Israel is a country that operates at the extremes -- everything is done with an intensity that is exhausting. We have been here only a couple of days yet have already been immersed in arguments about religion, politics and the economy. We debated whether Israel's celebration at 60 was a good thing or a waste of money that could have better been spent on the many challenges that confront contemporary life. We have had discussions over whether the major challenge to contemporary Israel is religious, political, educational or economic! There was even a gay pride parade on Friday -- which brought with it its whole set of arguments - from "Why not?" to "Why here in Jerusalem? -- Let them march in Tel Aviv where they belong!" And my program doesn’t even begin until Monday -- yes, these have just been casual conversations with friends and people on the street! What a country. Even the graffiti here is educational. On a wall is scribbled the familiar: am yisrael hai - "The nation of Israel lives!" To which someone appended the word: baseret - in movies. I did not understand until someone explained that the expression hai baseret -- to live in the movies - has the connotation of saying you are living in a dream world, in a fantasy world. So on the one hand you have the proud affirmation that Israel lives -- and the rebuttal -- in a fantasy world! What a place. Even the security people have their opinions. When my son was asked the purpose of his visit - he replied that he would be attending the wedding of a close friend. The passport officer smiled and replied: od gever nisraf -- which roughly translates to "another one bites the dust" -- but is a play on an army term that with each passing day you can say -- "another day burnt" -- here applied to my son's friend. In what other country would the passport person feel free to comment on the purpose of your trip?
But there are new restaurants to explore, new shops to discover and so many more conversations to be had. There is a vitality here that is a bright as the middle eastern sun that just seems stronger and brighter here than anywhere else. Every step, every experience and every day is filled with this feeling that you are living in the best of times and the worst of times. Of the many challenges that beset this place, boredom is not among them.
So for now, we are here - exhausted, but thrilled to once again be part of the conversation.
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Hello and once again, welcome to my Sabbatical blog! The purpose of this blog is to introduce you to the wonderful program at the Hartman Institute: The Rabbinic Leadership Initiative where I will be spending most of the month of July.
I hope to update this blog frequently during the course of my studies and I hope it will serve as a good way to keep you posted on my experiences so we can share this exciting adventure together. If last summer is any indication this will be easier said than done – as I was so busy – finding downtime to compose my blog entries was not as easy as I thought but, feel free to check back often and I will try to give you a taste of what I will be experiencing!
The Shalom Hartman Institute, where I will be studying, is a research and leadership training institute located in Jerusalem. Their mission is to revitalize Judaism, strengthen Jewish identity and foster religious pluralism by providing scholars, rabbis, educators, and lay leaders of all denominations with tools to address the central challenges facing Judaism today. Serving Israeli and world Jewry, SHI’s faculty and graduates are forces of change creating a new dialogue between Jews of diverse backgrounds, between classic Judaic sources and modernity, and between Judaism and other faiths. To read more about the Hartman Institute and see some pictures of where I will be spending my time – check their web site at: http://www.hartmaninstitute.com
The particular program I am involved with is called the Rabbinic Leadership Initiative or RLI. Some 25 rabbis from around the world – Conservative, Orthodox, Reconstructionist and Reform - are selected to participate in this very special program and I am proud to be one of them. To read more about this program go to:
http://www.hartman.org.il/Center_Rabbin ... gram_Id=13
I will be leaving New York on Wednesday June 25 and returning on Monday July 28.
I also hope to use my time in Israel to search out some mitzvah opportunities where I can serve as your shaliach – your agent, to bring tzedakah to various causes in Israel. Many of you have already generously contributed to the Rabbi’s Fund at TBS through the annual Passover Appeal or your contributions in appreciation for my participation at a Wedding or Unveiling or the like – I will be using some of those funds and seeking ways to put them to good use during my stay in Israel. I will report on my experiences seeking out these mitzvah opportunities in this blog.
The main thing is that I hope that by means of this blog you will feel that you are part of my experience. As I have mentioned before, a Sabbatical is an investment on both of our parts in keeping my rabbinate fresh and dynamic. It is not unusual in the course of a normal week for me to address more than a thousand people! From Shabbat sermons to Machon Beth Sholom High School classes; from Sisterhood classes to the Herbert Tarr Adult Education Institute; from sitting on the floor with our tots in our Early Childhood Center preparing for Shabbat, to the hospital visits where I sit with our most elderly members; from Divrei Torah at Board Meetings to counseling sessions in my office; from meeting to meeting to meeting – week after week, year after year - I am called upon to teach and share my insights applying the teachings of our sacred tradition to modern day situations. The challenge is to constantly renew myself and to keep fresh the wells of Torah that nourish me and therefore nourish you my community.
