Sweet Home, Jerusalem

Sweet Home, Jerusalem

Lyrics By Rabbi Lazer Brody

Eagles wings keep on flyin'

Carry me home to see The King

Singing songs about my City,

Jerusalem you're in my dreams

And I'm gonna sing, yes.

Well I heard the UN talk about her

But a Jewish boy won't drink this brew

Uncle Sam please remember, that

"Jerusalem won't be split in two!"

Sweet Home, Sweet Jerusalem

Where the skies are so blue

Sweet Home, Sweet Jerusalem

L-rd I'm coming home to you.

We're all waiting for Mashiach (OOH OOH OOH)

You can bet he's coming soon

We'll all be dancing in Jerusalem

And we'll all be singing the same tune

Now that's the truth

Sweet Home, Sweet Jerusalem

Where the skies are so blue

Sweet Home, Sweet Jerusalem

L-rd I'm coming home to you.

The wise men of the Holy City

They've been known to pick a song or two

They help my soul when I'm hurting

They give me joy when I'm feeling blue

Now how about you?

Sweet Home, Sweet Jerusalem

Where the skies are so blue

Sweet Home, Sweet Jerusalem

L-rd I'm coming home to you.

Sweet Home, Sweet Jerusalem

Where the skies are so blue

Sweet Home, Sweet Jerusalem

L-rd I'm coming home to you.

No Sweat - it's only a Nuke

by rabbi Lazer Brody

Anne Bayefsky is a lady with a razor-sharp mind and an eagle eye. She's an attorney with international recognition as a leading Human Rights and International Law specialist, a barrister and solicitor on the Ontario Bar and a professor at York University in Toronto. The cherry on her cake of accomplishments is that her Eye-on-the-UN organization is a fierce watchdog that monitors the UN.

Anne came to the conclusion today that an Iranian Nuke doesn't make Obama lift an eyebrow, and that he'll sit on the sidelines while Iran assembles its bomb. See her whole article here.

No sweat, folks, it's only a Nuke. Pour the President another glass of iced tea and let him continue in his rocking chair on the White House lawn.

All those readers who think I harbor animosity for President Obama don't know me well enough. Negative emotions? Heaven forbid! I'm not being cynical - President Obama is fantastic. He's an agent - unwittingly enough, to be sure - in sanctifying Hashem's name. Here's how:

1. Since we don't have the brains to put all our trust in Hashem, Obama is helping us by showing that we can no longer depend on or trust him or his administration. The USA was quick on the trigger today in condemning Israel for upholding the rights of two Jewish landowners in East Jerusalem. If Obama is selling Israel down the river for two houses in East Jerusalem, can we expect his backing for a massive attack on Iran? Certainly not. We praise and thank Hashem for showing us Mr. Obama's true nature at such an early stage, and we thank Mr. Obama for waking us up and throwing us into Hashem's loving arms.

2. Mister Obama should receive a retainer from Nefesh B'Nefesh. Aliya from the USA is booming, and G-d willing, many more are on the way.

3. Mister Obama is quickly teaching our brothers and sisters in the Diaspora that there's no place like home, and home is here in the Holy Land of Emuna, Eretz Yisrael.

4. Mister Obama is an excellent Gemara instructor; for years, we've been learning (see tractate Sota 49a) that there's no one to trust but Hashem. Mister Obama is driving that lesson home better than anyone.

Here's the great news, dear brothers and sisters: No one will help us against Iran. This knowledge in itself is a mitigation of severe judgments. There's a phenominal thirst for emuna and a spiritual awakening that will also "sweeten" bitter edicts. Now that the USA has joined the UK and the other nations of the world in condemning us, we officially stand alone. That is the best news. Now, we'll have no choice but to attribute the many miracles that are on the way for us to Hashem, and to know one else.

With emuna, you see how Hashem does everything for the best. Obama himself is none other than a marionette with Hashem pulling the strings, so how can we be angry with Obama?

The Dream of a Nation‎

by Dan Illouz

In modern times, dreaming is not enough anymore.

