Podcasts about Western Wall

This episode was recorded April 24 on Yom Hashoah or Holocaust Remembrance Day in Israel at the Western Wall in Jerusalem. The Western Wall is also sometimes referred to as the Wailing Wall. We talk about the meaning and manner of observance of this solemn day in Israel and around the world. The episode ends with 2 minutes of silence remembering the six million Jewish men, women and children who were murdered by the Nazis during the Shoah as the sirens wail across Israel.

Israel begins its Memorial Day with a special meaning this year, honoring the soldiers who have fallen during the wars with Hamas and Hezbollah, with the opening ceremony at the Western Wall, as Israel's military chief of staff says they will ...

Israel begins its Memorial Day with a special meaning this year, honoring the soldiers who have fallen during the wars with Hamas and Hezbollah, with the opening ceremony at the Western Wall, as Israel's military chief of staff says they will ...

Israel begins its Memorial Day with a special meaning this year, honoring the soldiers who have fallen during the wars with Hamas and Hezbollah, with the opening ceremony at the Western Wall, as Israel's military chief of staff says they will ...

Israel begins its Memorial Day with a special meaning this year, honoring the soldiers who have fallen during the wars with Hamas and Hezbollah, with the opening ceremony at the Western Wall, as Israel's military chief of staff says they will ...

Israel begins its Memorial Day with a special meaning this year, honoring the soldiers who have fallen during the wars with Hamas and Hezbollah, with the opening ceremony at the Western Wall, as Israel's military chief of staff says they will ...

Israel begins its Memorial Day with a special meaning this year, honoring the soldiers who have fallen during the wars with Hamas and Hezbollah, with the opening ceremony at the Western Wall, as Israel's military chief of staff says they will ...

Israel begins its Memorial Day with a special meaning this year, honoring the soldiers who have fallen during the wars with Hamas and Hezbollah, with the opening ceremony at the Western Wall, as Israel's military chief of staff says they will ...

Joel and Lynn Rosenberg unpack the historic appointment of Governor Mike Huckabee as the first openly evangelical US Ambassador to Israel. Hear about Huckabee’s impactful arrival over Passover and Easter, President Trump’s prayer at the Western Wall, and exclusive insights from the ambassador’s first official meetings with Israeli leaders. From special Passover celebrations in Israel’s north to the credential ceremony at the Presidential Residence, discover why this moment matters for US-Israel relations and how faith, politics, and prayer shape events in the epicenter. Episode Breakdown:(00:02) Honoring US and Israel: Flags, Anthem & Arrival(00:19) Mike Huckabee's Historic Arrival as US Ambassador(01:05) Celebrating Passover and Easter in Jerusalem(03:13) Seder Night with a Kiryat Shemonah Congregation(04:32) Stories of Resilience: Congregation Amid Rocket Attacks(06:08) Ambassador Huckabee Arrives—Good Friday Timing(07:53) President Trump’s Prayer & Western Wall Visit(10:22) Peacemaking, Politics, and Presidential Intent(11:48) How Israelis Perceive an Evangelical Ambassador(12:17) Kabbalat Shabbat: Dinner with Prime Minister Netanyahu(17:46) Quiet Shabbat & Preparing for Easter(20:35) Sunrise Service at the Garden Tomb(28:41) Credentials Ceremony at the President’s Residence(41:09) Praying for Peace, Security, and Wisdom(42:17) Epicenter Briefing at Sea: Alaska Cruise Announcement Learn more about The Joshua Fund: JoshuaFund.comMake a tax-deductible donation: Donate | The Joshua FundStock Media provided by DimmySad / Pond5 Verse of the Day:Matthew 28:6 — “He is not here, for He has risen, as He said.” Prayer:Pray for wisdom and protection for Ambassador Huckabee and his wife. Ask God to open hearts in Israel to the risen Messiah and to grant true peace to the region. Related Episodes:Mike Huckabee's Journey to Becoming US Ambassador to Israel #269 Partnership Prayers, Ministry Dreams, and the Coors' Mission in Israel #251 Mike Huckabee's Historic Journey From Evangelical Christian Leader to US Ambassador to Israel #242 Mike Huckabee's America's First Evangelical Ambassador to Israel #237Courage, Support, and Gratitude with Joel & Lynn Rosenberg #194 Links for Reference https://www.inspirationtravel.com/tja https://www.joshuafund.com/learn/latest-news/join-us-on-our-alaska-cruise Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

This week's show features stories from Radio Deutsche-Welle, NHK Japan, France 24, and Radio Havana Cuba. http://youthspeaksout.net/swr250425.mp3 (29:00) From GERMANY- In yet another story constantly changing, China reacts to Trump suggested tariffs- the point here is that it is strengthening Xi Jinping in both China and much of Southeast Asia, but could expose vulnerabilities down the road. From JAPAN- The Japanese PM is being criticized for not showing strength against the tariff challenge. The Russian Easter ceasefire in Ukraine was not followed by either side. Israeli citizens are protesting the continued fighting and Netanyahu rejects a ceasefire. At a Shanghai auto show Chinese company BYD revealed electric cars that can travel 250 miles on a 5 minute charge. From FRANCE- First a press review on Italian right wing President Giorgia Meloni visiting Trump. Then press on the Ukraine talks and the US leaving the event. Press reviews on the complex legacy of Pope Francis. Finally a report from on the retaliations arising from Pakistani terrorists killing tourists in India administered part of Kashmir. From CUBA - The Colombian President Petro announced that the US government revoked his visa following his criticism of sending migrants to the prison in El Salvador. Mike Huckabee, newly appointed ambassador to Israel, broke into the al-Aqsa mosque and left a note from Trump in the Western Wall. UNRWA says that Israel has killed 600 children in Gaza since March 18th, and that the situation for Palestinians is the worst it has been since the war began. Available in 3 forms- (new) HIGHEST QUALITY (160kb)(33MB), broadcast quality (13MB), and quickdownload or streaming form (6MB) (28:59) Links at outfarpress.com/shortwave.shtml PODCAST!!!- https://feed.podbean.com/outFarpress/feed.xml (160kb Highest Quality) Website Page- < http://www.outfarpress.com/shortwave.shtml ¡FurthuR! Dan Roberts "Fortunately, somewhere between chance and mystery lies imagination, the only thing that protects our freedom, despite the fact that people keep trying to reduce it or kill it off altogether." -- Luis Bunuel Dan Roberts Shortwave Report- www.outfarpress.com YouthSpeaksOut!- www.youthspeaksout.net

Steve Bannon says Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu aggressively pressured President Trump to bomb Iran, but Trump rejected the push in favor of diplomacy. As Iran parades missiles and nears nuclear capability, leaks about Israel's aborted strike have shaken US-Israel ties. Ambassador Mike Huckabee delivered Trump's prayer at the Western Wall, while Secretary of State Rubio warned the US may exit Ukraine peace talks within days. Meanwhile, the Trump administration advances a Ukraine minerals deal, declassifies RFK files, and cracks down on Harvard's foreign funding. Sen. Van Hollen's meeting with MS-13-linked deportee Kilmar Abrego-Garcia sparks White House outrage. Trade war fallout threatens Tesla's robot plans and may spike US mortgage rates. The Trump admin now officially labels COVID-19 a Chinese lab leak.Rick Wiles, Doc Burkhart. Airdate 4/18/25Join the leading community for Conservative Christians! https://www.FaithandValues.comYou can partner with us by visiting TruNews.com, calling 1-800-576-2116, or by mail at PO Box 399 Vero Beach, FL 32961.Get high-quality emergency preparedness food today from American Reserves!https://www.AmericanReserves.com             It's the Final Day! The day Jesus Christ bursts into our dimension of time, space, and matter. Now available in eBook and audio formats! Order Final Day from Amazon today!https://www.amazon.com/Final-Day-Characteristics-Second-Coming/dp/0578260816/Apple users, you can download the audio version on Apple Books!https://books.apple.com/us/audiobook/final-day-10-characteristics-of-the-second-coming/id1687129858Purchase the 4-part DVD set or start streaming Sacrificing Liberty today.https://www.sacrificingliberty.com/watchThe Fauci Elf is a hilarious gift guaranteed to make your friends laugh! Order yours today!https://tru.news/faucielf

President Donald Trump says a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine must be reached within days or he may abandon negotiations altogether. He added that the United States wants to see the war end, as thousands of soldiers continue to die each week.Trump is also calling efforts to bring back Kilmar Abrego Garcia a “shame,” after a Maryland senator met with the alleged MS-13 gang member who was deported to El Salvador. The White House on Friday highlighted a newly surfaced allegation linking Abrego Garcia to human trafficking.U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee was in Jerusalem Friday, where he delivered a prayer from Trump at the Western Wall. On the same day, sirens sounded in the city as another projectile was fired from Yemen.

Tens of thousands participate in traditional priestly blessing at the Western Wall, IDF launches wide-scale anti-terror operation in northern West Bank near Nablus, Reuma Weizman, wife of former president Ezer Weizman, passes away at age 99See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Send us a textIn Jerusalem, at the Western Wall, a traumatized Israeli soldier gets into a debate with a rabbi about prayer notes stuck into cracks in the Wall, while nearby air raid sirens wail a warning.Bernadette Armstrong directs Gary Lamb and Dennis Gersten.Peter Prizel is the playwright. He is the author of two fiction books, The FermentedSavior and An Angelic Folly. He also writes poetry. Based in Bedford Falls, New York, he received a Master's Degree from Fordham University.Support the showFounded by playwright and filmmaker Bernadette Armstrong, Open-Door Playhouse is a Theater Podcast- like the radio dramas of the 1940s and 1950s. The Playhouse launched on September 15, 2020. At the time, Open-Door Playhouse provided Playwrights, Actors and Directors a creative outlet during the shutdown. Since its inception. Open-Door Playhouse has presented Short and One-Act plays from Playwrights across the country and internationally. In 2021 Open-Door Playhouse received a Communicator Award for Content for the Play Custody and in 2023 the play What's Prison Like was nominated for a Webby Award in the Crime & Justice Category.Plays are produced by Bernadette Armstrong, Sound Engineer is David Peters, sound effects are provided by Audio Jungle, and music from Karaoke Version. All plays are recorded at The Oak House Studio in Altadena, CA. There's no paywall at the Open-Door Playhouse site, so you could listen to everything for free. Open-Door Playhouse is a 501c3 non-profit organization, and if you would like to support performances of works by new and emerging playwrights, your donation will be gratefully accepted. Your tax-deductible donations help keep our plays on the Podcast Stage. We strive to bring our listeners thoughtful and surprising one-act plays and ten-minute shorts that showcase insightful and new perspectives of the world we share with others. To listen or to donate (or both), go to https://opend...

Fluent Fiction - Hebrew: A Springtime Reunion: Finding Connection in Yerushalayim Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.com/he/episode/2025-04-07-22-34-02-he Story Transcript:He: הרחובות העתיקים של ירושלים היו מלאים באור השמש האביבית.En: The ancient streets of Yerushalayim were filled with the light of springtime sunshine.He: פסח היה בעיצומו וכל העיר נראתה חגיגית ושוקקת.En: Pesach was in full swing, and the entire city looked festive and bustling.He: אוטובוס מלא בתלמידי בית ספר הגיע לעיר הבירה לטיול שנתי.En: A bus full of school students arrived in the capital for their annual trip.He: עמית, טליה ויונתן היו חלק מקבוצה זו.En: Amit, Talia, and Yonatan were part of this group.He: עמית הסתובב בין הכיתה, מנסה למצוא את מקומו.En: Amit wandered among the class, trying to find his place.He: הוא היה ילד סקרן וחושב הרבה, אך התקשה למצוא איך להתערב בתוך האנשים.En: He was a curious child who often pondered, but he struggled to figure out how to fit in with people.He: כולם מסביבו נראו שמחים וחברותיים, והוא חש כמו נעלם ברקע.En: Everyone around him seemed happy and sociable, and he felt like he was fading into the background.He: טליה, לעומתו, הייתה הרפתקנית מאוד.En: Talia, on the other hand, was very adventurous.He: היא רצה קדימה, תמיד צמאה לחוויות חדשות.En: She ran ahead, always thirsty for new experiences.He: יונתן היה חכם ושקט, תמיד מנסה לזכור את כל מה שהמדריך אומר.En: Yonatan was intelligent and quiet, always trying to remember everything the guide said.He: הוא אהב ללמוד על ההיסטוריה בזמן שכולם התרכזו באווירה.En: He enjoyed learning about the history while everyone else focused on the atmosphere.He: הקבוצה התקדמה לעבר הכותל המערבי.En: The group moved towards the Kotel HaMa'aravi (Western Wall).He: עמית חשש שהוא יתמזג בקהל ולא ימצא את עצמו.En: Amit feared that he would blend into the crowd and not find himself.He: הוא רצה להיות חלק מהחוויה, אך הרגיש חוסר ביטחון להתקרב לכנופיית הילדים שמסביבו.En: He wanted to be part of the experience but felt insecure about approaching the gang of kids around him.He: אילו רק יכול היה למצוא דרך להרגיש משמעותי.En: If only he could find a way to feel significant.He: בתוך השווקים הצבעוניים והדוכנים ההומים, עמית גילה שהוא למעשה יכול לשאול שאלות ולהתערב.En: Within the colorful markets and bustling stalls, Amit discovered that he could actually ask questions and get involved.He: הוא החל לשוחח עם טליה, שהתלהבה לראות את כל המראות החדשים.En: He began talking with Talia, who was excited to see all the new sights.He: עמית הציע פעילויות, כדוגמת כניסה לחנויות מקומיות וטעמי אוכל שלא ניסו מעולם.En: Amit suggested activities like entering local shops and tasting foods they had never tried before.He: הדבר גרם לטליה להסתקרן עוד יותר.En: This piqued Talia's curiosity even more.He: יונתן הצטרף לשיחה והתחיל לדבר על הקשר ההיסטורי של העיר.En: Yonatan joined the conversation and started talking about the city's historical connection.He: הוא הפך את ההיסטוריה לדבר מעניין ומסקרן.En: He made history interesting and intriguing.He: שלושתם נכנסו לשיחה מרתקת בזמן שהמתינו לקבוצה שלהם ליד הדוכנים.En: The three of them engaged in a fascinating conversation while they waited for their group near the stalls.He: לפתע, הם הבינו שאיבדו את הקבוצה ונשארו לבד.En: Suddenly, they realized they had lost the group and were left alone.He: רחובות העיר הסתחררו סביבם, ופתאום הם נאלצו לסמוך אחד על השני.En: The city's streets swirled around them, and suddenly they had to rely on each other.He: שלושתם, בהסתמכות על היכולות והאינטליגנציה של כל אחד מהם, חיפשו את הדרך חזרה.En: The three of them, depending on each other's skills and intelligence, searched for the way back.He: בסוף, בזכות היוזמה של עמית, הם מצאו את הדרך חזרה.En: In the end, thanks to Amit's initiative, they found their way back.He: גיל השמה כולו חיוך כאשר ראה אותם שוב.En: Gil, the teacher, beamed with a smile when he saw them again.He: עמית הרגיש שהוא הצליח לשבור את המחסום ולהתחבר לחבריו.En: Amit felt that he managed to break the barrier and connect with his friends.He: תחושת גאווה ושייכות מילאה את לבו.En: A feeling of pride and belonging filled his heart.He: מאותו יום, עמית הרגיש בטוח יותר במצבים חברתיים.En: From that day, Amit felt more confident in social situations.He: הוא למד להעריך את החברויות החדשות והרגיש שהוא מצא את מקומו בקבוצה.En: He learned to appreciate the new friendships and felt he had found his place in the group.He: ביקור בירושלים הפך למסע של גילוי אישי, מעבר לנופים וההיסטוריה של העיר עצמה.En: The visit to Yerushalayim turned into a journey of personal discovery, beyond the sights and the history of the city itself. Vocabulary Words:ancient: עתיקיםfestive: חגיגיתbustling: שוקקתwandered: הסתובבpondered: חושבsociable: חברותייםadventurous: הרפתקניתintelligent: חכםblend: יתמזגsignificant: משמעותיmarkets: שווקיםstalls: דוכניםengaged: נכנסוfascinating: מרתקתswirled: הסתחררוinitiative: יוזמהbeamed: השמהbarrier: מחסוםpride: גאווהbelonging: שייכותappreciate: להעריךdiscovery: גילויcurious: סקרןcuriosity: הסתקרןinsecure: חוסר ביטחוןrely: לסמוךconnection: הקשרintriguing: מסקרןapproaching: להתקרבsuggested: הציעBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/fluent-fiction-hebrew--5818690/support.

