On 24th of January, from 19.00, the Embassy of Romania invites you to follow our online event:
„80 years since the Pogrom of Bucharest. Commemoration through the work of Marcel Janco (Iancu)”
On 21-23 January 1941, Bucharest was the scene of one of the darkest chapters of the Holocaust in Romania. In those tragic days, the Iron Guard fascist movement massacred 123 Jews and devastated over 1000 Jewish properties (synagogues, apartments, shops).
Acknowledging the past and Holocaust remembrance remain priorities for Romania. Acting constantly to ensure respect, tolerance and diversity is a permanent responsibility.
The Embassy of Romania to the State of Israel proposes a journey into history through the work of Israeli artist of Romanian origin Marcel Janco (Iancu). One of the most remarkable Jewish intellectuals of his generation, he witnessed the Pogrom of Bucharest and expressed the trauma he experienced and other Holocaust events in ghastly drawings.
The event includes welcoming remarks by Prof. Ido Bruno, Director of Israel Museum, presentations of the historical events of the Pogrom of Bucharest by H.E. Ambassador Radu Ioanid, personal recollections on how this tragedy impacted the life of Marcel Janco by a family member (Mrs. Michaela Mende-Janco), as well as lectures about the role of Marcel Janco in Israeli art by Dr. Amitai Mendelsohn, Senior curator for Israeli art, Israel Museum and about Marcel Janco as a Jewish and Zionist artist by Dr. Vlad Solomon, freelance journalist, researcher and writer.
The conference is in English and is organized in partnership with Israel Museum and the Romanian Cultural Institute Tel Aviv.
Follow the event on Facebook on the following pages:
Sukkot, the Feast of Tabernacles, in which we remember the salvation of the Jewish People at the mercy of the elements in Sinai and our 40-year journey from Egypt to the Land of Israel, is called, too, HeHag[1], The Festival, emphasizing its especially joyful and festive character. We are specifically commanded by the Divine to delight in this Festival. God unequivocally tells us, "Ve'Samach'ta be'Chage'cha" - "And you shall rejoice in your festival"[2], a mitzvah as important as constructing the Succah[3] (the hut commemorating this festival) or Arba'at Haminim[4] - the Four Species we carry in the week of Sukkot.
While being joyful is an essential pillar of this festival, how can we explain the inclusion since medieval times[5] of reading Megillat Kohelet (the book of Ecclesiastes[6]) in Sukkot by countless Communities? - Kohelet, one of the 5 books of the Bible, along with the first part of the Book of Job, which expresses the most pessimistic view of the purpose of human existence.
Out Sages ascribe Kohelet to the pen of King Solomon in his old age. It is totally different from the rest of the Tanach, and questions some of the conceptual foundations on which a large part of the Bible rests. This is possible because it is one of The Writings, the third part of the Bible: if The Torah is the direct revelation of God to the People of Israel and, through us, to all Humankind; and if The Books of Prophets bring the revelation of God through His Chosen Leaders on topical issues of their time (except the theme of Messianic redemption, which pertains to the future), The Writings go in the opposite direction, when Man, from his particular circumstances, speaks to God. So the Psalms, Proverbs ... and Kohelet (the King of Jerusalem who says: "Vanity of vanities: all is vanity"[7]) express different human existential realities and circumstances, according to the author of each work.
So, of all the various human expressions embodied in the Bible, why is the Festival of Joy an occasion to read a book that expresses weariness, boredom, and despair?
To the traditional answers to this question, I venture to add two further possible directions: Kohelet, King of Jerusalem, was a man who enjoyed everything that we see today as success: wealth, power and surrounded by beauty. However, he comes to see all this as worthless vanity, symptoms of wrong emphases in his own life, of an unbalance between what he achieved and the really important things he postponed. The Post-Talmudic Tractate of Sofrim introduced the Book of Kohelet into our Festival of maximum Joy perhaps to remind us of the reasons why we need to celebrate again and again, reasons we often forget or take for granted: our good health; love, companionship and communication with our family and friends; the opportunity to earn our livelihood through work; life in a Jewish Community based on mutual support and shared values we hold dear; involvement in activities like Maccabi that stimulate us and become part of who we are; the ethical bases that sustain us - our Torah; our gloriously flourishing national life, the State of Israel.
