The Hebron Fund
Parshat Lech Lecha
Guess I should check my email more often.
UNESCO decided that The Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron and Rachel's Tomb are Muslim! Interesting because the Bible clearly records Abraham buying it for 400 silver shekel. Interesting because it was built by King Herod (Jewish ancestry). And interesting because the State of Israel owns it. Even more, it was reaffirmed in the miraculous 6 day war of 1967. Not to mention thousands of other proofs. They can vote all they want, but we're not going anywhere.
We are getting attacked on multiple fronts (aside from by UNESCO).
On our roads... it's painful to mark the murder of Avraham Asher Hasno hy"d (55) of Kiryat Arba who leaves a wife and 7 children. At the scene, the paramedic reports that the Arabs were laughing and clapping while he tried to resuscitate Mr. Hasno (that's sick).
Late at night, the Arabs are blaring announcements on their loudspeakers: not calls to prayer, but inciting calls for 'death to the Yehud (Jews)'. How does one explain that to their kids?
Just yesterday at the edge of the community, 2 terrorists tried to infiltrate past the soldier's outpost but were rebuffed. Right now, as I type, Arabs are rioting (on the PA controlled side of Hebron) after being pumped up in their Mosques this morning. But the security forces are working hard and effectively.
Last week, I mentioned that we need funding for security. I cannot speak about where we could be vulnerable in today's new reality, but we are alreaday making crictical improvements. If you would like to make a difference click this link (please write security in the comments section).
Shabbat Shalom M'Hebron,
Dan
Rabbi Daniel Rosenstein
Executive Director, The Hebron Fund
Note: We are changing the clocks in Israel - Daylight Savings Time ends. This Sunday, 2am becomes 1am. Practically speaking, Shabbat will start an hour earlier and for now, there will only be a 6 hour time difference between Israel & EST.
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Seen on the Scene
The Chief Rabbi of Russia, Rabbi Barel Lazar Shlitah, visiting Hebron
photo from Noam Arnon
Mincha Maariv prayers at the site of the incident that occurred last Shabbos in Kiryat Arba
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Parshat Lech Lecha
By: Rabbi Moshe Goodman, Kollel Ohr Shlomo, Hebron
בס"ד
לשכנו תדרשו
Connecting to the Holy Presence in Our Holy Land
"And grant us to long, yearn, and desire always to come to the Land of Israel till we realize our thoughts and travel and arise to the Land of Israel speedily..." (Likutei Tfilot I 55)
One of the matters that can enhance our desire for the Land of Israel is the realization that the Land of Israel provides us good sustenance not only on a spiritual level but also on a para-material-spiritual level as well. This concept can be hinted in our Sages interpretation of our title quote which commands Avraham to go the Land 'for you' to mean that HaShem tells Avraham to go for himself and his own benefit as well. Going in Avraham's footsteps we can learn from this message that it is also important to contemplate how our Land is also beneficial to us in material, social, organizational, and other ways.
Indeed, when we eat of the produce of the Land halacha mandates that one is to conclude the last sentence of a 'bracha achrona' (blessing after eating foods other than bread) with a letter or two that signifies that the food that was eaten originated from the Land of Israel. This means that upon wine that originated from the Land of Israel one is to conclude 'al pri gafna' (upon the fruit of its vine) instead of saying 'al pri hagefen' (upon the fruit of the vine), as one would say upon wine that originated from the Diaspora. This same rule applies to the 5 species of fruit among the 7 species that the Land is praised for, and, according to Sephardic tradition, also upon the 5 species of grain, when originating from the Land of Israel. If one is in doubt whether a product originated in the land of Israel one is to use the conclusion used for Diaspora fruit. This rule is true even for one who is present in the Diaspora but has consumed a product that originated in the Land of Israel. This law is meant to express our praise of God for giving us the Land of Israel which provides us with this produce.
It seems that it is by Hebron that we learn of some of the material advantages of the Holy Land as well. The Torah says that 'Hebron was built seven years before Zoan of Egypt'. Our Sages interpret this verse to mean that it comes to teach that even Hebron, considered to be the 'rubble of the Land of Israel' in the sense that it was used for a graveyard in Maaras HaMachpela is yet greater than even Zoan of Egypt, compared in the Torah to the 'garden of HaShem' - a kind of 'paradise'. It is clear that this statement of the Sages does not come to deviate Hebron's spiritual level among the cities of the Land of Israel, for this would contradict the many sources that point at Hebron's superior spiritual level among the cities of Israel. Rather, it is clear that our Sages' statement refers to the material level of Hebron, that even on this level Hebron
supersedes the material 'paradise' of the Diaspora.