On October 7, 2023, Hamas launched the deadliest attack on Jews since the Holocaust, calling it Operation Al Aqsa. For journalist Yardena Schwartz, the massacre was a chilling echo of the 1929 Hebron Massacre—the brutal slaughter of nearly 70 Jews, incited by propaganda that Jews sought to seize the Al Aqsa Mosque. At the time, she was deep into writing her first book, Ghosts of a Holy War: The 1929 Massacre in Palestine That Ignited the Arab-Israeli Conflict. In this episode, Yardena shares how history repeated itself, how the October 7 attack reshaped her book, and why understanding the past is essential to making sense of the present. ___ Read:  Ghosts of a Holy War: The 1929 Massacre in Palestine That Ignited the Arab Israeli Conflict Listen – AJC Podcasts: The Forgotten Exodus: Untold stories of Jews who left or were driven from Arab nations and Iran Social media influencer Hen Mazzig on leaving Tunisia Chef Einat Admony on leaving Iran Playwright Oren Safdie on leaving Syria Cartoonist Carol Isaacs on leaving Iraq Novelist Andre Aciman on leaving Egypt People of the Pod:  Latest Episode: Higher Education in Turmoil: Balancing Academic Freedom and the Fight Against Antisemitism Held Hostage in Gaza: A Mother's Fight for Freedom and Justice Yossi Klein Halevi on the Convergence of Politics and Religion at Jerusalem's Temple Mount Follow People of the Pod on your favorite podcast app, and learn more at AJC.org/PeopleofthePod You can reach us at: peopleofthepod@ajc.org If you've appreciated this episode, please be sure to tell your friends, and rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. __ Transcript of Interview with Yardena Schwartz: Manya Brachear Pashman: Hello, and welcome to People of the Pod, brought to you by American Jewish Committee. Each week, we take you beyond the headlines to help you understand what they all mean for America, Israel and the Jewish people. I'm your host Manya Brachear Pashman:. In October 2023 journalist Yardena Schwartz was in the middle of writing her first book exploring the rarely talked about 1929 Hebron massacre, in which nearly 70 Jews were murdered, dozens more injured by their Muslim neighbors during riots incited by the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, who spread lies that Jews wanted to take over the Al Aqsa Mosque. When she heard reports of the October 7 terror attacks by Hamas dubbed Operation Al Aqsa, she realized just how relevant and prescient her book would be, and began drafting some new chapters. Yardena is with us now to discuss that book titled Ghosts of a Holy War: The 1929 Massacre in Palestine that ignited the Arab Israeli conflict. Yardena, welcome to People of the Pod.  Yardena Schwartz: Great to be here, Manya. Manya Brachear Pashman: So full disclosure to you and our audience. You attended Columbia Journalism School 10 years after I did, and you took Professor Ari Goldman's class on covering religions 10 years after I did that, class had always traveled to Israel, and I had hoped it would be my ticket to go to Israel for the first time, but the Second Intifada prevented that, and we went to Russia and Ukraine. Instead, your class did go to Israel, and that was your first visit to Hebron, correct?  Yardena Schwartz: So it was in 2011 and we went to Hebron for one day out of our 10 day trip to Israel, and it was my first time there. I was the only Jewish student in our class. It was about 15 of us, and I was the only one who had been to Israel. I had been all over Israel, but I had never been to Chevron. And our tour was with Breaking the Silence, an organization of former Israeli soldiers who had served in Hebron or in other parts of the West Bank and wanted Israelis to know what was happening in Hebron and how Palestinians were living there, and the various restrictions that were put in place as a result of terrorist attacks. But nevertheless, you know, those restrictions were extremely disturbing, and that brief visit in 2011 made me really never want to go back to Hebron. And when I moved to Israel two years later to become a freelance journalist there, and, you know, to move to Israel because I loved Israel, and still obviously love Israel, I didn't really go back to Chevron because I, you know, was really troubled by what I saw there. But this book took me, of course, back to Chevron hundreds of times, spending hundreds of hours there. And it came to be, you know, my expertise in this conflict, in my reporting. And you know, of course, Heron is kind of the main character in this book, Manya Brachear Pashman: Tell us how you came to find out about this massacre. Was it mentioned during that class visit in 2011 or was it later that you learned about it? Yardena Schwartz: So that was one of the most interesting things about my early adventure into writing this book, was that I had of course been to have Ron, and yet, during that day that we spent there learning so much about the history of this place, this deeply holy place to so many people, there was no mention of the massacre of 1929, so, you know, I knew that Chevron is, you know, the second holiest city in Judaism, the burial place of Abraham And the matrix and patriarchs of the Jewish people. And you know the first place where King David established his kingdom before Jerusalem. So it was holy before Jerusalem. And yet I had no idea that this ancient Jewish community in Hebron had been decimated in 1929 in one of the worst pogroms ever perpetrated. We all know about the kishineff pogrom of 1904 and yet the pogrom in 1929 in Hebron, perpetrated by the Muslim residents of Hebron, against their Jewish neighbors, was more deadly and more gruesome than the kishineff pogrom, and it effectively ended 1000s of years of Jewish presence in this holy city. And so when I was told by my mentor, Yossi Klein Halevi, the amazing writer, that there was a family in Memphis, Tennessee that had discovered a box of letters in their attic written by a young American man from. Memphis, who had traveled to Chevron in 1928 to study at the Hebron yeshiva, which was at the time, the most prestigious yeshiva in the land of Israel in what was then, of course, British Mandate Palestine. And that this young man had been killed in that massacre. Yet his letters, you know, painted this vivid portrait of what Chevron was before the massacre that took his life. I was immediately fascinated. And I, you know, wanted to meet this family, read these letters and see how I could bring the story to life. And I was introduced to them by, yes, in 2019 so that's when I began working on my book. And you know, as you mentioned, I was still writing the book in 2023 on October 7, and this book I had been writing about this massacre nearly a century ago immediately became more relevant than I ever hoped it would be.  Manya Brachear Pashman: The young American man from Memphis. His name was David Schoenberg. Give our listeners a history lesson. Tell us about this 1929 massacre. So Yardena Schwartz: On August 24 1929 also a Shabbat morning in crevorone, every Jewish family had locked their doors and windows. They were cowering in fear as 1000s of Muslim men rioted outside their homes, throwing rocks at their windows, breaking down their doors and essentially hunting down Jews, much like they did on October 7, families were slaughtered. Women and teenage girls were raped by their neighbors in front of their family members. Infants were murdered in their mother's arms. Children watched as their parents were butchered by their neighbors, rabbis, yeshiva students were castrated and Arabic speaking Jews, you know, Sephardi, Mizrahi, Jews, who composed about half of the Jewish population in Hebron at the time, and were very friendly with their Arab neighbors. You know, they went to each other's weddings and holidays, went to each other's shops, and these people were also slaughtered. It wasn't just the yeshiva students who had come from Europe or from America to study there, or, you know, the Ashkenazi Jewish families. It was, you know, Arabic speaking Jews whose families had been there for generations and had lived side by side in peace with their Muslim neighbors for centuries. They too were slaughtered. Manya Brachear Pashman: Why did their Muslim neighbors turn on them so suddenly and violently? The Yardena Schwartz: rioters that day were shouting Allahu Akbar. They claimed to be defending Islam and Al Aqsa from this supposed Jewish plot to destroy Al Aqsa in order to rebuild the Third Temple. This is what they had been told by their leaders and by Imams and their mosques and in Hebron, that Lai had also extended to the tomb of the patriarchs and matriarchs, which is known in Arabic as the Ibrahimi mosque. Imams there had told Muslims in Hebron that the Jews of Hebron were planning to conquer Ibrahimi mosque in order to turn it into a synagogue. So this incitement and this disinformation that continues to drive the conflict today. Really began in 1929 the rumors about this supposed Jewish plot to destroy Al Aqsa that began in 1928 around the same time that David Schoenberg arrived in Palestine to study at the yeshiva. Manya Brachear Pashman: So in addition to the letters that David Schoenberg wrote to his family back in Tennessee. How else did you piece together this history? How did you go about reporting and researching it? Who kept records?  Yardena Schwartz: So it's really interesting, because I was so surprised by the lack of literature on this really dramatic moment in history, in the history of Israel, the history of this conflict. And yet, despite the fact there are really no books in English, at least, about the massacre and about these riots and what led to them, there were mountains of, you know, testimony from victims and survivors. The British carried out this commission after the riots that produced this 400 page report filled with testimony of British officials, Arab officials, Jewish officials, survivors. So there was just so much material to work with. Also, survivors ended up writing books about their experiences in Hebron, very similar to David's letters, in a way, because they wrote not only about the riots and the massacre itself, but also what they experienced in Hebron before they too, wrote about, you know, the relatively peaceful relations between the city's Jewish minority and the Arab majority. And I also relied on archival newspaper reports so the. Riots really occupied the front pages of American newspapers for about a week, because it took about a week for the British to quell the riots, and they did so with an air, land and sea campaign. They sent warships and war planes from across the British Empire and sent troops from other parts of the British Empire. Because one of the reasons the riots were so effective, in a way, you know, were so deadly, especially in kharag, was because there was just no military force in Palestine. At the time, the British did not have a Palestine military force, and it was only after the 1929 riots that they did have troops in Palestine. Until then, they had the Palestine police force, and that police force was mostly Arabs. In Hebron, for example, there were about 40 policemen under the stewardship of one British police chief, and all but one of those policemen were Arabs, and many of them participated in the massacre or stood by outside of Jewish homes and allowed the mobs to enter the homes and carry out their slaughter. And Manya Brachear Pashman: I'm curious. There was a lot of newspaper coverage, but what about the international community's response beyond the British Empire? Yardena Schwartz: So there were actually protests around the world against the massacre in New York. 35,000 people marched through the streets of Manhattan to protest the British failure to protect their Jewish subjects from these riots. Most of the marchers were Jewish, but nevertheless, I mean 35,000 people. We didn't see anything like that after October 7. Of course, we saw the opposite people marching through the streets of New York and cities around the world supporting the mass of October 7. You know, I mentioned this March in New York, but similar protests were held around the world, mostly in Jewish communities. So in Poland, Warsaw and in England, there were protests against the British failure to protect Jews in Palestine from these riots. And the American government was livid with the British and they sent statements put out, statements to the press, criticizing the British inaction, the British failure to protect the Jewish subjects and the American citizens who were in Palestine at the time, there were eight Americans killed in Hebron on August 24 1929. Out of the 67 Jewish men, women and children who were killed, and all of them were unarmed. The Haganah at the time, you know, the underground Jewish Defense Force that would later become the nucleus of the IDF, the Haganah was active then, mostly in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, there were no Haganah members in Hebron. The Hebron Jewish community was very traditional, very religious, and when Haganah came to Hebron two days before the riots erupted, they because they knew that these riots were going to happen. There had been calls from Arab officials to riot, to attack Jewish communities across Palestine. And so the Haganah came to Hebron to warn Jewish leaders of Hebron that they could either come there to protect them or evacuate them to Jerusalem to safety until the riots subsided and the Jewish leaders of Hebron were unanimous in their opposition. They said, No, you know, we're friends with our Arab neighbors. They'll never hurt us. We trust them. If anything happens elsewhere, it won't happen here. And they believed that because, not only because they had such a good relationship with their Arab neighbors and friends, but also because in previous outbursts of violence in other years, like in 1920 1921 when they were much smaller riots and much less deadly riots. When those riots reached other parts of Palestine, they didn't reach Hebron because of those relations and because they weren't fueled by incitement and disinformation, which was what led the riots of 1929 to be so massive and so deadly, and what led them to be embraced by previously peaceful neighbors. Manya Brachear Pashman: How did that disinformation travel in 1929 How did it reach those neighbors in Hebron? Yardena Schwartz: When we talk about disinformation and misinformation today, we think of it as this, you know, modern plague of, you know, the social media era, or, you know our fractured media landscape. But back in 1929 disinformation was rampant, and it also traveled through Arabic newspapers. They were publishing these statements by Arab officials, mostly the Grand Mufti Hajime Husseini, who was the leader of Palestinian Muslims under British rule, he began this rumor that the Jews of Palestine were plotting to conquer Al Aqsa mosque to rebuild their ancient temple. Of course, Al Aqsa is built upon the ruins of the ancient temples. Temple Mount is the holiest place for Jews in the world. And in 1929, Jews were forbidden from accessing the Temple Mount because it was considered, you know, a solely holy Muslim site. But the closest place they could pray was the Western Wall, the Kotel. And Jews who were demanding British protection to pray in peace at the Western Wall without being attacked by Muslims as a result of this disinformation campaign were then painted by the Arabic press as working to conquer the Western Wall, turn it into a synagogue, and then from there, take Al Aqsa Mosque.  So this disinformation traveled from the very highest of Muslim officials. So the imams in mosques across Palestine, specifically in Al Aqsa and in Hebron, were repeating these rumors, these lies about this supposed Jewish plot. Those lies were then being published in flyers that were put in city squares. Jewish officials were warning the British and telling, you know, they should have known and they should have done more to end this campaign of disinformation, not only to achieve peace in this land that they were ruling over, but also because they were responsible for installing hajamina Husseini, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, into his position they had chosen him for that position, that all powerful position. And so they were responsible, in a way, for all of these lies that he was spreading. And yet they took no responsibility.  And even in the commission that they sent to Palestine from London to investigate the causes of the riots, despite the fact that, you know, if you read these, you know, 400 pages, I don't recommend it. It's a tough reading. But, you know, I did that for this book. And it's so clear from all of these hearings that this disinformation campaign was very obvious, very clear and very clearly to blame for the riots. And yet, because saying so would have made the British responsible for so much death, their conclusions in this commission was that it was Jewish immigration to Palestine and Jewish land purchases at the time that had sparked the riots, and that it was this Jewish demonstration, peaceful demonstration at the Western Wall on to Shabaab in August of 1929 that had sparked these riots.  So there's just, you know, this absolute lack of accountability, not only for the Mufti, who retained his position and became even more powerful and more popular as a leader after these riots, but also for the British and instead, you know, the Jewish victims were blamed for their suffering. At the time, Jews were just 20% of the Palestinian population, which was just 1 million people. Of course, today, Israel is home to more than 10 million people. So you know, clearly there was room for everyone. And the Jews at the time were very peaceful. The Haganah was a very, you know, weak, decentralized force, and after these riots, it became much stronger, and Sephardi Jews and Mizrahi Jews, more traditional Jews who had not joined the Haganah before 1929 had not really embraced Zionism before 1929 now agreed that if Jews were going to be safe in our homeland, then we would need our own army. Manya Brachear Pashman: Can we talk a little bit about the turn toward radicalization and extremism during this time, and what role that has played in the years since? Yardena Schwartz: you know, the Zionist leadership was very adamant that Jews in Palestine should not be carrying out attacks against Arabs in Palestine. You know, it should be really about defending Jews, preventing attacks, but not carrying out retaliatory attacks. But as we've seen throughout the century, of this conflict. You know, extremism begets extremism. And you know, when violence is being used by one side, it is going to be used by the other side as well. And so the rise of a more militant form of Zionism was a direct result of 1929 and this feeling of just helplessness and this feeling of relying on this foreign power, the British, to protect them, and realizing that no foreign power was going to protect the Jews of Palestine and that Jews would have to protect themselves, and the radicalism and the extremism within the Muslim population, particularly the Muslim leadership of Palestine, really just accelerated after the massacre, because they saw that it succeeded. I mean, the British punished the Jewish population of Palestine for the riots by vastly limiting Jewish immigration, vastly limiting Jewish land purchases. Notice, I use the word land purchases because, contrary to a lot of the disinformation we hear. Much today, none of this land was being stolen. It was being purchased by Jews from Muslim land owners. Many of them were absentee landowners. Many of them were from the wealthiest families in Palestine. And many of them were members of, you know, this anti Zionist, pro Mufti circle, who were then telling their own people that Jews are stealing your land and evicting you from your land, when, in fact, it was these wealthy Arab landowners who were selling their land to Jews at exorbitant prices. Manya Brachear Pashman: Did you establish a motive for the Mufti and what were his intentions spreading this disinformation? Yardena Schwartz: Great question. So it was very clear. I mean, he never admitted this, but it was very clear what his motives were, and that was to counter the criticism and accusations of corruption that had dogged him for years, until he began this campaign of propaganda which led much of that criticism and much of those stories of his corruption within the Arabic press and among his Arab rivals to essentially disappear, because now they had a much more threatening enemy, and that enemy was the Jewish community of Palestine, who was plotting to destroy Al Aqsa, conquer Al Aqsa, rebuild their temple, take over Palestine and his campaign worked. You know, after that propaganda campaign became so successful, there were very few people willing to stand up to him and to criticize him, because after 1929 when he became so much more powerful, he began a campaign of assassinations and intimidation and violence used against not only his political rivals and dissidents, but also just Anyone who favored cooperation between Arabs and Jews in Palestine. So there were various mayors of Arab cities who wanted to work together with the Jewish community of those cities or with other Jewish leaders to bring about various economic initiatives, for instance. And some of those mayors were assassinated by the muftis henchmen, or they were just intimidated into silence and into kind of embracing his platform, which was that Palestine is and has always been and should always be, a purely Muslim land, and that there is no place for any kind of Jewish sovereignty or Jewish power in that land.  So, you know, the Mufti, in 1936 he ended up leading a violent rebellion against the British. And the British at that point, had gotten tired of ruling Palestine. They realized it was much more work than they were interested in doing, and they were interested in leaving Palestine, handing over governance to the local population to the Jews and Arabs of Palestine, and they had been interested in figuring out what could be done. Could there be a binational state with equal representation, or representative governance? If Jews are 40% of the population and Arabs are 60% then there could be some kind of governance on those ratios, all of those solutions, including a two state solution, which was presented in 1937 all of those solutions were rejected by the grand mufti, and his platform was embraced by the other Arab officials within Palestine, because if it wasn't, they could face death or violence. And he even rejected the idea of Jews remaining in Palestine under Arab rule. You know when the British said to him, okay, so what will be done with the 400,000 Jews who are in Palestine right now? He said they can't stay. So he didn't only reject the two state solution. He rejected, you know, this bi national, equal utopian society that we hear proposed by so many in pro Palestine movement today. You know, all of these solutions have been on the table for a century and always. They have been rejected by Palestinian leaders, whether it was the Grand Mufti or his apprentice, his young cousin, yas Arafat. Manya Brachear Pashman: Ah, okay, so what happened to Grand Mufti Husseini? Did he stick around? So The Mufti was eventually, finally wanted for arrest by the British after his rebellion claimed the life of a British official. Until then, it had only claimed the lives of Jews and Arabs, but once a British official was killed, then the British had decided that they'd had enough of the Mufti, and they ordered his arrest. He fled Palestine. He ended up in Iraq, where he was involved in riots there the far hood in which many Jews were massacred, perhaps hundreds, if not over 1000 Jews were slaughtered in Baghdad, which was at the time home to about. 100,000 Jews. He then fled Iraq and ended up in Berlin, where he lived from 1941 to 1945 in a Nazi financed mansion, and he led the Arab branch of Joseph Goebbels Ministry of Propaganda. He was the Nazi's leading voice in the Arab world, he spread Nazi propaganda throughout the Muslim world and recruited 10s of 1000s of Muslims to fight for the Nazis, including in the Waffen SS and when the war ended, when world war two ended, and the UN wanted him for Nazi war crimes, he was wanted for Nazi war crimes, placed on the UN's list of Nazi war criminals. Once again, he fled, first to France, then to Cairo, eventually settling in Beirut, where he continued to lead his people's jihad against the Jews of Palestine. So when, in 1947, when the UN voted to partition British Mandate Palestine into an Arab state and a Jewish state so that the British could finally leave Palestine. He declared jihad, and he rejected the Partition Plan, along with every other Arab state which also rejected it. Of course, the Jews of Palestine embraced it, celebrated it, and the very next day after the UN vote, riots erupted throughout Palestine, and he helped. He was kind of pulling the strings of that Jihad taking place in Palestine. And in fact, 1000 Muslim men who he had recruited for the Waffen. SS joined that holy war in Palestine. The Mufti helped create the army of the holy war. Yasser Arafat, who was also in Beirut at the time, also assisted the army of the holy war. He actually fought in the war that began in 1947 alongside the Muslim Brotherhood. So, you know the legacy that the Mufti had? You know, it doesn't end there. It continued to his dying day in 1974 and Arafat took over his mantle as the leader of the Palestinian people. And you know, we see how the disinformation and incitement and rejection of Jewish sovereignty in any part of the ancient land of Israel has continued to be a prominent force in Palestinian politics no matter who was in charge. You know, the Fatah, Mahmoud, Abbas and Hamas, of course, perpetuate the same lies about Al Aqsa. They perpetuate the same denial of a Jewish right to live in peace in our homeland, deny the history of Jewish presence in Israel. So, you know, it's really astounding to me how little is known about the Grand Mufti and how little is known about his impact on this conflict, and particularly in the very beginnings, the ground zero of this conflict in 1929 Manya Brachear Pashman: It's so interesting. We talk so much about Hitler, right? And his antisemitism, but we don't talk about Husseini. Yardena Schwartz: Yeah, and they were good friends. I mean, they met in 1941 shortly after the Mufti arrived, he had a private chauffeur. He was lavishly paid by the Nazis, and he was good friends with Himmler. He toured concentration camps. He knew very well about the final solution. Hitler himself considered the Mufti an honorary Aryan. I mean, the Mufti had blue eyes, fair skin, light hair. Hitler believed that Husseini had Roman blood, and he saw him as someone who could lead the Nazi forces once they arrived in the Middle East. He saw him as, you know, a great ally of the Nazis. He didn't just participate in the Nazis quest to eradicate the Jewish population of Europe and eventually arrive in Palestine, but he also the Mufti worked to convince various European leaders not to allow Jewish refugees from fleeing Europe and not allowing them to come to Palestine. He told them, send them to Poland, and he knew very well what was happening in Poland. Manya Brachear Pashman: So I want to go back to this family in Tennessee, the genesis of this story, and I'm curious. David Schoenberg's niece said that at one point in the book, she said they're Southern, so they sweep ugly under the rug in the south. And so they just didn't talk about that. And when I read that, I thought, actually, that's kind of a Jewish approach, not a southern approach, except we wouldn't say we sweep things under the rug. We move on, right? We treasure our resilience, and we move on from that pain and we build anew. But is moving on really in the Jewish community's best interest? Is that how we end up forgetting and letting this history and this very important history fade?. Yardena Schwartz: Yeah, absolutely. You know, I think it is possible to do both. It is possible to take great pride in our resilience and in our strength and our ability to experience so much devastation and suffering, and yet every time emerge stronger.  I mean, think about the Holocaust. First of all, for many years, we did sweep that under the rug. Survivors were discouraged from speaking about what they went through. They were seen as, you know, especially in Israel, they were seen as, you know, people who went like sheep to the slaughter. It wasn't something to talk about. It was something to move on from. And yet now we are able to hold both in both hands. You know. We're able to honor and commemorate the memory and speak about the atrocities that millions of Jews suffered during the Holocaust, while also celebrating where we went after the Holocaust. I mean, three years after the Holocaust, Israel was born. You know, that's just, on its own, you know, a remarkable symbol of our resilience and our strength as a people. But I think the way we commemorate the Holocaust is a really great example of how we do both how we honor the memory and use that as a lesson so that it never happens again.  And yet, I think that when it comes to the conflict and the various forces that have led us to where we are today, there is this tendency to kind of try to move on and not really speak about how we got here. And it's really a shame, because I think that this is the only way we'll ever find a way out of this tragic cycle of violence, is if we learn how we got here, the forces that continue to drive this conflict after a century, and you know, the people who brought us here. Not only the Grand Mufti, but also, you know, the leaders today who are very much capitalizing on fear and religion, exploiting religion for their own, their own interests, and utilizing disinformation to remain in power. And I think that, you know, we can't afford not to speak about these things and not to know about our own history. It's really telling that, you know, even in Jewish communities, where people know so much about Israel and about this conflict, there is just a complete lack of knowledge of, you know, the very bedrock of this conflict. And I think without that knowledge, we'll never get out of this mess. Manya Brachear Pashman: Yardena, thank you so much. This is such a wonderful book, and congratulations on writing it.  Yardena Schwartz: Thank you so much.  Manya Brachear Pashman: If you missed last week's episode, be sure to tune in for my conversation with Dr Laura Shaw Frank, Director of AJC Center for Education Advocacy. We discussed the delicate balance between combating antisemitism, safeguarding free speech, and ensuring campuses remain safe for all students.  Thank you for listening. This episode is brought to you by AJC. Our producer is Atara Lakritz. Our sound engineer is TK Broderick. You can subscribe to People of the Pod on Apple podcasts, Spotify or Google podcasts, or learn more at ajc.org/PeopleofthePod. The views and opinions of our guests don't necessarily reflect the positions of AJC. We'd love to hear your views and opinions or your questions. You can reach us at PeopleofthePod@ajc.org. If you've enjoyed this episode, please be sure to tell your friends. Tag us on social media with hashtag People of the Pod and hop on to Apple podcasts to rate us and write a review to help more listeners find us. Tune in next week for another episode of People of the Pod.

The Western Wall  Part 14:  Wilson's Arch  -  English and Spanish.  One of the ancient gates in King Herod's Western Wall was located above a massive archway.  The remains of the arch can still be seen today as a testimony to the majesty of Herod's temple!  This an updated version with translation of a podcast originally recorded March 18, 2023. El Muro Occidental, parte 14: Arco de Wilson -  Inglés y español.  Una de las antiguas puertas del Muro Occidental del rey Herodes estaba situada sobre un enorme arco.  Los restos del arco aún pueden verse hoy en día como testimonio de la majestuosidad del templo de Herodes.  Esta es una versión actualizada con traducción de un podcast grabado originalmente el 18 de marzo de 2023.

King Herod (born 72; died 4 or 1 BC) was an infamous tyrant, but he was also known for his colossal construction projects throughout Judea. Among these works are the rebuilding of the Second Temple in Jerusalem and the expansion of its base—the Western Wall being part of it. Dan Snow's History Hit podcast available at https://amzn.to/48HlmtH Books by Seth Schwartz available at https://amzn.to/49US5vJ ENJOY Ad-Free content, Bonus episodes, and Extra materials when joining our growing community on https://patreon.com/markvinet SUPPORT this channel by purchasing any product on Amazon using this FREE entry LINK https://amzn.to/3POlrUD (Amazon gives us credit at NO extra charge to you). Mark Vinet's HISTORY OF NORTH AMERICA podcast: www.parthenonpodcast.com/history-of-north-america Mark's TIMELINE Video channel: https://youtube.com/c/TIMELINE_MarkVinet Website: https://markvinet.com/podcast Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mark.vinet.9 Twitter: https://twitter.com/HistoricalJesu Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/denarynovels Mark's books: https://amzn.to/3k8qrGM Audio credit: Dan Snow's History Hit podcast (Episode 1337: King Herod with Seth Schwartz, professor of Classical Jewish Civilization at New York City’s Columbia University). Audio excerpts reproduced under the Fair Use (Fair Dealings) Legal Doctrine for purposes such as criticism, comment, teaching, education, scholarship, research and news reporting.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Western Wall in Jerusalem holds great significance for the Jews and Christians alike. During this episode of the Blessors of Israel Podcast, Dr. Matthew Dodd visits the Western Wall and shares the historical and biblical significance of this location for Judaism and Christianity. Visit the Blessors of Israel Website: https://www.blessors.org/ Thank you for supporting Blessors of Israel. Donate Online: https://blessors.org/donate/Please Subscribe and Like our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUfbl_rf8O_uwKrfzCh04jgSubscribe to our ⁠Spotify Channel⁠: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/blessorsofisrael Subscribe to our Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/blessors-of-israedl/id1699662615Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BlessorsofIsrael/Twitter: https://twitter.com/BlessorsIGettr: https://gettr.com/i/blessorsofisrael Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/c-1670015Thank you for watching. Please like and share this video.We would love to hear your comments.Those who bless Israel will be blessed (Genesis 12:3).Pastor Rich JonesPastor Matthew DoddDr. Matthew DoddRich Jones Blessors of IsraelMatthew Dodd Blessors of IsraelBlessors of IsraelBlessers of IsraelTags:Pastor Rich JonesPastor Matthew DoddRich JonesDr. Matthew DoddRich Jones, Blessors of Israel, Rich Jones, Blessers of Israel, Matthew Dodd, Blessors of Israel, Matthew Dodd, Blessers of Israel, Blessers of Israel, Blessors of Israel, Two-State Solution, Palestine, Modern Palestinian Problem, Israel, Jesus Christ, Anti-Semitism, Prophecy Update, End Times Prophecy, Latter Days, Bible Prophecy, The Great Tribulation, Hamas, Gaza Strip, Terrorism, Hezbollah, Iran, Russia, Persia, Gog and Magog, BRICS, China, CCP, Persia, Iran, Turkey, Russia, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, India, Yahya Sinwar, Nasrallah, Ismail Haniyeh, Deif, United Nations, Terrorism, Antisemitism, Syria, Bashar al Assad, HTS, Damascus, Mount Hermon, Erdogan, Netanyahu, Trump, Putin, Ceasefire, Hostages

Fluent Fiction - Hebrew: Passover Connections: Finding Roots and Renewal in Jerusalem Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.com/he/episode/2025-03-23-22-34-02-he Story Transcript:He: בריוק בשבוע הראשון של פסח, כאשר העיר העתיקה של ירושלים מתעוררת לחיים עם הריחות והצבעים של האביב, אילעור וטובה נפגשים לראשונה.En: Exactly in the first week of Passover, when the Old City of Jerusalem awakens to life with the scents and colors of spring, Il'or and Tova meet for the first time.He: הרחבה של הכותל המערבי הייתה מלאה בעולי רגל, תיירים, ותושבי המקום, כולם מתרפקים על האווירה הנשגבת.En: The plaza of the Western Wall was full of pilgrims, tourists, and locals, all savoring the sublime atmosphere.He: אילעור עמד קצת מרוחק, מביט באבן החיה הגדולה.En: Il'or stood a little apart, gazing at the massive living stone.He: ליבו חפש מקום שלווה ומטרה חדשה.En: His heart sought a place of peace and a new purpose.He: הוא תמיד היה מהרהר ומחפש משמעות.En: He had always been one to ponder and search for meaning.He: מלא בלבטים, עכשיו עמד חשוף, מתפלל למצוא כיוון, שקט פנימי.En: Full of doubts, he now stood exposed, praying to find direction, inner peace.He: טובה, לעומתו, הגיעה לבדוק את שורשיה.En: Tova, on the other hand, arrived to explore her roots.He: היא רצתה להבין את מורשתה, להשתייך, להרגיש את ההיסטוריה בתוכה.En: She wanted to understand her heritage, to belong, to feel history within her.He: עם כל טיפה של אמונה, היא לקחה אוויר עמוק והביטה מסביב – הקירות העתיקים, התפילות המתעופפות ברוח, ופניה של אלו הסובבים.En: With every drop of faith, she took a deep breath and looked around - the ancient walls, the prayers floating in the wind, and the faces of those around her.He: כשעיניהם נפגשו, היה משהו משותף במבטי הגילוי והסקרנות.En: When their eyes met, there was something mutual in their looks of discovery and curiosity.He: אילעור הרגיש את דפיקות ליבו וניסה לשמור על קור רוח.En: Il'or felt his heart pounding and tried to maintain his composure.He: הוא התקרב אליה והתחיל לדבר.En: He approached her and began to speak.He: "שלום, אני אילעור," הוא אמר בקול שקט אך ברור.En: "Hello, I'm Il'or," he said in a quiet yet clear voice.He: "הי," ענתה טובה בחיוך, "אני טובה.En: "Hi," Tova responded with a smile, "I'm Tova."He: "שיחתן התחילה בזהירות, כל מילה נבחרת בקפידה.En: Their conversation started cautiously, each word chosen carefully.He: הם סיפרו אחד לשני את תקוותיהם, את החששות שמנקרים בלב, והסיבה שהביא אותם למקום הקדוש הזה.En: They shared with each other their hopes, the worries pecking at their hearts, and the reason that brought them to this holy place.He: ככל שהשיחה נמשכה, הם גילו יותר דומה מאשר שונה ביניהם.En: As the conversation continued, they discovered more similarities than differences between them.He: "אני מרגיש קצת אבוד," הודה אילעור.En: "I feel a bit lost," admitted Il'or.He: אחד הסודות שנשא תקופה ארוכה פתאום נחשף.En: One of the secrets he had carried for a long time was suddenly revealed.He: טובה הציעה חיוך מעודד.En: Tova offered an encouraging smile.He: "כולם מרגישים כך לפעמים," היא אמרה ברכות.En: "Everyone feels like that sometimes," she said gently.He: "אבל אני מאמינה שהמסע שלנו הוא מה שנחשב.En: "But I believe our journey is what matters."He: "בדקות האחרונות של השיחה, הכתלים שלהם נשמטו, והאמת הגדולה התגלתה - שניהם היו כאן מאותה סיבה.En: In the last minutes of the conversation, their walls dropped, and a significant truth was revealed - both of them were here for the same reason.He: פסח, חג של חירות והתחדשות, הפך לנקודת תפנית בחייהם.En: Passover, a holiday of freedom and renewal, became a turning point in their lives.He: במקום חומות, נוצר חיבור.En: Instead of walls, a connection was formed.He: כשהשמש יורדת והשמיים הופכים כתומים-זהובים, הם סיימו את השיחה בתקווה.En: As the sun sets and the sky turns golden-orange, they ended the conversation with hope.He: אילעור חזר הביתה עם תחושת מטרה חדשה, חיבור עם שורשיו, וטובה, עם ביטחון ואמונה מחודשים בדרכה.En: Il'or returned home with a sense of new purpose, a connection with his roots, and Tova, with renewed confidence and faith in her path.He: ביחד, הם גילו בתחילה ידידות שמוכיחה, שעם שיתוף והתמסרות, זרים יכולים להפוך לבעלי ברית עמוקים.En: Together, they discovered the beginnings of a friendship that proved, with sharing and dedication, strangers can become deep allies.He: האביב הביא איתו פריחה חדשה גם בחייהם האישיים.En: The spring brought with it a new bloom in their personal lives as well. Vocabulary Words:pilgrims: עולי רגלsublime: נשגבתponder: מהרהרdoubts: לבטיםcompose: קור רוחmutual: משותףcomposure: שלווהcautiously: בזהירותpecking: מנקריםsignificant: גדולהrenewal: התחדשותturning point: נקודת תפניתallies: בעלי בריתbloom: פריחהawakened: מתעוררתscents: ריחותmassive: גדולהgazing: מביטpurpose: מטרהheritage: מורשתהcuriosity: סקרנותencouraging: מעודדunveiled: נחשפהcompose: קור רוחascent: עלייהexposed: חשוףexplore: לבדוקbelong: להשתייךconfidence: ביטחוןdedication: התמסרותBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/fluent-fiction-hebrew--5818690/support.

The message was delivered on Sunday, March 16, 2025, at All Souls Unitarian Church in Tulsa, Oklahoma, by Rev. Randy Lewis, Assistant Minister. DESCRIPTION What does it mean to remember? And what does it mean to forget? In a world where history is being rewritten, censored, and erased, we must ask: Who holds the pen? From the echoes of prayers at the Western Wall to the solemn silence of Dachau, this journey confronts the uncomfortable truths that shape our present. What happens when one nation chooses to reckon with its past while another buries it? As history teeters on the edge of repetition, will we stand as witnesses to truth, or let power dictate what remains? SUBSCRIBE TO AUDIO PODCAST: WATCH THIS MESSAGE ON YOUTUBE: SUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL: GIVE A DONATION TO HELP US SPREAD THIS LOVE BEYOND BELIEF: or text AllSoulsTulsa to 73256 LET'S CONNECT: Facebook: Instagram: All Souls Church Website:

The Western Wall  Part 13:  Putting Notes in the Western Wall  -  English and Spanish.  Every year, millions of people, both Jewish and Christian, write prayers to God and slide the paper into the cracks between the stones of the Western Wall.  Join us as we examine the ancient custom!  This is translation of a podcast originally recorded February 23, 2023. El Muro de las Lamentaciones - Parte 13: Poner notas en el Muro de las Lamentaciones - Inglés y español.  Cada año, millones de personas, tanto judíos como cristianos, escriben oraciones a Dios y deslizan el papel en las grietas entre las piedras del Muro Occidental.  Acompáñenos a examinar esta antigua costumbre.  Esta es la traducción de un podcast grabado originalmente el 23 de febrero de 2023.

