Family Trip in Israel Winding Down: Day 5 - 8

Israel Day 5
Friday, June 27

The adults visited the LaDa'at Kinneret Cemetery and entered the world of the early Zionist pioneers. Legendary personalities rest here, such as Rachel the Poetess, Zionist philosopher Ber Borochov and songwriter Naomi Shemer.

The kids enjoyed the culinary delight of a Chocolate Workshop at the Galita Factory on Kibbutz Degania Bet.

Everyone then headed on a drive south, along the Jordan Valley, and west through the Judean Desert. Upon entering Jerusalem, they stopped at Mount Scopus to say the traditional shehechiyanu blessing. The day ended with Kabbalat Shabbat services at the Kotel.

Israel Day 6
Saturday, June 28

Morning: Rabbi Laurie and others headed to the Wall to attend a Women of the Wall service.Everyone enjoyed a free Shabbat in Jerusalem; from attending services to touring around. Many headed over to the Old City Ramparts for a walk along the ancient walls of the city!

Israel Day 7
Sunday, June 29

The group of families walked through the Western Wall Tunnel, the underground continuation of the Western Wall alongside the Temple Mount. One last Kotel visit to experience the special atmosphere of this holy site, before visiting the Jerusalem Archaeological Park, including a visit to the Davidson Center and the Southern Wall Excavations.

Just before lunch they took a walking tour through the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, for a guided tour of excavations sites from the past 30 years, including: walk along the rooftops of the Old City, The Cardo, a Byzantine street that is now the world's oldest shopping arcade, and the Hurva Square, the central square of the Jewish Quarter.

In the afternoon, the group was led on a guided visit through the City of David's new excavations which have redefined the origins of Jerusalem; and wade through the 2,600-year-old Hezekiah's Water Tunnel in the Kidron Valley.

Our adults joined the Israeli Society  in the evening for a dialogue with scholar Dr. Paul Liptz of the Tel Aviv University and the Hebrew Union College, who visited Micah this past December. During this time, the kids experienced the Jerusalem Time Elevator - a state-of-the-art motion simulator showing 3,000 years of history.

Israel Day 8
Monday, June 30

Dead Sea Basin!
The group rode through the Judean desert on camels in Biblical-style at Genesis Land. They passed by Qumran, the area where the Dead Sea Sect established a community, and the caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. This led them to an ascent to Masada, Herod's mountain palace and site of the Jewish Zealots' last stand against the Roman Legionnaires.

  Photos: camel rides, rabbis on Masada, Rabbi Flip and Ede taking in Masada.

The afternoon came to a close with a bath in the relaxing and healthy sulfur springs at the Mineral Beach and a float in the Dead Sea!

Elul: Preparing For 5774

1 Elul 5773 - August 7, 20 13
Today marks the first day of Elul and the last month in the Hebrew year of 5773. To count down the days until Rosh Hashanah and the new year, we will be sharing a daily thoughts/inspiration with you.
Let us prepare for the coming High Holy Days together!

“The soul should always stand ajar, ready to welcome the ecstatic experience.”
~ Emily Dickinson

Souls Ajar by Raychel Kubby Adler
http://www.letmypeoplesing.com/jewels/?p=1191

2 Elul 5773
Walk on Through by Quincy Jones
"...when we don’t get the welcome we feel we deserve, it’s important to not sit back and wait for it. It likely will never come..."
http://www.letmypeoplesing.com/jewels/?p=1201

3 Elul 5773
Gently Unplug: A case for undertaking a weekly digital detox

http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/140869/prepent-5774-day-3-gently-unplug

4 Elul 5773
Accept -- the good and the bad.
http://velveteenrabbi.blogs.com/blog/2013/08/blogelul-4-accept.html

5 Elul 5773
Come In by Angela Buchdahl
Are we truly welcoming, to everyone, Jew and non-Jew?
http://www.letmypeoplesing.com/jewels/?p=1229

6 Elul 5773
A Generational Plan for Prosperity by Eric Garcetti
"...I think of the challenges my grandparents faced: coming to a land they didn’t know with a language they didn’t speak. But, along with their grit and determination to do better than their parents had done, they had the strength to look at themselves with introspection, see their flaws and make a plan for improvement...."
http://www.letmypeoplesing.com/jewels/?p=1232

