Tag Archive for: Rabbi Akiva

Terror Attack
Terrorists threw two Molotov cocktails at two Border Police women near the Ofrit base, located near Hebrew University on Mt. Scopus. The two officers were lightly injured from the fire started by the firebombs.

For further reading click here.

Lag B’omer
Hundreds of thousands of Jews from all walks of life and religious leanings converged on the town of Meron in the Galilee yesterday to celebrate the festival of Lag B’omer at the tomb of the second century Talmudic sage Rabi Shimon Bar Yochai.

Lag B’omer is the 33rd day of the 49 days counted between the second day of Passover and the holiday of Shavuot. According to the Talmud, during this period of time in the second century in Israel, 24,000 students of the great sage Rabbi Akiva mysteriously died. One of the reasons given by the Talmud was that their deaths were punishment for their ill treatment of one and other. Whatever the reasons, the students stopped dying on Lag B’omer and so the rabbis turned it into a day of celebration.

But the massive gathering at Meron is primarily in commemoration of the Yahrzeit (anniversary of the passing) of Rabi Shimon Bar Yochai (also a student of Rabbi Akiva) who is credited in Jewish tradition for authoring the Zohar, the famous cornerstone of the Kabbalah (Jewish mystical teachings).

According to the Zohar, on the day of his death Rabi Shimon Bar Yochai gathered together all of his students, who were the greatest sages of the time, and revealed to them the deepest secrets of the Kabbalah. During this momentous session his home was filled with an intense light, like a fire.

To commemorate this holy and mystical event, thousands of bonfires are lit in Meron and throughout Israel. In fact, the Ministry of Environmental Protection said that most of the air quality monitoring stations noted a rise in particle concentrations due to the many bonfires lit.

The main bonfires in Meron are lit by prominent rabbis including many Hasidic Rebbes. The first bonfire was lit at 8:30 PM last night by the Boyan Rebbe, as has been done for the last 100 years.

In addition to the bonfires, thousands of 3 year old boys are given their first haircut at Meron, following the Kabbalistic tradition performed by the Arizal, one of the greatest expounders of Kabbalah who lived in 16th century Tzfat. Hundreds of hairdressers set up shop in the area to lend a professional hand.

The festivities in Meron continue until nightfall tonight.

May the bonfires and prayers at Meron bring light and peace to the entire world.

To watch the lighting by the Boyan Rebbe at Meron, click here. (Forward the video to the 4 hr. mark)

Temple Mount
Speaking at his swearing in ceremony as a new member of the Knesset, Rabbi Yehuda Glick, a longtime Temple Mount activist, called for an end to the ban on Jewish prayer on the Temple Mount.

Glick took over the seat of former Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon, who resigned after Avigdor Liberman was given the defense portfolio as part of the agreement to bring his party into the government.

In his remarks Glick said, “As long as I’m here, I will do all that is in my power to end the injustice that takes place every day at the holiest place in the world, where police officers are under orders to check whether a 90-year-old Jew is, God forbid, moving his lips or not.”

On the morning before assuming his new position in the Knesset, Glick visited the Temple Mount. But he won’t be doing so again as long as he is a Knesset member, in line with the directive given by the Prime Minister to all government and Knesset members (including Arab MKs) to not visit the Temple Mount.

For further reading click here.

Aliyah
According to figures released by the Central Bureau of Statistics, 3.2 million Jews immigrated to Israel since the founding of the State in 1948. 1.35 million of those Olim have come since 1990, primarily from the former Soviet Union and its satellite states.

Since 1972, 115,195 Jews have made Aliyah from the US. According to the report, the top destinations for American immigrants is Jerusalem, which is home to 29,882 American Olim who arrived since 1972. Tel Aviv was a distant second with 10,620, followed by Beit Shemesh with 6,937, Raanana with 3,717, Haifa with 3,520, Netanya with 3,043, Modiin with 2,006, and Efrat with 1,978.

For further reading click here.

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