Don’t Follow the Path, Pave It!

(ALL material for this posting was provided for by The Committee for a Jewish Shdema and Women in Green.)
“Don’t follow the path, pave it!” is the motto of the dedicated, pro-active, and energetic Shdema Youth. These young people from around the country participated in various events in Shdema during the past year. Realizing the importance of Shdema as a flagship for the struggle for the Land of Israel, they decided to organize themselves and to recruit additional youth to the campaign for a Jewish Shdema.
In the past months they’ve intensified their activities with events, hikes, and building projects.
• During the month of Elul, dozens of youth from Yeshiva L’Tze’irim came to Shdema for Slichot.
• Last Friday, youth from the military academy (mechina) of Nokdim came to Shdema to hear the lecture of Brig.Gen. Yehuda Duvdevani in honor of the yartzeit of Rehavam Ze’evi.
• Last Sunday, the youth of Shdema hiked from Shdema to Herodion. This area never sees Jewish hikers, and the youth were treated to many “discoveries”: water wells, almond orchards, and caves. So far, there’s no water or electricity in Shdema, so the discovery of nearby water sources is propitious for our future development plans.
• On Monday, 8 Cheshvan, girls from Midreshet Tohar in Yad Binyamin visited Shdema. They immediately went to work painting, planting, and cleaning. Before departing, they heard lectures on the importance of the struggle for Shdema and on Rachel Imeinu, whose resting place is just a few hills over from Shdema.
Another group of youth also visited Shdema that Monday. They found good use for some of the trash littering Shdema by recycling old tires into armchairs!

To join the activities of the youth for Shdema or to order one of their special t-shirts, call Tzuri at 054 6522292 or Tchiya at 050 4500834.

Attached are a few pictures of the latest activities by the Shdema youth in Shdema and the logo of their T-shirts.
With love for Israel,
The Committee for a Jewish Shdema and Women in Green
For details : Nadia Matar 0505500834 or Yehudit Katzover 0507161818

GREATNESS: The Israeli "Gandhi"

Moriel and Hodaya visit Har Herzl Cememtery to learn about great men and women in Israeli history. They are in Kita Tet.





(In Memory of Rehavam Ze’evi, 1926-2001)
At the bottom of the stairs I had just descended, two teenage girls yelled at me: “Take our picture! Take our picture!”
I asked: “Why?”, and they replied: “BECAUSE WE ARE IMPORTANT!”
How can a photo-journalist walk away from such self-proclaimed ‘greatness’? So I accommodated their demand. After all, if youth proclaims greatness, who knows what will be in their future!
Don’t even ask what their importance was. They are teens! And most teens carry with them a confidence of self-significance. After all, unbeknownst to them, they have not yet been tamed by the experiences of life.
I photographed them and requested of them to tell about their day’s event at Mt. Herzl Cemetery.
Excitedly, they rambled on about learning of the historical greatness of the man Herzl, followed by lectures of heroes and heroines while visiting the military area. All the while, I thought: “What a perfect, yet - so it seemed – a missed opportunity for them to learn of greatness in their immediate generation, since the whole purpose for hundreds in appearance, including Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, President Peres, along with a number of other government ministers, that day was for the Memorial of Rehavam ‘Gandhi’ Ze’evi, assassinated over 8 years ago.”
As the girls sailed out the gate, running after their bus which was leaving them behind, I stood watching and silently prayed for teachers not to neglect to educate our youth of the examples of greatness which has passed on in their generation so they will be able to recognize greatness in their midst.

HORESHA, DAY 5 OF CHOL HAMOED

SABA TEACHING THE WAY OF THE LORD
Saba Efraim with his grandchildren, Yosef & Yaakov Tzvi
It’s a big mitzvah to invite guests into your succah during Chol Hamoed Succot. My host at Horesha was Ephraim who warmly invited me into his family succah. A happy, proud Saba, he was met with smiles and joy from a number of grandchildren including Yosef and Yaakov. Along with Saba’s instructions, the kids explained a little about the happiness of being in their succah. He is a great example of a Jewish grandfather taking his religious responsibilities serious and passing the knowledge of Torah from one generation to another.As I watched Ephraim light up with joy as he held each one of the boys, I thought of the rewards Hashem must extend to a Jewish man who trains his children and grandchildren to walk in the ways of the Lord! Yet, the greatest of these blessings must be the peace of knowing that no matter what happens, in the end that child will know he is a Jew, living in a Jewish land, among the Jewish People, serving the God of Israel!Such a Jewish father or mother never looks back with regret! The Jewish People always look forward with hope for a better tomorrow!
May the Guardian of Israel extend His peace upon the mountains of the Shomron and upon the homes wherein His righteous ones live! They are the watchmen, the shomrim, for the rest of Israel. Is it any wonder our enemies want them removed.