In tractate Ktubot (111-2) our Sages point to the material prosperity of the Land of Israel to be exceedingly great, but yet this prosperity is dependent on the goodness of its inhabitants. Nevertheless, Hebron's 'lowly' material level in comparison to the other cities of Israel does not pose a disadvantage but rather an advantage. One of the great Tannaic masters, R. Yehoshua, taught that if Torah scholars were less materially/physically attractive they would concentrate on their spiritual studies more and be even greater scholars. In a similar sense, our Sages teach that Jerusalem did not grow paradise fruit like Jericho, in order that People concentrate on the spiritual motive of ascending to Jerusalem for the sake of a mitzva and not be distracted by material motives such as paradise fruit. This is Hebron - one of the highest spiritual beacons of the world.
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Real Stories from the Holy Land #142
"It was just before Purim, and I had no idea how I was supposed to deliver our mishloah manos with my car which was on the verge of breaking down. I prayed to HaShem for help. While driving on Taanis Ester I stopped to pick up a man who motioned that he needed a ride. However, on the way suddenly my car broke down. I explained to the man that I need a downhill in order to continue, and for this I need help shoving the car till it reaches a downhill. He helped shove the car to the downhill, and the car started working again. When he got back into the car I explained to him the condition of the car and my financial incapability to pay its repairs. To this he answered, 'before I made Aliya from Yemen I was a car repair-man - I can fix your problem easily.' I parked next to my house, and this man subsequently started repairing my car and giving me advice on the way. After he was finished fixing the car, the man refused to receive anything for his work (worth about 1000 NIS), saying that it is a gift in honor of Purim." Y.S
Sources: Orah Haim 208, 10
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Conference of Presidents denounces UNESCO
resolution designating Rachel's Tomb
and the Cave of the Patriarchs
as solely Muslim holy places
UN body made platform for bias and incitement
From: Stephen M. Greenberg, Chairman
Malcolm Hoenlein, Executive Vice Chairman/CEO
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
The passage of the Palestinian initiated resolution by the Executive Board of UNESCO is offensive and a distortion of history. The leaders lauded the six countries that voted against it (United States, Germany, Estonia, Netherlands, United Kingdom and Czech Republic) and expressed appreciation for their efforts and those of UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova to oppose the resolutions content of recognizing that it is a total distortion of the truth and is an affront to Judaism, Christianity, and those who value Judeo-Christian traditions and religious heritage.
Through their efforts, the outrageous reference to the Western Wall being a part of the Al-Aqsa Mosque was removed. The resolution remains a blatant distortion and runs contrary to centuries of historical accounts including those by Muslim sources. For time immemorial, Rachel's Tomb and the Cave of the Patriarchs have been identified as Jewish holy sites. It was not until the 1990s that the idea emerged that Rachel's Tomb was the burial place of Bilal Ibn Rabah. Since the 16th century, Arab historical descriptions, legal documents, and in virtually every account for 1000 years, this tomb was a Jewish holy place. Bilal Ibn Rabah is known to have died in battle in 642 CE during the war of Islam in Syria and was buried in Damascus.
What is to be gained by the Palestinian Authority or the Palestinian people by these insulting and blatant distortions, except to deny the rights of Jews to their national homeland? How could 26 countries in the 21st century support in what they surely know is a propagandistic ploy and 25 other countries abstain, including western democracies like France?
This will only add to the tensions in the region and appear to reward those engaged in violence. Such actions will not just hurt Israel, but every country facing the challenge of terrorism and extremism. UNESCO has once again shown that it is not a body protecting cultural and social interests, but a platform for bias and incitement and is dominated by automatic voting blocs.
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The Hebron Fund Artist Calendar,
proudly features many new upgrades. It now has 16 months total, all-new artwork from local Hebron artist Baruch Nachshon,
a 3 year Jewish holiday listing and much more!
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Coming to Israel?
Book the best tour in Israel!
Click HERE to reserve now!
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The Hebron Fund
1760 Ocean Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11230
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