7 Elul 5773
“Kiss me from the kisses of your mouth,” she declares in the Song of Songs.
http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/141075/prepent-5774-day-6-communicating-with-intention

8 Elul 5773
"It is Elul; time to put out the welcome mat for the improved self by opening wide the doors of demonstrative and spoken affection to the dear ones we encounter every day"
Welcoming Actually by Elka Abrahamson
http://www.letmypeoplesing.com/jewels/?p=1270

9 Elul 5773
"I always aspire to listen wholly... All I can do is notice when I'm not wholly listening, and take a deep breath, and strive to do better. I want to really listen when the world speaks."
http://velveteenrabbi.blogs.com/blog/2013/08/blogelul-9-hear.html 

10 Elul 5773
Poems about innocence, family, happiness, joy....
http://velveteenrabbi.blogs.com/blog/2013/08/blogelul-10-see.html
and
http://www.letmypeoplesing.com/jewels/?p=1301 

11 Elul 5773
Treat The Stranger That There Be No Stranger by David Saperstein
" In 1978, Rabbi Alexander Schindler vigorously called on us to reach out to “all who enter,” to open our congregations...." How can we continue to be open and welcoming? Who is being left out?
http://www.letmypeoplesing.com/jewels/?p=1307

12 Elul 5773
Anger Management -Examining why we get angry, and how to deal with it effectively
"A quiet moment and the soul speaks up. ...it was just important to recognize the depth of my feelings, sit with it and breathe."
http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/141604/prepent-5774-day-12-anger-management

13 Elul 5773
Preparing our hearts to forgive and be forgiven
"... In Talmud there is a teaching that one should make teshuvah (repent/return) the night before one's death -- and, of course, since one never knows when one's death may be, one should make teshuvah always....When we come before the One with open hearts, with a genuine yearning for forgiveness, I believe that that God always forgives....."
http://velveteenrabbi.blogs.com/blog/2013/08/blogelul-13-forgive.html

"Asking forgiveness from God is an important part of the prayer, but it cannot be completed earnestly if one has not asked for forgiveness from the people in one’s life."
http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/142090/prepent-5774-day-15-asking-for-forgiveness

14 Elul 5773

Store-Bought Happiness

Trying to find lasting happiness—and not just at the check-out counter
http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/141769/prepent-5774-day-13-store-bought-happiness

15 Elul 5773
Taking a Break -As the High Holidays approach, finding ways to relax and de-stress
"How do you de-stress?"

 http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/141895/prepent-5774-day-14-taking-a-break

16 Elul 5773

" 'To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven...'
Change is inevitable, change is always unfolding -- but our ability to love one another remains.... This is the month when God walks in the fields with us, yearning to connect with us Friend-to-friend, Beloved-to-beloved."
http://velveteenrabbi.blogs.com/blog/2013/08/blogelul-16-change.html

17 Elul 5773
Grief
"We often choose to let grief knock on our door and only then deal with its tidings, but I invite you to join me today in taking a few minutes to confront sadness and the feeling of farewell, full of gratitude for every gift, no matter how hard the loss."
http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/142219/prepent-5774-day-16-confronting-grief

18 Elul 5773
Pray
"My teacher Reb Zalman (Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi) likes to say that our written liturgy is like a cookbook; it's a collection of recipes for spiritual experience. But in order to make the recipes, you have to add ingredients; in order to make the prayers real, you have to add your own heart and soul and being."
http://velveteenrabbi.blogs.com/blog/2013/08/blogelul-18-pray.html

19 Elul 5773
A Home-Made Welcome by Donald Davis
"...we decided that truly welcoming them was not about what we could buy for them, but about what we could do for them."
http://letmypeoplesing.com/jewels/?p=1365

20 Elul 5773
Shame and Repentance
Facing our shame is difficult but vital in preparation for the Day of Atonement
http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/142401/prepent-5774-day-19-shame-and-repentance