On the other hand, perhaps we are commanded to read about Kohelet's despair, skepticism and confusion on our Festival of Joy do that we shall be reminded that pain, disappointment, and downfall are integral features of life and that despite this, we are able to enjoy all that is good in our lives, the good never disappears, even in our darkest, hardest and distressful moments. That's life: a combination of the really important things which elevate and make our lives sublime and happy, and everything else, those things that reduce and devalue our lives to "vanity of vanities."
May God grant us the opportunity to celebrate the profound bliss of another joyful Succot, full of song and dance, with our families and communities.
May God give us the wisdom to differentiate the real reasons for our joy from the vain, futile, and transient things devoid of genuine value, things so often confused in our World as marks of true success.
And may God enlighten us to always find light in the darkness, sense in the void, and joy in the challenges which life presents to us.
With best wishes, Chag Succot Sameach! Chazak ve'ematz!
RABBI CARLOS TAPIERO Deputy Director-General & Director of Education
[1]Vayk. XXIII, 39, 41; Bamid. XXIX, 12; Dev. XVI, 14; I Mel. VIII, 2; Yechez. XXXXv, 25; Nech. VIII, 18. [2]Devarim (Deuteronomy) XVI, 15. [3]Vaikrah (Leviticus) XXIII, 42. [4]The four species we shake during Succot: LULAV - palm frond, ETROG - Citron, HADAS - Myrtle & ARAVA -- Willow. "And you shall take for yourselves on the First Day the fruit of a beautiful tree, the branches of date palms, branches of the myrtle tree, and branches of the willow tree, and you shall rejoice before Hashem, your G-d, for Seven Days." (Vayikra 23:40). See also Mishnah Succah III, 4. [5]"This custom is not obligatory since it has no Talmudic basis and even the obligation mentioned in the post-Talmudic Tractate of Soferim is doubtful. Indeed, this custom was never adopted by most Sephardic and Middle Eastern Jewish communities." Excellent article of Prof. Rav David Golinkin in http://www.schechter.edu/responsa.aspx?ID=18 [6]Kohelet (Ecclesiastes) is one of the five Megillot (scrolls) read in the Three Pilgrimage Festivals, the 9th of Av and Purim: Esther on Purim; Eikhah (Lamentations) on Tisha Be'av ; Shir Hashirim (The Song of the Songs) on Pesach, and Ruth on Shavuot. [7]Kohelet (Ecclesiastes), I, 2.
Maccabi World Union, 7 Peretz Berenstein, Ramat Gan, 52105 Israel
From December 2-9, the second annual Debate for Peace delegation traveled from Israel to Kosovo to attend the KIMUN conference. This year Debate for Peace joined local hosts iChat as co-organizers of Kosovo’s only Model UN conference. In total 13 students, from the Bashaer, Pelech, Kfar Qasem Comprehensive, Oded, Modi’in democratic, Brenner (in Petah Tiqva), and Ironi Hei (Haifa) schools took part in the delegation. In addition to participating in KIMUN, the students also visited Albania and Kosovo and met with local UN and US embassy representatives and religious leaders.
The delegation began its trip in Tirana, where they received a private tour of the BunkArt facility by architect Kreshnik Merxhani. After taking the cable cars up Dajti mountain to enjoy the views, they traveled to the town of Kruje, where they lit candles for the first night of Hanukkah, shopped for crafts, and saw the home of the legendary Albanian national hero Skanderbeg.
That evening in Tirana the group met with Professor Petrit Zorba, the head of the Albania-Israel friendship association. The meeting was facilitated by the Albanian embassy in Israel. Professor Zorba talked to the students about the connection between Albanians and Jews, including the incredible story of Besa during the Holocaust, and about interfaith relations among Albanians.
On December 3, the group met with the Protik Innovation Center to learn about the startup environment and entrepreneurship in Albania. From there they proceeded to the US Embassy in Tirana, where they learned about some of the bilateral diplomatic and development work in which the embassy is engaged. Later that day the group traveled to Pristina, Kosovo.
The KIMUN conference opened on December 4th, with a panel including the dean of the philosophy department of Pristina university, the minister of sport and culture, and the directors of iChat and Debate for Peace. For the next three days, high school and university students from Albania, Kosovo and Israel grappled with topics including youth unemployment, use of social media to promote tolerance, and expanding trade relations with the European Union. On the final day, the delegates met at the Kosovo Public Administration building to vote on their final draft resolution and receive certificates and awards.
