Happy Jerusalem Day! Like most national events in Israel, celebrations began well in advance of the actual date and will continue beyond it. Maybe that’s why Israel is high on the list of the world’s happiest people.
During the week preceding and week of Jerusalem Day, radio stations broadcast recordings of a favorite native son and Israel Prize laureate Yossi Banai, marking the 20th anniversary of his passing. Banai was a versatile singer, actor, writer, comedian, and theater director whose songs and comedy skits have frequently been on the radio since his death on May 11, 2006. It’s as if he never left.
A special exhibition dedicated to the multitalented Banai family was held at the Tower of David Museum in 2020. Banai and his siblings grew up in Mahaneh Yehuda; there is now a Banai alleyway near where they lived.
Other entertainers, writers, and politicians born in Jerusalem include Shaike Ophir, Yehoram Gaon, Rivka Michaeli, Lior Raz, Rika Zarai, Yuval Shem-Tov, Yasmin Levy, Mili Avital, Haim Be’er, A.B. Yehoshua, Amos Oz, and David Grossman.
Of Israel’s 11 presidents, four were born in Israel, and two – Yitzhak Navon and Reuven Rivlin – were born in Jerusalem, each with several generations of Jerusalem ancestors.
And, of the 11 Jews who served as mayor of Jerusalem, four were born in Israel, but only one – Nir Barkat – was born in Jerusalem. The only prime minister born in the capital was Yitzhak Rabin. Not all of the above remained in Jerusalem, but for the most part Jerusalem remained in them.
Jerusalem’s cultural legacy
■ SEVERAL SYNAGOGUES with dwindling congregations wonder what they can do to attract new faces. Perhaps they can take a leaf out of the Great Synagogue’s book, which last Friday night had a much larger attendance than during the High Holy Days.
Since the skies opened up again, tourists, gap year students, and yeshiva and ulpana students have been arriving in relatively large numbers. Quite a lot of them were present at the Great Synagogue, as were numerous young mothers with toddlers in tow.
The Great Synagogue is huge, with a seating capacity of some 1,400. The men’s section was around 90% full and the women’s section about 70%.
Part of the Great Synagogue’s secret is holding regular events for lone soldiers and Jewish students from abroad who are spending a year or two in Israeli academic institutions. Some of these soldiers and students also attend services. Aside from the age difference, with 20- to 35-year-olds outnumbering the older generations, there was also another change.
Nearly all the married women opted for headscarves instead of hats, in an eye-catching assortment of fabrics, colors, and prints, tied like turbans, or flat on the head with a bun on the nape of the neck.
Some of the more elaborate headgear was made from glitter fabrics or tasseled scarves, which provided an additional fashion dimension to the creativity that went into how it was tied.
Further, there were very few young women in mini-length dresses. Midis and mainly maxis were the order of the evening, making the synagogue chamber look more like a banquet hall than a place of worship.
The sermon was delivered by Sephardi Chief Rabbi David Yosef, who really should consult an expert on voice projection, which is essential in every Orthodox synagogue.
Although the rabbi’s voice could be heard in the women’s gallery, it was difficult to make out what he said. It may be wise to consider including a test of voice projection in final ordination exams. If congregants cannot hear the speaker, he may just as well be talking to himself.
A changing religious landscape
■ SOME 30 years ago, there were no known provisions for special-needs children and adults in the ultra-Orthodox community. Quite the opposite. It is said that family members with special needs were often hidden from sight to ensure that some genetic flaw would not mar the prospects of young people of marriageable age.
But, like so many other important social welfare projects, Alei Siach was founded not by the government but by a couple who noticed that their infant daughter was experiencing developmental delays.
Rabbi Chaim Perkal and his wife were aware that their daughter, Rivki, was not responding as other children did. They had her diagnosed and learned that she was autistic.
As loving parents, they wanted the best for her and began searching for a suitable day care facility.
There wasn’t one, but they came across other parents with special-needs children who were equally frustrated by the absence of a religious institution where their children could get the type of care that would help them enjoy a quality of life and enable them to reach their maximum potential.
The families banded together and established Alei Siach in 1990, which now has some 100 apartments in Jerusalem, Bnei Brak, Nof Ayalon, and Rosh Ha’ayin.
The first apartment was in Jerusalem’s Har Nof neighborhood, and the second in Givat Mordechai.
Gradually, as word spread, more apartments were added, not just in Jerusalem. No organization, no matter how trustworthy or efficient, should be automatically taken at its word.
So earlier this month, social welfare authorities conducted an inspection tour of the Jerusalem facilities, during which they spoke to some 150 students with a range of special needs.
They all seemed enthused about their studies, leisure time activities, and relationships with staff and fellow residents. It’s good to know that there are places in Israel where lovingkindness, equality, and human dignity are the order of the day every day.
Messages of inclusion in Jerusalem
■ TO COUNTER some of the hateful language and attitudes permeating Israel over the past three or four years, a fashion store on Hillel Street pasted a huge Hebrew sign in its window, which in translation reads:
“All people are equal. We respect all national cultures and all sexual orientations and partnerships. We celebrate differences.
“The dignity of each individual is important to us. Most important of all – love will triumph.
“You are welcome within our gates.”
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