I want to introduce you to our guest this time, Fred Dummar. I met Fred through Susy Flory who helped me write Thunder Dog. Fred is taking a class from Susy on writing and is well along with his first book. I look forward to hearing about its publishing sometime in 2025.   Fred hails from a VERY small town in Central Nevada. After high school Fred went to the University of Nevada in Reno. While at University, Fred joined the Nevada National Guard which helped him pay his way through school and which also set him on a path of discovery about himself and the world. After college Fred joined the U.S. army in 1990. He was accepted into the Special Forces in 1994 and served in various locations around the world and held ranks from Captain through Colonel.   Fred and I talk a fair amount about leadership and how his view of that subject grew and changed over the years. He retired from the military in 2015. He continues to be incredibly active serving in a variety of roles in both the for profit and nonprofit arenas.   I love Fred's leadership style and philosophy. I hope you will as well. Fred has lots of insights that I believe you will find helpful in whatever you are doing.       About the Guest:   Colonel (Retired) Fred Dummar was born and raised in the remote town of Gabbs, Nevada. He enlisted in the Nevada National Guard in 1986 and served as a medic while attending the University of Nevada. He was commissioned as an Infantry Officer in the U.S. Army in April 1990.   Fred was selected for Special Forces in 1994 and went on to command at every level in Special Forces from Captain to Colonel. He trained and deployed in many countries, including Panama, Venezuela, Guyana, Nigeria, Zambia, Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Iraq, and Afghanistan. Most notably, Col Dummar participated in the liberation of Kurdish Northern Iraq in 2003, assisting elements of the Kurdish Peshmerga (resistance fighters) with the initial liberation of Mosul.   Colonel Dummar's last tour in uniform was as the Commander of the Advisory Group for Afghan Special Forces from May 2014 to June 2015. Immediately after retiring, he returned to Afghanistan as a defense contractor to lead the Afghan Army Special Operations Command and Special Mission Wing training programs until May 2017.   Beginning in 2007 and continuing until 2018, Fred guided his friend, who was blinded in Iraq, through 40 Marathons, several Ultra marathons, climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, running with the bulls in Pamplona, and a traverse of the Sahara Desert to raise funds and awareness for Special Forces Soldiers. He personally ran numerous Ultramarathons, including 23 separate 100-mile runs and over a hundred races from 50 miles to marathon.   Fred graduated from the U.S. Army Command and Staff College and the U.S. Army War College with master's degrees in military art and science, strategy, and policy. He is currently pursuing a Doctoral Degree in Organizational Psychology and Leadership.   Since retiring from the Army in 2015, Fred has led in nonprofit organizations from the Board of Directors with the Special Forces Charitable Trust (2015-2022) as the Chief of Staff for Task Force Dunkirk during the evacuation of Afghan Allies in August 2021, as a leadership fellow with Mission 43 supporting Idaho's Veterans (2020-2023), and as a freshwater advocate with Waterboys with trips to East Africa in 2017 and 2019 to assist in funding wells for remote tribes.   Fred has led in the civilian sector as the Senior Vice President of Legacy Education, also known as Rich Dad Education, from 2017-2018 and as the startup CEO for Infinity Education from 2021-2022, bringing integrity and compassion to Real Estate Education. Fred continues investing in Real Estate as a partner in Slate Mountain Homes, Idaho and trains new investors to find, rehab, and flip manufactured homes with Alpine Capital Solutions.   Fred is married to Rebecca Dummar, and they reside in Idaho Falls, Idaho, with three of their children, John, Leah, and Anna. Their daughter Alana attends the University of Michigan.   Ways to connect with Fred:   Here is a link to my webpage - https://guidetohuman.com/ Here is a link to my Substack where I write - https://guidetohuman.substack.com/   About the Host:   Michael Hingson is a New York Times best-selling author, international lecturer, and Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe. Michael, blind since birth, survived the 9/11 attacks with the help of his guide dog Roselle. This story is the subject of his best-selling book, Thunder Dog.   Michael gives over 100 presentations around the world each year speaking to influential groups such as Exxon Mobile, AT&T, Federal Express, Scripps College, Rutgers University, Children's Hospital, and the American Red Cross just to name a few. He is Ambassador for the National Braille Literacy Campaign for the National Federation of the Blind and also serves as Ambassador for the American Humane Association's 2012 Hero Dog Awards.   https://michaelhingson.com https://www.facebook.com/michael.hingson.author.speaker/ https://twitter.com/mhingson https://www.youtube.com/user/mhingson https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelhingson/   accessiBe Links https://accessibe.com/ https://www.youtube.com/c/accessiBe https://www.linkedin.com/company/accessibe/mycompany/   https://www.facebook.com/accessibe/       Thanks for listening!   Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it using the social media buttons on this page. Do you have some feedback or questions about this episode? Leave a comment in the section below!   Subscribe to the podcast   If you would like to get automatic updates of new podcast episodes, you can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or Stitcher. You can subscribe in your favorite podcast app. You can also support our podcast through our tip jar https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/unstoppable-mindset .   Leave us an Apple Podcasts review   Ratings and reviews from our listeners are extremely valuable to us and greatly appreciated. They help our podcast rank higher on Apple Podcasts, which exposes our show to more awesome listeners like you. If you have a minute, please leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts.       Transcription Notes:   Michael Hingson ** 00:00 Access Cast and accessiBe Initiative presents Unstoppable Mindset. The podcast where inclusion, diversity and the unexpected meet. Hi, I'm Michael Hingson, Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe and the author of the number one New York Times bestselling book, Thunder dog, the story of a blind man, his guide dog and the triumph of trust. Thanks for joining me on my podcast as we explore our own blinding fears of inclusion unacceptance and our resistance to change. We will discover the idea that no matter the situation, or the people we encounter, our own fears, and prejudices often are our strongest barriers to moving forward. The unstoppable mindset podcast is sponsored by accessiBe, that's a c c e s s i capital B e. Visit www.accessibe.com to learn how you can make your website accessible for persons with disabilities. And to help make the internet fully inclusive by the year 2025. Glad you dropped by we're happy to meet you and to have you here with us.   Michael Hingson ** 01:21 Well, hi everyone, and welcome to another edition of unstoppable mindset where inclusion diversity and the unexpected meet, but it's more fun to talk about unexpected than inclusion or diversity, although it is relevant to talk about both of those. And our guest today is Fred Dummar. It is pronounced dummar or dumar. Dummar, dummar, see, I had to do that. So Fred is a person I met Gosh about seven or eight months ago through Susy Flory, who was my co author on thunder dog, the story of a blind man, his guide dog and the triumph of trust at ground zero. And Susy introduced us because Fred is writing a book. We're going to talk about that a bunch today, and we'll also talk about Fred's career and all sorts of other things like that. But we've had some fascinating discussions, and now we finally get to record a podcast, so I'm glad to do that. So Fred Dummar, welcome to unstoppable mindset.   Fred Dummar ** 02:22 Yeah, no. Thanks for having me. Michael, yeah, we've had some some interesting discussions about everything unstoppable mind and blindness and diversity. And yeah, it's good to be on here.   Michael Hingson ** 02:34 Yeah. And one of the things I know that you have done is ran with a blind marathoner, and I'm anxious to hear about that, as well as what an ultra marathon is. We'll get to that, however. But why don't we start by you may be talking a little bit about kind of the early freight growing up and all that you grew up in, in Nevada, in a in a kind of remote place. So I'm going to just leave it to you to talk about all   Fred Dummar ** 02:57 that. Yeah, Michael, so, and actually, that's part of my, part of my story that I'm writing about. Because, you know, obviously, where we're from forms a large basis of how we sometimes interact with the world. And I came from a very remote town in Nevada. It's dying, by the way. I'm not sure how long that town will be with us, but, yeah, being from a small town where, you know, graduating class was 13 kids, and it's an hour to the closest place that you could watch a movie or get fast food, those types of things, it's definitely a different type of childhood, and much one, much more grounded in self reliance and doing activities that you can make up yourself, right? Instead of being looking for others to entertain you.   Michael Hingson ** 03:50 Yeah, I hear you. So what was it like growing up in a small town? I grew up in Palmdale, California, so it was definitely larger than where you grew up, we had a fairly decent sized High School senior graduating class. It wasn't 13, but what was it like growing up in that kind of environment?   Fred Dummar ** 04:12 Yeah, it was. It was one where you know, not only did you know everybody, everybody else knew you, and so you could pretty much count on anyone in the town for for assistance or, or, you know, if, I guess, if you were on the house for not, not assistance, so, but no, it was. It was a great place to have many, many, many friends from there. But it was, certainly was an adjustment, because I think growing up, there are our sort of outlook on life for us, you know, certainly from the people that that ran our high school and the other adults, most people were seen as, you know, your life after high school would be going to work at one of. The mines, or going to work on one of the, you know, family cattle ranch or something like that. So making the jump from there to, you know, even a few hours away to Reno, you know, to start at the University of Nevada, that was a big it's a big jump from for me, and because the school is so small, I ended up graduating from high school when I was 16, so I barely had a driver's license, and now I am several hours away and Reno, Nevada, going to the university. And, you know, quite an adjustment for me.   Michael Hingson ** 05:32 It's interesting. A few days ago, I had the opportunity to do a podcast episode with someone who's very much involved and knows a lot about bullying and so on, and just listening to you talk, it would seem like you probably didn't have a whole lot of the bully type mentality, because everyone was so close, and everyone kind of interacted with each other, so probably that sort of stuff wasn't tolerated very well. Yeah,   Fred Dummar ** 05:59 it was, it was more so outsiders. I mean, kids that had grown up there all sort of, you know, knew where they were or weren't in the pecking order. Things and things sort of stayed kind of steady stasis, without a lot of bullying. But yeah, new kids coming in. That's where you would see for me, from my recollection of growing up to that's where, you know, I remember that type of behavior coming out when, when you know, a new kid would come into the town,   Michael Hingson ** 06:31 was it mainly from the new kids or from the kids who are already there?   Fred Dummar ** 06:34 From the kids? Sometimes it was the integration, right? Some people integrate into new environments better than others. And you know, generally, no problems for those folks. But some, you know, it takes a bit more. And in a place like that, if you're you know, if you're seen as different, so you know to your theory on or your you know the topics you cover on diversity and inclusion. Sometimes when you're the one that that looks different or acts different in an environment like that, you definitely stick out, and then you become the target of of bullying.   Michael Hingson ** 07:10 What? What happens that changes that for a kid? Then, you know, so you're you're different or in one way or another. But what happens that gets kids accepted? Or do they?   Fred Dummar ** 07:21 Yeah, I don't know. I think, I think it's learning to embrace just who you are and doing your own thing. I think if you know, if you're trying to force yourself into an environment that doesn't want to accept you, I'm not sure that that's ever an easy battle for anyone. But just being yourself and doing your own thing. I think that's, that's the way to go, and that's certainly, you know, what I learned through my life was I wasn't one of the kids that planned on staying there and working in the mind, and I wasn't, you know, my family was, you know, at that point, my mom and dad owned the, the only grocery store in town, and I certainly wasn't going back to run the family business. So, you know, look, looking for a way, you know, for something else to do outside of that small town was certainly number one on my agenda, getting out of there. So being myself and and learning to adapt, or, as you know the saying goes, right, learning to be instead of being a fish in a small pond, learning to be a fish in a much larger pond,   Michael Hingson ** 08:27 yeah, well, and there's, there's a lot of growth that has to take place for that to occur, but it's understandable. So you graduated at 16, and then what did you do after   Fred Dummar ** 08:38 my uh, freshman year at college, which I funded by, you know, sort of Miss, Miss misleading people or lying about my age so that I could get a job at 16 and working construction and as an apprentice electrician. And that funded my my freshman year of college. But, you know, as as as my freshman year was dragging on, I was wondering, you know, hey, how I was going to continue to fund my, you know, continued universe my stay at the university, because I did not want to go, you know, back back back home, sort of defeated, defeated by that. So I started looking into various military branches of military service, and that's when it happened upon the National Guard, Nevada National Guard, and so I joined the National Guard. And right after, you know, I think it was five days after I turned 17, so as soon as I could, I signed up, and that summer after my freshman year, I left for training for the National Guard. Missed first semester of my sophomore year, but then came back and continued on with my university studies using, you know, my the educational benefits that came from being in the National Guard.   Michael Hingson ** 09:55 So you're in the National Guard, but that wasn't a full time thing, so you were able to go back and. Continue education. Yeah,   Fred Dummar ** 10:01 it was, you know, it's a typical one weekend a month, one weekend a month for duty. Typically, we would go in on a Friday night, spend Saturday and Sunday for duty. So we get a, you know, small check for that. And then we were also allowed to draw, you know, the GI Bill and the state of Nevada had a program at the time where you didn't get paid upfront for your classes, but at the end of every semester, you could take your final report card and for every class, for every credit that you had a C or higher, they would reimburse you. So yeah, so they were essentially paying my tuition, and then, you know, small stipend every month from the GI Bill. And then, you know, my National Guard check, so and in the 80s, you know, when I was going to school, that that was enough to keep, you know, define my education. And where did you go to school? At the University of Nevada in   Michael Hingson ** 10:59 Reno, in Reno, okay, yeah, so, so you kind of have ended up really liking Reno, huh?   Fred Dummar ** 11:07 Yeah, I, yeah. I became sort of home city. Obviously, no one would ever really know where. You know, if I would have mentioned that I grew up in a town called gaps, most people would, you know, not, not really understand. I sometimes, if they're, you know, press and say, hey, you know, where are you really? Because, you know, often say, Hey, I went to school in Reno. If they say, where did you grow up? I'll, you know, it's a longer conversation. I'll be like, okay, so if you put your finger, like, right in the middle of Nevada, in the absolute middle of nowhere, that's where I grew up.   Michael Hingson ** 11:40 Well, you know, people need to recognize and accept people for who they are, and that doesn't always happen, which is never fun, but Yeah, gotta do what you can do, yes, well, so Reno, on the other hand, is a is a much larger town, and probably you're, a whole lot more comfortable there than you than you were in Gabs, but that's okay. So yeah, so you went to the university. You got a bachelor's, yep, and then what did you do?   Fred Dummar ** 12:11 Yeah. Well, so along the way, while I was in the National Guard, you know, being a medic, right? I was convinced by a lieutenant that met me. I was actually doing the physical, because it was one of the things our section did when I was first in, you know, we gave the medical physicals, and this lieutenant said, you know, you should come transfer our unit. The unit was an infantry unit, and I became their only medic. And so that was much better than working in a medical section for a helicopter unit where I'd been and and the lieutenants, you know, said that I should consider joining ROTC, since I was already going to the university. So I did in my junior year, started the Reserve Officer Training Corps there at the University of Nevada. And so when I graduated college in the winter of 89 I accepted a commission into the army. So then a few months later, I was, I was off on my my Grand Army adventure,   Michael Hingson ** 13:11 alright, and then what did you do?   Fred Dummar ** 13:15 So, yeah, that was, you know, because it was an infantry Lieutenant went to Fort Benning, Georgia, and I believe now the army calls it fort Moore, but yeah, I trained there for about a year, doing all of the tasks necessary to become an infantry officer. And then I went down to Panama, when the US still had forces in the country of Panama. And I spent two and a half years down there was that past mariega, yeah, right after, because I had graduated from college in December of 89 while operation just caused to get rid of Noriega was happening. So year after my infantry training, I sort of ended up in Panama, and sort of as at the time, thinking it was bad luck, you know, because if you're in the army, you know, you want to, kind of want to go where things are happening. So I'm in Panama the year after the invasion, while Saddam Hussein is invading Kuwait, and everyone else is rushing to the desert, and I'm sitting in the jungle. So, you know, as a as a young person, you start to think, you know, oh, you know, hey, I'm missing. I'm missing the big war. I should be at the war, you know. So that was an interesting take, not what I would have now, but you know, as a young man,   Michael Hingson ** 14:31 what caused you to revise that view, though? Or time,   Fred Dummar ** 14:37 yeah, yeah. Just, just time. And, you know, later in life, you know, after, uh, serving combat rotations in Iraq and Afghanistan, I realized it wasn't something one needed to rush towards,   Michael Hingson ** 14:48 really quite so bad, where you were, yeah. So,   Fred Dummar ** 14:52 yeah, I spent a couple years in Panama, then I came back to Fort Benning, uh, Fort Moore, and worked at the Army's Airborne School. So. Uh, you know, the place that teaches people how to jump out of airplanes. And I did that for for a year. So it's, it's really fun because watching, you know, watching people go through the process of of training to jump out of an aircraft, and then sort of their very first time on an aircraft might takes off, and you can see the, you know, sort of the realization that they're not going to land with the plane for the first time in their life. You know, they're they're not going to be in the plane when it lands. That's always, you know, it's always a good time. And then, of course, when you know, then there's another realization, moment when the doors pop open right, and the doors, doors on the aircraft are opened so the jump masters can start making checks, you know, and out, yeah, and they're looking, you know, their eyes get larger and larger, you know, as as preparations for the jump. You know, when they're stood up and they're hooked up inside the aircraft, and then finally, you know, told to exit. Yeah, it's interesting. And during the time when I worked there, that's when I was eligible, because I was a senior lieutenant at that time, that I could apply to become a Green Beret. I could go through special forces training if I was selected. So I left from Fort Benning, I went up to Fort Bragg, now fort liberty, and went through the selection, Special Forces Assessment, selection, and was selected to become a Special Forces soldiers that I went to Fort Bragg, you know, spent the year or so becoming qualified to be a special forces team leader, and then the next I spent the next 20 years of my Army career in various units at at Fort liberty, and third Special Forces Group, Special Forces Command, seven Special Forces Group, Special Operations recruiting, just, you know, bouncing around in different assignments and then, but obviously during that time, 911, happened, and you know, was on the initial invasion in 2003 up in, up into the north. We were flying in from Romania, you know, before the war started. And so being there during that phase of the Iraq combat in Iraq, and then going to Afghanistan and and spending multiple, multiple tours and multiple years in Afghanistan. So, so   Michael Hingson ** 17:25 did you do much jumping out of airplanes?   Fred Dummar ** 17:29 Yeah, in combat, no. But over the years, yeah, I accumulated quite a few jumps. Because what, you know, every, every unit I was ever assigned to while I was in the army was always one that was, you know, airborne, which are, you know, the designation for units that jump out of airplanes. So   Michael Hingson ** 17:47 have to, yeah, yeah. Well, you're a pretty level headed kind of guy. What was it like the first time you jumped? I mean, you described what it looked like to other people. Do you think that was basically the same for you, or did you, yeah, kind of a thicker skin,   Fred Dummar ** 18:01 yeah, no, no, I think, I think that's why I was able to, you know, in large measure, that's how a lot of us are able to have empathy, right? If we've, if we've, if we've been through it, and we are able to access the memory of, okay, what was it like when I was doing it? It allows us to be, you know, more compassionate to the people that are going through it at that moment for the first time, but yeah, I can remember being in the plane, and then you know, that realization is like, hey, you know, in the pit of your stomach, I'm not, I'm not landing with this plane. And then, you know, the doors opening up, you're like, you know, kind of hey, those, I don't know what the gates of hell look like, but right now, that's that's in my mind, what, what they would look like, you know, and then going out the first time, and and then I think the second time might have been worse, because it was the anticipation of, oh, wait a minute, we're doing that again. And by the but if you do five jumps to qualify before you're given your parachute as badge, so I think by the third one, I'd come to terms with, with, with dealing and managing. You know, you know the fear of it, of leaving an airplane. And people you know often ask, you know when, when you're older and you're past the 100 jump mark, you know it's like, still, is there still fear and like, I think, I think, if there's not, I mean, then you know, there's probably something wrong with you, but, but it's not, it's nowhere near you know how it is when you know your First learning and your first learning to trust yourself and trust the equipment and trust the process. Well,   Michael Hingson ** 19:45 what you're learning a little bit along the way is to how to control fear. And you mentioned my book earlier, the one that's coming out live like a guide dog, which is all about trying to teach people to control fear, because we have so many things happen to. Us, or we think about so many things, that we develop so many fears consciously or not, that when something does unexpectedly happen to us, especially something that isn't necessarily a positive thing, we just automatically go into a fear reaction mode. And the the reality is it doesn't need to be that way you can learn to control fear, which is what we talk about in live like a guide dog, because it's important that people recognize you can learn to control fear. I would never say, Don't be afraid. Yeah, but I think you can learn to control fear, and by doing so, then you use that fear to help guide you and give you the the the the tools to really be able to move forward and focus. But most people don't really spend much time doing that. They don't learn introspection. They don't learn how to to slow down and analyze and develop that mind muscle so that later you can analyze incredibly quickly.   Fred Dummar ** 21:06 Yeah, we in the army, we call that stress inoculation, good description, you know, it's, you know, once you're, once you're, you've learned to deal with stress, or deal with, you know, stressful, fearful things. Then, you know, the next time you're you're better equipped. And that fear and that stress can be, you know, can be continually amped up. I used to laugh when I was doing Special Forces recruiting, because the you know, it would require a special physical for candidates to go get a special physical before they could come to training. And one of the boxes we would joke about was, I have no fear of heights or enclosed spaces. No everybody has those fears, is whether you can, you can manage those fears and deal with. You know, things are very uncomfortable. Well, that's   Michael Hingson ** 22:05 really it. It's all about managing. And so I'm sure that they want you to check no, that you don't have those fears when you're when you're going through. But at the same time, what you're hopefully really saying is you can manage it. Yeah,   Fred Dummar ** 22:20 that you can manage and that's why I was saying, that's why I would always laugh, because of course, everyone has those fears and but learning to deal with them and and how you deal with them, and that that's, you know, one of the things I discuss in one of the chapters of the book I'm writing is, is, you know when fear, when fear comes to You, you know, how do you deal with it and how do you overcome it? I think people are more and more recognizing you know that there are techniques through stress inoculation, you know, things like that. They'll teach you how you can overcome fear. And you know simple breathing techniques to you know, slow down your breathing and engage your brain, not just your brain stem, right? When you breathe, it fast, your brain stem is in charge, not your brain and yeah, and think your way through things, rather than just reacting as a, you know, as a frightened animal,   Michael Hingson ** 23:19 right? And it's one of the things that that, as I discuss in the book, and I talk to people about now a lot, that although I didn't realize it for many years, after September 11, I had developed a mindset on that day that said, You know what to do, because I had spent a lot of time learning what to do, how to deal with emergencies, what the rules were, and all that, and all of that just kicked in on September 11, which is as good as it could get.   Fred Dummar ** 23:45 Yeah. Well, Michael, you have a you have a distinct advantage. You had a distinct advantage a couple of them, but, but one being, you know, because you already live in a world without light in your sight, you're not dependent on that. And so another, when other people are, you know, in, you know, when I'm reading the book, I'm nodding my head knowingly, you know, as you're talking about being in the stairwell and other people being frightened, and you're just like, this is okay. This is an average, I mean, maybe unusual circumstances, but an average day for me,   Michael Hingson ** 24:21 yeah. But they side of it is, I know lots of blind people who would be just as much in fear as anyone else. It's the fact is, of course, we didn't know what was going on. Yes, September 11, a   Fred Dummar ** 24:35 bit of ignorance is bliss, right? Yeah. And   Michael Hingson ** 24:38 that was true for everyone. I had a great imagination. I could tell you that I imagine things that could happen that were a whole lot worse than in a sense, what did, but I, but I like science fiction and horror, so I learned how to imagine well, but the fact is that it isn't so much being blind that's an advantage, really. Really was the preparation. And so the result was that I had done that. And you know, of course, the airplane hit 18 floors above us on the other side of the building. So the reality is going down the stairs. None of us knew what happened. We figured out an airplane hit the building because we started smelling the fumes from burning jet fuel. But by the same token, that was all we knew. We didn't even know that tower two had been hit until, well, much later, when we got outside, colleagues saw David Frank, my colleague saw tower two was on fire, but we still didn't know what it was from. So yeah, the the fact is that blindness may or may not really be an advantage, but preparation certainly was, yeah,   Fred Dummar ** 25:43 how you reacted, how you reacted to being blind. Because, yeah, you can just, just like anything, right? You can react in in several different ways, and how you acted, how you built your life around,   Michael Hingson ** 25:54 sure. And most people, of course, just rely on reading signs. And so they also have the fear, what if I can't read the signs. What if there's smoke and all that? And again, they they build fears rather than doing the smart thing, which is just to learn what to do in the case of an emergency when you're in a building like that. But you know, it is part of what what we do talk about, and it is, it is pretty important that people start to learn a little bit more that they can control fear. I mean, we have in our in our whole world, politicians who just do nothing but promote fear, and that's unfortunate, because we all buy into it, rather than stepping back and go, Wait a minute. It doesn't need to be that way.   Fred Dummar ** 26:37 Yeah, I think the other thing, like you talked about your your preparation and training. And I always that was one of the way ways, or one of the things that brought me to ultra marathoning, you know, after my initial training in Special Forces, was, you know, if you're, if you're going to push your capacity to see, you know what you're what you're really capable of, or build, you know, build additional reserves. So, you know, if you are counted on to do something extraordinary or in extenuating circumstances, what do you really have, you know, yeah, how far can you really push yourself? And so it really brought me into the sport of ultra running, where, you know, the distances, or those distances that exceed a marathon. So a marathon being, you know, 26 miles, yeah. So the first ultra marathon is a 50k because, you know, Marathon is 42 so eight kilometers farther. And then the next, general, you know, length is 50 miles. And then there's some other, you know, 100k which is 62 miles. And then, kind of the, although, you know, now we see, see races longer, but kind of the the longest distance being 100 mile race and so, and the gold standard in 100 mile racing being, you know, for most, most courses, every course being different, but for most courses, is to finish under 24 hours, so within one one day, but to keep moving for one, you know, one entire day while, you know, while fueling yourself and and, and some people say, Well, you Know, wow, that pace doesn't seem that fast. Troy   Michael Hingson ** 28:22 yourself then and see, yeah,   Fred Dummar ** 28:24 and, like a lot of things, it doesn't, it doesn't exactly seem fast until you're factoring in, okay, but you're still gonna have to stop at some point to you, you know, relieve yourself, and you're gonna have to, you know, walk while you eat. And, you know, there's hills to climb and all these other sorts of obstacles. So, yeah, finishing under 24 hours is, you know, sort of the, you know, the standard, I guess, for the people want to achieve. And anyway, yeah, I became, for a bit there, became addicted to it. And then, so when I met Ivan, my friend, who you were talking about, who, who was, was blinded in in Iraq in 2006 when I met him, he had already been injured, and I realized that he really wanted to run marathons. He'd run one, and had to use, like, several different guides, right? You know, there were different people jumping in and out, and it really wasn't an ideal situation for him and he and he also needed someone who who wanted to do that, who would be a reliable training partner, right? Because it's not like, okay, you know, you might be able to find people that show up on marathon day. Want to run the marathon, or a few people, but, you know, day in, day out, to be training. And so I was like, Hey, this is one of those things that ends up in your path, right, that you can, maybe you can walk around it, but, but for me, when I, you know, when I saw. I was like, Okay, this was, this was something that, you know, for whatever reason, is on my path. I meant to do it. I meant to be the guy that does this. And so, yeah, we started training together. And, you know, ended up running 40 plus marathons together, you know, from London, Chicago, you know, every, every the Marine Corps Marathon, just everywhere. And, you know, summiting Mount Kilimanjaro and running with the bulls together. And then our last race was, it's often referred to as, you know, the world's toughest foot race. It's the marathon to Saab, and it's a, it's a distance race of 150 some miles across the Sahara Desert. And they break it up into stages. So on different days, some days, you run 30 miles. Some days, you know, 26 one day is a 50. I think we were at 53 miles on one of the days. But anyway, and you start the you start that race with whatever you're going to eat and whatever you're going to need, you know, in terms of gear on your back. And the only thing that's provided to you during the race is water. So, and that was our kind of, you know, he's like, I don't know how much longer I'm going to be able to run, and so I just want to do that before I stop. I stopped, right? So, but anyway, yeah, so that was how I ended up meeting my friend Ivan, and, you know, over the course of a decade and a half, we did all of these, you know, what some people think are incredibly dumb things, but, you know, sort of embracing the discomfort of training and competing to, you know, to make ourselves better, you know? Yeah,   Michael Hingson ** 31:44 so while you were in the military, I know you mentioned earlier something about doing some work in as a medic. Did you do that most of your time? Were you specializing in that? Or what?   Fred Dummar ** 31:54 No, no, that was only when I early on, when I was a soldier, I was a medic, and then when I was commissioned, I was commissioned, I was commissioned as an infantry officer, and then, and then, when it became Special Forces, you know, the officer is, sort of has, has no specialty other than leading the team. The team has medics and weapons guys and engineers and communicators and all that. But, you know, the officers sort of assigned as the as the planning the planning agent, you know, the to lead the team, rather than have any of the specialties,   Michael Hingson ** 32:30 right? And you participated long enough that you rose to the rank of colonel. Yeah, yeah, my participation   Fred Dummar ** 32:38 trophy was attaining the rank of colonel. And I would often tell people the arm don't think the army doesn't have a sense of humor. I was promoted to Colonel on April 1, so April Fool's days when, when I was promoted? And yeah, and I, after almost 30 years in uniform, retired in 2015 so I don't know that I would have went that long. But you know, they're about the middle of my career, from 1986 to 2015 you know 911 happened, and for me, it wasn't, it wasn't really a choice to to leave. Then, you know, it was like, Okay, we, you know, we have to do this. These Iraq and Afghanistan. In fact, my my very last, my last year in in uniform. I was in Afghanistan as an advisor to the Afghan commandos. And when I returned from that tour, you know, was told that, hey, I had to, I had to finally leave Fort Bragg after 20 years and and either go to, you know, the Pentagon or another headquarters. And that's when I decided to retire. Because it was like, okay, you know, if, if the wars don't need me anymore, then I, I can go home and do other things. Yeah, I can do other things. If the wars don't need me, you know, then I can probably hang it up. So   Michael Hingson ** 34:11 when did you get married? So   Fred Dummar ** 34:15 over the course of my Army career, I was divorced twice. Yeah, it's just not an easy No, it's not. It's just not an easy lifestyle. I'm not making any excuses for my own failings in that regard. But, you know, it is, it is, I think, easier to become emotionally detached from someone, especially, you know, as in my case, I think I often put the army, first, the army, my soldiers, the mission, you know, as the first on my mind. And you know, for someone else, you know that to be a pretty strong person, to sit in the back seat during that so. And I did not have any children and then, but after I retired, when went through my second and four. I met someone. And so, yeah, we were married in in 2020, and so I had a, I was able, you know, after not having children, my first son was born when I was 50. So I have a son who's, you know, four, four years old, four going on five. And then we decided that, you know, he should have someone to be with. So we were going to have a second child. And my wife had twins, so I have twin, three year old girls. So, yeah,   Michael Hingson ** 35:37 you're going to do it. You might as well go all the way, huh?   Fred Dummar ** 35:40 Yeah, and and, and I haven't, and I adopted Rebecca's older, the child that she that she had. And so now we have four children, Alana being much older, she's already finished for freshman year at the University of Michigan, and this get ready to go back to Ann Arbor and continue her studies and and then we have, you know, the small pack of humans that are still here in their pre, pre kindergarten phase. So   Michael Hingson ** 36:10 she is a a Wolverine fan, and there will ever be an Ohio State Buckeye,   Fred Dummar ** 36:18 yeah, something like that. Yeah, that rivalry is pretty intense. And, you know, never being part of a school that was, you know, in that, in that division, you know, not really realizing, well, you know, watching college football, I kind of understand the rival, all the rivalries. But once she started going to Michigan, and, you know, attending a football game there myself. And then, unfortunately, you know, we were able to go to the Rose Bowl this year, which, you know, when Michigan played Alabama. So we were able to go to that together. So, yeah, it was, it's interesting to learn that dynamic. And like, I tell her, it's like, never, never take for granted being part of a big school like that without those sorts of traditions. Absolutely.   Michael Hingson ** 37:06 Yeah, I went to UC Irvine, so we didn't really have a lot with with football, but my wife did her graduate work at USC, and I always like to listen to USC football games. I judge a lot about sports teams by the announcers they hire, I gotta say. And so we've been always so blessed out here in California, although I think that announcing isn't quite what it used to be, but we had good announcers that announced for USC out here on I think it was originally on Kx, and then it went to other stations. But anyway, when we got married, the wedding started late because a bunch of people were sitting out in their cars waiting for the end of the USC Notre Dame game. And so the wedding was 15 minutes late starting because everybody was waiting to see who was going to win the game. And I am quite pleased to say that we won, and God was on our side, as opposed to Notre Dame. And, yeah, the marriage lasted 40 years, so until she, she passed away in 2022 but I love to tell people that, you know, God clearly was on our side, especially when I tell that to my Notre Dame friends,   Fred Dummar ** 38:15 yeah, the touch touchdown, Jesus wasn't, wasn't there for them, not   Michael Hingson ** 38:19 that day. Yeah, but, but, you know, and there's college football is, is in a lot of ways, I just think so much more fun, or it has been than professional. But, you know, now a lot more money is getting into it, which is unfortunate too. Yeah,   Fred Dummar ** 38:37 I think that's caused some of the you know, teams re evaluate what they what they do happen, how they operate. And I think it's forced some of the older coaches to leave the game, yeah, because it's not the game they recognize, so not   Michael Hingson ** 38:53 what they had well. So you've been to a variety of different places. You've been a leader. And I think it's pretty clear that you really still are, but how did all the the different experiences, the different places that you went to, and all the the experiences that you participated in, how does that affect and shape your leadership style?   Fred Dummar ** 39:19 Yeah, Michael, you know, I think one of the first things, right, if you when your surface looking, and some people never go below the surface. So when you talk about things like diversity and inclusion, the things, the things that they will think about that make people divert diverse are not generally what I think about. Because, you know, when you look below the surface, you see a lot of commonalities in the human experience. You know, from my time living, living in Panama and operating in Central and South America, some countries in the in the you know, the Caribbean when I was first in special operations, and then. Obviously, I went and did some time in in Africa, some peacekeeping operations in Nigeria, some other exercises down in the south, southern countries in Africa, and then my time in Iraq and Afghanistan. People, you know, they're they come in different colors. They they have different their path to God or the universe or the higher power that they recognize that the cultural artifacts that they use may may look different, but you know, they're generally pointing if you if you can step aside from your own preconceived notions about things, you can see that they're they're just different signposts to the same God, right to the same, to the same, power to the same, to the same things, and people want the same things, you know, for their families, you know, for for security and prosperity, and you know that that sort of thing. So it's, that's where I, kind of, you know, came to my leadership philosophy, which is pretty easy to remember. It's just lead, lead with love. And you know, if you use, and I haven't tell people, doesn't really matter what denomination you are. If you read, you know, the Gospels of the New Testament purely as a leadership guide. You know it's, it's hard to find a a better leadership example than than what, what Jesus was was doing, you know, the way he was serving others the way he was leading. It's, it's, it's pretty powerful, pretty powerful stuff. And you know, even, even at the end, right during the Last Supper, when he tells people, you know, who, who's the most important is the most important person, the person sitting at the table getting ready to eat, or the person serving, you know. And of course, you as humans, you know, is based on our, you know, the way we think about the world. We think the most important person is, you know, not only the person sitting at the table, but the person at the nicest table, or the head of the table, and not the person serving. And so that was something I tried to embrace during my time in the military, and what I try and embrace now is, you know, being the person that serves others and using your position. You know, if you if, if and when you are promoted or asked to lead that, you approach it from a position of, you know, what? What can I do from this position to help other people and and just be compassionate to their actual circumstances. And that doesn't mean, you know, when people, people hear me say that they're, you know, they think, Well, that's pretty how does that reconcile with you being a Green Beret and being around, you know, a bunch of you know, meat eating savages, you know, how do you how do you reconcile that and like, well, leading with care and compassion doesn't mean you know that I'm coddling anyone, because I'm certainly not coddling anyone you know. You know, I demand high performance for myself and from from people in those positions like that. You know, when I was a member of a special forces organization, but not everybody's supposed to be doing that. And so I think recognizing the circumstances and the people and what the organization's supposed to do or and how it can care for people, I think those are things that became really, really important to me   Michael Hingson ** 43:33 well. And I think you raised some really valid points. The reality is that September 11, for example, was not a religious war, a religious event. It was a bunch of thugs who wanted to have their way with the world. But most people who truly practice the Islamic faith are the same as the rest of us, and they and they seek God just like we do, like Jewish people do and others do, and we've got to keep that in mind, but it's, it's so hard, because we mostly don't step back and evaluate that and realize that those 19 people on those four airplanes are just a bunch of thugs, pure and simple.   Fred Dummar ** 44:15 Yeah, that, yeah, that, and, and the organizations they represent, right? You know, they're, they're, they're, and they're not the only ones, right? People from of all faiths have harnessed, you know,   Michael Hingson ** 44:30 their various back to the Crusades, yeah, you know, you know, their   Fred Dummar ** 44:33 various religions have harnessed themselves up to, you know, to sway people to to hate, or to, you know, to engage in combat or whatever. So yeah, to to lump that all in. I think our, some of our responses, and then also some of the way people think, has really led it led us to a more a more divided we're. Well, then you know that are more inclusive and and you know, thinking of ourselves as one we we think of ourselves as, you know, many and different, and sometimes things that we think would bring us together or help us make things more fair, like, you know, talking about diversity and inclusion, if we aren't really thinking about what we're trying to do and what that looks like, we can end up making the world more divided and less inclusive.   Michael Hingson ** 45:34 And unfortunately, we're seeing way too much of that, and it isn't helping to do that. And hopefully at some point we'll, we'll figure that out, or we'll realize that maybe it's a little bit better, or can be a little bit better than we think. Yeah, and I know you in 2003 did a lot to help the Kurds in northern Iraq, right?   Fred Dummar ** 45:55 Yeah, that was primarily, you know, my, my experience in Iraq was, you know, before the 2003 invasion, I was in Romania with my special forces company. And, yeah, we flew into northern Iraq and linked up with a group of Kurds and from where they were at and primarily our mission, you know, at that point, nobody really knew what Saddam might do when the main offensive of, you know, conventional army, conventional Marine Corps, British, you know, other allies, started from the south towards Baghdad. What would Saddam do? Would he, you know, send his forces in the north against the Kurds to create a destabilizing effect, you know, one both killing Kurds, but causing Kurds to flee to Syria and Iran, and, you know, probably most importantly for people that were planning to Turkey, you know, to further destabilize the region. So obviously, out of a desire to protect, help protect the Kurds and help stop or prevent something like that from happening. You know, we went in a couple weeks before the actual ground war started, we were in place with the Kurds and started organizing them to to defend themselves. And do you know, take back the land that they considered theirs, because, after, you know, Desert Storm, the you know, the 90s, the 90s war against Iraq, Saddam had pushed into Kurdish territory and established, you know, what he referred to as a, you know, his, his buffer zone. And then, you know, the US had been forcing a, you know, a no fly zone up in the Kurdish areas, but the Kurds had still never been allowed to go back to some of the cities that they considered theirs. So, you know, when we got in there with them, we were able to get, you know, move currents that have been forced out of those towns moved back into their towns and and our particular sector we we cleared down to Mosul Iraq, which, you know, people in the Bible will recognize As as the city of Nineveh. Or maybe not know that, but yeah, so we were, I was able to go drive through the, you know, the biblical, the some of the remains of the, you know, city of Nineveh as we got to Mosul. And then once we were there, that was sort of when, you know, we stole the Kurdish allies that, hey, you guys can go back to go back home, and then at that point us, we're only there a few days before us conventional forces. Now this is a couple months into the war, but us conventional forces made their way up there, and, you know, started doing stabilizing the city, and it was probably best to get the Kurdish militia out of there at that point, for things between the Kurds and the Arabs continue to deteriorate. So yeah, but it was a it was a great experience for me being with the Kurds and helping them, you know, sort of move through and retake towns that they had historically lived in. And, you know, along the way we passed and were able to clear Assyrian monastery that's on one of the mountains on the route to Mosul. So some, definitely, some history along the way, history lessons along the way. I   Michael Hingson ** 49:38 had the pleasure of going to Israel last year in August, okay? And spent a day in Jerusalem, so we got to go to the Western Wall and so on. And I really appreciated, and do appreciate, the history and just the awesomeness of of being there and touching the the temple and the wall that's been there for so long. And, you know, there is so much history over there that I really wish people would more appreciate and and on all sides, would figure out how they could become better at working with each other. One of these days, there's going to have to be peace, or it's going to really get a whole lot worse, very quickly,   Fred Dummar ** 50:21 yeah, for sure. Yeah, it was. It was interesting, though, when we were there, obviously watching the various groups of, you know, Syrians, Kurds, Arabs and others that had various claims to different parts of Mosul and different parts of the area around it. So it's fascinating, you know, to watch history try and unwind itself from some of the decisions that were made. You know, post World War Two, when lines were being drawn in the desert to create countries and and the ramifications of that? Yeah. Well,   Michael Hingson ** 51:06 you certainly have a perspective that's built on a lot of knowledge and being there, which I think is great on the other hand, well, not on the other hand. But then you left the military that that had to be a major change in terms of what you had been doing and what you were used to after almost 30 years. What's it like when you decide to make that kind of a major change and then, in your case, go back into civilian life? Yeah. So   Fred Dummar ** 51:38 my first, my first step, wasn't that far away from the military. And I started referring it. Referred to my first job as sort of an addiction clinic, because I went, I went to work as a house, yeah, I went to work as a contractor, or, you know, defense contractor. I went back to Afghanistan for about a year and a half running training programs for some of the Afghan special operations forces. So, you know, it was, it was really, you know, there was, if I, if I was a heroin addict, you know, I was in the methadone clinic, you know, trying to, trying to get off of it. And then, yeah, I realized, you know, kind of needed to go home. And my marriage, you know, dissolved, and so it's like, Hey, I probably time to, like, go home and have, you know, a different kind of life. And I moved into a civilian job with a friend, a friend at the time, who was doing investment training around the world. And he's like, Hey, we, you know, I know you're, you will travel. There's a lot of people that, when I talk to him about travel, it's involved with our business, you know, they don't, don't really want to do that. And he's like, but I know, you know, from where you're at. And he's like, hey, I'll buy, buy a ticket. Fly to Hong Kong, see what our business is about. So I went there and learned about the investment training they were doing in Hong Kong and throughout Southeast Asia. And then they had an office in Johannesburg, and, you know, one in London, Canada and the US and doing all this training. And so for about a year, little over a year, I worked in that business and and learned, you know, the various things that they were doing. You know how they were teaching people to invest in real estate and stocks and that sort of thing. Started doing it myself less, as I wish I would have known earlier in my life, but started doing that, and then when I left that company, that's a lot of what I've been doing. I've taken some smaller jobs and smaller contract projects. But by and large, that's basically what I've been doing since then, is, you know, working in real estate investing or real estate projects   Michael Hingson ** 53:50 and continuing to hone your leadership skills. Yeah,   Fred Dummar ** 53:54 yeah. Well, you know, I kept continue to work with or a couple of, you know, jobs where I was helping people start up businesses, you know, as either in CEO role or in an operations role to help help them start their businesses. So I did some of that which, which is always fun. It's great working with new talent and establishing procedures and helping people grow that way. So that was, that was really fun. And then got to be part of a couple of nonprofits, Special Forces, Charitable Trust, probably my longest stint. I did that for, you know, about seven or eight years on the board of directors, you know, running, helping to develop activities and programs to support our Special Forces veteran. So, yeah, it was, it's been, it's been fun. And then obviously having a new family and spending a lot of time in my role as a dad has been probably the most rewarding.   Michael Hingson ** 54:53 Yeah, I bet. And that is, that's always so much fun, and you get to help bring some. New people along into the world and hopefully help to make a difference that way. And on top of that, you continue to study. You're getting a PhD. You mentioned it earlier, but you're getting a PhD in organizational psychology and leadership. There we go with the leadership again.   Fred Dummar ** 55:14 Yeah, you know, it's, it's fun, because, you know, when I do get the opportunity to speak at events. I move around and speak at different events. I know you do a lot of speaking. You probably do much more than I do, but the events I do speak at, I want to make sure that sometimes being a practitioner of something doesn't always mean that you have the exact language or the academic credentials to go along with being a practitioner. And I've been a practitioner of leadership for so many years, but now studying it and applying, you know, one working towards an academic credential in this says, Hey, this, this guy knows what he's talking about. But then also having, you know, the the latest developments. And studies on leading people effectively and and how people are doing it wrong, and how you can help them. I think it's, it's been, it's been, been a great journey to be on as well, especially keeping my mind active in in all things leadership and helping organizations do it better.   Michael Hingson ** 56:21 Well, you, you have been a leader for a long time, but now you're studying it. Would you say that you're also discovering new things along the way? And you know, I guess what I'm getting at is, of course, none of us are ever so much an expert that we can't afford to learn more things. Oh   Fred Dummar ** 56:39 yeah, for sure, both, both learning new things, learning why I might have done things wrong based on, you know, studies, you know, like, okay, you know, if you if you have this type of personality, you might do this wrong, or things I was doing right, but not exactly, knowing all of, You know all of the mechanisms that were going into why I was making that decision. But you know, when you look at the psychology behind it, and you look at organizational structure structures, you look at cultural artifacts within organizations, then you can start to you start to unwind why teams do what they do, why leaders are developed, the way they're developed, and why people make certain decisions. And, yeah, it's been fascinating, you know, and then also looking back, as you said, back at things that you did, decisions that you made, and what you know, what you could have done better as you as you look that, through that, and how you can help someone else, and that's also really helped me further, you know, synthesize down this way that I look at at leading people with with love and compassion and why it's so important to be that servant type of leader, you know, not just a transformational leader that's trying to transform an organization to move that, but then, you know, how do you serve and care for the care for the people that are that are going to be part of that transformation?   Michael Hingson ** 58:10 Yeah, because if you are just looking at it from the standpoint of being a transformational leader, I'm going to change this organization that that doesn't really work. And I think that the most important aspect is being a servant leader, is being a person who serves, because that also opens you up to learning along the way and learning how to serve better.   Fred Dummar ** 58:34 Yeah. And you know, as I learned in the many organizations that I was part of over, you know, my time in Special Forces is, you know, just because, you know, alluding, you know, we were discussing roles, and I was saying, you know, this officer's role to often, to plan and to lead, but that other people are the experts. And that's something you know. The sooner you embrace that fact, the faster, the faster you become effective, and the more effective you are when you realize that understanding the people and and caring and serving them, and then getting their their best performance and understanding what they know and what they can do, and where you need to put them to maximize their potential, then those things start to become the most important thing that you're doing, how you know, how people play against each other, who works well with who? How that works, how that betters the organization. Those are all, all all things that are fascinating, you know, to me, and things that kept me up at night, trying to figure out, you know, how to how to be more efficient, how to take better care of people, while, you know, getting, not only getting the best out of them, but them, realizing they were giving their best and being happy and proud of what they. Were doing   Michael Hingson ** 1:00:01 and getting the best out of you as well.   Fred Dummar ** 1:00:03 Yeah, yeah, that, yeah, bringing the best out of them is bringing the best out of me, right?   Michael Hingson ** 1:00:08 So you've gotten work also in the nonprofit sector. You're continuing to do that, yeah,   Fred Dummar ** 1:00:13 yeah, yeah. Now, after leaving this Special Forces Charitable Trust, I realized, you know, after I'd moved out to Idaho, where I live now that I wasn't as connected to the regiment as I'd been my first retired and I was still kind of in the North Carolina area or but after moving out here, you know, just felt like that. I probably there were other guys more recently retired, knew more of the things that needed to be done. So stepping down from that organization. And then, obviously, one of the other things that happened was, you know, the the rapid withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan and the fall of Afghanistan, and I found myself with many other Afghan veterans, sort of, you know, both wondering, you know what it all meant, why? You know, and then, but then also what we can do. You know, not dwelling too long. I know, you know, poor me. You know what? You know. Why did I go? What did it mean? But more so, hey, you know, we had a bunch of people that we made promises to, a bunch of people that follow alongside America, some certainly, you know, in the interest of Afghanistan. But there were also many, many of the especially on the Afghan Special Operations sides, that were not always necessarily doing things at the behest of the Afghan government, but operating with US forces on things that the US wanted to do, but then, you know, we're sort of left hanging when during the withdrawal. So, you know, working alongside other veterans to try and get as many of those people out during the withdrawal and then. But so now I work with an operation or a organization called Operation recovery that is still following these families, following these cases, people that are either still in Afghanistan, some in hiding, some in other countries, illegally, but trying to help them resolve visa issues and either get to Canada or the United States or someplace in Europe, just someplace safe for them and their family, away from the from the Taliban. And so that's been it, and it's, it's hard work, you know, because the in work like that, we're trying to make government bureaucracies realize that they should be issuing visas or allowing people to move, it's not always a rapid process. So feels like, and, you know, and I'm not pointing fingers as if anyone should still, you know, be completely focused on Afghanistan. But you know, other things happen. You know, Ukraine, the war in Ukraine draws attention away. You know, the war in Israel. You know, hurricanes, storms, everything that's going on. You know, Assassination comes. You know, assassination attempts, you know, all of that stuff diverts people's you know, draws people attend. You know their attention to that. And I'm not sure many people, you know, they support the troops. And you know, you often hear them, you know, you know, thanking troops for their service. And the only response I can have to that, you know, for for for years, I struggled with how to respond to that. When someone would say, Thank you for your service, you know, just Okay, thank you. You know, I don't know, thanks for your support, but you know, I heard a good response, and I've been using it since, and it's like, America's worth it. So,   Michael Hingson ** 1:03:54 yeah, on top of everything else that you do, you've also been dabbling or going into real estate a little bit, yeah,   Fred Dummar ** 1:04:01 yeah. So that's, that's a lot of what I've been doing, you know, for because, you know, providing for your family, right? So, yeah, I started doing some investment real estate, and out here, got a partner, we did, worked on a couple of mobile home parts, larger projects. And I still, once a week, I still teach a clas