After my experiences last summer, I am more convinced than ever that this opportunity that you have wisely afforded me, to study at the Hartman Institute will be an investment that will pay dividends beyond measure in the months and years to come.
In the meantime, I leave you in the capable hands of Rabbi Jeni Friedman and while I will be checking my email (alucas@tbsroslyn.org) but feel free to check in with Rabbi Friedman or the office if you need an immediate answer. God willing my next entry will be from Yerushalayim Ir Hakodesh – from the Holy Land!! L’hitraot!!
Rabbi Alan Lucas
Here is my schedule for the first two weeks:
Summer 2008
RLI Part 1
Monday, June 30
10:00 – 11:30 Registration Osher Plaza
11:30 – 12:00 Orientation Bill Berk
Sharon Laufer Beit Midrash
12:00 – 12:30 Introduction Donniel Hartman Beit Midrash
12:45 – 14:00 Opening Lunch Tauber Hall
14:00 – 15:30 Welcome for spouses Sharon Laufer Osher Plaza
14:00 – 15:30 Electives - Please choose one for the entire week
• The Story of the American Jew David Ellenson Mandel Beit Midrash
• Zohar – The Idra Rabba Melila Hellner-Eshed Lafer 1
• The Troubling Triangle: A Modern Mikraot Gedolot – Sara, Hagar & Abraham Noam Zion Beit Midrash
• Bringing God into Prayer/Spiritual Activism: A Jewish Guide to Leadership and Repairing the World/ Personality Type Theory and Midrash: The Case of Moses and Bezalel Avi Weiss
Alfredo Borodowski (4th session) Beit Midrash Right seminar
• Biblical Intimacies: The Unknown Woman Avivah Zornberg Lafer 2
15:30 – 16:30 Roundtable: Catching Up
16:30 – 17:00 Reception Osher Plaza
17:00-18:45 Panel Discussion & Havruta Journal Launch
Conversion Controversies: Identity, Boundaries and the Future of the Jewish People David Ellenson
Donniel Hartman
Einat Ramon
Moderator:
Stuart Schoffman Beit Midrash
18:45 – 19:30 Dinner Tauber Hall
19:30 – 20:30 An Evening with David Hartman David Hartman Beit Midrash
Tuesday, July 1
The Spiritual and Ethical Dimensions of Memory
08:30 - 10: 30 Hevruta Introduction:
Moshe Halbertal Beit Midrash
10:30 – 11:15 Havurot See locations list according to the letter on the backside of your nametag
11:15 - 13:00 Shiur
Moshe Halbertal Beit Midrash
13:00 - 14:00 Lunch Tauber Hall
14:00 – 15:30 Electives
17:30 – 19:00 Visions of a New American Judaism and its Relationship to Israel David Ellenson
Avi Weiss Beit Midrash
19:00 – 20:00 Dinner Tauber
20:00 – 22:00 Celebrating Israel at 60: Israel's Musical-Textual Renaissance Shlomo Gronikh Beit Midrash
Wednesday, July 2
How Do the Biblical Narratives Create a People?
08:30 - 10:30 Hevruta
Introduction
Israel Knohl Beit Midrash
11:00 – 12:30 Shiur Israel Knohl Beit Midrash
12:30 – 14:00 Free for lunch
14:00 – 15:30 Electives
20:00 The Geo-Political Situation of Israel Maj.-Gen. (res.) Yaakov Amidror Beit Midrash
Thursday, July 3
Rambam: Memory and Narrative
08:30 – 11:30 Hevruta
Introduction:
David Hartman Beit Midrash
10:30 – 11:15 Havurot See locations list according to the letter on the backside of your nametag
11:15 – 13:00 Shiur David Hartman Beit Midrash
13:00 – 14:00 Lunch Tauber
14:00 – 15:30 Electives
15:45 Roundtable: Peer Teaching Jonah Layman
17:00 Optional:
Buses leave for Na-Lagaat
Friday, July 4
Shabbat Dinner at the home of Donniel and Adina Hartman
Saturday, July 5
17:00 – 19:00 Free Day
Optional Jerusalem tour – Sign-up at courtesy desk
Sunday, July 6
Ways of Remembering Sinai
08:30 - 10:30 Hevruta Introduction:
Melila Hellner-Eshed Beit Midrash
10:30 - 11:15 Havurot See locations list according to the letter on the backside of your nametag
11:15 - 13:00 Shiur Melila Hellner-Eshed Beit Midrash
13:00 - 14:00 Lunch Tauber
14:00 - 15:30 Electives: Please choose one for the entire week
• Forgetfulness & Memory in one Commandment: The Talmudic Narrative as a Process of Forgetting (taught in Hebrew) Ari Elon Beit Midrash right seminar room
• Law and Narrative in the Talmud Moshe Halbertal Beit Midrash
• Returning to Cultural Zionist Narratives: Jewish Solidarity in the Midst of Revolutionary Polemics: Mendelei Mocher Sforim, Y.Ch. Brenner, Ahad HaAm, A.D.Gordon, Berl Katznelson & A.J. Heschel Einat Ramon Lafer 2
• Torah M'Sinai? Revelation & Interpretation in Modern and Feminist Jewish Thought