"The great dreams are the foundation of the world. There are different levels: The prophets dream- 'in a dream will I speak to him.' The poets dream while awake. The great thinkers dream of the rectification of the world. And we dream, all of us, of when 'HaShem will restore the return to Zion.'" -- Rabbi Avraham Yitzhak HaKohen Kook

"It is impossible for an individual Jew to be as dedicated and truthful to his thoughts and logic, ideas and dreams
This is about a dream which was dreamt for the past 2,000 years.
in the Diaspora as he would be in Eretz Israel. The revelations of holiness, no matter on what level, are pure in Eretz Israel, according to their intrinsic value; whereas, in the Diaspora they are intertwined and mixed with other factors." -- Rabbi Kook

I have often tried sharing a lot of different ideas through various communications medium - ideas of faith, love for our nation, love for our land, and love for our Torah. This is about a dream which was dreamt for the past 2,000 years - a dream which synthesizes all of those various ideas which I strive to share; a dream which I also used to dream.

Yes, that's right, I had a dream.

It was a dream much older than the American Dream. A dream deeply rooted in the Jewish tradition.

I had a dream that, one day, the land of Israel would once again give of its fruits to the nation of Israel, living on its land.

I had a dream that the nation of Israel would no longer suffer anti-Semitism without the tools to defend itself, but would be able to stand up for itself in every circumstance.

I had a dream that Klal Israel would be restored to its place of greatness, and that it would act as a nation of priests and a holy nation.

I had a dream that once again, the whole world would be able to worship God in Jerusalem, in a temple which will be a house of prayer for all the nations.

I had a dream that a time of peace will begin for all of humanity - not simply a transition period between wars, but with roots so deep that it will become everlasting.

Yes, my dream wasn't simply a personal dream. It's been the dream of a people, the ambition of a nation - the hope of Klal Israel. It is a dream that started 2,000 years ago, when the second Temple was destroyed.

When that happened, the Jewish world entered a deep depression. Yet, from this state of deep depression came the most incredible dream ever dreamt. This dream, the dream of going home and taking up our rightful place among the nations, was based on the prophecies of God Himself, and became the calling of our nation and our people.

We are not the first ones to dream this dream and to trust these prophecies. The Gemara tells how Rabbi Akiva and three colleagues went up to Jerusalem after the terrible catastrophe of the destruction of the second Temple. When they got to Mount Scopus and saw the Temple mount, they saw a fox coming out of the place where the Kodesh HaKodashim used to be.

The others started crying, but Rabbi Akiva started laughing. The others looked at Rabbi Akiva and asked, "Why are you laughing?" Rabbi Akiva answered, "Why are you crying?" The other three gave him the obvious answer, "It used to be that no one could enter the Kodesh HaKodashim and come out alive except for the Kohen Gadol, the holy priest, on Yom Kippur. And now, a fox is walking on the place where it used to be?"

Rabbi Akiva answered, "That is precisely why I am laughing! We know that the destruction of Jerusalem was prophesied, but we also know that its great rebuilding was prophesied. Now that I see that the prophecies of the destruction of Jerusalem have come true, I also know that the prophecies of its rebuilding will come true."

And with this incredible statement, spoken while overlooking the very rubble of the Temple, the dream of our return began. Of course, Rabbi Akiva was more than a mere dreamer. He joined the rebellion of Bar Kochba and did everything he could to make that dream a reality. However, after the final defeats of the Jews in the holy land, Rabbi Akiva's dream stayed just that - a dream.

It is that same dream which kept the Jews alive among the other nations through two thousand years of exile.

Yes, when Jews were expelled from Spain, Italy, France, Switzerland, Hungary, Germany, Austria, Portugal, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Russia, and more recently, Syria, Iraq, Libya and Egypt, this is the dream which kept the nation alive, which kept the people Jewish, and which gave them the strength to move on.

When Jews were burned alive or massacred in Prague, Rome, Toledo, Seville, Cracow, London, Lisbon, Lorraine, France, Germany and Hungary, this is the dream which kept the nation alive, which kept people Jewish, and gave them the strength to move on.

And of course, when Jews, oh-so-recently, were humiliated, tortured and exterminated by the Nazi regime, this is the dream which kept the nation alive, which kept the people Jewish, and gave them the strength to move on.

Yes, I had a dream.
This is a generation which we cannot bring closer to God through fear, but which will definitely respond to love.

It was a good dream and it saw us through from Rabbi Akiva's time to this one. But in modern times, dreaming is not enough anymore. It is now time to realize our dream.

You see, our generation is a special generation - the generation bringing about the final redemption.