The Western Wall  Part 12:  HaKotel HaKatan The Little Western Wall -  English and Spanish.   The Western Wall Plaza is known throughout the world as a place for prayer.  There is another Western Wall area specifically for egalitarian, mixed prayer.  But there is yet another part of the Western Wall preferred by some worshippers...HaKotel HaKatan...The Little Western Wall.  Join us as we study this unique spot!  This is a translation of a podcast originally posted on March 31, 2023.  El Muro de las Lamentaciones Parte 12: HaKotel HaKatan El pequeño Muro de las Lamentaciones - Inglés y español.   La plaza del Muro Occidental es conocida en todo el mundo como lugar de oración.  Hay otra zona del Muro Occidental específica para la oración igualitaria y mixta.  Pero hay otra parte del Muro Occidental preferida por algunos fieles... HaKotel HaKatan... El Pequeño Muro Occidental.  Acompáñenos en el estudio de este lugar único.  Esta es una traducción de un podcast publicado originalmente el 31 de marzo de 2023.

The Western Wall  Part 11:  The Mughrabi Gate  -  English and Spanish.  High above the women's prayer section of the Western Wall, stretches a wooden ramp ascending to a gate...the Mughrabi Gate. Why is this gate especially important today for all Jews and Christians.? Join us as we examine the troubled history of this gate and the bridge.  This is a translation of a podcast originally posted on March 24, 2023. El Muro de las Lamentaciones - Parte 11: La Puerta de los Magrebíes - Inglés y español.  En lo alto de la sección de oración de las mujeres del Muro Occidental, se extiende una rampa de madera que asciende hasta una puerta... la Puerta de los Magrebíes. ¿Por qué es esta puerta especialmente importante hoy en día para todos los judíos y cristianos? Acompáñenos mientras examinamos la turbulenta historia de esta puerta y del puente.  Esta es una traducción de un podcast publicado originalmente el 24 de marzo de 2023.

Fluent Fiction - Hebrew: Renewing Family Bonds at the Western Wall Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.com/he/episode/2025-01-27-23-34-02-he Story Transcript:He: יום חורפי קריר בירושלים.En: A cool winter day in Yerushalayim.He: השמיים אפורים והאוויר צלול.En: The skies are gray, and the air is clear.He: נעם, יעל ואריאל מתקרבים אל הכותל המערבי, מקום שבו הזמן עומד מלכת.En: Noam, Yael, and Ariel approach the the Western Wall, a place where time stands still.He: נעם חש את המרחק בינו לבין אחיו ואחותו.En: Noam feels the distance between him and his brother and sister.He: "החיים משתנים," הוא חושב לעצמו.En: "Life changes," he thinks to himself.He: כל אחד עסוק בענייניו, והקשר שהחזיק אותם קרובים בעבר כבר לא כמו שהיה.En: Each is busy with their own affairs, and the bond that kept them close in the past is not what it used to be.He: בין אבני הכותל, נעם חשב על רעיון.En: Between the stones of the Kotel, Noam thought of an idea.He: חג ט"ו בשבט מתקרב, חג שמסמל צמיחה והתחדשות.En: The Tu BiShvat holiday is approaching, a holiday symbolizing growth and renewal.He: נעם הציע: "בואו נשתול עץ יחד, סימן לקשר שלנו."En: Noam suggested: "Let's plant a tree together, a sign of our connection."He: הכותל המערבי, מקום של תפילה ורוחניות, מתאים לשינוי הזה.En: The Western Wall, a place of prayer and spirituality, suits this change.He: המקום הומה אנשים, אך יש בו שקט מיוחד שמזמין לעומק ולחשיבה.En: The place is crowded with people, yet it has a special silence that invites depth and reflection.He: נעם, יעל ואריאל התאספו ליד קטע פתוח קרוב לכותל, עם שתיל צעיר בידם.En: Noam, Yael, and Ariel gathered near an open section close to the wall, with a young sapling in their hands.He: האוויר היה קר, אך עוטף.En: The air was cold but embracing.He: נעם התחיל לדבר: "אני מרגיש שאנחנו מתרחקים.En: Noam began to speak: "I feel that we are drifting apart.He: רוצה לחזור להיות קרובים."En: I want to go back to being close."He: יעל הסתכלה בנעם, עיניה רכות.En: Yael looked at Noam, her eyes soft.He: "גם אני מרגישה כך," היא ענתה בקול שקט.En: "I feel that way too," she answered in a quiet voice.He: "פשוט החיים... לוקחים אותנו לכל מיני כיוונים."En: "It's just that life... takes us in different directions."He: אריאל, בדרך כלל שקט, לפתע דיבר: "אני מתגעגע.En: Ariel, usually quiet, suddenly spoke: "I miss it.He: לא ידעתי איך להגיד את זה."En: I didn't know how to say it."He: נעם חייך. "בואו נתחיל מחדש, כמו העץ הזה."En: Noam smiled. "Let's start anew, like this tree."He: הם חפרו יחד בבוץ הקר, ידיהם לחות ואדמה על הידיים.En: Together they dug in the cold mud, their hands damp with soil.He: כל אחד צחק קצת, שיתף רגשות, דמעות וחיוכים.En: Each laughed a bit, shared feelings, tears, and smiles.He: הייתה תחושת פורקן באוויר.En: There was a sense of release in the air.He: כשסיימו, הסתכלו על העץ.En: When they finished, they looked at the tree.He: הוא קטן, כחוש, אבל מלא פוטנציאל.En: It was small, frail, but full of potential.He: כמו הקשר המחודש שלהם.En: Like their renewed bond.He: אחרי החיבוק החם, נעם ידע שזהו רק ההתחלה.En: After the warm hug, Noam knew this was only the beginning.He: יש עוד מה לעשות, צריך לטפח את הקשר.En: There is more to do, the relationship needs nurturing.He: אך הייתה תקווה חדשה בליבו.En: But there was new hope in his heart.He: החיבור ביניהם לא נעלם, רק זקוק לתשומת לב.En: Their connection hadn't disappeared, it just needed attention.He: הם השאירו את העץ הצעיר מאחוריהם, עומד זקוף ליד הכותל, לזכר התחדשותם כמשפחה.En: They left the young tree behind, standing tall by the Kotel, in memory of their renewal as a family. Vocabulary Words:approach: מתקרביםdistance: מרחקbond: קשרsuggested: הציעsapling: שתילreflection: חשיבהembracing: עוטףdrifting: מתרחקיםdirections: כיווניםrelease: פורקןfrail: כחושnurturing: לטפחpotential: פוטנציאלsilence: שקטspirituality: רוחניותprayer: תפילהrenewed: מחודשmemory: זכרattention: תשומת לבreflect: לעומקtears: דמעותsmiles: חיוכיםrenewal: התחדשותaffairs: ענייניםquiet: שקטunite: לאחדdepth: עומקsuggest: להציעgathered: התאספוhorizon: אופקBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/fluent-fiction-hebrew--5818690/support.

The Western Wall  Part 10:  The Trumpeter Stone  -  English and Spanish.  Near the southwest corner of the Western Wall, a stone cries out, testifying about the Temple rituals as well as the life and return of Messiah!  Join us as we discuss the trumpeter stone!   Translated from a podcast originally posted on March 17, 2023. El Muro Occidental Parte 10: La Piedra Trompetera - Inglés y Español.  Cerca de la esquina suroeste del Muro Occidental, una piedra grita, ¡dando testimonio de los rituales del Templo, así como de la vida y el regreso del Mesías!  Únase a nosotros para hablar de la piedra trompetera.   Traducido de un podcast publicado originalmente el 17 de marzo de 2023.

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world. Military reporter Emanuel Fabian joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode. Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara filed the state’s response to High Court petitions on Haredi military enlistment, stating that there is no limit on the numbers of ultra-Orthodox men recruited into the Israel Defense Forces from mid-2026. This comes as coalition members have often insisted that the IDF is not capable of absorbing the estimated 70,000 Haredi young men currently eligible for service. We dive into the divisive issue and why the army needs more soldiers. The IDF said that this past week, 338 members of the ultra-Orthodox community enlisted in the military for mandatory service — 211 combat soldiers and 127 combat support. We hear the breakdown of numbers and also how the army said it had completed sending out a wave of 7,000 draft orders to members of the ultra-Orthodox community, after 3,000 were sent out over the summer. What have been the results so far? We learn about the ongoing manhunt in the West Bank after the fatal shooting on Monday near the Jewish settlement of Kedumim. The shooting attack, which targeted a bus and two cars, occurred inside the Palestinian village of al-Funduq, which straddles a major artery used by thousands of Israelis and Palestinian drivers daily. And finally we discuss the deployment of the IDF in the Gaza Strip and in southern Lebanon, among efforts by US envoy Amos Hochstein to lengthen the 60-day truce with Hezbollah. For news updates, please check out The Times of Israel’s ongoing live blog. Discussed articles include: Survey: Public support for conscripting ultra-Orthodox has surged throughout war First 50 ultra-Orthodox soldiers drafted to IDF’s new Haredi brigade Soldier killed fighting in Gaza as IDF withdraws brigade from northern Strip Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Ben Wallick. IMAGE: Israeli soldiers and ultra-Orthodox Jews at the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site in the Old City of Jerusalem, July 10, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Western Wall  Part 9:  The Isaiah Stone  -  English and Spanish.  Near the southern end of the Western Wall, just below Robinson's Arch, a verse from the Scriptures is engraved into a Herodian stone. A leading archaeologist described it as 'one of the most dramatic and memorable finds of the excavations that followed the Six Day War.' This centuries-old paleo-Hebrew inscription has a message for us today!  Translated from a podcast originally recorded on January 17, 2023. El Muro Occidental - Parte 9: La piedra de Isaías - Inglés y español.  Cerca del extremo sur del Muro Occidental, justo debajo del Arco de Robinson, hay un versículo de las Escrituras grabado en una piedra herodiana. Un destacado arqueólogo lo describió como «uno de los hallazgos más espectaculares y memorables de las excavaciones que siguieron a la Guerra de los Seis Días». Esta inscripción paleohebrea de siglos de antigüedad tiene un mensaje para nosotros hoy.  Traducido de un podcast grabado originalmente el 17 de enero de 2023.  