(Heschel, Borowitz, & Plaskow) Rachel Sabath Beit-Halachmi Beit Midrash Left seminar room
• Remembering Heroes and Martyrs: In Medieval and Contemporary Discourse Noam Zohar Mandel Beit Midrash
15:30 Roundtable: Topic TBA
19:00 Family Dinner Tauber
20:00 An Evening with Donniel Hartman - Yom Hashoah and Yom Hazikaron—Competing Foundational Narratives for Understanding Modern Israel
Beit Midrash
Monday, July 7
Differing times depending on tiyul chosen. Four tiyulim – choose one
 Sde Boker Stories and Hiking in Machtesh Ramon (12 hour outing)
 Is the Bible True? Machloket with Archeologists & Guides
 Jerusalem Narratives – Walking and talking Nachlaot and Rehavia
 Spiritual Narratives of Secular Tel Aviv with Rabbi Julian Sinclair
Tuesday, July 8
Holocaust Narratives and Their Impact on Contemporary Jewish Identities
08:30 – 10:30 Hevruta Introduction:
Rachel Korazim Beit Midrash
10:30 – 11:15 Havurot See locations list according to the letter on the backside of your nametag
11:15 – 13:00 Shiur Rachel Korazim Beit Midrash
13:00 – 14:00 Lunch with families Tauber
14:00 – 15:30 Electives
20:00 Movie Night Stuart Schoffman Beit Midrash
Wednesday, July 9
Megilat Ha’azmaut: The Construction and Deconstruction of the Israeli Narrative
08:30 – 11:00 Hevruta Introduction:
Rani Jaeger Beit Midrash
11:00 - 12:30 Shiur Rani Jaeger Beit Midrash
12:30 - 14:00 Free for lunch
14:00 – 15:30 Electives
15:45 Synagogue Transformation: Focus on Adult Learning Ed Feinstein
Bill Berk
20:00 Evening program:
Islamic Fundamentalism and the New Middle East Res. Gen. Daniel Rothschild Beit Midrash
Thursday, July 10
The Rabbinic Narratives of God
08:30 – 11:00 Hevruta and Evaluation
Introduction
Donniel Hartman Beit Midrash
11:00 - 13:00 Shiur Donniel Hartman Beit Midrash
13:00 - 14:00 Closing Lunch
Closing remarks by David Hartman and Donniel Hartman Tauber
14:00 Roundtable: Peer Teaching Jessica Spitalnic Brockman Room
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Greetings from Cantor Barnoy, Mark Magid and Barry Epstein who are in New Orleans adding to the efforts of those who are helping to rebuild the areas devastated by Hurricane Katrina a couple of years ago.
I took many pictures but unfortunately I am having trouble uploading them to this blog. The saying "A picture says a 1000 words" is especially true here because even when you see the totality of the destruction that took place here your eyes have a hard time believing what they are actually seeing. It is a sureal experience to drive through whole townships that were completely submerged under as much as 17 feet of water that came rushing inland when the levees broke.
And yet, there are many rays of hope like the ones provided by Habitat for Humanity. We are working on constructing a house which is one of approximately 110 that will be completed this year. This may be a tiny number compared to the 1000's that were completely "totaled" but when we got a chance to actually meet the owner of the property and she expressed her gratitude that we were rebuilding her house, we actually understood that we were not just building her house - we were rebuilding her HOME. She lost everything in an instant and our volunteer efforts, connected with many others from accross the country, is the only way she can afford to rebuild her life.
I don't want to blog in text what really should be said by pictures so I will cut it short tonight in the hope that I can figure out how to upload the incredible, unbelievable images that I have taken.
I will also be discussing our experiences here during various sessions and sermonettes at the temple, so please look for those opportunities as well.
Looking forward to another day of hard work on behalf of humanity!!
Good night.
Cantor Barnoy.
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Our trip is off to a great start. It is hard to believe we left only a few days ago because we have done so much – our days are full of activity, facts and of course a great deal of laughter. In addition, because of our days have been so long, it has been hard to find time to get online to post, but we want to keep you posted, so here we are reporting faithfully to you.
So, let’s backtrack a little and tell you a little bit about what we have done up until this point.
