here comes a time for putting
aside worldly matters, as vastly significant as they seem these days. A
time for looking inward and for acknowledging the kingship of the
Almighty. That time approaches with Rosh Hashana, which begins Sunday at
evening and lasts until Tuesday night.
Credit:
Hebrewpodcasts
As we are judged, we must accept
accountability for our behavior, pray for a good and sweet year to come,
and acknowledge that our future is in the hands of Hashem. The 100
blasts of the shofar that we hear each day serve to awaken us; they, too, are a
cry to Heaven.
~~~~~~~~~~
I look around at the state of the
world, and then at our condition here in Israel, and I am in awe. We
are in a fiscally solid situation; our population is among the happiest,
healthiest and most highly educated in the world; we are a world
leader in hi-tech; we do astounding medical research; and we reach out to the
world in a host of different ways to provide assistance. All this while
absorbing millions of Jews, fighting several wars and coping with
terrorism and attempts to delegitimize us.
There can be no explanation other
than the fact that G-d's Hand is in this and He is with us. It is that awareness
that sustains me as I look at the world and consider the burdens we carry,
the threats leveled at us and the radicalization of the Arab world about
us. This doesn't mean we don't have to try our best -- this is expected of
us. But G-d is with us.
I was delighted to find that the
Latma video for Rosh Hashanah, produced by Carolyn Glick, offers this same
perspective. And it is with pleasure that I share it here:
~~~~~~~~~~
Then I want to share (thanks to
Rebecca M.) another Rosh Hashanah video -- this one from Nefesh B'Nefesh (soul
by soul), which works with the Jewish Agency to facilitate aliyah from N.
American and the UK. I came 11 years ago, before Nefesh
B'Nefesh was established. But when I saw these people, with their tears of
joy at arriving in Israel, I too cried, because this sense of having come home
is so very strong in my own soul.
Maybe some of you will also
shed a tear at this video and maybe some of you will be brought on aliyah by
Nefesh B'Nefesh in this coming year. There is no greater way to
support Israel and few decisions that can bring deeper meaning to your life than
to be part of the great historical venture that is Israel..
~~~~~~~~~~
I do not expect that I will post
again until after Rosh Hashanah. I would like to resist the temptation to
follow up on yesterday's post, but will just say here that there is much yet not
understood about that alleged film that reportedly stirred Muslim rage in
Egypt and Libya. There is no Sam Bacile -- named by news reports as
the director of that film -- who is a citizen of Israel. In fact, no one
can find Bacile in the US; certainly he is not known in the world of
film-making. Perhaps this is a pseudonym, perhaps he doesn't exist. There
is even a thought now that the film is a hoax, with nothing but the trailer in
existence. One theory is that this whole thing was planned by al-Qaeda as 9/11
revenge for Obama's boast about having taken out Bin Laden, with the film
used as pretext.
There will be much to write about
when I return to my computer.
Here I wish my readers a Shana
Tova -- a year of many blessings: health, love, spiritual
growth, professional achievements, and courage.
Credit: GoIsrael
~~~~~~~~~~
©
Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by Arlene Kushner,
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