Saturday, 28 December 2024   “And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. Matthew 6:5   “And when you may pray, not you will be just as the hypocrites, for they love to pray in the synagogues and in the corners of the plazas – having stood – that they may be seen of men. Amen! I say to you, they obtain their reward” (CG).   In the previous verse, Jesus continued His thought about doing charitable deeds in secret. Now, He goes from that subject to the subject of prayer, beginning with, “And when you may pray.”   The verb is subjunctive, and thus this is a hypothetical intended for any such situation, “when you may pray.” At any time someone finds himself desiring to pray to God, Jesus instructs the disciples that “not you will be just as the hypocrites.”   The meaning is that there is actually a wrong way to pray, represented by the two-faced people He will continue to speak about. As seen in verse 6:2, the hypocrites say one thing but do another. In this case, it involves praying, something that is to occur between a person and God.   If one is going to speak to another about private matters, the two will withdraw and speak privately. The same is true with speaking to God. If one is to have a private prayer, why would he feel it is acceptable to openly pray it? But this is what Jesus will next speak of, saying, “for they love to pray in the synagogues and in the corners of the plazas.”   Here are two new words, gónia, a corner, and plateia, a wide place. One can trace the word plaza back to this Greek word which corresponded to the Latin platea. That followed into later languages, such as the Spanish and English word “plaza.”   In cities with walls, there was usually a plaza inside of the gate where people could congregate. This is because the gate was normally the place where judgments were rendered and business was transacted.   By having a plaza, a wide place, in front of the gate, people could gather to see these things conducted, bring matters to attention, sell to those gathered, etc. It was also the place where the hypocrites went to pray so that everyone could witness their drummed-up attention-seeking.   Like the busybodies who hang everyone's dirty laundry out for everyone to see, these are the types who want to be heard by everyone else. And so, they openly would pray for everyone else to watch.   Obviously, Jesus is not speaking of group prayers or settings which call for someone to pray over another person. He is referring to people who want to trumpet their supposed piety in front of everyone else, just like those described in the previous verse who trumpeted their alms-giving in front of others. In order to get this attention, He next continues with, “having stood.”   Just as teaching in rabbinic circles involved sitting, praying often involved standing. This continues to this day as Jews gather and pray in open settings. For example, those who gather at the Western Wall of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem stand in the open and pray towards the wall. This is normally accompanied by all kinds of body motions like rocking back and forth and the like.   This type of praying is so that they can be seen by others, demonstrating a supposed humility before God. But Jesus says it is really “that they may be seen of men.”   The position of standing makes one more visible. The rocking back and forth is like a magnet to others' eyes. The prayer is audible so that those around can hear. The entire purpose of such actions is to draw attention to oneself. And that is exactly what happens. When it does, Jesus says, “Amen! I say to you, they obtain their reward.”   People who do these things are looking for the reward of being seen. They receive what they desire. As such, they should expect nothing else from God the Father. The obvious implication is that no positive response to any prayers will be provided by Him.   Life application: Praying is something that is spoken of by Paul in most of his epistles. In 1 Thessalonians 5:17, he says, “pray without ceasing.” The meaning is that one can talk to the Lord at any time and anywhere. This does not contradict what Jesus is going to say about praying in the coming verse.   Rather, Jesus is explaining the attitude of people in Jewish society who thought that their open, showy prayers somehow merited God's attention because they brought about the attention of those around them.   Paul's words mean that we can simply walk along the road and talk to God. We can thank Him for the beautiful scenery. If someone comes to mind who is having trouble, we can say a prayer under our breath for their situation.   God knows our thoughts, and He hears our silent prayers. As this is so, we don't need to trumpet our words out loud –   “And it happened, as she continued praying before the Lord, that Eli watched her mouth. 13 Now Hannah spoke in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard. Therefore Eli thought she was drunk. 14 So Eli said to her, ‘How long will you be drunk? Put your wine away from you!' 15 But Hannah answered and said, ‘No, my lord, I am a woman of sorrowful spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor intoxicating drink, but have poured out my soul before the Lord. 16 Do not consider your maidservant a wicked woman, for out of the abundance of my complaint and grief I have spoken until now.' 17 Then Eli answered and said, ‘Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition which you have asked of Him.'” 1 Samuel 1:12-17   Glorious God, we know You hear our prayers, even when silently uttered to You in moments of grief and despair. Thank You for hearing and being attentive to our words. Amen.  

Fluent Fiction - Hebrew: Rekindling Family Bonds: A Hanukkah Tale of Reunion Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.com/he/episode/2024-12-08-23-34-01-he Story Transcript:He: ירושלים.En: Yerushalayim.He: העיר העתיקה.En: The Old City.He: הרחבה מול הכותל המערבי מתמלאת באנשים מכל העולם.En: The plaza in front of the Western Wall fills with people from all over the world.He: הם באים להתפלל, להדליק נרות ולחגוג את חג החנוכה.En: They come to pray, light candles, and celebrate the holiday of Hanukkah.He: שמחה ואורות מנרות החנוכייה מאירים את הלילה הקר.En: Joy and lights from the Hanukkah menorah brighten the cold night.He: רוחות של חורף זורמים ברחבה, אבל החום של האווירה חודר ללבבות.En: Winter breezes flow through the plaza, but the warmth of the atmosphere penetrates hearts.He: שירה עומדת בין המון האנשים, מביטה אל האבנים העתיקות.En: Shira stands among the crowd, gazing at the ancient stones.He: החגיגה אמורה להיות שמחה, אך בליבה הקור והמתח.En: The celebration is supposed to be joyful, but in her heart, there's coldness and tension.He: היא מחפשת את אחיה, איתן.En: She is searching for her brother, Eitan.He: הקשר ביניהם ניתק לפני זמן רב.En: Their connection was severed a long time ago.He: צעדי העבר הלא מובנים השאירו קטעים שצריך לחבר מחדש.En: The incomprehensible steps of the past left pieces that need to be reconnected.He: איתן נמצא בצדו האחר של הרחבה, מביט בחוסר נוחות.En: Eitan is on the other side of the plaza, watching with discomfort.He: הוא מרגיש זר במשפחתו, לא מתקבל ולא מובן.En: He feels like a stranger in his family, unaccepted and misunderstood.He: הכאב הפרטי שלו מסתיר אותו מהחגיגות שמסביב.En: His personal pain isolates him from the festivities around him.He: הקרבה של אנשים לא מעניקה לו נחמה, אלא רק מזכירה לו על המרחק שבינו לבין משפחתו.En: The closeness of people doesn't bring him comfort; it only reminds him of the distance between him and his family.He: נעם, בן הדוד שלהם, עומד ליד שירה ומחייך.En: Noam, their cousin, stands next to Shira and smiles.He: הוא תמיד היה הפשרן במשפחה, ומאמין שהחג הזה יוכל להיות הזדמנות להדליק מחדש את הקשר בין האחים.En: He has always been the mediator in the family and believes this holiday could be an opportunity to rekindle the bond between the siblings.He: "בואי, שירה," אומר נעם, "זה הזמן לנסות.En: "Come on, Shira," Noam says, "this is the time to try.He: החנוכה הוא חג של אור, של תקווה.En: Hanukkah is a holiday of light, of hope."He: "שירה נושמת עמוק, צעד משמעותי קדימה.En: Shira takes a deep breath, a significant step forward.He: היא רוצה לפגוש את איתן, לשים את הכבוד האבוד בצד וליצור קשר חדש ומלא תקווה.En: She wants to meet Eitan, to set aside lost pride and create a new, hopeful connection.He: היא ניגשת אליו, ועיניה מלאות ברצון טוב ובזיכרונות.En: She approaches him, her eyes filled with goodwill and memories.He: "הי, איתן," היא אומרת בעדינות, "אתה זוכר איך היינו מדליקים את החנוכייה במרפסת של סבא?En: "Hey, Eitan," she says gently, "do you remember how we used to light the Hanukkah menorah on Grandpa's porch?"He: "איתן מתבונן בה רגע, המילים המוכרות מחזירות אותו לאחור.En: Eitan looks at her for a moment, the familiar words taking him back.He: היא ממשיכה, "אני מתגעגעת לזה.En: She continues, "I miss that.He: לחגיגה שלנו יחד.En: Our celebration together."He: "קול התפילות והשירים מסביב ממלאים את השקט ביניהם.En: The sound of prayers and songs around them fills the silence between them.He: איתן לאט לאט משחרר את שריריו, מתחיל לדבר על מה שהכביד עליו, על התחושות שהרחיקו אותו.En: Slowly, Eitan relaxes his muscles and begins to talk about what troubled him, about the feelings that drove him away.He: בעודם עומדים מול הכותל המרשים, שירה ואיתן מתחילים לשוחח, לשתף ולספר, להתקרב אחד לשני דרך זיכרונות וחלומות לעתיד.En: As they stand before the impressive Kotel, Shira and Eitan start to converse, share, and recount, growing closer through memories and dreams for the future.He: הכותל מקשיב, כמו עטוף בסיפורים שכבר שמע במשך הדורות.En: The wall listens, wrapped in stories it's heard through the generations.He: לבסוף, האחים מתחבקים.En: Finally, the siblings embrace.He: האהבה נשפכת מחדש ביניהם, והסדקים הפנימיים מתחילים להתמלא.En: Love flows again between them, and the internal cracks start to fill.He: נעם מצטרף אליהם, ובשלשתם מדליקים את נרות החנוכייה האישיים ברחבה.En: Noam joins them, and the three of them light their personal Hanukkah menorah candles in the plaza.He: כל נר מסמל הבטחה חדשה, איחוד מחדש, אור חדש בחייהם.En: Each candle symbolizes a new promise, a reunification, a new light in their lives.He: החום של הנרות מאיר את פניהם, והחגיגה שבחוץ עכשיו היא גם חגיגה פנימית עבורם.En: The warmth of the candles illuminates their faces, and the celebration outside is now also an inner celebration for them.He: השינוי מתחיל להתחולל ביניהם, ואיתן מרגיש פחות לבד.En: Change begins to take root between them, and Eitan feels less alone.He: שירה לומדת להקשיב, להבין ולקבל.En: Shira learns to listen, understand, and accept.He: האורות מהרחבה שולחים קרני אור, מקשרים את כולם בחג החנוכה הזה, חג של תקווה וחיבור.En: The lights from the plaza send out beams, connecting everyone in this Hanukkah, a holiday of hope and connection. Vocabulary Words:plaza: רחבהcandles: נרותbreezes: רוחותatmosphere: אווירהpenetrates: חודרgazing: מביטהancient: עתיקותtension: מתחsevered: ניתקincomprehensible: לא מובניםdiscomfort: חוסר נוחותunaccepted: לא מתקבלisolate: מסתירmediator: פשרןrekindle: הדליק מחדשbond: קשרsignificant: משמעותיgoodwill: רצון טובmemories: זיכרונותimpressive: מרשיםconverse: לשוחחrecount: לספרembrace: מתחבקיםilluminates: מאירsymbolizes: מסמלreunification: איחוד מחדשinternal: פנימייםcracks: סדקיםbeam: קרני אורcommemorate: להנציחBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/fluent-fiction-hebrew--5818690/support.

Fluent Fiction - Hebrew: Harmony at the Wall: A Hanukkah Tale of Collaboration Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.com/he/episode/2024-11-29-23-34-02-he Story Transcript:He: השמש שקעה לאיטה על הכותל המערבי.En: The sun set slowly over the Western Wall.He: האוויר היה צונן, מלא בטעמי הסתיו וריחי הכתלים העתיקים.En: The air was crisp, filled with the scents of autumn and the aromas of the ancient walls.He: הכיכר הומה בתיירים ובמשפחות שבאו להדליק נרות חנוכה.En: The plaza was bustling with tourists and families who had come to light Hanukkah candles.He: אנשים מתרגשים, ילדים מחזיקים ספינים, והאורחים ממשיכים להגיע.En: People were excited, children were holding spinning tops, and guests continued to arrive.He: באמצע הכיכר עמד דוכן מידע חדש.En: In the middle of the plaza stood a new information booth.He: זה היה התפקיד של אביטל ואיתן להקים אותו.En: It was Avital and Eitan's job to set it up.He: אביטל אהבה סדר ודיוק.En: Avital loved order and precision.He: היא בדקה שכל המידע על הדוכן מסודר נכון ושכל כפתור עובד.En: She checked that all the information on the booth was arranged correctly and that every button worked.He: עיניה סקרו בעיון את המשימות שנותרו לעשות, ודאגה שהכל יהיה מושלם.En: Her eyes meticulously scanned the remaining tasks, ensuring everything would be perfect.He: איתן, לעומת זאת, היה נינוח יותר.En: Eitan, on the other hand, was more relaxed.He: הוא חיפש איך להוסיף מגע אישי לדוכן.En: He sought ways to add a personal touch to the booth.He: הוא חשב על המוזיקה.En: He thought about the music.He: תמיד רצה לחלוק את האהבה שלו למוזיקה עם אחרים.En: He always wanted to share his love for music with others.He: בעיניו, המוזיקה יכולה להוסיף חוויה מיוחדת למבקרים.En: In his eyes, music could provide a special experience for visitors.He: אך המחלוקת נרקמה במהרה.En: But soon, a disagreement unfolded.He: אביטל רצתה שהכל יימסר בזמן, בלי עיכובים.En: Avital wanted everything delivered on time, without delays.He: איתן רצה להוסיף עוד ועוד שירים והפתעות.En: Eitan wanted to add more and more songs and surprises.He: הם התווכחו על איך למצוא את האיזון.En: They argued about how to find the right balance.He: "אנחנו חייבים לסיים בזמן," אמרה אביטל.En: "We have to finish on time," said Avital.He: איתן חייך ואמר, "אבל המוזיקה יכולה לעשות את כל ההבדל.En: Eitan smiled and said, "But the music can make all the difference."He: "כשהערב ירד והחנוכה התקרב, הם ידעו שעליהם לקבל החלטה.En: As the evening descended and Hanukkah approached, they knew they had to reach a decision.He: אביטל הבינה שהלחץ לא מוביל לפתרון.En: Avital realized that pressure was not leading to a solution.He: היא נתנה לאיתן להוסיף את המוזיקה.En: She allowed Eitan to add the music.He: איתן, בתורו, הבין שהוא צריך להתפשר ולשתף פעולה.En: In turn, Eitan understood he needed to compromise and collaborate.He: ברגע השיא, כשהתוכן המוזיקלי כבר היה מוכן להשתחרר, התגלתה תקלה.En: At the climax, when the musical content was ready to be released, a glitch was discovered.He: המוזיקה התחילה לקרטע.En: The music started to stutter.He: המתח היה גבוה, אבל אביטל במהירות הבינה איך לתקן את הבעיה.En: Tension was high, but Avital quickly realized how to fix the problem.He: יחד הם הצליחו לאחד את המוזיקה עם המידע, והכל עבד נפלא.En: Together, they managed to merge the music with the information, and everything worked beautifully.He: כשמנגינות חג החנוכה התנגנו ברקע, המבקרים נהנו מחוויה מותאמת וייחודית.En: As the melodies of the Hanukkah holiday played in the background, visitors enjoyed a personalized and unique experience.He: אביטל גילתה את חשיבותה של גמישות ויצירתיות, ואילו איתן מצא את הערך של סדר ושיתוף פעולה.En: Avital discovered the importance of flexibility and creativity, while Eitan found the value of order and collaboration.He: העבודתם המשותפת הפכה את הדוכן למקום של שמחה ואור.En: Their joint effort transformed the booth into a place of joy and light. Vocabulary Words:crisp: צונןaromas: ריחיbustling: הומהspinning tops: ספיניםbooth: דוכןprecision: דיוקmeticulously: בעיוןremaining: נותרוpersonal touch: מגע אישיdisagreement: מחלוקתbalance: איזוןdescended: ירדglitch: תקלהstutter: לקרטעtension: מתחmerged: לאחדflexibility: גמישותcreativity: יצירתיותcollaboration: שיתוף פעולהunfolded: נרקמהdelivered: יימסרcompromise: להתפשרclimax: רגע השיאsolution: פתרוןtransformed: הפכהjoint effort: העבודתם המשותפתpersonalized: מותאמתunique: ייחודיתrealized: הבינהensuring: דאגהBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/fluent-fiction-hebrew--5818690/support.

Fluent Fiction - Hebrew: Ava's Scarf: A Comical Journey at the Western Wall Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.com/he/episode/2024-11-18-23-34-02-he Story Transcript:He: הקיר המערבי ירושלם, מואר באור הזהב של הסתו, ניצב בגאווה וקורא למתפללים ולמבקרים.En: The Hakotel HaMa'aravi of Yerushalayim, illuminated by the golden light of autumn, stands proudly, inviting worshippers and visitors.He: אווה, צעירה מלאת מחשבות וחלומות, הגיעה לשם עם מטרה פשוטה אך חשובה – להשאיר פתק תפילה.En: Ava, a young woman full of thoughts and dreams, arrived there with a simple yet important goal — to leave a prayer note.He: האוויר היה מלוח עם ריח הסתיו, והעלים רשרשו קלות תחת רגליהם של האנשים.En: The air was salty with the scent of autumn, and the leaves rustled lightly under the people's feet.He: בזמן שאווה ניגשה לקיר, היא חשה את ההיסטוריה הכבדה שהתנשאה מעליה.En: As Ava approached the wall, she felt the heavy history towering over her.He: היא נשמה עמוק וניסתה לדמיין את המסע של אבותיה, את המסורת שברצונה להרגיש חלק ממנה.En: She took a deep breath and tried to imagine the journey of her ancestors, the tradition she wished to feel a part of.He: אבל בדיוק אז, כמו בסרט מצויר, קרה הדבר.En: But just then, as if in a cartoon, it happened.He: צעיפה, צעיף כחול רך שסבתה נתנה לה, נתקע בין האבנים העתיקות כשניסתה להשאיר את הפתק.En: Her scarf, a soft blue one given by her grandmother, got stuck between the ancient stones as she attempted to leave the note.He: אווה ניסתה בחיוך לקרוא לצפייה מצחיקה — היא היתה רק צריכה לשחרר אותו בזהירות, נכון?En: Ava tried to laugh it off as a funny sight — she just needed to carefully release it, right?He: אבל איזה ניסיון משיכה קל הפך למאבק משעשע כמעט בהילוך איטי, המבוך המרשים של אבנים לא רצה לשחרר את הצעיף.En: But a slight tugging attempt turned into an amusing struggle, almost in slow motion, as the impressive maze of stones refused to relinquish the scarf.He: המבקרים בקרבת מקום, ביניהם יהונתן ומרים, שמו לב לסצנה הקומית והתאספו לעזור.En: Visitors nearby, including Yonatan and Miriam, noticed the comedic scene and gathered to help.He: "תני לנו," אמר יונתן בחיוך גדול, "זה לא הפעם הראשונה שלנו.En: "Let us," Yonatan said with a big smile, "it's not our first time."He: " גם מרים לא נשארה אדישה ועזרה בזהירות לפרום את הצעיף ממקומו.En: Miriam wasn't indifferent either and carefully assisted in unraveling the scarf from its spot.He: בעוד הם עובדים יחד, אווה לא עזבה את החיוך שלה.En: While they worked together, Ava didn't lose her smile.He: היא ידעה שהמצב היה בכללה מגוחך, אך גם הרגישה את החמימות האנושית מהאנשים הללו.En: She knew the situation was utterly ridiculous, but also felt the human warmth from these people.He: בסופו של דבר, באמצעות עבודת צוות וצחוק לבבי, הצליחו לשחרר אותה.En: Eventually, through teamwork and hearty laughter, they managed to free it.He: כשצעיפה בידיה, אווה הרגישה תחושת רוגע חדשה.En: With her scarf in hand, Ava felt a newfound sense of calm.He: החיבור לירושלים, למסורת ולעצמה לא חייב להיות מושלם.En: The connection to Yerushalayim, to tradition, and to herself didn't have to be perfect.He: אולי, היא חשבה, המצב הקומי הזה לימד אותה הרבה יותר על קבלת חוסר השלמות, על הומור שקיים במסע הפרטי שלה.En: Perhaps, she thought, this comical situation taught her much more about embracing imperfection, about the humor present in her personal journey.He: כשיונתן ומרים נפרדו לשלום, היא הודתה להם עם חיוך רחב.En: As Yonatan and Miriam parted ways, she thanked them with a broad smile.He: "לפעמים", אמרה לעצמה בקול נמוך, "המסע עצמו והאנשים בו הם המשמעות האמיתית.En: "Sometimes," she said to herself softly, "the journey and the people in it are the true meaning."He: " כך, עם לב קל יותר, היא יצאה מהקיר המערבי, מוכנה לקראת חנוכה ודרך חדשה לראות את עצמה ואת מסורתה.En: Thus, with a lighter heart, she left the Hakotel HaMa'aravi, ready for Chanukah and a new way to see herself and her tradition. Vocabulary Words:illuminated: מוארworshippers: מתפלליםancestor: אבותrustled: רשרשוtowering: התנשאהjourney: מסעcartoon: סרט מצוירcomedic: קומיתmaze: מבוךimperfection: חוסר שלמותunraveling: לפרוםhearty: לבביembracing: קבלתhumor: הומורscarf: צעיףtugging: משיכהstruggle: מאבקrelinquish: לשחררcomical: מגוחךwarmth: חמימותtradition: מסורתgoal: מטרהnote: פתקdeparted: נפרדוcalm: רוגעgathered: התאספוproudly: בגאווהinviting: קוראridiculous: מגוחךhuman: אנושיתBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/fluent-fiction-hebrew--5818690/support.

Reena Friedman-Watts, host of the popular Better Call Daddy podcast, shared the challenges she faced in scheduling a mammogram due to the complexity of the healthcare system. Despite being insured, navigating referrals and regulations proved difficult. Reena's conversation with Dorothy conversation highlights the importance of advocating for oneself and the systemic changes needed to improve access to crucial health screenings. Key Questions Answered 1.) What is a "God box" and what is its purpose? 2.) Why is it important for uninsured women to have a physician referral for mammograms? 3.) What difficulties did Reena face in scheduling a mammogram? 4.) Why should young women advocate for themselves in medical settings? 5.) What alternatives to mammograms are available for nursing women? 6.) What cultural shifts in health checkups did Reena observe between generations? 7.)What advice does Dorothy give to Reena regarding mammogram scheduling? Timestamped Overview 00:00 Comfortable performing with supportive company. 05:24 Experience in reality TV led to career growth. 08:39 Evolving podcast satisfied my passion for stories. 10:40 Co-hosted a podcast, then started own show. 15:53 Mom's cancer; prayed at Western Wall during trip. 19:03 Physician blends Western and Eastern medicine practices. 21:23 Discreet prayer list burned each week. 22:57 Writing goals amplifies their chances of realization. 28:03 Nursed child four years, concerned about mammograms. 30:32 Breast cancer requires various tests; insurance challenges.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world. Editor David Horovitz joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode. Today is election day in the United States and yesterday, the Israel Democracy Institute released a poll of some 750 Israelis — Jews and Arabs — and asked, “In terms of Israel's interests, which of the two candidates for the US presidency would be better?” Horovitz weighs in on the response and some of the factors that went into the responses. The IDF will be sending out another 7,000 draft orders to members of the ultra-Orthodox community next week and as of this morning, we are hearing that the coalition may have lost the votes it needs to pass the controversial so-called Daycare Law being pushed by the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism party to preserve subsidies for Haredi draft-evaders. We hear which politicians are dissenting and what this symbolizes. Investigators suspect that the theft of classified intelligence documents from Israel Defense Forces databases and the transfer of those files to people in the Prime Minister's Office was “systematic,” and the publication of one such document in foreign media is a source of “ongoing” danger to the lives of both soldiers and hostages in Gaza. Horovitz updates us on new details of the continuing investigation. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly ordered that a “solution” be found for Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara's “adversarial” relationship with his government, as ministers railed against her office and called for her ouster Monday. We learn how this comment was somewhat pulled back by the prime minister and why. For news updates, please check out The Times of Israel's ongoing live blog. Discussed articles include: Poll: Some 65% of Israelis believe Trump victory would be best for Israel Senior Likud MK says he won't back daycare subsidies bill for Haredi draft-evaders Theft of sensitive IDF intel, transfer to ‘people at PMO' was ‘systematic' – report Netanyahu demands ‘solution' to ‘adversarial' AG as ministers call for her ouster Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by the Pod-Waves. IMAGE: Illustrative: A Haredi man looks at Israeli soldiers gathered at the Western Wall in the Old City of Jerusalem, March 14, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Full Text of ReadingsTuesday of the Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time Lectionary: 474The Saint of the day is Saint John Paul IISaint John Paul II's Story “Open wide the doors to Christ,” urged John Paul II during the homily at the Mass where he was installed as pope in 1978. Born in Wadowice, Poland, Karol Jozef Wojtyla had lost his mother, father, and older brother before his 21st birthday. Karol's promising academic career at Krakow's Jagiellonian University was cut short by the outbreak of World War II. While working in a quarry and a chemical factory, he enrolled in an “underground” seminary in Kraków. Ordained in 1946, he was immediately sent to Rome where he earned a doctorate in theology. Back in Poland, a short assignment as assistant pastor in a rural parish preceded his very fruitful chaplaincy for university students. Soon Fr. Wojtyla earned a doctorate in philosophy and began teaching that subject at Poland's University of Lublin. Communist officials allowed Wojtyla to be appointed auxiliary bishop of Kraków in 1958, considering him a relatively harmless intellectual. They could not have been more wrong! Bishop Wojtyla attended all four sessions of Vatican II and contributed especially to its Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World. Appointed as archbishop of Kraków in 1964, he was named a cardinal three years later. Elected pope in October 1978, he took the name of his short-lived, immediate predecessor. Pope John Paul II was the first non-Italian pope in 455 years. In time, he made pastoral visits to 124 countries, including several with small Christian populations. John Paul II promoted ecumenical and interfaith initiatives, especially the 1986 Day of Prayer for World Peace in Assisi. He visited Rome's main synagogue and the Western Wall in Jerusalem; he also established diplomatic relations between the Holy See and Israel. He improved Catholic-Muslim relations, and in 2001 visited a mosque in Damascus, Syria. The Great Jubilee of the Year 2000, a key event in John Paul's ministry, was marked by special celebrations in Rome and elsewhere for Catholics and other Christians. Relations with the Orthodox Churches improved considerably during his papacy. “Christ is the center of the universe and of human history” was the opening line of John Paul II's 1979 encyclical, Redeemer of the Human Race. In 1995, he described himself to the United Nations General Assembly as “a witness to hope.” His 1979 visit to Poland encouraged the growth of the Solidarity movement there and the collapse of communism in central and eastern Europe 10 years later. John Paul II began World Youth Day and traveled to several countries for those celebrations. He very much wanted to visit China and the Soviet Union, but the governments in those countries prevented that. One of the most well-remembered photos of John Paul II's pontificate was his one-on-one conversation in 1983, with Mehmet Ali Agca, who had attempted to assassinate him two years earlier. In his 27 years of papal ministry, John Paul II wrote 14 encyclicals and five books, canonized 482 saints and beatified 1,338 people. In the last years of his life, he suffered from Parkinson's disease and was forced to cut back on some of his activities. Pope Benedict XVI beatified John Paul II in 2011, and Pope Francis canonized him in 2014. Reflection Before John Paul II's funeral Mass in St. Peter's Square, hundreds of thousands of people had waited patiently for a brief moment to pray before his body, which lay in state inside St. Peter's for several days. The media coverage of his funeral was unprecedented. Presiding at the funeral Mass, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger—then dean of the College of Cardinals and later Pope Benedict XVI—concluded his homily by saying: “None of us can ever forget how, in that last Easter Sunday of his life, the Holy Father, marked by suffering, came once more to the window of the Apostolic Palace and one last time gave his blessing urbi et orbi (‘to the city and to the world'). “We can be sure that our beloved pope is standing today at the window of the Father's house, that sees us and blesses us. Yes, bless us, Holy Father. We entrust your dear soul to the Mother of God, your Mother, who guided you each day and who will guide you now to the glory of her Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.” Learn more about Saint John Paul II! Saint of the Day, Copyright Franciscan Media

We all know the horrid tale of what happened in Israel on October 7, 2023. Waves of gunmen attacked families in their homes and young people attending a music festival. The marauders filmed their murders on GoPro cameras. They burned families alive in their safe rooms; raped, and mutilated their victims; and took hostages back to Gaza on golf carts. Why did they do it? For many critics of Israel, the horrific violence of October 7 was the predictable response to the “occupation”—never mind that Israel pulled out of Gaza in 2005. To them, October 7 was a jailbreak from what progressives often call “an open-air prison.”  But for the belligerents, in their own words, this war is for the defense of a mosque on top of a mountain. They called their massacre “Al-Aqsa Flood,” named for one of the two mosques that sit atop what is known to the Jews as the Temple Mount. This is where King Solomon's temple once stood, and at its base is the Western Wall, where Jews have prayed since its construction in the second century BCE. It's also known to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif, a noble sanctuary. It's where Muslims believe the prophet Muhammad ascended to heaven in a dream. An October 10 Hamas communiqué justified their attack as resistance to thwart “schemes and dreams of Judaizing Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa.” This reveals something very important about the Israel-Palestine conflict: That it is not a territorial dispute. It's a holy war, with roots in an ancient city with significance far beyond its 2.5 miles of limestone walls. The world knows it as Jerusalem. The Palestinians call it Al-Quds. Hamas claims there is a plot by Israel to destroy Al-Aqsa—the mosque atop the Temple Mount that sits in the center of Jerusalem—and build a third Jewish temple where it now stands. It's a lie. A lie that goes back a century. The man who first began to spread the libel was from one of Jerusalem's great families that traced its lineage back to the prophet Muhammad himself. He was a seminary-school dropout, a fanatic antisemite, and a Nazi collaborator. His name was Hajj Amin al-Husseini. Today, Eli Lake tells the story of al-Husseini, the origins of the 100-year holy war, and why it persists to this day.  If you liked what you heard from Honestly, the best way to support us is to go to TheFP.com and become a Free Press subscriber today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

2432 - The pinnacle moment that shook the nation! In the midst of reforms, the last Torah scroll is discovered, and the words written therein change everything. The Bearded Bible Brothers travel from the top of the Temple Mount, to the depths of the Western Wall tunnels revealing Josiah's ultimate decision of humility that moves God's heart.