We landed at Ben Gurion Airport and hit the ground running. We visited Zichron Yaacov and saw the Sara Aronson house which was very interesting. We checked in to our hotel in Tiberias and that night were treated to a terrific welcome dinner at the world famous DECKS restaurant where our group was officially welcomed by a huge boat floating up to the restaurant with fire flares and over a loudspeaker greeting the group from New York, welcoming us to Israel and playing “New York, New York” for the whole restaurant to hear. We also were able to celebrate with our friends Harriet and Marvin Rosen on their 49th wedding anniversary.
A great ending to a great night.
Friday morning we were up early and headed to Tzfat – it was a great way to prepare us for Shabbat as the prayer L’cha Dodi, a cornerstone of the Kabbalat Shabbat service, was written in Tzfat. We then made our way up to Jerusalem where we had a beautiful service and magnificent dinner at (get the name) Beit Shalom, a historical landmark in Jerusalem where heads of state deliberated and where magnificent works of art adorn the walls. The rest of Shabbat proved to be just as great – in the morning we split up into groups which went all over Yerushalayim, from the Kotel to local synagogues, we each got a taste of Shabbat in Jerusalem. Later in the days, some of the group took a walking tour in the Old City led by our fabulous guide, Lyanna Rotstein. We met for Seudat Shlishit at the Fuchsberg Center for Conservative Judaism, where we were able to see the movement’s home in Jerusalem. On Motzei Shabbat, people hit the town for a night of fun, eating and of course, shopping!
Today (Sunday) we started the day at our partner school, Yad HaMoreh. What an amazing place. The teachers, students and parents greeted us so warmly and it was really an amazing program.
We then spent the rest of the day in the Old City of Jerusalem, getting in touch with our ancient Jewish roots and seeing the archeological foundation of Israel.
The group gathers for a picture on the steps to the ancient Temple
It included a visit to the Kotel, which is always awe inspiring but held a new meaning for those on our trip who had never been to Israel.
The group gathers for a pictuere on the steps of the ancient Temple
We have totally lucked out with the weather. It is cool but sunny – we were even walking around today without jackets! The sunny days have given way to beautiful clear starry nights. Picture perfect!
The group is starting to bond. It is amazing that such a diverse group can find common ground through Israel and our experience here. We are learning about each other, discovering new neighbors and are quickly becoming a community.
Tomorrow we will wake up early for Shacharit at the Kotel Masorati, where we will honor those who have become or are becoming Bar or Bat Mitzvah. It will once again be a fantastic day.
Looking forward to reporting more to you then…
BETH SHOLOM - ISRAEL PILGRIMAGE - DECEMBER, 2007
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2007
Submitted by Carolyn Canova
The weather was cloudy, but a bit warmer today, as we set out from Jerusalem on our way to Tel Aviv. Except for our first night, which was spent up north in Tiberias, the Inbal Hotel in Jerusalem has been our home base in Israel, and we were excited to be spending our one day in Tel Aviv. We proceeded north-west along the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv Highway, and soon learned from Lyana that the route itself was steeped in history.
Shortly after leaving Jerusalem we passed the remains of several old trucks and vehicles, both to our right and left along the highway. Lyana told us that immediately after adoption of the UN Partition plan on November 29, 1947, the Arabs cut off Jerusalem in an effort to force the Jews to surrender the city. Jerusalem at the time was not self-sufficient and couldn't survive long without basic supplies from elsewhere. The vehicles we saw were left here as a reminder of the convoys, most of which failed, that were dispatched to bring supplies to Jerusalem in the struggle to keep the city under Jewish control, and in recognition of the valiant efforts of the brave boys and girls who risked their lives to bring in supplies during the siege. Upon seeing a convoy leaving Tel Aviv, the Arabs would signal the towns along the route, and the inhabitants would come down from the hills like locusts to ambush and attack the slow moving trucks. As we drove through the valley at the base of those hills, travelling safely between the barbed wire fences that frame the highway in this area for protection today, we could imagine the Arabs raining down on the convoys and feel just a little bit of how vulnerable they must have felt.
Lyana told us of the popular story of how the Israelis finally found a pass through the hills - - two soldiers from Jerusalem intent on visiting their girlfriends in Tel Aviv stole a jeep and made their way through the hills to Tel Aviv. An Israeli officer overheard them bragging about their exploits, had them recreate their journey, and thus, the route, shaky perhaps but nonetheless a route, was established. Unfortunately, even after the War for Independence was won, it was not until after the 1967 War and the capture of the Arab city of Latrun that a direct route could be established.
