Friday
the 9th of January, 2026
20
Tevet 5786
825
days since October 7th 2023
Shabbat
Shalom to you and to your families.
Each
week I try to find an apt quote, one that relates to all of us, whatever our
faith, or lack of it. This week I chose the subject of Anti-Semitism. As you
can imagine, there were many, but I don’t like to weigh you down with long-winded
existential thoughts, I prefer simple truths and this quote from Jean-Paul Sartre
is the simple truth. “If the Jew did
not exist, the anti-Semite would invent him.”
Why
does it fit all of us? Because it is not only the Jew who is chosen for hatred,
it is the vast majority (still) of normative people on this earth. Just this
week 2 worshippers were killed during a funeral service, several wounded in
shooting outside Salt Lake City church. Not the first LDS church attacked, certainly
not the first nor the last church attacked.
The
Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese, aka Albo, has paid attention to
the strong criticism of his government following the Bondi attack on Chanuka.
Unlike here in Israel, he has answered the call for a Royal Commission of
Inquiry into the period before the attack and the laxity in dealing with rising
anti-Semitism which should have warned of an impending attack. Has he learned a
lesson? Will the Australian police and legal system pay more attention to the
rising threat? Only time will tell but, much as we have rightly criticised
Albanese’s government, at least they have responded which sadly other countries
have not. This article by Former Prime
Minister of Australia Scott Morrison, caught my eye https://www.scottmorrison.com.au/media/the-labor-party-made-australia-safe-for-antisemitism
This
week, people about to board a flight to Israel in Milan Airport, were harassed and
abused by a crowd of dozens of anti-Israel demonstrators. Why wasn’t it broken
up at the very outset? Why did it reach the point that those passengers feared
for their lives? As we say in the UK, I just don’t get it. Why, on the one
side, are passengers not protected and more importantly, why do they need to be
protected?
Have
you seen the photographs of Angelina Jolie at the Gaza/Egypt border, her look
of anguish so perfectly composed for the cameras? She, and so many of
Hollywood’s self-appointed woke moral leaders, perform compassion
effortlessly, as long as it fits the approved narrative. Yet time and again,
they remain silent about persecuted Black Christians, because acknowledging
them would disrupt the anti-Israel trope they so carefully maintain. The
reality they ignore is brutal. In Nigeria alone, Open Doors reports that 4,407
Christians were abducted in the north-central region between 2020 and 2025.
Adjusted for population size, Christians were 2.4 times more likely than
Muslims to be kidnapped. This is not fashionable outrage, so it earns no photo
ops, no speeches, and no hashtags—only silence from a woke elite far
more interested in appearances than in truth.
Zvi
and I are watching “Homeland” the US version of the Israeli series "Hatufim" (Prisoners of War), created
by Gideon Raff. When the terrorist Abu Nazir is finally captured Abu Nazir
tells Keri -
“We
will succeed because you in the west with your beach houses and big houses are
not a match for our determination and willingness to die for our cause”. As I
have said so many times, complacency is the enemy in our fight to save society
as we know it.
Crazy
fact. The Emirates has limited funding for students that want to study in the
UK for fear of them becoming a radicalised
Did
you know that this has been a very important week in the Orthodox Church? The 6th,
7th and 8th were the Orthodox Christmas. Just as in
Judaism, the Christian Church has many denominations and the Orthodox Church
itself is split into Russian, Ethiopian, Egyptian (Copt) Greek, Serbian,
Romanian all of which have representation here in Jerusalem. Obviously the
largest is the Russian, but all the others are also present here in this city
of a thousand faiths.
When
the Orthodox Christian Christmas appeared on my diary, I started to research
the situation of Christians around the world and was horrified to discover that
more than 380m Christians suffer high levels of persecution and discrimination
for their faith. https://www.opendoors.org/en-US/persecution/countries/
So,
Maduro, the dictator of Venezuela was captured proving yet again that President
Trump does not threaten, he acts – probably the vast natural resources of that
country helped the decision. The fascinating fact of the capture is that both
he and Noriega were both captured on January 3rd 30 years apart. One
may ask if it affects Israel, as most things do. The decision to capture and
officially arrest cruel dictator from South America has many implications
around the world like throwing a stone into a pond and the ripples reach far
and wide. It's put fear into the hearts of Iranian leaders and dictators
around the world because President Trump goes far beyond the norms of
international diplomacy into a world where the cruel are captured, arrested and
held for trial
Here
in Israel, we not only deal with Palestinian terror but also the terror imposed
on Palestinians by the Hilltop Youth, the radicalized Jewish youth who attack
ordinary Palestinians, burn their cars, homes and even physically attack.
Finally, after far too long, the IDF has approved the wearing of electronic ankle
bracelets by anyone suspected of such terror actions.