This is a generation which is not content with simple dreams, it wants to see those dreams realized, sometimes even, unfortunately, rejecting the connection between the dream and its realization in order to focus only on its practical realization.

This is a generation for which the old teachings focused on individual personal growth are not satisfying anymore. This generation cannot limit itself to personal growth at a time of national renewal; it wants to speak the language of national growth.

This is a generation which we cannot bring closer to God through fear, but which will definitely respond to love - a generation which you cannot scare with the fires of hell since it is not scared to sacrifice itself for higher ideals, not even in the fires of tanks. It is a generation with which we can only communicate through higher ideals, not through fear.

This is a generation for which the old models are not sufficient. The old dreams, alone, are not sufficient. They want to see them realized.

For two thousand years we have dreamt, and now the reality is taking shape. This feeling of a whole generation was coined by one of the Zionist leaders, Herzl, when he said: "If you will it, it is not a dream."

We do not want to dream anymore, we want to make it happen. Through this mentality, this special generation was able to accomplish some of the most incredible accomplishments of history.

Thanks to the strength of this generation, 60 years ago, Jewish refugees from all around the world came together in order to re-instate Jewish sovereignty in Israel after 2,000 years of exile. The Jewish Nation once again became sovereign over the land of Israel.

Thanks to the strength of this generation, the miracle of kibbutz galuyot, the ingathering of the exiles, the greatest miracle of history, became once again a reality.

Almost every Jewish family celebrates the Seder on Passover, a night on which we celebrate our one nation coming out of exile in one country after 210 years. Well, our generation's miracle is exponentially more significant. With the creation of the State of Israel, our one nation has come out of exile not only in one country, but in hundreds of countries, and not only after 210 years, but after 2,000 years.

Thanks to the strength of this generation, the land of Israel has once again started to give its fruits to the nation of Israel, thus fulfilling the prophecy which was described by our sages as the most certain sign of our redemption: Ein lecha ketz meguleh mizeh.

One of my rabbis once mentioned to me an incredible explanation of one of the most famous psalms, found in Tehillim chapter 126: Shir Hamaalot – Beshuv HaShem Et Shivat Tzion, Hainu Kecholmim. The rabbi explained to me that this psalm should not be read as a simple, straightforward praise to God. Reading it that way presents a lot of difficulties. Rather, it should be read as a conversation between the Jews of Chutz La'aretz and the Jews of Eretz Israel at the time of the Geulah.

The Jews of Chutz La'aretz say: "When the Lord returns the returnees to Zion, we were like dreamers." The Jews of Chutz Laaretz who stayed back in Chutz Laaretz were still in that state of "dreaming" which we described above. They had not yet gotten to the point at which they became "realizers".

Then, the Jews of Israel say: "Then our mouths will be filled with laughter and our tongues with songs of praise." The Jews who made it to Israel, and who are living the redemption, at the time of the Geulah, will be full of joy, the greatest joy ever experienced.

Then, they will say among the nations, the Jews of Chutz Laaretz: "The Lord has done great things with these." He has done great things for the Jews of Israel, who they still call "these", unable to relate to the miracles
It should be read as a conversation between the Jews of Chutz La'aretz and the Jews of Eretz Israel at the time of the Geulah.
happening to the realizers, as they are still in the state of dreamers.

The Jews of Israel answer: Yes, it is true: "The Lord has done great things with us; we were happy."

Now, the Jews of Chutz Laaretz start to wake up. They say: "Return, O Lord, our captivity like rivulets in arid land." Include us in this amazing miracle. We want to be a part of it.

The Jews of Israel, and God himself explain: "Those who sow with tears will reap with song." There is no easy way to the joys of our redemption. Those who have sacrificed so much to make it happen will always enjoy it more.

Then, the psalm ends with the tragic description of the conclusion: "He will go along weeping, carrying the valuable seeds; he will come back with song, carrying his sheaves." Those who are unable to plant seeds, to realize their dream, because their seeds are too valuable, because their state of dreaming is too appealing to them, will only have their seeds to hold on to, their dreams to hold on to. While those who planted those seeds and realized their dreams will enjoy the fruits of their labour. As valuable as those seeds are, there is no doubt that the sheaves which come out of the labour of planting those seeds are more valuable.