We soon passed the Arab town of Abu Gosh, and saw the unusual proximity of the Arab town to the main road. We learned of the high regard in which the town is held by Israelis as a result of the rare loyalty that the people of Abu Gosh demonstrated toward their Jewish neighbors by fighting alongside them against the Arabs in the War for Independence.
We heard from Lyana that although the Jews were not initially successful in the battle for Jerusalem, they eventually took the strategic points crucial for victory when, underestimating the Jews, the Arabs guarding them left their posts to attend the funeral of an important Arab leader, and Rabin's forces walked in and took them without a shot being fired (more about him once we get to Tel Aviv).
We hit lots of traffic enroute to Tel Aviv, and what should have been an hour trip took us two hours. Upon arriving in Tel Aviv, we went immediately to the Rabin Memorial and Rabin Square. The Walk family had chosen Yitzchak Rabin as their project, and with her characteristic charm, creativity and humor, Ellen Walk quizzed the group on the life and accomplishments of Yitzchak Rabin, including his participation in the Oslo Peace Accord and receiving the Nobel Peace Prize. Then, in a touching tribute to him, the Weil family surprised us with having researched Shir L'Shalom, the song of peace which has become associated with Yitzchak Rabin, and Deborah and Levi handed out song sheets and led us in singing the song together in Rabin's memory at the spot that now bears his name. Lyana talked about how Rabin had just finished speaking at a the peace rally at the Square in which we were standing, when he was gunned down by a lone assailant, a religious right wing Jew who disagreed with Rabin's ideology, and was willing to take a life to prevent it from moving forward. We discussed that the inconceivable act of one Jew killing another because of ideological differences marked the end of innocence for the State of Israel, and deepened the rift between secular and religious Jews over the Land. The tragedy, though, also brought into light the seriousness of the growing divide among Jews over the issue, previously left hidden in the shadows. As we stood as a group in Rabin Square to honor one of Israel's fallen leaders, our experience here culminated with a moving reading by our young adult members focusing on thoughts and feelings of and about Rabin, the man, and of the peace he envisioned.
From Rabin Square it was a quick trip on the bus to Independence Hall, where at 4:00 pm on Friday, May 14, 1948, David Ben Gurion declared the Jewish State in the land of Israel. It initially brought to mind our own Independence Hall in Philadelphia where the Declaration of Independence was signed, also at the brink of certain war, but a much stronger connection to us a Jews quickly became apparent. The room itself is not very large, and is fairly simple and unadorned, but the sight of it invoked in many of us the emotions of that historic day that established a modern homeland for Jews in the land given to us as a people by Hashem in biblical times. At the front of the room, a large and familiar portrait of Theodore Herzel, the father of modern Zionism, is flanked by two large Israeli flags, draped from floor to ceiling on both sides. All around the room are beautiful paintings from leading Jewish artists, including the most famous, Marc Chagall. Due to our late arrival, we missed the official film, but our guide did a wonderful job explaining the historical and political circumstances leading up to the event and the participants who were present that day in the very room in which we were sitting. Then, as though we were transported back in time almost 60 years, we had the privilege of hearing for ourselves a recording in Hebrew of David Ben Gurion's actual declaration of the Jewish State, followed by the Rabbi reciting Shehechiyanu, and the orchestra playing Hatikva. Being able to understand enough of the Hebrew, I was personally moved to tears upon hearing the words in his own voice, and was not alone among our group (and certainly not by the time Hatikva began to play). It was a moment for all of us to reflect and appreciate with joy and pride for Israel and the Jewish people.
Upon leaving the inspiring experience at Independence Hall, we went to Nachalat Binyamin, the open air crafts market, for a bit of lunch and shopping. It was my favourite shopping stop so far, as all of the vendors were artists, showing their own beautiful work (way too short a time to appreciate and shop). My family ate in a small kosher meat restaurant where none of the staff spoke English, so we did our best in Hebrew, making out Corned Beef, Schnitzel, and Chips on the menu, and stuck with those standard items (fyi -"ketchup" is apparently a universal term, but beware of the really spicy mustard that also mysteriously appeared on our sandwiches). Billy didn't eat much for lunch, but we were just thrilled that he was feeling a bit better and made it to Tel Aviv, after he, Cindy Lipper and a few others with milder cases, were struck down by the "plague" in Jerusalem, and were out of commission for a few days.
On another personal note, our family was also trying to hook up with John's cousin, a law professor from the States, who was coincidentally flying into Tel Aviv that very day to lecture at a conference later in the week, but unfortunately the timing didn't work out for a quick reunion due to our very limited time in the city. As we walked around the city, it struck us that for much of the world, it was Christmas Day, and all that it implies, but you would never have known it, being in Israel.