For
weeks, almost daily, members of Peleg Yerushalmi (the Jerusalem Branch) the
most extreme faction of the Jerusalem Haredi movement have blocked major roads
at the entrance to Jerusalem and in Bnei Brak, chanting “Better to die than
serve in the IDF” and clashing with police. Two days ago, the protests
escalated when demonstrators attacked a bus, hurling stones and objects at it
and threatening the driver, who called police in fear for his life. As the
crowd rushed the bus, he accelerated to escape and tragically ran over
14-year-old Yosef Eisenthal, who the driver claimed he did not see, was killed.
The driver has since been questioned and placed under house arrest. This
tragedy was foreseeable: police, acting under orders from Internal Security
Minister Ben Gvir, were instructed to go easy on the protesters and allow them
to paralyse two of the country’s busiest roads, with devastating consequences.
Iran
continues to issue its familiar threats towards Israel, speaking darkly of
launching “a thousand missiles”. Meanwhile, inside Iran itself, a rather
different drama is playing out. Large numbers of ordinary Iranians are taking
to the streets once again, pushing back against more than four decades of
clerical rule. The latest surge of protests followed a call to action from Reza
Pahlavi, the exiled Crown Prince, whose name still carries a certain resonance.
The son of Iran’s last shah, Pahlavi has long urged Iranians to challenge the
Islamic Republic and has spoken of a future Iran aligned with the West,
specifically including Israel. A curious historical footnote: on his 20th
birthday in 1980, he declared himself Reza Shah II, a claim from which
Washington promptly distanced itself. For all the noise about missiles, it may
well be the steady determination of Iranians seeking change that turns out to
matter far more.
Since
lots of you have mentioned that you want to come to visit Israel, I thought I
would include this interesting site of the finest parks in Israel! https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g293977-Activities-c57-t67-Israel.html
Our
estate, home to about 230 families, sits on the grounds of a truly magnificent
historic building, once a convalescent home for senior civil servants. Built in
classic Jerusalem stone and bearing more than a passing resemblance to the
White House, it’s a place we all love living in. That said, we have long and
loudly bemoaned one missing detail: the promised coffee shop.
This
week, at last, it opened, with great fanfare, marked by real celebration and,
naturally, a lecture on coffee (as one does) and the new coffee shop. With the
addition of a Wellness Centre and now a coffee shop, something lovely has
happened: the whole community comes together, from toddlers to grandparents,
sharing space, conversation, and caffeine. It turns out that sometimes all a
neighbourhood really needs to feel complete is good coffee (and some excellent
pastries) and a place to sit and enjoy them together.
The
blessed rain came down last night with such force that we have a leak beneath
on of our windows, staining the Jerusalem stone that we carefully preserved
inside out apartment! Oh well, Hopefully no actual damage and the window man is
coming on Sunday to check it out.
I
have a very exciting week ahead of me! Not only will we celebrate my 80th
birthday, but great friends are coming to celebrate with me. Jill, Ilana and
Rebecca, mother and two daughters, are flying in on my birthday and Gideon, my
incredible, amazing son is arriving the next morning. The reason they are
coming is to celebrate my birthday in a family and friends get together in
Shalva which we will hold on Saturday evening. Arrangements made, Rachel has
created some surprises for guests and hopefully everyone will enjoy themselves.
I wish I could have invited all of you, but the hall is a small one. I don’t
want gifts so have asked everyone to donate to Dr. Dan’s Room in Shalva, the
Studio for the Performing Arts that we created in Shalva. https://give.shalva.org/daniel
Shlomo
Artzi is so much more than a singer/songwriter. He is a fine example of a
caring Israeli, an Israel through and through. He visits injured soldiers,
sings to widows, shows up at funerals, a real mensch. This song explains the
Israeli state of mind perfectly “We Don’t Need More” https://youtu.be/nrhOtJS3psQ?si=q4OI1hUEmbVOU24g
Each
morning one says the prayer thanking the Almighty for returning us to life, to
giving us back our existence. Modeh Ani, here sung by Omer Adam. https://youtu.be/npRw36_Ftmc?si=E6EwWj22bv_NIosH
I
was thinking back to innocent times of my youth, to the hope we all had in our
hearts that love, simple love could change the world. We almost succeeded but
then the world turned on its axis – but I thought we could all use a reminder
of those sweeter, kinder times of a social revolution started by four tousle
hair boys from Liverpool and their genius musical director George Martin. https://vimeo.com/864434625
That’s
all Folks! Time to get myself together for Shabbat! Zvi has left for his
parliament in the Botanical Gardens. Before I go, however, I wanted you to be
reminded of this speech. Can you imagine a leader whose only care is to see a
world in which honesty and truth rule? This speech from the Great Dictator is a
dream, Charlie Chaplin’s dream, but oh my goodness it is truly powerful. https://youtu.be/J7GY1Xg6X20?si=O1p4OTAWCOcmGcOS
Shabbat
Shalom to you all, one and all, with wishes for a more understanding world. Just
remember, it starts with one, the power of one. We are the only ones who can control
OUR environment and by doing so one by one, remembering that whatever words we
say cannot be taken back except for words of love which should always go both
ways.
With
love from Jerusalem
Sheila
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