Our redemption is far from complete, and our situation right now is far from perfect. Yet, as the Talmud Yerushalmi says, "This is how the redemption of Israel is." At first it goes slowly, but as time moves along, it keeps growing more and more quickly.

Our redemption is a process. It is not a one-shot miracle. And our job is to become part of the process, to remember the dream, but not to stay mere dreamers. We are to become realizers, to move the process forward, to bring the miracle that much closer.

Rabbi Avraham Kook writes, in the first chapter of his famous book Orot: "The expectation of salvation is the force that preserves exilic Judaism, while the Judaism of the Land of Israel is salvation itself."

In Chutz Laaretz, you can have a dream. That dream will preserve you, keep you Jewish, and give you the strength to go on. But in Israel, you can realize that dream. In Israel you can live that dream, and through that, live your Judaism. In Israel, you live the salvation. You live the redemption.

As I move to Israel in the upcoming weeks, I am finally living my dream - our national dream. At this time, I want to invite you all to ask yourselves a few questions:

Time is passing - days, months, years you can never have back. Are you spending this time the way you want? Are you living a life in which your dreams, both personal and national, will forever stay mere dreams? Are you living a life in which even when you have the possibility to live your dream, you prefer continuing to dream?

Or are you living a life in which your actions, slowly and surely, without skipping any steps and without any unnecessary rush, lead you to the realization of those dreams?
Are you spending this time the way you want?

I hope it's the second. I hope that you're making your dreams real, step by step, day by day, even when the world tries to make it seem impossible, even when dreams and reality seem mutually exclusive.

Because they're not.

Even when the world works against us, we can and should constantly work toward making our dreams real. And if we do that, if we stop being satisfied with mere dreams and always strive to make our dreams real, then our lives will remain truly, and eternally, meaningful. Then, we will be able to accomplish anything we dream of. Then, even the messianic times will not merely be dreamt of, but they will be lived, because they won't be mere dreams; they will have become reality.

Counter Obama Rally in Jerusalem

Gog & Company? Oy!

by Mystical Paths

As Obama (Gog candidate) jet sets around the world has anyone noticed the leaders he's meeting?

Photo from a BBC article, with the biblical names of the nations leaders shown together.

This group has one thing in common, they are all on the list in Yechezkel 38. (Leaders shown are from France, the USA, United Nations, Libya.) I just though this is curious.

Yechezkel 38 1-7 excerpts ...Gog of the land of Magog 'The Prince'....I will lead you astray and I will place hooks in your jaws and bring you.... a vast assembly... Persia (Iran), Cush (Afghanistan/Pakistan) and Put (Libya) will be with them,

Libya has been off the radar for some time now and is suddenly back in the gang palling around with POTUS?

...Gomer and all her cohorts (France/ European community), Beth Togarmah in the north (Germany and Scandinavia) and the many peoples (the United Nations)...

be a guardian for them and bring them... in the end of years"

We have seen a Gog candidate has been in Russia (Meshech and Tubal), and according to Pravda (Russian news) he met with senior Iranian officials (!!!), so the list is almost complete.

'The storm' is brewing and the 'clouds' of anti Jewish/Torah hate are spreading and the 'wicked design' is taking shape all right out of the Navi and under our noses in a very rapid time frame.

Oy!

As we Jews in Israel lay with our hands tied behind our backs and with our heads on the chopping block. Right out of the Midrashim and Targum.' 'They', these very same men, are planing the removal of our head 'Jerusalem' while we are just tearing at each other locked in a spiral of hatred and strife.

Oy!

Hashem have mercy on us! But know if we can not come to peace with ourselves we will fall into their hands, Hashem Rachem!

Oy!

'Hear us and help us on the day we call' only applies when we have 'Achdut', oneness of heart and purpose. All sides need to nullify the ego, be bitul (nullified) to the 'Torah of Truth' and save ourselves and our children much suffering.

Oy!

We need to pray, really pray, for and end to the strife in Holy city of Jerusalem! Please spend no less then 15 minutes in personal prayer for the safety and peace of the holy people and their city of Hashem.

All for the Best

by rabbi Lazer Brody

Dear Rabbi Brody,

The underlying theme of many of your teachings is that everything Hashem does is for the very best. My husband, 4 children and I live in a lovely home in Gush Etzion, a half hour south of Jerusalem. Now, the threat that we might lose our home is becoming more and more real. What's worse is that Bibi is cracking under American pressure and construction of new units has stopped. Many people here are worried that this is only the beginning.