21 Elul 5773
"1. Extend a warm welcome.
2. Anticipate and fulfill stated and unstated needs.
3. Provide a fond farewell.
As you can see from number one, welcoming is our top priority. But, in fact, all three steps are about welcoming. Only if the totality of an experience is authentically meaningful can a person truly feel welcome"

The Business of Welcoming by Herve Humler
http://letmypeoplesing.com/jewels/?p=1389

22 Elul 5773
Courage to Dare -
"There is something daring about entering into prayer. About standing before God and offering our praises and our supplications as though we actually believed that the Creator of Heaven and Earth, the Source of All Being, were listening to us. More: as though the Source of All Being actually cared what we had to say. That's the audacious claim made by Jewish prayer practice every day: that we can dare to stand before God, expecting God to listen."
http://velveteenrabbi.blogs.com/blog/2013/08/blogelul-20-dare.html

23 Elul
Love --
"God's love for us is unending and infinite... God so overflows with divine love that God brings creation into being in order to have somewhere to direct that love, in order to have conscious beings with whom God can be in loving relationship."
http://velveteenrabbi.blogs.com/blog/2013/08/blogelul-22-love.html

24 Elul
Extending a Hand by Nathanial Helfgot
"Elul, the tradition teaches, is a time when God is more present, ready to listen and care for the human being. The Hebrew letters of the month, we are told, are an acronym for the phrase, “Ani ledodi vedodi li.” I am (devoted) to my beloved (God) and my beloved (God) is (devoted) to me."
http://letmypeoplesing.com/jewels/?p=1409

25 Elul
Inside Out by Hayim Herring
"Here is the magic that happens when we embrace our full selves: by working on and with all aspects that comprise who we are, we can more readily embrace the stranger in our community."
http://letmypeoplesing.com/jewels/?p=1415 

26 Elul
Hope
http://velveteenrabbi.blogs.com/blog/2013/09/-blogelul-26-hope-.html

27 Elul
Transcending Your Comfort Zone by Simon Jacobson
“Welcoming guests is more powerful than welcoming G-d.”
http://letmypeoplesing.com/jewels/?p=1420 

28 Elul
Making a wish!
Shana tova! A verbal wish or handmade card - which do you prefer?
http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/143466/prepent-5774-day-27-making-a-wish

29 Elul: Forgive
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T35_RgPvONI

Shana Tova!!

Rabbis Rice: Yom Yerushalayim

     "This morning, the Israel Defense Forces liberated Jerusalem. We have united Jerusalem, the divided capital of Israel. We have returned to the holiest of our holy places, never to part from it again. To our Arab neighbors we extend, also at this hour, our hand in peace. And to our Christian and Muslim fellow citizens, we solemnly promise full religious freedom and rights. We did not come to Jerusalem for the sake of other peoples' holy places, and not to interfere with the adherents of other faiths, but in order to safeguard its entirety, and to live there together with others, in unity."

- Israeli General Moshe Dayan

     Yesterday marked an important day in the history of the modern State of Israel. It was the 46^th time that the country celebrated Yom Yerushalayim or Jerusalem Day, which marks the reunification of Judaism's most sacred city. Between 1948 - 1967, Jews were barred from entering the Old City of Jerusalem and praying at the Western Wall. Under Jordanian control, the local Arab population provided no religious freedom and permitted Jews no access. The UN did not condemn them, and the world again remained silent, while we Jews remained unable to visit our holy places.

     In 1967, facing war with Syria and Egypt, Israel sent a message to Jordan: " Stay out of this war. We don't want to fight you....we will not attack!" Jordan sent a clear message back by choosing to fight, and subsequently attacking Israel. Like the Egyptians and the Syrians, the Jordanians fell in a matter of a few days. What was known as the West Bank of the Jordan river, was conquered. Jews were once again allowed to touch the sacred stones of the Wall. But Israel did not do what the Arabs prior had done. Though they found our holy places desecrated, Israel protected the Arabs. Centuries old Jewish grave stones were turned into bathrooms, smashed and crumbled, and so Israel rebuilt them. Israelis reunited Jerusalem, while also granting Arabs access to their holy places.