Then we were back on the bus heading toward the port city of Jaffa along Ben Yehuda Street (we were already familiar with Ben Yehuda Street in Jerusalem, and now we were on this one in Tel Aviv). In addition to taking in the multi-era architecture throughout the city along the way, we learned that Ben Yehuda is honoured throughout Israel with streets named after him because he was responsible for reviving Hebrew as the modern spoken language of the Jewish people, and that he was instrumental in establishing it as the official language of Israel. Because Hebrew was until then an ancient language, Ben Yehuda had to invent many new words to reflect the modern world in which it would be used, and thus he wrote the first modern Hebrew/English dictionary.
We stopped briefly to see the new Boardwalk area of Tel Aviv, and got to walk along a short stretch of shore on the beautiful Mediterranean Sea. Aside from the sea itself, and the overabundance of stray cats to entertain the kids on the boardwalk, the highlight for most on this stop was some creamy, chocolate indulgence, hot or cold, at the Max Brenner café. We couldn't resist, and brought home chocolate malted shake mix, too.
Before heading back to Jerusalem, we took a quick bus tour of Jaffa, the 4000 year old port city on the Mediterranean Sea, still a critical port location in Israel. As we drove through the narrow, crowded neighborhoods, Lyana explained that it was an Arab city for many centuries, but it became clear as Tel Aviv was growing and expanding, that a Jewish presence was needed in Jaffa to control the port. Today, while Tel Aviv is a Jewish city, Jaffa is mixed with both Arabs and Jews.
As we said "Shalom" to Tel Aviv-Yafo, and travelled north for a bit along the coast, the clouds broke briefly and we could see the beginnings of a beautiful orange sunset. In response to our pleas, Adi stopped the bus for a minute and we all scrambled with our cameras to climb to the highest point to catch a glimpse of it, but alas, it was a fleeting moment, missed by all but the swiftest of us (best I could tell, Evan Siegel got the best shot, and was unofficially dubbed the Beth Sholom Israeli sunset photographer). Though lasting only a moment, the hint of brilliance as the sun dipped down from the clouds toward the beautiful Mediterranean Sea was an exquisite end to another wonderful, jam-packed, memorable day in Israel.
We can't wait to see what tomorrow has in store (oh, and it's laundry day, too - yea!).
A Full but happy bus!
First dinner in Tiberias at Decks
How's this for a welcome --just for TBS!!
At the shuk
Gila leads the davening at our TBS Bar/Bat Mitzvah minyan at the Kotel Hamesorati
a night out with hamburger's at Norman's
Jonathan Sherman has an aliyah at the kotel
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Follow the travels of the 50 TBS congregants joining Rabbi Alan Lucas on the 2008 TBS Israel Trip. In addition to seeing the land of Israel, they will explore the people of Israel. See what they experience in their Israel Blog.
Joining on this trip are:
Carolyn, John, William and Beth Canova
Paula, Michael, Jessica and Ilana Margulis
Andrew Finkelstein, Linda Lebovitz, David Finkelstein and Joanna Finkelstein
Alice and Kenneth Jacoby
Howard, Meg, Zachary and Danielle Kahn
Ronni Kaplan
Susan, Gil, Carrie and Cindy Lipper
Rabbi Alan and Edy Lucas
Marvin and Harriet Rosen
Stacey, Fred and Hannah Rosen
Antonie Samuels
Lisa and Jim Schlesinger
Debra, Gary and Tsvi Weil
Nancy and Jacob Weiss
Mindy, Jay, Jonathan and Andrew Sherman
Wendy, Scott, Evan and Noah Siegel
Ellen and Melissa Walk
Gila Hadani Ward and Eddie Ward
Our Itinerary
TEMPLE BETH SHOLOM
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 20, 2007
Welcome to Israel !
Meeting and assistance inside the arrivals hall of Ben Gurion International Airport. (El Al 002).
Meet with your guide, Lyana Rotstein.
Your main luggage will be brought directly to Jerusalem. Be sure to keep your overnight bag with you (with all clothing and personal belongings that you’ll need until tomorrows arrival in Jerusalem)
Drive along the Mediterranean Coast to the town of Zichron Yaakov. The town was founded in 1883 by Baron Edmond James De Rothschild. Zichron Yaakov gained notoriety during World War One for the establishment of the Nili spy ring by Sarah Aaronsohn, her brothers and a friend. They volunteered to spy on Ottoman positions and report them to British agents offshore. In September 1917, the Ottomans caught one of Sarah's carrier pigeons and cracked the Nili code. In October, the Turks surrounded the town and arrested Sarah and several others. A special visit to their home has been arranged for you this afternoon. After this stop, it’s through the Galilee to Tiberias. Arrival to your hotel for check in.