3 questions:

A) How is the threat that we may soon be refugees and exiles in our own homeland be for the good? It seems to me to be outright cruel!

B) How can President Obama, who you yourself have wiped the floor with, be for the best?

C) How can the Israeli Government's surrender to American pressure be for the best?

Thanks for your time and patience. I'm not trying to argue politics, I just need some answers from an emuna standpoint to give my emuna a shot in the arm. Sincerely, Shirlee from one of the Etzion bloc towns (settlements, according to the media)

Dear Shirlee,

Good questions. All three reflect Hashem's magnificent loving kindness. With Hashem's loving grace, here are your answers:

A) Many people enjoy comfort-zone spirituality. They think that by being "religious", they're exempt from teshuva. The fact that our very homes are threatened is a wake-up call from Hashem for us to do teshuva. I for one thought that the disengagement from Jewish Gaza and the exile of 8500 Jews from their homes would trigger a mass teshuva movement; it didn't. Instead, many people put their energies in political activism. The political activism has proven a tragic waste of time. Hashem can't send us Moshiach and build the Holy Temple as long as we're in spiritual slumber. He therefore is sending now a stronger wake-up call, with nearly 300,000 Jews having a sharp sword hovering over their homes, G-d forbid. Once the People of Israel make teshuva, we'll see enormous miracles and the threat will melt way. This is all for the best.

B) Mr. Obama is none other than a puppet in the hands of Hashem. If we get out of line, Obama will simply be another of any zillion of Divinely-employed messengers to growl and grab our trouser's leg in his teeth. Mister Obama is certainly for the best - he will expedite the ingathering of the exiles because he'll unwittingly stimulate more American immigration to Israel than even the Israeli Ministry of Absorption will. Hashem is also using Mister Obama to help us do teshuva, just like Hashem used every other tyrant - it's all for the best.

C) The Israeli Government's buckling under American pressure shows how ridiculous it is to put one's trust in any politician or political party. Bibi's government has more ex-Special Forces commandos than any other, but they all get wobbly knees as soon as Hillary opens up her mouth. What could be more of a joke? Hashem has a great sense of humor and is telling us, in the tone of a most-loving Father, "My beloved kinderlach (Yiddish for kiddies), trust Me only; it's time to make teshuva and to come home to Me." If Bibi and Barak were so tough, people might be fooled into trusting them. Even Benny Begin and Boogie - as good people as they are - don't give the government the backbone it needs. We have no choice but to put all our trust in Hashem. This is one of the lessons we came to this earth to learn. So you see Shirlee, it's all for the best.

Since Hashem does everything for the best, we have to thank Him profusely all the time, even for the things you write about. When we thank Hashem for our seemingly bad, He gives us really good reasons to thank Him more and more. With blessings always, LB

Will Obama outlaw the Eighteen Benedictions?

by rabbi Lazer Brody

We say to Hashem thrice daily in the Amida prayer, "And to Jerusalem Your city return in mercy, and dwell within as You promised," invoking Hashem to return and rebuild the Holy Temple in Jerusalem.

Hold on folks, there's a problem here: The Holy Temple Mount is in East Jerusalem. Obama wants a total freeze on Jewish east Jerusalem, including natural growth, much less additional construction.

Will Obama outlaw the Eighteen Benedictions (Amida, or "Shmona Esrei") because of the Jerusalem benediction? According to Obama, G-d is potentially an illegal settler in Jerusalem Who must be stopped!

Obama has therefore told G-d that He may not build the Third Temple, and He certainly may not dwell there. Hashem is violating the settlement freeze by bringing Moshiach and building Bet HaMikdash.

Up until now, few were so cheeky as to blaspheme Hashem. Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar, and Titus did, and each had a very tragic ending.

Mr. Obama, telling families in Modiin Illit and Beitar Illit that they cannot have more children is blaspheming Hashem. For the good of your country, back off, sir; you are playing with an all-consuming fire. Wait and see.