2431 - From the Western Wall to the ruins of Tel Dan, Joshua and Caleb explore the bar mitzvah tradition and Josiah's emergence of authority in the kingdom. Without the law as a guidebook, King Josiah begins transforming the country within his scope of knowledge. The brothers' teaching concludes with a shocking disruption as they experience the horrors of October 7th, the morning of Hamas' attack.

Fluent Fiction - Hebrew: Unearthing Jerusalem: The Secrets of Sukkot's Hidden History Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.org/unearthing-jerusalem-the-secrets-of-sukkots-hidden-history Story Transcript:He: הכנסת האורחים בעיר העתיקה הייתה מרגשת.En: The hospitality in the Old City was moving.He: רחובות צרים ומרוצפים באבני דרך עתיקות הובילו את אריאל, את אלי ואת מאיה בתוך המולת העונה הקדושה של סוכות.En: Narrow streets paved with ancient stones guided Ariel, Eli, and Maya through the hustle and bustle of the Sukkot holiday season.He: העיר העתיקה של ירושלים הייתה שטופה באור של שלכת, וניתן היה להרגיש את ההיסטוריה בכל פינה.En: The old city of Jerusalem was bathed in the light of autumn, and you could feel the history in every corner.He: אריאל, היסטוריון צעיר, עמד בצד, מתפעל מקיר אבנים עתיק.En: Ariel, a young historian, stood aside, admiring an ancient stone wall.He: סיפורים סודיים השתקפו בשייקוף האבן ההן, אך באחת מהן חזו עיניו הודעה מוזרה.En: Secret stories were reflected in the shimmer of those stones, but on one of them, his eyes spotted a strange inscription.He: ידועים היו האגדות על אוצר קדום החבוי בתוך החומות, ולבאריאל הייתה תשוקה סודית למצוא לו הוכחות.En: There were known legends of an ancient treasure hidden within the walls, and Ariel had a secret desire to find proof of it.He: "לא אגיע הביתה לחג", אמר אריאל להוריו בטלפון.En: "I won't make it home for the holiday," Ariel told his parents over the phone.He: "חייב להישאר כאן ולפענח את הכתובת.En: "I must stay here and decipher the inscription."He: " זה לא היה קל.En: It wasn't easy.He: המשפחה רצתה אותו עמם, אבל אריאל התעקש.En: His family wanted him with them, but Ariel insisted.He: הוא לקח את אלי ומאיה כתמיכה.En: He enlisted Eli and Maya for support.He: אלי היה מומחה בשפות עתיקות, ומאיה קרובה בנסיונה באומנות הקדומה.En: Eli was an expert in ancient languages, and Maya had experience in ancient art.He: הם פענחו את ההודעה זמן קצר לפני ערב חג.En: They deciphered the message shortly before the holiday evening.He: ההודעה הייתה כתובה בשפה עתיקה, ובין אותיותיה התקיימו מבוכות וסימנים.En: The message was written in an ancient language, and amidst its letters were mazes and symbols.He: "בוא נמצא מפתחות לקוד הזה", אמר אריאל בהתרגשות.En: "Let's find the keys to this code," Ariel said excitedly.He: הם פנו לכיוון הכותל המערבי.En: They headed towards the Western Wall.He: המקום היה הומה אדם מהחוגגים, והיו צריכים לנווט בעדינות בין הקהל.En: The place was crowded with celebrants, and they had to carefully navigate through the crowd.He: בלב ההמולה, אריאל ראה אחד מהסימנים שעל הקיר.En: In the heart of the commotion, Ariel saw one of the symbols on the wall.He: הבובנה בו פניה הופיעה בצורת צופן במפת הקוד.En: Embedded within it was a code map.He: המפתח היה שם, מוסתר אבל ברור למי שידע לחפש היטב.En: The key was there, hidden but clear to those who knew how to search well.He: יחדיו, הם הרכיבו את הכתובת הנסתרת, שהובילה לאתר מוסתר בחומות.En: Together, they assembled the hidden inscription, which led to a concealed site within the walls.He: בהגיעם לשם, גילו אריאל ואלי ומאיה מה שהסיבות האחרים לא ראו: לא היה זה אוצר זהב, אלא תיעוד מפתיע של היסטוריה עתיקה.En: Upon reaching there, Ariel, Eli, and Maya discovered what others had not seen: it wasn't a treasure of gold, but a surprising record of ancient history.He: כתבים שסיפרו את סיפורי ירושלים באופן שלא היה ידוע, וסיפקו בוודאות מקום חשוב לאריאל עולם האקדמיה.En: Writings that told the stories of Jerusalem in a way unknown before, giving Ariel an important standing in the academic world.He: לחוצה אך מלאה בגאווה, חזר הביתה.En: Feeling pressured yet full of pride, he returned home.He: בלבו חש את ערך האמת ההיסטורית על פני עושר חומרי.En: In his heart, he valued historical truth over material wealth.He: משפחתו בירכה אותו בחום, ועמיתיו הודו לו בהכרה.En: His family welcomed him warmly, and his colleagues thanked him with recognition.He: אריאל השלימו את מסע חיפושו בידיעה שהוא נהיה לא רק היסטוריון טוב יותר, אלא גם בן ואדם.En: Ariel completed his quest knowing he had become not only a better historian but also a better son and person.He: כך סיימה ירושלים בחן את הסיפור שלה שהתחיל בסוכת החג ונסתר בחומותיה העתיקות.En: Thus, Jerusalem gracefully concluded its tale that began in the holiday booth and was hidden within its ancient walls. Vocabulary Words:hospitality: הכנסת האורחיםmoving: מרגשתhustle and bustle: המולהbathed: שטופהhistorian: היסטוריוןadmiring: מתפעלinscription: כתובתdecipher: לפענחenlisted: לקח אתexpert: מומחהsymbols: סימניםnavigate: לנווטcrowded: הומהembedded: שוקעconcealed: מוסתרtreasure: אוצרshimmer: שייקוףproof: הוכחהamidst: ביןinterpreted: פרשmaze: מבוךcelebrants: חוגגיםassemble: להרכיבpride: גאווהrecord: תיעודmaterial: חומריrecognition: הכרהgracefully: בחןconcluded: סיימהholiday booth: סוכת חגBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/fluent-fiction-hebrew--5818690/support.

“Today's Morocco is a prime example of what a great peaceful coexistence and international cooperation can be with an Arab country.” Eli Gabay, an Israeli-born lawyer and current president of the oldest continuously active synagogue in the United States, comes from a distinguished family of Jewish leaders who have fostered Jewish communities across Morocco, Israel, and the U.S. Now residing in Philadelphia, Eli and his mother, Rachel, share their deeply personal story of migration from Morocco to Israel, reflecting on the resilience of their family and the significance of preserving Jewish traditions. The Gabay family's commitment to justice and heritage is deeply rooted. Eli, in his legal career, worked with Israel's Ministry of Justice, where he notably helped prosecute John Ivan Demjanjuk, a Cleveland auto worker accused of being the notorious Nazi death camp guard, "Ivan the Terrible." Jessica Marglin, Professor of Religion, Law, and History at the University of Southern California, offers expert insights into the Jewish exodus from Morocco. She explores the enduring relationship between Morocco's Jewish community and the monarchy, and how this connection sets Morocco apart from its neighboring countries. —- Show notes: How much do you know about Jewish history in the Middle East? Take our quiz. Sign up to receive podcast updates. Learn more about the series. Song credits:  Pond5:  “Desert Caravans”: Publisher: Pond5 Publishing Beta (BMI), Composer: Tiemur Zarobov (BMI), IPI#1098108837 “Suspense Middle East” Publisher: Victor Romanov, Composer: Victor Romanov; Item ID: 196056047 ___ Episode Transcript: ELI GABAY: Standing in court and saying ‘on behalf of the State of Israel' were the proudest words of my life. It was very meaningful to serve as a prosecutor. It was very meaningful to serve in the IDF.  These were highlights in my life, because they represented my core identity: as a Jew, as a Sephardic Jew, as an Israeli Sephardic Jew. These are the tenets of my life. MANYA BRACHEAR PASHMAN: The world has overlooked an important episode in modern history: the 800,000 Jews who left or were driven from their homes in the Middle East and North Africa in the mid-20th century. Welcome to the second season of The Forgotten Exodus, brought to you by American Jewish Committee. This series explores that pivotal moment in history and the little-known Jewish heritage of Iran and Arab nations. As Jews around the world confront violent antisemitism and Israelis face daily attacks by terrorists on multiple fronts, our second season explores how Jews have lived throughout the region for generations – despite hardship, hostility, and hatred–then sought safety and new possibilities in their ancestral homeland. I'm your host, Manya Brachear Pashman. Join us as we explore untold family histories and personal stories of courage, perseverance, and resilience from this transformative and tumultuous period of history for the Jewish people and the Middle East.  The world has ignored these voices. We will not. This is The Forgotten Exodus.  Today's episode: leaving Morocco. MANYA: There are three places Eli Gabay calls home: Philadelphia, the city where he has raised his children; Morocco, the land where his parents Rachel and Amram were born and his ancestors lived for generations; and Israel, his birthplace and original ancestral homeland. Eli has been on a quest to honor all those identities since he left Israel at the age of 12. ELI: On my father's side, they were all rabbis. On my mother's side, they were all businesspeople who headed synagogues. And so, my grandfather had a synagogue, and my other grandfather had a synagogue. When they transplanted to Israel, they reopened these synagogues in the transition camp in Be'er Sheva. Both families had a synagogue of their own. MANYA: For the past five years, Eli has served as president of his synagogue--the historic Congregation Mikveh Israel, America's oldest continuous synagogue, founded in Philadelphia in 1740. Descended from a long line of rabbis going back generations, Eli is a litigation attorney, the managing partner of a law firm, a former prosecutor, and, though it might seem odd, the Honorary Consul of the Republic of Nicaragua in Philadelphia. But the professional role that has brought him the most acclaim was his time in the 1980s, working for Israel's Ministry of Justice, decades after the Holocaust, still trying to hold its perpetrators accountable. CLIP - ‘THE DEVIL NEXT DOOR' TRAILER: Charges were filed today against John Demjanjuk, the 66-year-old Ukrainian native, who's accused of being a Nazi death camp guard named Ivan the Terrible. The crimes he was accused of… MANYA: We'll tell you more about that later. But first, we take you to the Jerusalem Israeli Gift Shop in northeast Philadelphia, a little slice of Israel on the corner of Castor Avenue and Chandler Street. [shofar sounds] Every day, amid the menorahs and shofars, frames and mezuzahs, Eli's 84-year-old mother Rachel Gabay, the family matriarch and owner of thisJudaica shop, is transported back to the place where she grew up: Israel. ELI: My father was a teacher all his life, and my mother [shofar sounds] runs a Jewish Judaica store that sells shofars, you can hear in the background. RACHEL: It's my baby. The store here became my baby. CUSTOMER: You're not going to remember this, but you sold us our ketubah 24 years ago. RACHEL: Yeah. How are you, dear? ELI: Nice. CUSTOMER: We're shopping for someone else's wedding now. RACHEL: Oh, very nice… For who? CUSTOMER: A friend of ours, Moshe, who is getting married and we wanted to get him a mezuzah. MANYA: For Rachel, Israel represents the safety, security, and future her parents sought for her when in 1947 they placed her on a boat to sail away from Morocco. By then, Casablanca had become a difficult place to be Jewish. Israel offered a place to belong. And for that, she will always be grateful. RACHEL: To be a Jew, to be very good… ELI: Proud. RACHEL: Proud. I have a country, and I am somebody. ELI: My father's family comes from the High Atlas Mountains, from a small village called Aslim.The family arrived in that area sometime in 1780 or so. There were certain events that went on in Morocco that caused Jews from the periphery and from smaller cities to move to Casablanca. Both my parents were born in Morocco in Casablanca. Both families arrived in Casablanca in the early 30s, mid 30s. MANYA: Today, the port city of Casablanca is home to several synagogues and about 2,000 Jews, the largest community of Morocco. The Museum of Moroccan Judaism in suburban Casablanca, the first museum on Judaism in the Arab world, stands as a symbol of the lasting Jewish legacy in Morocco. Indeed, there's been a Jewish presence in what is considered modern-day Morocco for some 2,000 years, dating back to the early days of the establishment of Roman control.  Morocco was home to thousands of Jews, many of whom lived in special quarters called “Mellah,” or Jewish ghetto. Mellahs were common in cities across Morocco. JESSICA: Morocco was one of the few places in the Islamic world where there emerged the tradition of a distinctive Jewish quarter that had its own walls and was closed with its own gates. MANYA: Jessica Marglin is a professor of religion, law, and history at the University of Southern California. Her research focuses on the history of Jews and Muslims in North Africa and the Mediterranean. JESSICA: There's a bit of a debate. Were these quarters there to control Jews and force them to all live in one spot and was it a sort of form of basically repression? Or was it a way to protect them? The first mellah, the one in Fez is right next to the palace. And so there was a sense that the Jews would be closer to the Sultan or the Sultan's representative, and thus more easily protectable. It could be interpreted as a bad thing. And some Jews did see it as an unfair restriction. But I would say that most Jews didn't question the idea that Jews would live together. And that was sort of seen as natural and desirable. And there was a certain kind of autonomous jurisdiction to the mellah, too.  Because Jews had their own courts. They had their own butchers. They had their own ovens. Butchers and ovens would have been kosher. They could sell wine in the mellah. They could do all these things that were particular to them. And that's where all the synagogues were. And that's where the Jewish cemetery was, right? It was really like a little Jewish city, sort of within the city. MANYA: Unlike other parts of the Middle East and North Africa where pogroms and expulsions, especially after the creation of the state of Israel, caused hundreds of thousands of Jews to abruptly flee all at once – spilling out of countries they had called home for centuries – Jews chose to leave Morocco gradually over time, compared to the exodus from other Arab countries.  JESSICA: When I teach these things, I set up Morocco and Iraq as the two ends of the spectrum. Iraq being the most extreme, where Jews were really basically kicked out all at once. Essentially offered no real choice. I mean, some did stay, but it was choosing a totally reduced life.  Versus Morocco, where the Jews who left did so really, with a real choice. They could have stayed and the numbers are much more gradual than anywhere else. So there was a much larger community that remained for years and years and years, even after ‘67, into the ‘70s.  Even though they kept going down, it was really, it was not like Iraq where the population just falls off a cliff, right? It's like one year, there's 100,000, the next year, they're 5,000. In Morocco, it really went down extremely gradually. And that's in part why it's still the largest Jewish community in the Arab world by far. MANYA: Morocco's Jewish history is by no means all rosy. In all Arab countries, antisemitism came in waves and different forms. But there are several moments in history when the Moroccan monarchy could've abandoned the Jewish population but didn't. And in World War II, the Moroccan monarch took steps to safeguard the community. In recent years, there have been significant gestures such as the opening of the Jewish museum in Casablanca, a massive restoration of landmarks that honor Morocco's Jewish past, including 167 Jewish cemeteries, and the inclusion of Holocaust education in school curricula. In 2020, Morocco became one of four Arab countries to sign a normalization agreement with Israel, as part of the U.S.-backed Abraham Accords, which allowed for economic and diplomatic cooperation and direct flights between the two countries. MANYA: Oral histories suggest that Jews have lived in Morocco for some 2,000 years, roughly since the destruction of the Second Temple. But tangible evidence of a Jewish presence doesn't date as far back. JESSICA: The archaeological remains suggest that the community dates more to the Roman period. There was a continual presence from at least since the late Roman period, certainly well before the Islamic conquests. MANYA: Like other parts of the Middle East and North Africa, Jews in Morocco were heavily concentrated in particular artisanal trades. Many were cobblers, tailors, and jewelers who adorned their creations with intricate designs and embellishments. Gemstones, carved coral, geometric designs, and symbols such as the Hamsa to bless the wearer with good fortune and protect them from the evil eye. JESSICA: And there were certain areas where they kind of were overrepresented in part because of stigmas associated with certain crafts for Muslims. So gold and silver jewelry making in certain parts of Morocco, like in the city of Fez, Jews were particularly overrepresented in the trade that made these gold threads, which are called skalli in Moroccan Arabic, and which are used to embroider sort of very fancy clothing for men and for women. Skalli for instance, is a very common last name for Jews.  MANYA: Jessica notes that in the 12th and 13th Centuries, Morocco came under the rule of the Almohad caliphate, a fundamentalist regime that saw itself as a revolutionary reform movement. Under the Almohad dynasty, local Christians in North Africa from Morocco to Libya all but disappeared.  Jews on the other hand stayed. She suspects Morocco developed its own version of crypto-Jews who superficially converted to Islam or at least lived outwardly as Muslims to survive.  JESSICA: There's probably more of a sense of Jews had more experience of living as minorities. Also, where else were they going to go? It wasn't so obvious. So whatever conversions there were, some of them must have stuck. And there are still, for instance, Muslim families in Fez named Kohen . . . Cohen. MANYA: Jews chose Morocco as a place of refuge in 1391, when a series of mob attacks on Jewish communities across Spain killed hundreds and forcibly converted others to Christianity. As opposed to other places in Europe, Morocco was considered a place where Jews could be safe. More refugees arrived after the Alhambra Decree of 1492 expelled Jews from Spain who refused to convert. That is when Eli's father's side of the family landed in Fez.  ELI: Our tradition is that the family came from Spain, and we date our roots to Toledo, Spain. The expulsion of the Jews took place out of Spain in 1492 at which time the family moved from Spain to Morocco to Fez. MANYA: At that time, the first mellahs emerged, the name derived from the Arabic word for salt. Jessica says that might have referred to the brackish swamps where the mellah were built.  JESSICA: The banning of Jews from Spain in 1492 brought a lot of Jews to North Africa, especially Morocco, because Morocco was so close. And, you know, that is why Jews in northern Morocco still speak Spanish today, or a form of Judeo Spanish known as Haketia. So, there were huge numbers of Iberian Jews who ended up throughout Morocco. And then for a long time, they remained a kind of distinctive community with their own laws and their own rabbis and their own traditions. Eventually, they kind of merged with local Jews. And they used Spanish actually, for decades, until they finally sort of Arabized in most of Morocco. ELI: My father's family, as I said, comes from a small town of Aslim. The family arrived in that area sometime in 1780 or so after there was a decree against Jews in Fez to either convert to Islam or leave. And so in a real sense, they were expelled from that region of Fez. There were Jews who arrived throughout the years after different exiles from different places. But predominantly the Jews that arrived in 1492 as a result of the Spanish expulsion were known as the strangers, and they integrated themselves in time into the fabric of Moroccan Jewry.  MANYA: For Eli's family, that meant blending in with the nomadic Amazigh, or indigenous people of North Africa, commonly called Berbers. Many now avoid that term because it was used by European colonialists and resembles the word “barbarians.” But it's still often used colloquially.  ELI: Aslim is in the heart of Berber territory. My father's family did speak Berber. My grandfather spoke Berber, and they dressed as Berbers. They wore jalabia, which is the dress for men, for instance, and women wore dresses only, a head covering.  Men also wore head coverings. They looked like Berbers in some sense, but their origins were all the way back to Spain. MANYA: In most cases across Morocco, Jews were classified as dhimmis, non-Muslim residents who were given protected status. Depending on the rulers, dhimmis lived under different restrictions; most paid a special tax, others were forced to wear different clothes. But it wasn't consistent.  ELI: Rulers, at their whim, would decide if they were good to the Jews or bad to the Jews. And the moment of exchange between rulers was a very critical moment, or if that ruler was attacked. MANYA: The situation for Jews within Morocco shifted again in 1912 when Morocco became a French protectorate. Many Jews adopted French as their spoken language and took advantage of educational opportunities offered to them by Alliance Israélite Universelle. The borders also remained open for many Jews who worked as itinerant merchants to go back and forth throughout the region.  JESSICA: Probably the most famous merchants were the kind of rich, international merchants who dealt a lot with trade across the Mediterranean and in other parts of the Middle East or North Africa. But there were a lot of really small-time merchants, people whose livelihood basically depended on taking donkeys into the hinterland around the cities where Jews tended to congregate.  MANYA: Rachel's family, businesspeople, had origins in two towns – near Agadir and in Essaouira. Eli has copies of three edicts issued to his great-grandfather Nissim Lev, stating that as a merchant, he was protected by the government in his travels. But the open borders didn't contain the violence that erupted in other parts of the Middle East, including the British Mandate of Palestine.  In late August 1929, a clash about the use of space next to the Western Wall in Jerusalem led to riots and a pogrom of Jews who had lived there for thousands of years. Moroccan Jews also were attacked. Rachel's grandfather Nissim died in the violence. RACHEL: He was a peddler. He was a salesman. He used to go all week to work, and before Thursday, he used to come for Shabbat. So they caught him in the road, and they took his money and they killed him there.  ELI: So my great-grandfather– RACHEL: He was very young. ELI: She's speaking of, in 1929 there were riots in Israel, in Palestine. In 1929 my great-grandfather went to the market, and at that point … so . . . a riot had started, and as my mother had described, he was attacked. And he was knifed. And he made it not very far away, all the other Jews in the market fled. Some were killed, and he was not fortunate enough to escape. Of course, all his things were stolen, and it looked like a major robbery of the Jews in the market. It gave the opportunity to do so, but he was buried nearby there in a Jewish cemetery in the Atlas Mountains. So he was not buried closer to his own town. I went to visit that place. MANYA: In the mid-1930s, both Amram and Rachel's families moved to the mellah in Casablanca where Amram's father was a rabbi. Rachel's family ran a bathhouse. Shortly after Amram was born, his mother died, leaving his father to raise three children.  Though France still considered Morocco one of its protectorates, it left Morocco's Sultan Mohammad V as the country's figurehead. When Nazis occupied France during World War II and the Vichy regime instructed the sultan to deport Morocco's Jews to Nazi death camps, he reportedly refused, saving thousands of lives. But Amram's grandmother did not trust that Morocco would protect its Jews. Following the Second Battle of El Alamein in Egypt, the Axis Powers' second attempt to invade North Africa, she returned to the Atlas Mountains with Amran and his siblings and stayed until they returned to Casablanca at the end of the war.  ELI: There was a fear that the Nazis were going to enter Morocco. My father, his grandmother, took him from Casablanca with two other children and went back to Aslim in the mountains, because she said we can better hide there. We can better hide in the Atlas Mountains. And so my father returned, basically went from Casablanca to the Atlas Mountains to hide from the coming Nazis. MANYA:  In 1947, at the age of 10, Amram went from Casablanca to an Orthodox yeshiva in England. Another destination for Jews also had emerged. Until then, no one had wanted to move to British-controlled Palestine where the political landscape and economic conditions were more unstable.  The British restricted Jewish immigration making the process difficult, even dangerous. Additionally, French Moroccan authorities worked to curb the Zionist movement that was spreading throughout Europe. But Rachel's father saw the writing on the wall and took on a new vocation. RACHEL: His name is Moshe Lev and he was working with people to send to Eretz Yisrael. MANYA: A Zionist activist, Rachel's father worked for a clandestine movement to move children and eventually their families to what soon would become Israel. He wanted his children, including his 7-year-old daughter Rachel, to be the first. RACHEL: He worked there, and he sent everybody. Now our family were big, and they sent me, and then my sister went with my father and two brothers, and then my mom left by herself They flew us to Norvege [Norway].  MANYA: After a year in Norway, Rachel was taken to Villa Gaby in Marseille, France, a villa that became an accommodation center for Jews from France who wanted to join the new State of Israel. There, as she waited for a boat to take her across the Mediterranean to Israel, she spotted her brother from afar. Nissim, named for their late grandfather, was preparing to board his own boat. She pleaded to join him. RACHEL: So we're in Villa Gaby couple months. That time, I saw my brother, I get very emotional. They said ‘No, he's older. I told them ‘I will go with him.' They said ‘No, he's older and you are young, so he will go first. You are going to stay here.' He was already Bar Mitzvah, like 13 years.  I was waiting there. Then they took to us in the boat. I remember it was like six, seven months. We were sitting there in Villa Gaby. And then from Villa Gaby, we went to Israel. The boat, but the boat was quite ahead of time. And then they spoke with us, ‘You're going to go. Somebody will come and pick you up, and you are covered. If fish or something hurts you, you don't scream, you don't say nothing. You stay covered.  So one by one, a couple men they came. They took kids and out. Our foot was wet from the ocean, and here and there they was waiting for us, people with a hot blanket. I remember that. MANYA: Rachel landed at Kibbutz Kabri, then a way station for young newcomers in northern Israel. She waited there for years without her family – until one stormy day. RACHEL: One day. That's emotional. One day we were sitting in the living room, it was raining, pouring. We couldn't go to the rooms, so we were waiting. All of a sudden, a group of three men came in, and I heard my father was talking. His voice came to me. And I said to the teacher, taking care of us. I said ‘You know what? Let me tell you one thing. I think my father is here.' She said ‘No, you just imagination. Now let's go to the rooms to sleep.'  So we went there. And all of a sudden she came to me. She said, ‘You know what? You're right. He insists to come to see you. He will not wait till morning, he said. I wanted to see my daughter now. He was screaming. They didn't want him to be upset. He said we'll bring her because he said here's her picture. Here's her and everything. So I came and oh my god was a nice emotional. And we were there sitting two or three hours. My father said, Baruch Hashem. I got the kids. Some people, they couldn't find their kids, and I find my kids, thanks God. And that's it. It was from that time he wants to take us. They said, No, you live in the Ma'abara. Not comfortable for the kids. We cannot let you take the kids. The kids will stay in their place till you establish nicely. But it was close to Pesach. He said, we promise Pesach, we bring her, for Pesach to your house. You give us the address. Where are you? And we'll bring her, and we come pick her up. JESSICA: Really as everywhere else in the Middle East and North Africa, it was the Declaration of the Independence of Israel. And the war that started in 1947, that sort of set off a wave of migration, especially between ‘48 and ‘50. Those were the kind of highest numbers per year. MANYA: Moroccan Jews also were growing frustrated with how the French government continued to treat them, even after the end of World War II. When the state of Israel declared independence, Sultan Mohammad V assured Moroccan Jews that they would continue to be protected in Morocco. But it was clear that Moroccan Jew's outward expression of support for Israel would face new cultural and political scrutiny and violence.  Choosing to emigrate not only demonstrated solidarity, it indicated an effort to join the forces fighting to defend the Jewish state. In June 1948, 43 Jews were killed by local Muslims in Oujda, a departure point for Moroccan Jews seeking to migrate to Israel. Amram arrived in Israel in the early 1950s. He returned to Morocco to convince his father, stepmother, and brother to make aliyah as well. Together, they went to France, then Israel where his father opened the same synagogue he ran in the mellah of Casablanca. Meanwhile in Morocco, the Sultan's push for Moroccan independence landed him in exile for two years. But that didn't last long. The French left shortly after he returned and Morocco gained its independence in March 1956. CLIP - CASABLANCA 1956 NEWSREEL: North Africa, pomp and pageantry in Morocco as the Sultan Mohamed Ben Youssef made a state entry into Casablanca, his first visit to the city since his restoration last autumn. Aerial pictures reveal the extent of the acclamation given to the ruler whose return has of his hope brought more stable conditions for his people. MANYA: The situation of the Jews improved. For the first time in their history, they were granted equality with Muslims. Jews were appointed high-ranking positions in the first independent government. They became advisors and judges in Morocco's courts of law.  But Jewish emigration to Israel became illegal. The immigration department of the Jewish Agency that had operated inside Morocco since 1949 closed shop and representatives tasked with education about the Zionist movement and facilitating Aliyah were pressed to leave the country. JESSICA: The independent Moroccan state didn't want Jews emigrating to Israel, partly because of anti-Israeli, pro-Palestinian sentiment, and partly because they didn't want to lose well-educated, productive members of the State, of the new nation. MANYA: Correctly anticipating that Moroccan independence was imminent and all Zionist activity would be outlawed, Israel's foreign intelligence agency, the Mossad, created the Misgeret, which organized self-defense training for Jews across the Arab countries. Casablanca became its center in Morocco. Between November 1961 and the spring of 1964, the Mossad carried out Operation Yakhin, a secret mission to get nearly 100,000 Jews out of Morocco into Israel. JESSICA: There was clandestine migration during this period, and a very famous episode of a boat sinking, which killed a lot of people. And there was increasing pressure on the Moroccan state to open up emigration to Israel. Eventually, there were sort of secret accords between Israelis and the Moroccan King, which did involve a payment of money per Jew who was allowed to leave, from the Israelis to the Moroccans.  MANYA: But cooperation between Israel and Morocco reportedly did not end there. According to revelations by a former Israeli military intelligence chief in 2016, King Hassan II of Morocco provided the intelligence that helped Israel win the Six-Day War. In 1965, he shared recordings of a key meeting between Arab leaders held inside a Casablanca hotel to discuss whether they were prepared for war and unified against Israel. The recordings revealed that the group was not only divided but woefully ill-prepared. JESSICA: Only kind of after 1967, did the numbers really rise again. And 1967, again, was kind of a flashpoint. The war created a lot of anti-Zionist and often anti-Jewish sentiment across the region, including in Morocco, and there were some riots and there were, there was some violence, and there was, again, a kind of uptick in migration after that. For some people, they'll say, yes, there was antisemitism, but that wasn't what made me leave. And other people say yes, at a certain point, the antisemitism got really bad and it felt uncomfortable to be Jewish. I didn't feel safe. I didn't feel like I wanted to raise my children here.  For some people, they will say ‘No, I would have happily stayed, but my whole family had left, I didn't want to be alone.' And you know, there's definitely a sense of some Moroccan Jews who wanted to be part of the Zionist project. It wasn't that they were escaping Morocco. It was that they wanted to build a Jewish state, they wanted to be in the Holy Land. ELI: Jews in Morocco fared better than Jews in other Arab countries. There is no question about that. MANYA: Eli Gabay is grateful to the government for restoring many of the sites where his ancestors are buried or called home. The current king, Mohammed VI, grandson of Mohammed V, has played a significant role in promoting Jewish heritage in Morocco. In 2011, a year after the massive cemetery restoration, a new constitution was approved that recognized the rights of religious minorities, including the Jewish community.  It is the only constitution besides Israel's to recognize the country's Hebraic roots. In 2016, the King attended the rededication ceremony of the Ettedgui Synagogue in Casablanca.  The rededication of the synagogue followed the re-opening of the El Mellah Museum, which chronicles the history of Moroccan Jewry. Other Jewish museums and Jewish cultural centers have opened across the country, including in Essaouira, Fes, and Tangier. Not to mention–the king relies on the same senior advisor as his father did, Andre Azoulay, who is Jewish.  ELI: It is an incredible example. We love and revere the king of Morocco. We loved and revered the king before him, his father, who was a tremendous lover of the Jews. And I can tell you that in Aslim, the cemetery was encircled with a wall and well maintained at the cost, at the pay of the King of Morocco in a small, little town, and he did so across Morocco, preserved all the Jewish sites. Synagogues, cemeteries, etc.  Today's Morocco is a prime example of what a great peaceful coexistence and international cooperation can be with an Arab country. MANYA: Eli is certainly not naïve about the hatred that Jews face around the world. In 1985, the remains of Josef Mengele, known as the Nazis' Angel of Death, were exhumed from a grave outside Sao Paulo, Brazil. Eli was part of a team of experts from four countries who worked to confirm it was indeed the Nazi German doctor who conducted horrific experiments on Jews at Auschwitz. Later that decade, Eli served on the team with Israel's Ministry of Justice that prosecuted John Ivan Demjanjuk, a retired Cleveland auto worker accused of being the notorious Nazi death camp guard known as “Ivan the Terrible.” Demjanjuk was accused of being a Nazi collaborator who murdered Jews in the gas chambers at the Treblinka death camp in Nazi-occupied Poland during World War II. In fact, Eli is featured prominently in a Netflix documentary series about the case called The Devil Next Door. CLIP - ‘THE DEVIL NEXT DOOR' TRAILER: …Nazi death camp guard named Ivan the Terrible. The crimes that he was accused of were horrid.  The Israeli government is seeking his extradition as a war criminal. And that's where the drama begins.  MANYA: Demjanjuk was convicted and sentenced to death, but the verdict was later overturned. U.S. prosecutors later extradited him to Germany on charges of being an accessory to the murder of about 28,000 Jews at Sobibor. He was again convicted but died before the outcome of his appeal. ELI: Going back to Israel and standing in court and saying ‘on behalf of the State of Israel' were the proudest words of my life. It was very meaningful to serve as a prosecutor. It was very meaningful to serve in the IDF. These were highlights in my life.  They represented my core identity: as a Jew, as a Sephardic Jew, as an Israeli Sephardic Jew. These are the tenets of my life. I am proud to serve today as the president of the longest running synagogue in America. MANYA: Eli has encountered hatred in America too. In May 2000 congregants arriving for Shabbat morning prayers at Philadelphia's Beit Harambam Congregation where Eli was first president were greeted by police and firefighters in front of a burned-out shell of a building. Torah scrolls and prayer books were ruined. When Rachel opened her store 36 years ago, it became the target of vandals who shattered her windows. But she doesn't like to talk about that. She has always preferred to focus on the positive. Her daughter Sima Shepard, Eli's sister, says her mother's optimism and resilience are also family traditions. SIMA SHEPARD: Yeah, my mom speaks about the fact that she left Morocco, she is in Israel, she comes to the U.S. And yet consistently, you see one thing: the gift of following tradition. And it's not just again religiously, it's in the way the house is Moroccan, the house is Israeli. Everything that we do touches on previous generations. I'm a little taken that there are people who don't know that there are Jews in Arab lands. They might not know what they did, because European Jews came to America first. They came to Israel first. However, however – we've lived among the Arab countries, proudly so, for so many years. MANYA: Moroccan Jews are just one of the many Jewish communities who, in the last century, left Arab countries to forge new lives for themselves and future generations.  Join us next week as we share another untold story of The Forgotten Exodus. Many thanks to Eli, Rachel and Sima for sharing their family's story.  Too many times during my reporting, I encountered children and grandchildren who didn't have the answers to my questions because they'd never asked. That's why one of the goals of this project is to encourage you to ask those questions. Find your stories. Atara Lakritz is our producer. T.K. Broderick is our sound engineer. Special thanks to Jon Schweitzer, Nicole Mazur, Sean Savage, and Madeleine Stern, and so many of our colleagues, too many to name really, for making this series possible.  You can subscribe to The Forgotten Exodus on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts, and you can learn more at AJC.org/theforgottenexodus.  The views and opinions of our guests don't necessarily reflect the positions of AJC.  You can reach us at theforgottenexodus@ajc.org. If you've enjoyed this episode, please be sure to spread the word, and hop onto Apple Podcasts or Spotify to rate us and write a review to help more listeners find us.

