassy in Tel Aviv and begged them to get me out of this horrible country. But that nightmare left me curious and I made up my mind to come back and explore Israel. This time around I applied for various internship programs, hoping that they would give me a glimpse of Israel. Ironically enough, the only internship program that agreed to take me in was a Palestinian NGO.
IT: So instead of exploring Israel, you ended up exploring the West Bank?
Tannaz: Correct. I stayed with a Palestinian family from Jerusalem and got very influenced by their powerful propaganda machine. I have to admit that for two years I was on their side. But that was also because I didn’t have the chance to “enter” Israeli society and to interact with Israelis.
IT: How did that change?
Tannaz: I have always been a thinking person. I never swallowed everything the media or the people around me were trying to feed me. I was extremely irritated by the fact that every time Palestinians would speak about Israelis, they would use the word “Jews”. It hurt me to hear that, simply because I was brought up in Germany where people are taught to remember the Holocaust. At some point I realized that I was tired of the Palestinian stance: the constant whining and pinning the blame on everyone but themselves. I was tired of their negative approach. At the same time, I was afraid to talk to Israelis, thinking they would push me away because of my origin.
I overcame this obstacle only in 2012, when a group of peace activists launched the famous campaign Israel Loves Iran. Shortly after, Israelis started adding me as a friend on Facebook and several of them have even invited me over.
IT: What was the most striking revelation for you when you got to know Israelis?
Tannaz: That they are so much like Persians: they have the Middle Eastern flair but they are modern and open minded. I realized that Israel is the place I wanted to be. 
IT: Was it at this time that you decided to convert?
Tannaz: I can’t put my finger on when exactly it happened but that was definitely before anyone told me that the process of conversion would be such a nightmare [laughing]. I made up my mind that I wanted to convert while I was on a trip outside of Germany but the moment I came back to the country I was paralyzed by fear.
IT: What kind of thoughts were running through your mind?
Tannaz: I was afraid to go through the process of conversion and immigration and end up having no decent job in Israel. This would mean that I would need to go back to Germany and live there as a Jewish woman, which often means that I would have to hide my real identity. But I didn’t want to live in a lie.
IT: Is it that scary to be Jewish in Germany?
Tannaz: Anti-Semitism is definitely on the rise in Europe. It got particularly fierce last summer during Israel’s Operation Protective Edge. But apart from this, a lot of Europeans feel that they are losing their identity and that their countries no longer belong to them. Only recently thousands took to the streets to vent anger at Muslim immigrants, who – as they see it – don’t integrate into their society, but the truth is that the Jewish people are also on their target list. They might use their anti-Islamic stance as a cover, in a bid to gain more supporters, but their ideology goes against everything non-German.
IT: In your opinion, what’s the root of this anti-Semitic sentiment?
Tannaz: It is natural for people to sympathize with the weak, the underdog. Palestinians are winning the media war because they successfully managed to create the image of the oppressed people. Unfortunately, many people in the West don’t have the time or the energy to understand the conflict, to dig and ask inconvenient questions, so they end up relying on media, which is largely biased.
IT: Where do you currently stand with the process of your conversion?
Tannaz: I am struggling with my dilemma but if (or when) I convert, I will make sure to keep it as a secret from my family in Iran whose lives would be endangered. 
PHOTO: Illustrative only.
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"Tanburi Isak" -- a Jewish Turkish "Rock Star" 230 Years Ago -- From the Ottoman Imperial Archives

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


Posted: 10 Mar 2015
The Ottoman Imperial Archives does not identify Tanburi Isak as a Jew.  But, there's something about the portrait (photography did not exist in his day). Maybe it is his name Isak, maybe his beard, maybe his turban which is similar to the one still worn by Sephardi chief rabbis of Israel.  Research proved the hunch correct.



Tamburi/Tanburi İsak Efendi (1745-1814)
  
 
Isaac Fresco (İsak Fresko) Romano was born in the Ortaköy district of Istanbul in 1745. Known to Ottomans as Tamburi İsak Efendi because of  his mastery of the tambur, a bowed or plucked long-necked lute used in Ottoman court music, he was perhaps Turkey’s most famous composer of both Jewish synagogue songs and classical Turkish music. He also played the keman, a traditional Turkish violin. He became a teacher of the tambur in 1795, and the sultan at the time, Selim III, was his star pupil.
 
Listen to one of Tanburi Isak's works here.