CELEBRATING SUCCOT 2009

TEL SHILO, DAY 4 OF CHOL HAMOED

Train a child according to his way; even when he is old, he will not depart from it. (Proverbs 22:6)
The most popular story in the Tenach about Shiloh is in Book of I Shmuel, chapter 1. It is about a woman who so desired a child, she prayed to Hashem and He gave her the gift of a son that we come to know as the Prophet Shmuel. Amazingly, Hannah handed over her son, Shmuel, into the care of the Priest Eli who could not control his own sons! How could she trust Eli to bring up her child in the ways of the Lord?
Hanna represents a mother’s faith in Hashem for the ultimate care of her child. Looking beyond the circumstances, even though a mother often sees the worst, a mother will rise above the negative and believe the best for her children. She will stand with her face to the wall, weeping in persistent prayer, hounding the gates of heaven until she is consoled by no one but Hashem. Her faith only allows her to see the best in a son or daughter. Many times I have witnessed this innate love and faith of a righteous Jewish mother win out in the end and even the most rebellious sons become the mighty or the most humble leaders among men.
Walking amidst the sons and daughters of Israel who are taught the ways of the Lord is such a pleasure!

THOSE HILARIOUS GUYS

ON THE SCENE AT TEL SHILO
Asaf P’ney-El and Company
Performers and musicians mingled among the crowd dressed in appropriate attire for the place and the occasion. Suddenly, you were stopped in your tracks when someone started shouting! Drawing a crowd, the actors started acting out Biblical drama depicting characters of an ancient episode in history

Israeli Children Plant a Stone

Bulldozers in the background!





Children lined up to plant a stone on the hillside of their future new home, B’nei Dekalim. Although they are too young to understand the past, the stone represents renewed hope for their mothers and fathers who were the youth of yesterday when they experienced the expulsion from their homes; and a new vision for tomorrow for their grandparents, former residents of Gush Katif.
The ceremony of the Even Pinat was followed by a performance of the Boys' Choir, Pirchei Neve Dekalim. The music was fun and enjoyed by young and old kids alike.

The Boys Choir, PIRCHEI NEVE DEKALIM

'WHO AM I? מי אני

AND WHERE AM I? ואפה אניOn Succot 2009, children and youth made 'aliyah to Shdema' to rejoice in the G-d of Israel and celebrate their freedom to live in the Land of Israel. Many climbed the hill to Shdema for the first time, while others returned after going up a number of times.
Hundreds enjoyed the main events: the donkey ride;

Elazar the balloon-man & a knife-swinging juggler.


Brothers slugged it out to see who would be the rightful 'boss' of the hill in a bitter duel to the end!
While a brother & sister drew swords and cried out: "On guard!"

Kids surrounded the baby donkey to comfort her while mom was out & about with other kids.



ב'עזרת השם יהיה אלייה לשדמה בשנה הבאה, משבוע ל'שבוע

CHILDREN ARE AN INHERITANCE FROM THE L-RD

Deep within the soul of a Jewish Jew is buried a love for the Land; and hidden within the Land is a cry for the Jew to return and take possession of it. The People are Hashem's inheritance; the Land is the People's inheritance; and children are an inheritance from the L-rd!

CHILDREN OF THE OUTPOSTS: B'nei Adam; Ronen Farm; Gilad Farm; Horesha

Hebrew roots of another kind: NACHALA = נחלה
During neilah (closing) service on Yom Kippur we make several statements to remind us of who we are followed by an acknowledgment of who He is. Embedded in the list is: “We (the children of Israel) are Your (Hashem’s) heritage!” = אנו נחלתך...!
The Hebrew root of this word is:
נחל = (na chal) a. to receive a possession such as wealth, glory or inheritance;
b. river or stream which flows from a fountain or water that flows through a dry river bed during the rainy seasons and is dry through summer (wadi)
Derived from this root are:
נחלה = (na cha lah) a. inheritance or heritage which is found often throughout the Torah, referring to the Jewish People as Hashem’s heritage and the Land of Israel as the inheritance of the Jews;
b. taking possession of any thing
Verb infinitive:
לנחול = (lin chol) to possess, to inherit
Modern term for a Jew who settles the Land of Israel:
מתנחל = (mit na chel) settler
התנחלות = (hit na cha loot) a settlement
Verb infinitive:
להתנחל = (l’ hit na chel) to settle on land