Fluent Fiction - Hebrew: Rediscovering Roots: Noam's Journey at the Western Wall Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.org/rediscovering-roots-noams-journey-at-the-western-wall Story Transcript:He: הכותל המערבי בירושלים היה מלא בתנועה.En: The Western Wall in Jerusalem was bustling with activity.He: העלים והקישוטים של סוכות חגו ברוח הקרירה של הסתיו.En: The leaves and decorations of Sukkot swirled in the cool autumn breeze.He: נעם, צעיר בשנות העשרים לחייו, עמד בצד הכותל, מתבונן באנשים.En: Noam, a young man in his twenties, stood by the wall, observing the people.He: הוא חיפש להתחבר לזהותו ולשורשיו.En: He was seeking to connect with his identity and roots.He: הוא ידע שסבא שלו התפלל כאן, אבל בכל זאת הרגיש קשר רופף למסורת.En: He knew his grandfather had prayed there, yet he still felt a tenuous link to the tradition.He: לידו עמדה טליה, חברתו מילדות, שחזרה מלימודים בחו"ל.En: Beside him stood Talia, his childhood friend, who had returned from studies abroad.He: היא הייתה סקרנית ורוצה לחקור את המסורת יותר.En: She was curious and eager to explore the tradition further.He: "נעם", היא אמרה, "בוא נכנס לסוכה ונעשה משהו יחד.En: "Noam," she said, "let's go into the sukkah and do something together.He: זה יכול להיות כיף!En: It could be fun!"He: "נעם הנהן, לא ממש בשכנוע.En: Noam nodded, not entirely convincingly.He: "אני מרגיש שאין כאן משהו בשבילי", אמר, ספקני.En: "I feel there's nothing here for me," he said, doubtful.He: באותו הזמן, אחותו הגדולה של נעם, יעל, הצטרפה אליהם.En: At that moment, Noam's older sister, Yael, joined them.He: היא הייתה תמיד מאורגנת ודאגה למשפחה.En: She was always organized and took care of the family.He: "היי, אחי!En: "Hey, brother!"He: ", קראה.En: she called out.He: "אל תהיו ככה.En: "Don't be like that.He: החג זה זמן לשמוח.En: The holiday is a time to be happy."He: "הם נכנסו לסוכה שנבנתה בכיכר.En: They entered the sukkah that had been built in the square.He: היא הייתה פשוטה אך חמימה.En: It was simple yet cozy.He: היה משהו מיוחד באווירה, גם אם נעם לא הצליח לתאר את זה.En: There was something special in the atmosphere, even if Noam couldn't quite describe it.He: בשעת עזרה בבנייה, הוא פגש איש זקן.En: While helping with the construction, he met an old man.He: האיש חייך אליו ושאל, "איך הולך, צעיר?En: The man smiled at him and asked, "How's it going, young man?"He: ""אני לא בטוח", ענה נעם בהיסוס.En: "I'm not sure," Noam replied hesitantly.He: האיש הזקן הביט בעיניו של נעם.En: The old man looked into Noam's eyes.He: "לפעמים, המסורת היא העיגון שלנו.En: "Sometimes, tradition is our anchor.He: היא קשורה לא רק למה שהיה, אלא למה שאתה יכול להיות.En: It's tied not just to what was, but to what you can become."He: "המילים נגעו בנעם.En: The words touched Noam.He: לרגע, הוא הרגיש אחרת, מחובר.En: For a moment, he felt different, connected.He: כאילו צפה בפתאום הצצה לעולם חדש.En: It was as if he had suddenly glimpsed a new world.He: הוא הבין שאולי הוא חלק ממשהו גדול יותר.En: He realized that perhaps he was part of something greater.He: בסיום החג, נעם עמד שוב מול הכותל.En: At the end of the holiday, Noam stood once more in front of the wall.He: הפעם, הרגשות שלו היו שונים.En: This time, his feelings were different.He: הוא הרגיש יותר שייך.En: He felt more belonging.He: "תודה, טליה", הוא אמר, "וגם לך, יעל.En: "Thank you, Talia," he said, "and you too, Yael.He: אולי אני אצליח למצוא את עצמי בתוך כל זה".En: Maybe I'll manage to find myself in all this."He: החברים הביטו בו עם חיוך.En: His friends looked at him with smiles.He: נעם חייך חזרה, רגוע יותר.En: Noam smiled back, more at ease.He: המסורת לא הייתה רק סיפור מהעבר, אלא גם חלק מההווה ומהעתיד שלו.En: Tradition wasn't just a story from the past, but also a part of his present and future. Vocabulary Words:bustling: מלא בתנועהdecorations: קישוטיםobserving: מתבונןseeking: חיפשtenuous: רופףeager: רוצהcurious: סקרניתconvincingly: בשכנועdoubtful: ספקניorganized: מאורגנתcozy: חמימהatmosphere: אווירהconstruction: בנייהhesitantly: בהיסוסanchor: עיגוןglimpsed: צפהbelonging: שייךtradition: מסורתroots: שורשיםidentity: זהותprayed: התפללholiday: חגsquare: כיכרhesitantly: בהיסוסdescribed: לתארolder: גדולהmoment: רגעpart: חלקmanage: אצליחconnection: קשרBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/fluent-fiction-hebrew--5818690/support.

Fluent Fiction - Hebrew: Renewed Connections: Friendship Under the Rosh Hashanah Sky Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.org/renewed-connections-friendship-under-the-rosh-hashanah-sky Story Transcript:He: העיר ירושלים הייתה מלאה בהתרגשות ובתפילה.En: The city of Jerusalem was filled with excitement and prayer.He: היה זה יום של תחילת השנה החדשה, ראש השנה.En: It was the day marking the start of the new year, Rosh Hashanah.He: עלי השלכת בשערי העיר העתיקה הזכירו לכולם על שינוי המתקרב.En: The autumn leaves at the gates of the Old City reminded everyone of the approaching change.He: תמר הלכה ליד אליה, לבה כבד ועצוב.En: Tamar walked beside Elia, her heart heavy and sorrowful.He: היא איבדה לאחרונה אדם קרוב מאוד ולא מצאה מנוחה.En: She had recently lost someone very close to her and found no peace.He: החרטה גרמה לה להסתגר.En: Regret caused her to withdraw.He: היא הרגישה אבודה בים של אנשים.En: She felt lost in a sea of people.He: העולם היה מערבולת של תחושות עבורה.En: The world was a whirlpool of emotions for her.He: אליה, לצידה של תמר, הלכה בשתיקה. היא ידעה שתמר צריכה את הזמן שלה, אך בכל זאת, רעיון אחד ניצנץ בליבה.En: Elia, walking silently beside Tamar, knew she needed her time, yet a single idea flickered in her heart.He: היא קיוותה שביכולתן לשקם את הקשר שלהן.En: She hoped they could mend their relationship.He: בעבר הן רבו ודרכיהן נפרדו.En: In the past, they had quarreled and parted ways.He: עכשיו, ליד הכותל המערבי, אליה ראתה הזדמנות לנסות להתחבר שוב.En: Now, near the Western Wall, Elia saw an opportunity to try to reconnect.He: כשהגיעו לכותל, היה קשה למצוא מקום להתקרב.En: When they arrived at the Wall, it was difficult to find a place to approach.He: המון אנשים התפללו בעיניים עצומות, בעוד קול השופר נשמע ברקע, מהדהד בכל פינה.En: Many people were praying with their eyes closed, as the sound of the shofar echoed in the background, resonating in every corner.He: תמר עמדה שם, עיניה דומעות, לוחשת תפילה שקטה.En: Tamar stood there, her eyes tearing up, whispering a quiet prayer.He: אליה הביטה בה, משתוקקת להגיד משהו, אך מהססת.En: Elia watched her, longing to say something but hesitating.He: איך להתחיל? האם לתת לתמר זמן?En: How to start? Should she give Tamar more time?He: לבסוף, כאשר הצלילים האחרונים של השופר נדמו, תמר סובבה את ראשה והסתכלה עמוק לתוך עיניה של אליה.En: Finally, when the last sounds of the shofar faded, Tamar turned her head and looked deep into Elia's eyes.He: "אני צריכה לספר לך משהו," היא לחשה.En: "I need to tell you something," she whispered.He: היא הוציאה את הכאב שלה במילים פשוטות, סיפרה לאליה על העצב שלה, על החרטה והאובדן.En: She expressed her pain in simple words, sharing with Elia her sorrow, regret, and loss.He: אליה הקשיבה ללא הפרעה.En: Elia listened without interrupting.He: היא הנידה את ראשה באמפתיה והבינה שלעתים יש להמתין בסבלנות.En: She nodded with empathy, understanding that sometimes patience is necessary.He: היא הניחה יד בעדינות על כתפה של תמר, תחושת חמימות שהחזירה עידוד ללב של תמר.En: She gently placed a hand on Tamar's shoulder, a feeling of warmth that brought encouragement back to Tamar's heart.He: האור של ראש השנה שרר באוויר.En: The light of Rosh Hashanah filled the air.He: התפילות נשענו על כתפיהם של כל הנוכחים, מפיצות תקווה ותחילת התחדשות.En: The prayers rested on the shoulders of everyone present, spreading hope and renewal.He: תמר הרגישה שהיא לא לבד.En: Tamar felt she was not alone.He: היא הביטה אל אליה וראתה דבר שלא ראתה זמן רב - ידיה של חברה.En: She looked at Elia and saw something she hadn't seen in a long time - the hands of a friend.He: הקשר נשם מחדש, רענן וחי.En: The bond breathed anew, fresh and alive.He: נשיקת השלום נראתה בכל פינה.En: A kiss of peace seemed to be everywhere.He: שתי חברות ישבו יחד, מביטות בשקט בכותל, וכוכב חדש ניצנץ לעתיד מלא באפשרויות.En: The two friends sat together, quietly gazing at the Wall, as a new star twinkled towards a future full of possibilities.He: אמנם העצב נשאר בליבה של תמר, אך האור החדש שהיה ביניהן הפך את הכאב הזה למשהו שהיא לא צריכה לשאת לבד.En: Although the sorrow remained in Tamar's heart, the new light between them transformed this pain into something she didn't have to bear alone.He: אליה ותמר קמו, והלכו לאור השקיעה, יד ביד, מגלות תקווה חדשה ומה שתבוא איתה השנה החדשה.En: Elia and Tamar stood up and walked into the sunset hand in hand, discovering newfound hope and what the new year would bring with it.He: הן הבטיחו זו לזו להיות אחת ליד השנייה, בדיוק כמו שהשנה החדשה מבטיחה התחדשות, תקווה והתמודדות משותפת.En: They promised each other to be by one another's side, just as the new year promises renewal, hope, and shared challenges. Vocabulary Words:excitement: התרגשותprayer: תפילהautumn: שלכתgates: שעריsorrowful: עצובregret: חרטהwithdraw: להסתגרwhirlpool: מערבולתemotions: תחושותflickered: ניצנץmend: לשקםquarreled: רבוapproach: להתקרבechoed: מהדהדresonating: מהדהדhesitating: מהססתinterruption: הפרעהempathy: אמפתיהencouragement: עידודrenewal: התחדשותtwinkled: ניצנץfaded: נדמוpain: כאבbond: קשרgazing: מביטותdiscovering: מגלותrenewal: התחדשותshared: משותפתsorrow: עצבbear: לשאתBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/fluent-fiction-hebrew--5818690/support.

When during the Friday night prayer service do the laws of Shabbat take effect? At one specific point during the service does it become forbidden for a person to perform Melacha (forbidden activity)? This issue is subject to a dispute between Maran (Rav Yosef Karo, author of the Shulhan Aruch) and the Arizal (Rav Yishak Luria of Safed, 1534-1572). The Shulhan Aruch maintained that one formally accepts Shabbat when he recites the Psalm of "Mizmor Shir Le'Yom Ha'Shabbat," whereas the Arizal held that one accepts Shabbat earlier, when he recites "Bo'i Kalla Shabbat Malketa." The Ben Ish Hai (Rav Yosef Haim of Baghdad) accepted the stringent view of the Arizal, and Hacham Ovadia Yosef, in his work Halichot Olam, writes that one should preferably follow this view. Therefore, one should not perform any Melacha after reciting the words "Bo'i Kalla Shabbat Malketa" at the end of Lecha Dodi (even though the sun has not set). It should be noted that responding to Barechu at Arbit on Friday night also constitutes the formal acceptance of Shabbat. Of course, in most cases, one has already accepted Shabbat before Barechu by reciting "Bo'i Kalla Shabbat Malketa," as discussed above. However, if it happens that one responds to Barechu of Arbit before reciting "Bo'i Kalla Shabbat Malketa," he has nevertheless accepted Shabbat. This can happen in places such as the Kotel Ha'ma'arabi (Western Wall) in Jerusalem, where many different Minyanim are taking place at the same time. If a person hears a Minyan praying Arbit on Friday night, and he responds to Barechu, he has accepted the onset of Shabbat, regardless of whether or not he has recited Kabbalat Shabbat. In fact, if a person responds to Barechu on Friday night before he recited Minha, he may no longer recite Minha. Since he has accepted the onset of Shabbat through his response to Barechu, he cannot then recite the weekday Minha prayer. This applies even though he responds to Barechu with the specific intention not to accept Shabbat. Therefore, if a person has yet to recite Minha on Friday afternoon and hears Barechu from a Minyan praying Arbit, he should not respond, because he would then be unable to pray Minha. This Halacha is restricted to Barechu on Friday night. During the week, responding to Barechu does not mean that one has formally ended the day and begun the night. Therefore, if a person has yet to recite Minha and hears a Minyan praying Arbit, he may respond to Barechu and then pray Minha. Conversely, a person who recited Arbit and then hears a Minyan praying Minha may respond to Nakdishach, even though he has already recited Arbit. Reciting Arbit, or answering to Barechu of Arbit, does not constitute the "acceptance" of the nighttime period, and therefore one may still respond to Nakdishach after reciting Arbit, or pray Minha after responding to Barechu of Arbit. Summary: Once a person recites "Bo'i Kalla Shabbat Malketa" at the end of the Lecha Dodi hymn, he is considered to have accepted Shabbat and may no longer perform activity forbidden on Shabbat, even though the sun has not set. A person who answers to Barechu of Arbit on Friday night is considered to have accepted Shabbat even though he has not recited Kabbalat Shabbat. If a person hears a Minyan praying Arbit on Friday night before he has prayed Minha, he should not respond to Barechu, as he would then be considered to have accepted Shabbat and would thus be unable to pray Minha.

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world. Times of Israel founding editor David Horovitz joins host Jessica Steinberg for today's episode. Horovitz discusses the comments made by Hezbollah terror leader Hassan Nasrallah in the wake of the extensive rocket attack against Israel early Sunday morning, in which Nasrallah claimed victory for the attack mostly thwarted by the IDF. He then looks at the latest in the ceasefire and hostage deal talks, currently ongoing in Cairo and Doha, with the US pressing hard for a deal. Horovitz also speaks about the latest comments made Monday morning by National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir regarding the right for Jews to pray on the Temple Mount, long seen as a flashpoint in local political and security tensions. Ben Gvir's statements feed into the letter recently sent by Shin Bet head Ronen Bar to Netanyahu and government ministers, regarding fears for Ben Gvir's actions on the Temple Mount and growing Jewish terror. He also delves more deeply into his interview last week with opposition leader Yair Lapid, who expressed optimism about Israel's future and what needs to be done going forward. For news updates, please check out The Times of Israel's ongoing live blog. Discussed articles include: Nasrallah asserts Hezbollah attack was success, reserves right to strike again PM says strikes on Hezbollah ‘not end of story' as allies warn against escalation No breakthroughs in Cairo talks as US says mediators pushing ‘feverishly' for deal Defense minister says national security being sapped by Ben Gvir's moves Shin Bet chief warns Netanyahu, ministers that Jewish terror endangering Israel ‘He lost his soul': Lapid sees ‘sacred cause' in toppling Netanyahu's government Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Ben Wallick. IMAGE: National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir at the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City, after his visit to the Temple Mount on August 13, 2024 (Photo by Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dedication opportunities are available for episodes and series at  https://ohr.edu/donate/qa   Questions? Comments? podcasts@ohr.edu   Yeshivat Ohr Somayach located in the heart of Jerusalem, is an educational institution for young Jewish English-speaking men. We have a range of classes and programs designed for the intellectually curious and academically inclined - for those with no background in Jewish learning to those who are proficient in Gemara and other original source material. To find the perfect program for you, please visit our website https://ohr.edu/study_in_israel​ whatsapp us at https://bit.ly/OSREGISTER or call our placement specialist at 1-254-981-0133 today!   Subscribe to the Rabbi Breitowitz Q&A Podcast at https://plnk.to/rbq&a   Submit questions for the Q&A with Rabbi Breitowitz https://forms.gle/VCZSK3wQJJ4fSd3Q7   Subscribe to our YouTube Channel at https://www.youtube.com/c/OhrSomayach/videos   00:00 - Why does Hashem have anger for a single moment each day?   03:05 - Why does each Aliyah in Parshas Balak start with ‘Balak' or ‘Bilam'   05:00 - What is a Rashash minyan?   08:00 - What was the difference in opinion between the Vilna Gaon and the Chassidism?   24:55 - How can a Rebbe give a single mehalech for many unique, distinct neshamos?   28:20 - Can someone go up to Har HaBayit?   37:40 - What is the significance of the Western Wall?   41:45 - Is it permitted for a woman to wear animal-print clothing?   44:15 - Where does one's duty to his family fit into his Avodas Hashem?   51:00 - Why is it so significant that Apostomos burned a Sefer Torah?   54:00 - Why did Rebbe Nachman object to Moreh Nevuchim - Guide to the Perplexed?   01:02:16 - If we've lost entire tractates of Gemara, how can we trust what we have?   1:11:05 - Why are there more Cohanim than Leviim?   1:14:30 - Why doe we sometimes find that Tanaim said harsh words that turned into curses?   1:18:10 - Was it common for people to tamper with manuscripts?   1:21:20 - If we already did Teshuva why do we ask for it everyday in Shmoneh Esrei?   1:23:00 - What advice would there be for someone losing motivation in spiritual growth?   1:24:40 - Do we have to stand for everyone who is over 70?   You can listen to this and many other Ohr Somayach programs by downloading our app, on Apple and Google Play, ohr.edu and all major podcast platforms. Visit us @ https://ohr.edu  PRODUCED BY: CEDAR MEDIA STUDIOS  

NA'ALEH YOGA: Yoga Nidra Journeys for Deep Rest+ Close Your Eyes and Stay Awake...   This week's Yoga Nidra practice is dedicated to the first 9 days of Av and the day of Tisha b'Av, a time for reflection, accountability, hope, and renewal.  The 9th of Av is a day for the commemoration of the ancient Temple, the Beit Hamikdash, of which today only the Western Wall remains.  The Temple symbolizes the connection with the Divine Source Consciousness, which is reflected in the body. The human body is like a moving, living temple through which life serves. The Temple is a place of compassion, connection, creativity, and blessings.  This practice of Yoga Nidra invites you to turn attention inward in safe, relaxing conditions where you can pay attention to your inner world and reconnect with your spiritual self.  During this session, we'll explore the sacred architecture of your physical form, mirrored by the architecture of the ancient Tabernacle (the movable Temple). Because YOU are a holy, moving, living temple. You deserve to care for yourself and the body you inhabit. By tuning in and paying attention, you can create yourself into a home of connectedness, abundant blessings, and good deeds.  So, lie back, relax, and allow my voice to guide you. Remember, you can always return to this practice whenever you need a moment of calm and connection. Thank you for joining me, and don't forget to subscribe, share, and leave a comment. Your support means the world to me! Sending you all my love and best wishes. Stay safe, stay healthy, and stay connected. Until next time!   Episode summary: Intro Preparation: Ensure a comfortable and safe spot before starting this journey, with your body straight from head to toe preparing to relax. Intention Setting: Setting your intentions for today's practice... Detailed Body Scan: Journey through a detailed body scan inspired by the architecture of the temple Return to your intention: Returning to your the sankalpa/kavanah/intention set earlier in the practice and letting it integrate Externalization: Returning back to the ordinary waking state and taking your practice with you Outro As you emerge from this meditative experience, I'd love to hear your reflections and feedback.   Subscribe to Na'aleh Yoga for more transformative journeys and feel free to share this podcast with a friend. Take a moment to review and share your thoughts—your insights might inspire others on their journey to self-discovery.    Feel free to reach out to me. I'd love to connect with you so don't be shy!  Biosite: https://bio.site/ruthieayzenberg YouTube Channel: @naalehyoga Email: naalehyoga@gmail.com     May you be peaceful and safe!  DISCLAIMER: This practice is NOT a medical treatment and NOT a replacement for medical treatment. Although this is a very safe, non-invasive meditative practice, this podcast does not take responsibility for any undesired experiences. This is a holistic psychospiritual practice that can be a beneficial adjunct to other treatment methods.   