A History Lesson About Eretz Israel For Obama

by redemption5768

So our great President Obama thinks he knows all about the the history of the Land of Israel. But like so many other subjects, he really is ignorant. His expertise is making people believe that he really knows. I would love to know how he did at Columbia University in economics. After all we have trusted him in getting America out of the worst economic mess in our history. But we will never know what grade he received in college, for like so many other mysteries about him, all his college records have disappeared. No other students' records are missing, just his.
Obama thought that he would simply make up his own facts about the Land of Israel and once again fool the world as he has on the economic stability of America, the strength of the U.S. dollar, the need for the government to take over giant car and insurance companies as well as banks, the need for the country to change from the greatest capitalist society to a socialist state, and the necessity to give Arab countries funds when the U.S. can't even pay its own bills.
So Mr. President, perhaps it's time to close the "holy Koran" and open the Real Book of Truth, the Torah. Remember, the "holy Koran" and "holy Bible" were both written by man, but the Torah (which you did not call holy) was written by the Creator of the Universe. Judaism is the mother of all religions and preceded Islam and Christianity. And please do not tell the lie (which reflects your ignorance) that the Jewish presence in the Land of Israel first began in 1948. Israel became a nation 3321 years ago, two thousand years before the rise of Islam. Did you ever hear of King David and King Solomon who reigned in Jerusalem? There has never been an Arab or Muslim presence in Jerusalem. King David founded the city of Jerusalem while Mohammed never came to Jerusalem. This city is never mentioned even once in the Koran, while being mentioned over 700 times in Tanach. And when Muslims pray, they face away from Jerusalem allowing their backsides to face this holy city. Jews always pray facing this holy land. It's bad enough that you have adopted the Arab revisionist theory of history. But you want the Jewish People to live next to and peacefully "mingle" with those who don't recognize our right to exist, many who would give up their own lives in order to kill women and children they never met. Our right to the Land of Israel is based on the fact that G-d gave it to us. Just read the Old Testament, and when you do also pay close attention to the verses dealing with Abraham bringing up his son Isaac as a sacrifice. That is the truth, not the Koran's deceitful version that Abraham brought up Yishmael as the sacrifice.
You shouldn't believe that everything you were taught as a child in Indonesia was the truth. And people in America should not believe that everything you tell them is the truth. Realize that Arab refugees in Israel first began to identify themselves as part of a Palestinian people in 1967, nearly 20 years after the establishment of the modern State of Israel. In addition the PLO Charter still calls for the destruction of the State.
You did not rise to power because of your greatness, brilliance or hard work. You rose because G-d put you in power to scare the Jews. They have been stubborn all these years and refuse to draw close to G-d and seek His forgiveness. When you come to Israel remember that you are walking where the holiest have walked. Try not to be so arrogant, because the G-d of the Universe will be watching your every action.

The Kotel

Any nation that is foolish enough to attempt severing any part of the Temple Mount and Jerusalem from the Jewish people hasn't learned the lessons of history:

President Obama, Beware!

by Tzvi Fishman

Tens of thousands turned out for the annual Jerusalem Day march through the streets of Jerusalem to the Kotel. Along the way, we stopped outside the American Consulate on Agron Street for a mass protest rally against US President Hussein Obama’s pronouncements about dividing the Land of Israel and Jerusalem, G-d forbid.

The flag of American waved on the roof of the Consulate building behind the protest bandstand, where a large sign proclaimed: GOD GAVE ISRAEL TO THE JEWS! After Meir Indor, head of the Algamor Terror Victims Association spoke of the dangers of any further territorial compromise, speakers read a Declaration of Allegiance to a united Eretz Yisrael and a united Jerusalem, in Hebrew, English, French, and Arabic. As a oleh from America, I was asked to address President Obama in English. Holding a Bible in hand, I read out the following declaration:

Meir Indor, head of Almagor Terror Victims Association

JERUSALEM DAY DECLARATION

We have gathered here today, citizens of the State of Israel, to pledge our allegiance to Jerusalem, our eternal united capital, and to pledge allegiance to the entire Land of Israel. On this day which marks the reunification of Jerusalem, 42 years ago during the Six Day War, we proclaim to the President of the United States, to the people of the America, and to all the nations of the world, that we will not budge from our Holy City and our Holy Land!

In the words of our holy Rabbi, Rabbi Tzvi Yehuda HaKohen Kook, spoken to reporters on that very day, “We announce to all the world that by wondrous kindness of G-d, we have returned to our home, to our holy city. From this day forth, we shall never budge from here! We have come home!”