8.00pm - Enjoy dinner at the Decks Restaurant, overlooking the Sea of Galilee
Overnight: Sheraton Hotel, Tiberias
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 21, 2007
Early buffet breakfast and check out of your hotel.
8.00am – Departure from the hotel.
A short drive brings us to the town of Safed. Wandering through the lanes and alleyways of Safed today, you may be struck its simple beauty. It is this beauty which inspires the many artists who have settled here during the last decades and have turned Safed into a center of Israeli art. Some of the greatest scholars, spiritual leaders and religious thinkers of the Jewish world, were drawn to this small Galilean village.
From Safed, we head south, driving along the shores of the Jordan River, through the Jordan Valley. After passing the ancient city of Jericho, start the climb to the Golden city of Jerusalem
Arrival and check in to your hotel.
This evening, celebrate our group Kabbalat Shabbat and Traditional Friday night dinner at nearby Beit Shalom.
Overnight: Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2007
Buffet breakfast
This morning enjoy visits to various shuls and have a taste of the wide variety of religious experiences available in Jerusalem. From Sephardic to Masorti to an Orthodox minyan that tries to incorporate women. This afternoon will be at leisure to enjoy the special atmosphere of Jerusalem.
11.00am – 1.30pm – Explore with Lyana the Jewish roots of Christianity. Walk to the Old City via the Jaffa Gate. Visit the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Proceed to Mount Zion to the traditional Tomb of King David and the room of the Last Supper before returning to our hotel.
4.00pm – A seudah Shlisheet and program has been arranged for you at the Fuchsberg Center for Conservative Judaism. We will also have Havdalah at the Fuchsberg Center and then spend a night on the town! Enjoy a walking tour to the Citadel of David at the Jaffa Gate.
Overnight: Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2007
Buffet breakfast
We will begin the day by visiting our “Partner” school, Yad HaMoreh. We will see first-hand the amazing work it does and how the connection of our TBS students and families to both the school and to Israel is strengthened through the Partnership 2000 (P2K) program. This will also give us the chance to see the Israeli educational system up close and to look at its challenges and opportunities.
An unforgettable day awaits us as we board the bus and proceed to the City of David. Explore the new excavations at this exciting site, and walk through the Warren’s Shaft. From here we proceed back into the Old City through the Dung Gate. Visit the Southern Excavations. Enjoy a “Jewish Quarter fast lunch) with some time for shopping and exploring the area.. Explore the Jewish Quarter before we head over to the “Quarter’s coffee house” for dinner. After dinner we have a special visit and tour through the Western Wall Rabbinical Tunnels.
Overnight: Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem
MONDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2007
Buffet breakfast
8.00am - We gather together at the Kotel for services
This morning partake in a tsedaka project with Rabbi Lucas. Then it’s on to the hustling Machane Yehuda marketplace and a quick lunch. This afternoon we visit Yad Vashem, Israel’s newly reopened and updated memorial to the Jewish Holocaust victims.
This evening will be free to visit friends, family or take in one of the great restaurants that we can recommend to you.
Overnight: Inbal hotel, Jerusalem
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2007
Buffet breakfast
In less than an hour, we drive from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv.
Tel Aviv is where the action is in Israel. The Mediterranean beaches are clean and white, the sea warm (not necessarily in December), the nightclubs hopping, the shopping plentiful and the restaurants appetizing. Begin the day at Independence Hall, where David Ben Gurion proclaimed the State of Israel in 1948. Drive along Rothschild Blvd. There are over 5000 Bauhaus buildings, the largest number in any one city in the world; a fact that led UNESCO to recognize it as a “World Heritage Site." Tel Aviv is also known as, "The white city", named so in account of the bright colors of the building style: white, off-white, light yellow. On to Rabin Square, the large public square in front of Tel Aviv’s city hall, where, in November 1995 Prime Minister Rabin was assassinated. Enjoy a visit to Nachalat Binyamin, Tel Aviv’s twice a week pedestrian mall. We will then head back up to Jerusalem for an evening at leisure.
Overnight; Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 26, 2007
Buffet breakfast
The dress code today is worn and rugged.
This morning we drive to Neot Kedumim, the Biblical landscape reserve of Israel. Our tour today will be based on the miracle of Chanuka (which we celebrated earlier this month) and the art of sheep-herding. From here, we proceed to Beit Guvrin for an opportunity to dig, sift and search through the underground tunnels and excavations with a professional archaeologist. Return to Jerusalem
Overnight: Inbal Hotel, Jerusalem
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2007
Buffet breakfast
Leave your locked luggage (with clear name tags attached) just outside your door. It will be collected and brought directly to Eilat. Only bring your valuables with you (passport, plane tickets, etc etc).