     Today, Israel's capital is anything but united. One of the oldest cities in the world, it is a diverse municipality that is home to over 800,000 people. Sacred to Jews for roughly 3,000 years, the 2000 Statistical Yearbook of Jerusalem lists 1204 synagogues, 158 churches, and 73 mosques within the city. Yet despite efforts to maintain peaceful religious coexistence, some sites have been a continuous source of friction and controversy. This is in part due to the fact that Jerusalem is a city of overwhelming emotions. It is a city that promises a religious and spiritual experience every time you visit. And it is the city in which we first met. Have you met her? Have you put your hands on her sacred stones? Consider a journey to our homeland in the next year or two, to experience her for yourself!

MASADA AND MUD by Lisa Silver

We are now sitting in the Philadelphia airport, having just arrived back in the US from Tel Aviv, drinking coffee and waiting for the last leg of our trip back to Nashville. We have a little while before boarding, so I'll try and catch you up on our last day in Israel.

Yesterday morning we drove south of Jerusalem to Masada, where we ascended by cable car to the top of the mountain where King Herod built an elaborate palace, and where a group of 967 Jews held off a Roman siege for 3 years. The architectural remains of the the palace were fascinating and the views from the top were spectacular.

On to the Dead Sea! After numerous discussions about who's getting in the water, most of us were adventurous (or crazy) enough to change into our bathing suits and slather ourselves with sticky black mud, known for its healing properties, and take silly pictures before we rinsed off and braved getting into the Dead Sea. You really do totally float! And then the salty mineral water starts to itch and burn, so one can't stay in the water too long. But It was a great way to spend our last day in Israel.

We had a farewell dinner in the German Colony-a beautiful neighborhood in Jerusalem- before packing up our many souvenirs and heading for the airport. As I watched the twinkling lights of the Israeli skyline disappear from view out the airplane window, I was sad that this wonderful trip was coming to an end.

Ask your fellow congregants to show you more pictures and share their experience with you. I'm sure they will be glad tell you all about it!

Pictures are in random order.
 

LET US ALWAYS REMEMBER by Lisa Silver

Today we visited the newly renovated Yad Vashem complex, the Jewish National Memorial to the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust. The museum is overwhelming and moving, and raises as many questions as it answers. After visiting the museum we had a private memorial service outside as it started to drizzle. The weather here changes from hour to hour!

We then went to the new Herzl Center, a very engaging multimedia museum dedicated to the life and achievements of Theodore Herzl, who laid the groundwork for the establishment for the State of Israel.
Mike Hollander and our dependable bus driver Moti, (who can drive our bus through the eye of a needle!) took us on a bus ride through and around the city of Jerusalem, allowing us to explore some of the political and diplomatic complexities of recent years.

This evening several of us walked to Ben Yehuda street, a vibrant outdoor pedestrian shopping area. It's great to see people of all ages strolling, bicycling, shopping and eating outdoors on a mid-November evening.

Tomorrow Masada and the Dead Sea, and then we are headed home!

Pictures are in random order...

THE MANY LAYERS OF JERUSALEM by Lisa Silver

We have had such action packed days that it's hard to remember what we've done each day! We spent most of the day yesterday in the Old City, on a walking tour with our wonderful guide, Mike Hollander.

We were amazed toward how much has been excavated in the past 30 years. We went back in time about 2000 years to an ancient street, walked through the Cardo, the world's oldest shopping arcade, and on through the central square of the Jewish quarter; we rounded a corner just in time to see a beautiful rainbow over the golden dome. Lots of oohs and ahs from the group! We ate lunch in the Jewish quarter (if I haven't mentioned this already - I have decided that I am on a quest to eat at every falafel stand in Jerusalem) before an incredible tour of the Western Wall Tunnel, which runs under the Western Wall alongside the Temple Mount. Our Tunnel guide was part teacher, part actress and a total hoot!

We walked through the Christian quarter, including the Via Dolorosa.

After returning to our hotel we had a most interesting dialog with scholar Paul Liptz of the Tel Aviv University and Hebrew Union College about the current state and complexities of politics and economics in Israel. Our brains and senses are full!

Pictures are in random order