The L-rd God of Israel bought this day about. It was G-d who returned us to our Land and Holy City, and no man, no mortal of flesh and blood, however powerful he may be, Mr. President, can take these gifts of G-d from us.

Jerusalem is the eternal capital of the Jewish People, and the Jewish People alone. Jerusalem is the city of our kings, of King David and King Solomon, Jerusalem is the city of our HolyTemple, Jerusalem is the city of our prophets, the prophets of Israel, the prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel.

In the words of Rabbi Kook, “We have come home through the wondrous acts of G-d. And the pinnacle of our homecoming is in our return to Jerusalem. All of the rulers of the world cannot alter this Divine historic fact. “The counsel of the L-rd endures forever!”

We make this declaration of loyalty to our beloved Holy City and to our G-d given homeland in affirmation of the word of G-d to the Jewish People as set down in the Bible, as it says: “And G-d appeared to Isaac and said, ‘Do not go down to Egypt; dwell in the Land that I have given to you. Live in this Land, and I will be with you and I will bless you, for to you and to your descendants I will give all of these Lands, and I will keep the oath that I swore to your father Abraham.’”

This book is our deed to the Land of Israel. The Bible - the eternal word of G-d. G-d gave this Land to the Jewish People. Therefore, on Jerusalem Day, we call out to the President of United States, and to the people of America, and to all the believers in the Bible the world over, to stand by us, the people of Israel, in defending the unity of our ancient capital, Jerusalem, and the indivisible unity our ancient, Promised Land.

President Obama, in the words of a great American, Martin Luther King, we call out in a loud, united voice, “WE HAVE A DREAM!”

We have a dream, Mr. President – a dream of 2000 years, as the Psalmist King David proclaimed in the Bible: “When the L-rd brought the exiles back to Zion, we were like those who dream.” For 2000 years the Jewish People dreamed of returning to our Holy City, and now that G-d has brought us back, we will never budge from here! We will never budge from here! We will never budge from here!

Therefore, we, the People of Israel, call out in a loud united voice, just as King David proclaimed in the Book of Psalms: “If I forget Jerusalem, may I forget my right hand; may my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth; if I don’t remember and set Jerusalem above my greatest joy.”

On this joyous day, during our celebration of the unification of Jerusalem under Jewish sovereignty, we appeal to United States President Obama, and to our friends and allies, the American people, with a holy request and a warning. Help us fulfill the promise of G-d to the Jewish People. Stand by us in making Jerusalem the undivided capital of the Jewish People forever. For, as the Bible promises, whoever blesses the Jewish People will be blessed, and whoever wrongs them will be damned forever.

G-D GAVE ISRAEL TO THE JEWS!

by Mystical Paths

Yom Yerushalayim (Jerusalem Day) has not even ended and already the rhetoric is already heating up...

(Jpost) US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (friend of the Jews of New York) speaking on Al Jazeera...

"We want to see a stop to settlement construction, additions, natural growth - any kind of settlement activity," declared Clinton in some of the Obama administration's clearest comments to date on what it expects from Israel.

Note to Jews and friends of the Jewish people world-wide, according to the US almost ALL of Jerusalem is a settlement. Just pull up Google Maps and note the 1949 Armistice Line still there. EVERYTHING on the other side, per the US State Department, is a settlement. This includes...

The old city, French Hill, Ramot, Ramat Shlomo, 1/2 of Maale Dafne, well basically most of the city!

Even the secular Israelis and the Israeli government is being pushed against the wall. While there are those in Israeli society that have begged the US to "push Israel into a peace settlement", even they balk as increasingly demands move from reasonable to less possible to impossible - not even taking into account Torah shel Moshe and the inheritance of Eretz Yisroel.

Israel will be left to trust in Hashem and His Torah, or trust in the empty promises of Obama and the security of the UN.

No one looks forward to a test of faith. Yet there's more simple faith among the common Jew in Israel than one might think. Outside of Israel there's a pretty strong dividing line between Jews with emunah and those without - mostly along the orthodox/non-orthodox border. But in Israel emunah is widespread, the simple Jew exists and is not a rare find. There are strong cultural, segmentation and sect divides (charedi, mizrachi, national religious, kibbutznik, settler, etc), but here in Israel emunah crosses all boundaries.

