During the week covered by this review, we received 6 articles on the following subjects:
Messianic Jews (Organizations)
The Pope and the Vatican
Judaism
Archeology
Messianic Jews (Organizations)
Olam HaTzilum, August 28, 2013
Photographer Shosh Lahav writes a glowing review of the hotel accommodation at Yad HaShmona, highly recommending it to her fellow photographers “because of its location and view, because of the log cabins and the sauna, because of the biblical garden and the atmosphere, because of the food and especially the brunch, and because of the service and kind attention.”
Lahav gives a brief history of this “unique” village, explaining that it was built in 1972 by Finnish people in commemoration of the eight Jewish refugees who fled to Finland during World War II and were handed over to the Gestapo in 1942. By the mid 1970s, the community there comprised both Finns and Israelis who are Messianic Jews. Toward the end of her article, Lahav gives a brief description of the Messianic Jewish community, saying that they are “part of a religious stream based on evangelical Christian elements, at the center of which is the acceptance of Jesus as the Messiah of Israel described in the Old Testament and the ‘Son of God’ described in the New Testament.” Even though they consider themselves Jewish, they are not accepted as such by all the other Jewish streams. “It is estimated that there are between 10 and 15 thousand Messianic Jews in Israel today.” But, says Lahav, there’s no need to worry, since “at Yad HaShmona they do not preach their messianism and they do not attempt to convert anyone. All they want is to offer their guests hospitality fit for a king.”
The Pope and the Vatican
The Jerusalem Post, September 3, 2013
The pope has met with the president of the World Jewish Council, Ronald Lauder, to discuss “the current ban on Jewish and Muslim religious slaughter in Poland, where these practices have been illegal since January.” According to Lauder, it is important to allow the Jews and Muslims in Poland to practice their ritual (i.e. kosher) slaughter in the name of religious freedom. Other religious Jewish figures have welcomed the pope’s involvement, saying that “it really gives us encouragement that together with the Polish government we will find a wise and quick solution.”
Lauder, who presented the pope with a kiddush cup and honey cake in honor of the Jewish New Year, said that the pope’s leadership “has not only reinvigorated the Catholic Church but also given a new momentum to relations with Judaism.” He added that “never in the past 2,000 years have relations between the Catholic Church and the Jewish people been so good.”
Judaism
Haim Aherim, September 1, 2013
Ofer Har-Tov writes this two-page article in anticipation of the upcoming Jewish holidays. He reflects on one of his favorite sites in Jerusalem, namely the Golden Gate, which has been closed for hundreds of years. In Hebrew, the gate is called the Mercy Gate, and Har-Tov explains how this is parallel to the spiritual gate of mercy that is opened to us in the days between Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur. The closed gate in Jerusalem’s Old City walls is a symbol of the barrier that stands between heaven and earth.
Of interest is Har-Tov’s mention of the gate in relation to the life of Jesus. He writes that “in the Christian tradition, Jesus, who is a manifestation of divine mercy and who embodies this mercy in his flesh, returns to Jerusalem after being tempted by the devil in the desert, goes up to the Mount of Olives where he mourns over the destruction of Jerusalem, and then enters the city through the Gate of Mercy, which the Christians call the ‘Golden Gate,’ to preach, prophesy, and be crucified as an atonement for the sins of humankind.”
Har-Tov concludes his article by asking who will open the Gate of Mercy and allow mercy to reside among us once more. All religions, he says, hold that the Messiah will open up those gates. But first, he writes, this mercy must begin within each one of us, deep in our hearts.
HaMahane HaHaredi, August 30, 2013
According to Israel Freund, chairman of the Shavei Yisrael organization, tens of thousands of Poles who were raised as Christians are actually Jews. The true identity of these young people has only begun to come to light in recent years. The phenomenon dates back to the end of the Holocaust, when some of the Polish Jews who survived the war decided to return to their homeland but hid their identity out of fear. Instead, they pretended to be Christian, and raised their children as such. Now, the grandchildren and great-grandchildren of these Holocaust survivors are beginning to unearth the truth about their past. Some, says Freund, are interested in this development, others find it to be a real trauma, while others decide to go “the whole way” and re-convert to Judaism. Freund says that it is Israel’s “moral duty” to look after the latter group of young people, especially when they sever their relationship with their Christian family members who are not interested in pursuing their Jewish past.
Archeology
Haaretz, September 3, 2013
A date pit and an olive pit have provided the evidence needed to establish when copper was being mined at Timna. It seems that King Solomon’s mines were most heavily mined during the king’s reign, in the 10th century BC. However, there is a growing consensus among archeologists that the mines were not managed and overseen by the king from Jerusalem, but rather by the Edomites who lived east of Timna. All the artifacts found at the site are of Edomite origin.
Shopping Mekomi – Beit Shemesh, August 29, 2013
This paper featured an article on artifacts found at the archeological site of one of King David’s palaces (see July 22 and August 9, 2013, Media Reviews).