The delegates of Brazil (Layan Rabi), Italy (Ilva Hamzaj), Saudi Arabia (Erna Salihu), and Serbia (Ariella Rose) received Best Position paper awards. In the ECOSOC committee, China (Margalit Bak) and North Korea (Yaari Cohen) were chosen Best Delegates. In the UNGA committee, Iraq (Yonit Vareika) and the United Arab Emirates (Thoma Kristo) were Outstanding Delegates, and Serbia (Ariella Rose) was the Best Delegate. And in the European Council, Italy (Ilva Hamzaj) and the United States (Eliran Ben Yair) were Outstanding Delegates, and the United Kingdom (Ella Justus Segal) was Best Delegate.
On December 6th the delegation also held several meetings. In the morning they visited UNMIK, to learn about how the work of the UN in Kosovo has evolved over time. That afternoon they met with Matt Briggs, Economics officer at the US Embassy in Kosovo. Matt said that he was “impressed by their eagerness and curiosity about a wide range of issues. It was also fascinating to hear their thoughts about Kosovo and to discuss what difficulties face a country that is still working towards increasing its international recognitions.”
The delegation concluded by celebrating shabbat and Hanukkah in Prizren, as well as visiting the Sinan Pasha mosque, the Catholic cathedral, and the Halveti Sufi tekke. Votem Demiri, the head of the Kosovo Jewish community told Diplomacy: “The Jewish Community of Kosovo together with other religious communities and friends had the honor to host the delegation from DebateforPeace in Prizren for the celebration of Shabbat and Hanukkah. As the head of the Jewish Community of Kosovo, I would like to thank Steven [Aiello] for choosing Kosovo/Prizren as a visiting place for the second time. Prizren is the historical capital of Kosovo and it is our little Jerusalem as a city that embraces all the existing religions that lives in harmony during centuries.”
Agnessa Jashari, one of the KIMUN organizers from iChat, also expressed her appreciation for ”the amazing students coming from Debate for Peace, Kosovo students and participants coming from other countries as well. Once again we had an amazing experience during KIMUN 2018. Spending five days of the conference with these young leaders was such a pleasure and an unforgettable experience!”
Alaa Abu Raya was one of the participants from the Bashaer high school in Sakhnin. She said that the delegation was “an amazing experience that I will always remember, the model UN conference allowed us to meet new people from different backgrounds and make some lifetime friendships which I’m grateful for.”
Yaari Cohen, a student from Oded high school in Kadima, added that “The delegation in Kosovo has not only brought us closer together, it did more than that, it feels like with every step that we took together, we brought our countries, closer together."
The next Debate for Peace MUN delegations will be to YMUN in Connecticut, USA, and MEDIMUN in Nicosia, Cyprus.
President Peres addressed the importance of investing resources in the Negev and the Galilee:
"We should change the national priorities and invest resources in the Negev and the Galilee – in higher education, in infrastructure and in hi-tech centers"
The President of the State of Israel, Shimon Peres, opened the seventh Galilee conference today (Tuesday) which is taking place in Tiberius with an on-stage interview which addressed the major issues of the day. President Peres discussed the peace negotiations with the Palestinians and said, "Israel's greatest strategic strength is peace. If there will be peace we will find budgets we didn't think we had. Israel is facing a new reality that includes within it new opportunities. Both the European Union and the Arab League are putting forward proposals to us which only a few years we couldn't have even dreamt of. They used to say that peace with Egypt and Jordan was impossible, and today we understand how important those peace deals are. I believe that Israel is facing new opportunities and I hope that some of us can throw out our preconceptions. Everyone knows that to achieve peace we will have to give up territory. There is no argument about that. If the government decided not to create new settlements then we should stand by that decision."
President Peres also addressed the importance of the development of the Negev and the Galilee and urged a greater resource allocation, "We should change the national priorities and invest resources in the Negev and the Galilee – in higher education, in infrastructure and in hi-tech centers. We should prioritize the Negev and the Galilee. We developed the medical field in Safed with an aim to expand it further in the future. There should be a university in the Galilee. I'm pleased to see the development in the Arab sector. The Hi-tech park in Nazareth, in which Jews and Arabs work together, changed the face of the city. An agreement was signed at the President's Residence with the University of Texas which will set up a satellite campus in Nazareth. The galilee has things which no other part of our country does. The government has a great vision for its development and it should be carried out as soon as possible."
The conference was also attended by Prime Minister Netanyahu, Minister for the Development of the Negev and the Galilee Silvan Shalom, Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, the Mayor of Tiberius Yosef Ben David and other distinguished guests.