Aviva Klompas has long been a fierce advocate for Israel and is no stranger to the forces that try to delegitimize the Jewish state. Klompas, cofounder of Boundless Israel, a think tank dedicated to strengthening education about Israel while also keeping an eye on the surge of antisemitism in the U.S., joins us to discuss how she's working to combat antisemitism and shape the conversation, both online and off.  Listen to this candid conversation, recorded on the sidelines of AJC Global Forum 2024 in Washington, D.C.  Episode Lineup:  (0:40) Jason Isaacson, Ken Weinstein, Kirsten Fontenrose, Rich Goldberg Show Notes: Watch: Voices of Truth: Advocating for Israel on Social Media with Aviva Klompas and Michael Rapaport Listen – People of the Pod: On the Ground at the Republican National Convention: What's at Stake for Israel and the Middle East? Follow People of the Pod on your favorite podcast app, and learn more at AJC.org/PeopleofthePod You can reach us at: peopleofthepod@ajc.org If you've appreciated this episode, please be sure to tell your friends, and rate and review us on Apple Podcasts. Transcript of Interview with Aviva Klompas: Manya Brachear Pashman:   Aviva Klompas has long been a fierce advocate for Israel and is no stranger to the forces that try to delegitimize the Jewish state. After leading Birthright trips, she became the speechwriter for Israel's Mission at the United Nations where she was always looking for ways to give voice to Israel's side of the story, amid a cacophony of anti-Israel sentiments.  After working for Combined Jewish Philanthropies, she co-founded Boundless Israel, a think tank dedicated to strengthening education about Israel while also keeping an eye on the surge of antisemitism in the U.S. Aviva might still write the occasional speech, but on Instagram and X, that's where she's really shaping the conversation and confronting haters.  We sat down with Aviva on the sidelines of AJC Global Forum 2024 in Washington D.C in early June. Aviva, welcome to People of the Pod's pop-up studio here in Washington. Aviva Klompas:   Absolutely. Manya Brachear Pashman:   Together with Rachel Fish, you co-founded a nonprofit called Boundless. can you tell us the purpose of boundless and the origins of its name? Aviva Klompas:   The idea is to look at the larger issues that are plaguing the ecosystem in Israel in North America and to function both both as a think tank that does research to understand what's happening under the surface, but then to not just investigate and study for curiosity sake, but then to turn to action, and really to extract recommendations, and to pull together partners in order to take meaningful action in order to address some of the larger challenges.  So the two areas in which we primarily focus are one, education. How do we reimagine Israel education in North America, for both Jews and for non-Jews? And the area where I spend most of my time has to do with the narrative war? Understanding how did we get here? What's happening below the surface, both in traditional and on social media? Manya Brachear Pashman:   You previously served as the director of speech reading at the Israeli Mission to the United Nations. And at that time, did you find yourself not just talking to a traditional institution but actually trying to persuade or convince, maybe even combat the sentiments of that audience? Aviva Klompas:   Working as a speechwriter for Israel at the United Nations is certainly an experience and an education unto itself. And my former boss, Ambassador Ron Prosor always used to say to us, it's not so much politics and diplomacy as it is theater and a game of chess. And so to some extent, it's about who you can convince in these speeches and in these conversations in the halls, in the corridors of the United Nations, but the meaningful action, the real relationship building, tends to happen behind the scenes where there's no camera, and when there's no public audience. What people tend to see, the speeches that are broadcast, statements that make headlines around the world, that's really theater. Manya Brachear Pashman:   And you mentioned, when you were onstage with Michael Rapaport, at Global Forum yesterday, you mentioned how that job is very limiting compared to your job now and your representation on social media. Can you talk a little bit about why it's important to be on social media to use that as a platform. Aviva Klompas:   Yeah, so I worked both for the Israeli delegation. So that was working for the Israeli government. I also worked as a policy advisor for the Canadian government. And certainly when you're working for a government, there are limitations on what you can say, and what you can do. And one of the great blessings of having co-founded Boundless and working in this nonprofit is that at this moment in time, there's a lot of flexibility and latitude for Rachel and I to really hone in on what we think needs to be done and spend our time and our energy there.  The great education that I got when I was working at the United Nations, was the fact that people would always ask me, Well, why is it that Israel participates in the United Nations? This is an institution that is notorious for its bias against Israel.  So why does Israel participate? Why would it be a member of an institution that notoriously demonizes, delegitimize, vilifies, ostracizes it. No country has to be a member of the United Nations. And more than that, in order to be a member in good standing, you have to pay dues.  So Israel pays its membership dues to endure the sort of abuse that we see day in and day out at the United Nations. That's the number one question that I get asked, but it was never once a conversation that we had inside of the United Nations, because we never for a moment doubted that Israel has every right to participate in and contribute to global affairs. And that mentality is what I've taken with me throughout my career that Israel has, and the Jewish people have every right to participate in and contribute to our communities, our societies, our countries and bettering this planet. Manya Brachear Pashman:   You also, since October 7, you have emphasized that it's very important to tell Israel's story, tell the story of October 7, day to day, hour to hour, which is how I viewed the news cycle of social media. Why? Why is it that it's so important?  Aviva Klompas:   It's a part of that mentality that I was describing, which says, I won't for a moment accept that any of this is either normal or acceptable. I'm not going to tolerate a world that speaks to us and treats us as if we had this coming. As if what happened on October 7 was due to us. As if it is normal to be holding over 100 people hostage. As if it is acceptable that Jewish people have to hide their Jewish identity.  And I'm not interested in people that will speak with great sympathy about dead Jews, but not take any meaningful or consequential action to safeguard living Jews, which is ultimately what's most important.  And at the end of the day, the reason that I'm spending so much time and energy on social media is because I refuse to allow the normalization of what we're seeing day in and day out. And the only way you stop that normalization is two things is one, you have to use your voice, you have to stand up. And we also have to use our Yiddishe kops a bit and try to think about what's happening under the surface. What are the root causes? What are the points of origin for what's taking place? And how can we outthink them? And that's the work we're doing at Boundless. Manya Brachear Pashman:   You have primarily focused your messaging on X, or Twitter. You recently though moved your posts to Instagram as well. Aviva Klompas:   After a lot of people told me that I had to, yeah, a lot.  Manya Brachear Pashman:   Well, can you talk a little bit about your social media choices? In other words, is there a particular audience on X that you were trying to reach? Aviva Klompas:   I joined X when I was actually speechwriter for Israel at the UN. And I was very at the time we're talking, I don't know, 10 or 11 years ago, I was opposed to the notion of joining social media, I thought, I don't think everybody needs to know my thoughts. That's ridiculous.  And then one of my colleagues Israel Nitzan, a good friend, and a diplomat of Israel, he was the one that convinced me said, this is very much in line with Elon Musk, I would say is, it's the town square, this is where conversations are happening. This is where politicians and diplomats and reporters are having conversation. And it's important that you participate. And that is an idea that resonates with me very deeply, is that we need to have a voice in the public square. So that's how I got started on X.  And I left my Facebook, and I did have Instagram, but I really left it for that personal private space. And then early on in the war, had to change the privacy settings because all of a sudden, it was being flooded with with requests, my Instagram, my personal Instagram, when you open it up, it's 1000s and 1000s of people that want to follow me and I'm like, It's my vacation photos and it's family. No. So that's not going to happen.  So instead, after a lot of people said to me, there's obviously a whole other audience of much younger people and different people that are on Instagram, can you just pull your posts over? So I started a second Instagram account, which is just replicating the tweets and it's @AvivaKlompas. Manya Brachear Pashman:   I'm curious if you have developed relationships, either real or virtual with other social media influencers. In other words, did you know Michael Rapaport before October 7, before he became so vocal on social media and is that in particular and are others new and surprising friendships and partnerships? Aviva Klompas:   So I met Michael Rapaport because I got a DM on X from him. That was three words. And they were: who are you? And I wrote back: who are you? And that's where we started chatting. And then we had the opportunity to meet in Israel and he's become a very good friend and a person that I admire enormously.  And that's happened in other instances as well that there's been other influencers that I've met as a result of this that started his online conversation. chanson turned into real world relationships. And ultimately, all of us need to have a community social media is a very lonely place and it's a dystopia. When you pull people in the real world, which is what we do at Boundless, it asked her attitudes and opinions about Israel and anti semitism, you get one set of answers.  When you look on social media you get a different set of answers. The world is much bleaker and darker. And that's because the rule on social media is if it enrages, it engages. So the most vitriolic, hateful, disgusting, vile content is the content that will trend that's most likely to appear in your feed.  I always likened social media to the Coliseum in ancient Rome, where you have people battling it out in the center of the arena. And then you have the throngs of crowds surely, lustily screaming for them for someone's demise. It is not a venue that is conducive to relationships are conversations are chasing or changing minds, if you can sort of visualize that Coliseum analogy.  And at the same time, because social media is this kind of dystopia, bleak place, you need to have a community. And that's what I have found with other pro-Israel pro-Jewish voices is that it makes you feel like you're not alone in this that you're not this like single voice that standing against an enormous tide. So I'm very grateful to the other people that have lent their friendship in this moment. Manya Brachear Pashman:   So I want to pivot a little bit to what you put on social media, mostly the Israel-Hamas war. Why do you think Hamas terrorists are being treated as heroes in so many outlets and venues?   Aviva Klompas:   Yeah, what we're really seeing is new tactics and an old strategy. This strategy of how Israel and the Jewish people is being demonized. It's not new, the only new part of it is is the advent of social media as a way to more quickly and more spread the these lies and disinformation much further, but it really goes back to a Soviet strategy you had after World War Two, you had the Cold War, and you had the United States pitted against the Soviet Union. And you never want to fight a war on your own territory. So to the extent that you can you want to fight it on a different front, and that's really what the Middle East became. Israel as it moved away from its socialist roots and towards a capitalist roots, begins to align itself more with the United States.  That poses a threat, the Soviet Union sees Israel in the Middle East as a forward operating base for the United States. And so it begins to align itself more closely with the Arab nations. And in order to fight this battle, it begins a disinformation campaign that has a number of strategies to it that I think will sound very familiar. The first is to claim that there's no connection between the Jewish people and land of Israel to paint us as colonizers.  The second is to paint us as aggressors. And just to frame it in such a way as it is, isn't the Nakba, not the story of how a number of surrounding Arab armies attacked Israel, not the story of how Israel accepted a two state Partition Plan from the United Nations, but rather the story of the Nakba, and the demise.  And the third is to paint the Palestinians as a people that have no agency, and that all of this is happening to them and that they are victims in this colonialist, racist world. And then what the Soviets did is they begin to use that type of language that says Zionists are Nazis, and Nazis are the epitome of evil. And so all of the worst racist colonialist, etc. Accusations that's not new, we saw that from the infamous Zionism is racism resolution at the United Nations in the 1970s.  So this is a continuation of a very, very old strategy. And as we always see, it starts with the Jews, but it never ends with the Jews. Manya Brachear Pashman:   On the morning that many of us traveled here to Washington for AJC's Global Forum, we woke up to the news of the IDS rescue for hostages. Headlines talked about the four hostages being freed, not rescued. And sadly, many more headlines focused on the hundreds of Palestinians who were killed in that rescue effort. I asked why Hamas terrorists are being treated as heroes and I ask this knowing the IDF has certainly made some tragic errors in this war. But do you get a sense that there is a concerted effort not to treat IDF as heroes? Aviva Klompas:   So first off, I mean, I saw them being the hostages being spoken about as having been released, as if, as if commerce just opened the doors and let them go. And the level of condemnation about us going into rescue or hostages? What did they want us to do? Ask nicely. It's been eight months, we've tried a series of hostage deals in negotiations, and it's gone nowhere. I don't measure the standard of the IDF behavior by what the world says. That's going to be a failing strategy for us. I think it's measured by the values of the State of Israel and the Jewish people. And that's why the army has a code of conduct. The people that are more outraged that Israel went to get its people back than the fact that terrorists took them and held them for eight months. Those people need to check their thinking and their values.  And that's one of the things that we need to call out all the time. And I think that's a question the mainstream media that's been reporting on it, it's been embarrassing to watch people just essentially regurgitate Hamas press releases. How about a little bit of journalistic integrity? How about asking some hard questions like, Do we even know the casualty figure? I saw it grow by 100, since yesterday. I don't think anybody actually knows the number of casualties.  And then, if you had the number, how would you assess how many were actually combatants? If you're counting journalists and doctors that hold hostages in their home as civilians…I don't understand how mainstream media have sort of suspended rational analysis in this war. Manya Brachear Pashman:   Do you also get the impression that the hostages' stories have been downplayed by mainstream media? I mean these are truly ordinary people, ordinary families who now suffer extraordinary uncertainty, which, you know, I would argue, is worse than loss, this uncertainty. Do you feel like that has been lost in mainstream media coverage? Aviva Klompas:   I think that for a while, we saw that the hostage family stories were prominent, and they were certainly getting a lot of attention. And now it's a lot harder. Now it's been eight months, and it's a very visual war. No war in the history of the world has had this level of scrutiny, and certainly not this level of playing out real or disinformation on social media. And people are being bombarded with very difficult and very honestly very, very tragic scenes from Gaza.  And we haven't really seen that many new images emerging about the hostages, because there's so much silence. So in that sense, I can understand why there is a level to which humans can stay interested in a topic without new information. I think that's part of what we're struggling with. And at the same time, we have seen journalists be shockingly callous to the hostage families, and that's absolutely unacceptable. Manya Brachear Pashman:   Can you give an example of what you mean? Aviva Klompas:   Well, we just saw a very prominent reporter from the hill roll her eyes while speaking to the sister of a hostage when she asked her to believe women. Manya Brachear Pashman:   The New York Times broke a big story–I'm putting big and finger quotes–earlier this week that Israel's Ministry of diaspora affairs organized and paid for an influence campaign last year that targeted US lawmakers, American public with pro Israel messaging, but the story never mentioned the barrage of propaganda that pro Palestinian organizations have put out quite effectively. How do you guard against spreading disinformation as a social media influencer? Aviva Klompas:   So I don't agree With what the Israeli government did, I think it was pretty inevitable that that was going to become public. And so I think we could have all seen that this was coming in, and it was not a wise decision to target American lawmakers. I'm not sure that I would call that a disinformation campaign. Disinformation is a deliberate attempt to spread fake information. And I don't think that was the case, but nonetheless, not wise.  The difference is, is that my beloved Jewish people believe in truth and integrity. And we believe that if we just tell the same story one more time and maybe tell it a little bit differently, people will finally listen to us. And I think after trying that for a couple 1000 years, maybe we should adopt a different approach. And we again, have to look at what's happening under the surface.  If we want to do better at social media. You're right, the other side will say anything, do anything and show whatever image, true or not. People say it immediately 6000 people were killed in the bombing, an intentional IDF bombing of a hospital, okay, based on what? It's been 15 minutes, nobody actually knows what happened. Same thing with the rescue mission. Day by day, the count of quote unquote, civilian casualty grows by 100. We don't know the facts on the ground, we're not relying on third party verification in the way that we should, and people are just soaking this up. And the other side has realized as much, and they understand that they have the freedom and latitude to say everything. Understanding that we have to rethink what this picture looks like. In understanding social media, we have to be thinking smarter about the type of information we're putting out and what some of the challenges are.  You have algorithmic manipulation, you have bots and inauthentic activity, you have foreign intervention campaigns, you have the echo chambers that exist, we have the algorithms that even when they're not manipulated, as I said, what engages and engages. We know all of these things. But I don't think we're working hard enough and smart enough to design our campaigns and our messaging, in order to address some of them.  One of the things that we're doing at Boundless is we started with the very simple question that says, Who do we need to be talking to? Any messaging, any communications, begins with understanding who's your audience because you need to tailor your message appropriately. And I'm not sure that we're doing that as much as we should. So at Boundless, we started with that question, we did a major study with a national research firm, and we identified six priority audiences.  And we ask them their opinion, we want to learn from them, we want to understand why do you think what you think? Why do you believe what you believe? Where are you getting your news and information, we're very open about going to them and saying, We want to learn with you, we want to understand what your challenges are. One of the things that we learned is that every minority population in this country believes that they are the victim, they believe that they are one of the most highly targeted people for hate crimes.  And the challenge that we have is that when we come we present them and say no, we're the most hated group, what we're doing is we're minimizing their experience. And we're catalyzing a sort of victim Olympics, it makes them feel defensive, it makes them feel like they're not being seen and heard. And we're not tailoring our messaging with that understanding. So we need to do a little more, a lot more, front work in order to understand who do we want to speak to? What are their values, what are their positions, what's informing how they feel, and think about different issues, before we start to construct messages.  And then we really have to think about the distribution and dissemination techniques that we have. Which are right now, they're too uniform, we need to be doing a lot more and a lot differently. And we're hyper reliant on social media. And social media has a very important role to play. But we all know that if we see social media as sort of this coliseum, this arena in which people are thrashing it out, you're never going to really have a conversation. Manya Brachear Pashman:   Shortly after October 7, you wrote, quote, The State of Israel was supposed to be a living promise that there would always be a place for Jews to be saved for the pogroms in the Holocaust that plague Jewish history. After the October 7, mass terror attacks, that promise is broken. Do you still feel that way? Aviva Klompas:   I've been to Israel seven times in seven months. And I think a lot about when I first went the first time I went was two weeks after October 7 And I was in Jerusalem. And that was deserted. And I wanted to go walk to the Western Wall to the Kotel and I walked through the Old City and it was unbelievable. It was the middle of the week in the middle of the day and everything there was not a person in sight. Everybody was so scared.  And I recall friends saying to me, we're having conversations as if it's the 1940s we're talking, we're whispering husbands to wives about where we would hide our children. Because exactly that sense of security, that sense of comfort had been shattered. The idea was that anybody could jump out and didn't matter where you were in Israel, the sense of safety had dissipated.  And it wasn't that different here in the United States. And I think to some extent, people probably still feel it. Whereas in Israel, it's been more alleviated with the notion that antisemitism, that you're not safe in your places of worship in Jewish day schools and community centers that you have to think twice before you go to a walk for Israel, you have to think twice, about whether you're going to wear a kippa or a magen david. I think really, our sense of security has been shattered.  And that's one of the great tragedies, beyond the enormous tragedy that is October 7, than the living tragedy of the hostages, is the fact that we are all shaken by this. And that it feels scary for a lot of people to be a Jew in the world right now. There's a lot to say about what social media does wrong and how harmful it is and how difficult it is.  But also, the one thing that means the most to me, about being active on social media in the last eight months, is the number of messages I get, and people that come up to me in the real world and say to me, I'm scared. And I feel a little bit less scared because you have a voice in the world, you and other people, that people are feeling very alone, that people are saying I'm in workplaces where I'm the only Jew or I'm in schools where I'm being targeted where I feel like I can't speak up in class where I have to hide my head when I am choosing to stay in my room rather than go out.  And it's a lonely, lonely feeling right now. And if the only thing that my social media is doing is helping people have a voice and to know that there's others who think this is not normal, this is not acceptable. And we're going to spend every single day raging against it. That will have been worth it. Manya Brachear Pashman:   Aviva, thank you so much for joining us on the sidelines of Global Forum. Aviva Klompas:   Thank you for having me.

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world. Legal correspondent Jeremy Sharon and environmental reporter Sue Surkes join host Jessica Steinberg for today's episode. Sharon discusses the landmark decision by the High Court Tuesday determining that ultra-Orthodox men are obligated to perform military service, and the immediate draft of 3,000 yeshiva students starting July 1, as he looks at the legal issues that led to the decision. He also talks about the new report by the United Nations-linked Integrated Food Security Phase Classification organization, showing that there is no famine in Gaza, despite previous predictions to the contrary. Surkes explains the latest concerns about Israel's power grid and its susceptibility to a possible attack by Hezbollah, with Israel's electricity companies taking a more urgent look at what can be done to offset an all-out blackout in case of war. She also mentions a high-tech, AI-powered 'weed wacker,' designed to bypass pricey human labor for crops and agricultural fields. For more updates, please check out The Times of Israel's ongoing live blog. Discussed articles include: After court ruling, AG tells IDF to immediately start drafting 3,000 Haredi students In historic ruling, High Court says government must draft Haredi men into IDF Key food security org finds no famine in Gaza, says previous assumptions wrong As war with Hezbollah looms, concerns over vulnerability of power grid generate unease Confab shows off startups, from AI-driven weeders and tree tubes to alternative fats THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Civilians and soldiers killed in Hamas's onslaught on Israel THOSE WE ARE MISSING: The hostages and victims whose fate is still unknown Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.  IMAGE: An Israeli soldier and ultra-Orthodox Jews at the Western Wall on June 25, 2024. (Photo by Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this week's bonus show, we dig into Israel and evangelicals, two fellow travelers that shaped U.S. politics and the world together. Many evangelicals believe God will protect Israel, as long as they accept the Lord Jesus Christ as their savior, or they'll burn in hell with other nonbelievers when Jesus returns. That means the destruction of Israel, a Jewish state. Digging into Speaker Mike Johnson, a staunch evangelical, and the other MAGA Christian nationalists blocking aid to Ukraine in the House, it turns out Ukraine also plays a role in evangelical “end times” prophecy. The path of the destruction of Israel goes through Ukraine, according to Pat Robertson and other evangelical leaders featured in the show notes. Does Johnson believe this?    Johnson proudly proclaimed his worldview is the bible, telling Fox News: "Someone asked me today in the media, they said, 'It's curious, people are curious: What does Mike Johnson think about any issue under the sun?' I said, 'Well, go pick up a Bible off your shelf and read it. That's my worldview.” Johnson was featured in a German documentary about taking his daughter to a purity ball where she signed a pledge to never have sex before marriage. Purity balls are seen as dehumanizing to young girls and women   Pat Robertson, one of the most consequential evangelical leaders to build white Christian nationalists into a political force, taking over the GOP, claimed in a video featured in this week's bonus show, the path to Israel's destruction begins with Russia's destruction of Ukraine. Ray Comfort, another evangelical minister with a large social media following, wrote the book Russia Will Attack Israel, and plays up Russia's war in Ukraine as “end times” prophecy. David Jeremiah, the evangelical pastor of a megachurch, also promotes this idea in his work. The argument goes: Putin is a tool of God to raise the forces of evil against Ukraine on Russia's path to waging war against Israel. In their logic, Ukraine must be destroyed so the final battle of good vs. evil can begin, ushering in the return of Jesus.    Obviously Christian nationalists like Johnson and others in the MAGA cult blocking aid to Ukraine are motivated by power and money. They align with strongmen like Trump to consolidate their support and enrich themselves. Both Putin and Orban used Christianian nationalism to entrench their regimes. Johnson was caught taking Kremlin-linked donations in 2018, as discussed in the recent bonus show for Patreon subscribers, The Kremlin Owns Mike Johnson.    Russia does its part to feed into these “end times” fever dreams. The philosopher Aleksandr Dugin, Russia's Steve Bannon, recently said, "Jerusalem will be a Russian city or it will not exist at all.” As Trump's white Christian nationalist base cheers on Putin's genocide in Ukraine and Netanyahu's genocide in Gaza and the West Bank, Russia oppresses and kills evangelicals in occupied Ukraine, according to a recent PBS Newshour report, and Christians are increasingly harassed and pushed out by ultra-Orthodox Israelis.    The persecution of fellow Christians may likely mean nothing to Johnson if he shares the belief that accelerating global conflicts will ultimately bring back Jesus. What he has made clear through his words and actions is that he takes the bible literally, like many evangelicals. With Ukraine increasingly in the crossfire of “end times” prophecies, spun in megachurches and their disinformation echo chambers, we have to come to terms that we're up against a doomsday cult, not a political party. Biden cannot shame or reason with these people. He must work around them to save Ukraine.    Contact your rep today through this site by a Gaslit Nation listener and demand they ensure the discharge petitions are signed, successfully forcing a vote on Ukraine aid: https://helpukrainewin.com/   ***   Thank you to everyone who attended the Make Art Workshop: The Business Side of Things on Thursday April 11. We will soon publish the recording along with the transcript and resources mentioned in the discussion as a bonus episode exclusively for our subscribers at the Truth-teller level or higher on Patreon. We're also launching a chat group for our Patreon community dedicated to artists and those who love art, called Art is Surival. This idea came out of our Q&A discussion at the end of the Make Art Workshop on Thursday, and it's a way for our community to share ideas, inspiration, support, and amplify our work and promote accountability to, little by little, get our projects out into the world. To join, be sure to be signed up at the Truth-teller level or higher at Patreon.com/Gaslit. That chat group will launch on Tuesday with next week's episode, featuring Ari Berman of Mother Jones and his new book Minority Rule The Right-Wing Attack on the Will of the People—and the Fight to Resist It.    Show Notes:   Watch the documentary Bad Faith, available everywhere April 26, pre-order it now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6WYseVO29ZU   Opening Clip: Vox Short Documentary: How a Bible prophecy shapes Trump's foreign policy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmWL0I3oytw   Clip: Here's Evidence That Russia Will Attack Israel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBvloYWyyms   Clip: Arizona State Senators Speaking in Tongues Before Banning Abortion https://twitter.com/tcani/status/1777829756400263618   Clip: Hundreds of Israelis told evangelical Christians who were praying at an archeological park bordering the Western Wall in occupied East Jerusalem to “go home”, underlining the strained relationship between them and religious Israeli nationalists. Jerusalem's Christian community says there has been a rise in attacks from Israeli ultranationalists on its churches and practices. https://www.youtube.com/shorts/vio53jUpJz0   David Jeremiah: Russia's Role in End Times Prophecy: https://davidjeremiah.blog/what-does-the-bible-say-about-modern-russia/   Speaker Mike Johnson and daughter were profiled attending 'purity ball' in 2015 German TV news segment https://abcnews.go.com/US/speaker-mike-johnson-daughter-profiled-attending-purity-ball/story?id=105785626   Pat Robertson Clip: 'God Is Getting Ready to Do Something Amazing': CBN Founder Pat Robertson on Russia and Prophecy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMEj52pYWq0&t=2s   How evangelicals set in motion today's violence in the Middle East https://thehill.com/opinion/international/4548756-evangelicals-caused-todays-mess-in-the-middle-east/   How Christian Nationalists, Big Oil and the Big Lie Seized the Speaker's Gavel https://washingtonspectator.org/how-christian-nationalists-big-oil-and-the-big-lie-seized-the-speakers-gavel/   Putin and Doomsday: The Far Right's Fascination With the Apocalypse Fox News, the evangelical fringe, and the right wing have been peddling “End Times” thinking for decades. Armageddon has become a backdrop now that Russia has invaded Ukraine. https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/03/putin-and-doomsday-the-far-rights-fascination-with-the-apocalypse   Jay in Kyiv on Twitter: “Putin wheels out Dugin to let us know that Jerusalem is also on Putin's acquisition list.   "Jerusalem will be a Russian city or it will not exist at all".   Meanwhile, the west wants to "negotiate" with this creature.”  https://twitter.com/JayinKyiv/status/1777051211654430842   Ukrainian Christian groups face violent crackdown from Russian forces https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/ukrainian-christian-groups-face-violent-crackdown-from-russian-forces   Congress must let Ukraine win, say Barbra Streisand, Sean Penn, Imagine Dragons, Timothy Snyder and other luminaries https://edition.cnn.com/2024/04/10/opinions/sean-penn-barbra-streisand-imgaine-dragons-congress-ukraine-snyder/index.html   These Evangelicals Are Cheering the Gaza War as the End of the World Thousands have died in the Israel-Hamas conflict. Some far-right Christian leaders believe the bloodshed portends the second coming of Christ https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/political-commentary/gaza-war-evangelical-leaders-cheer-end-world-1234884151/