This is a once in a lifetime day as after breakfast we head down to the Dead Sea. Drive through the Judean Desert eastwards until you reach the shores of the Sea. First stop will be Masada. For the adventurous prepare and enjoy the now famous “Lucasada” - you’ve never climbed Masada like this! (Unless you were on previous trips). You have to be in shape for this magnificent 2 ½ hour climb. For the slightly less adventurous, there will be an opportunity to meet us on top via the new cable car. After touring this mountaintop fortress, we continue driving south along the shores of the Dead Sea to Fata Morgana at Moshav Neot KaKikar. Enjoy a sumptuous desert lunch and have a peak at the amazing desert agriculture before the next leg of our journey – to the Red Sea port city of Eilat.
Overnight: Queen of Sheba Hilton Hotel, Eilat
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2007
After breakfast,
9.00am – Meet your caravan of jeeps just outside the lobby of your hotel. (dress warmly as some of the jeeps are open) Proceed by jeep into the Eilat Mountains and Red Canyon. Visit the wadis of Shlomo, Rechavam, Yehoshafat and upper Shlomo. Enjoy an amazing view of 4 countries (Israel, Jordan, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia) from Mount Yoash. Walk through the Red Canyon before returning to your hotel. Enjoy the rest of the afternoon at leisure in Eilat.
Evening Shabbat prayers will take place with Rabbi Lucas in the Eden Hall (12th floor)
Shabbat dinner a private section of the Makeda hall (Lobby level)
Overnight: Queen of Sheba Hilton Hotel, Eilat
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2007
Buffet breakfast
Day at leisure in Eilat
This evening enjoy a poolside Bar Be Que farewell dinner at the hotel (Ebony restaurant)
For those traveling to Petra tomorrow, please settle any “extras” you may have billed to your room with the front desk this evening, as we are departing early in the morning.
Overnight: Queen of Sheba Hilton Hotel, Eilat
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 30, 2007
Buffet breakfast
For those not traveling to Petra, you have a day to relax in Eilat. Check out time from your hotel room is at 12noon. (feel free to ask the front desk if they can allow you to keep your room for a bit longer – if they can, they will allow it).
Keep your luggage with you – you will bring your luggage on the flight with you from Eilat to Ben Gurion Airport.
6.15pm – Departure from the Queen of Sheba Hilton hotel for Eilat airport
Check in for your Israir charter flight from Eilat to Ben Gurion Airport (domestic terminal)
7.45pm – Israir charter flight
8.40pm – Arrival to Ben Gurion Airport (domestic terminal)
Upon arrival to Ben Gurion airport, you will be met by our airport representative and transferred from the domestic terminal to the international terminal for check in for your flight home.
TOUR TO PETRA
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Don’t forget your passports
6.00am – An early breakfast is waiting for you in the Makeda Hall (lobby floor) Check out of your room and leave your luggage (with a firmly attached name tag) packed and locked just outside your door. At 6.30am the hotel will collect these suitcases and store them in the security room. The next time you will see your luggage is at Ben Gurion Airport prior to checking in for your flight back home.
We suggest you pack in your overnight bag and change of clothes for the flight home. You can leave the overnight bag in the hotel (at the front desk) or bring it to Petra.
6.30am – Departure from the hotel for the 5 minute drive to the Arava/Rabin border crossing. Following Israeli and Jordanian border formalities, meet our Jordanian guide, Mr Yousef Zureikat. Drive through the desert to the Bedouin town of Wadi Moussa. Enter the Nabatean capital of Petra. Walk thru the “Siq”, the immense crack in the sandstone.
Near the end of the passage, take one last turn and out of the shadows appears Petra’s most impressive monument, el Khazneh – The Treasure. Beyond el Khazneh you are surrounded on both sides by hundreds of Petra’s carved and built structures. One should not forget that Petra is not only about the Nabataeans. Within a fifteen minute drive you have the 8000 year old excavated Stone Age village of Beidha and Basta, settlements of the biblical Edomites, not to mention the Tomb of Aaron, Moses’ brother. Enjoy before returning back to your hotel in Eilat.
10 rooms have been kept at the Queen of Sheba hotel for your convenience
6.15pm – Departure from the Queen of Sheba Hilton hotel for Eilat airport – HAVE PASSPORTS HANDY
Check in for your Israir charter flight from Eilat to Ben Gurion Airport (domestic terminal)
7.45pm – Israir charter flight
8.40pm – Arrival to Ben Gurion Airport (domestic terminal)
Upon arrival to Ben Gurion airport, you will be met by our airport representative and transferred from the domestic terminal to the international terminal for check in for your flight home.
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