For those of us too complex for simple faith, from too many arguments of the world pressing in on our thoughts, it's time to focus upon works, teachings and thoughts of emunah (faith) in Hashem. For there is no chochma (wisdom) to get out of what's coming, only emunah (faith) in Hashem.

Photo: Iran tests an extended range ground-to-ground missile a day after threatening to wipe Israel out in 11 days. The Obama administration declares this nothing to worry about, that the main concern for the world is whether a Jewish family in Beit El builds a new room on their home for their baby.

Happy Yom Yerushalayim

A Spirtual Battle Begun

by Mystical Paths

On erev Yom Yerushalayim - Jerusalem Day (observed a day early this year) the final spiritual battle has begun. Since the days of the navi'im (the holy prophets of G-d) we have been awaiting this day, with excitement for how it ends but with trepidation for what it brings until then.

On erev Yom Yerushalayim, many have speculated for years on who Gog of the biblical prophecy of Gog of Magog may be (a good bit of that has gone on here at Mystical Paths). Does this leader have this attribute from this Midrash or that obscure Gemora quote? In doing so we've been searching for the merest hints, yet the clear signs through major actions are about to burst forth in front of our eyes.

The West, starting with Great Britain, then France, then the United States, has messed with Israel since her reemergence. First they blockaded, then boycotted, then helped (gaining merit), then withdrew support at critical times, then provided it (gaining merit again). They have cajoled Israel, at the price of Jewish blood, to not go to war and defend herself, to stop wars short of complete victory - thereby guaranteeing belligerency and the shedding of Jewish lives into the next generation, and used her as a pawn in global politics. But they've also traded with her, invested in her, and provided some diplomatic coverage.

While they have cajoled, bullied a bit, boycotted now and then, they have never directly threatened her. Yet we find out today, on erev Yom Yerushalayim, that President Obama and the US administration has decided exactly how Israel will be taken apart, how Jerusalem will be divided, and what Israel will give up. Notice what Israel will receive is not on that list, as that's not important.

I do not care that the Obama administration is turning the US government into something not seen since the 50's with MacArthur and the 70's with Nixon. I am mildly concerned that the Obama administration is completely disassembling the financial system of the last 20 years that brought great world prosperity, rather than just re-balancing it and applying better controls. I am slightly disturbed that during the most serious economic downturn since the 1920's the Obama administration is instructing major industries on how they will operate, what products they will produce, and piling on major added costs which will delay recovery by years.

But these are all domestic US issues. If people want to give this man great power and continued approval because 'at least he's doing something', even if it's a really bad something, well that's the way democracy goes. But with Darfur, Pakistan meltdown, an Iran going nuclear, Somalian piracy, when this man singles out Israel as the main world problem and decides the solution is to diplomatically crush her - then I say meet Gog.

My dear American brethren and believers in Hashem, will you stand silent as this man turns the world against Israel? Will you sit by as this man follows the words of that galach (priest) last week who declared to the Arabs residing on the land here that he supports their "ancestral" right to the Land of Israel? Will you wonder whether it's still safe to say anything as Gog leads a coalition of NATO plus other troops into the Shomron and exiles 200,000 Jews from their homes in the name of squatters who were not here 120 yeas ago?

Will you pray for your brethren's safety today, or wait until the UN patrols the streets of Jerusalem as Gog brings the world leaders to declare Jerusalem no longer a city of Israel, a city of the Jewish people, a city of King David, but rather a city of the world, a city of the Vatican, a city where Jews fear to visit their holy sites but Arabs boldly walk where they will.

The time to raise your voice to your political leaders is NOW. The time to cry out to G-d is NOW. The time to be here to strengthen Israel is NOW. For, Hashem Yerachem (G-d of Mercy), the days of Gog u'Magog may be only 14 days away.

In truth, we do not cry out that things may change because the geulah may come. G-d forbid for one moment it should be that we don't want it, and want it today. Rather, we cry out that the words of the navi'im be quick, painless, bloodless, no one should lose their home or be injured, and we merit the arrival of Moshiach and the complete geulah (redemption) literally right away.

And dear friends, all of Israel, secular Israel, religious Israel, zionist Israel, and all the people of Israel all the world over - as well as those who hold by the path of Torah and Hashem without being a part of Israel, all are about to learn that we only have our Father in Heaven, the Melech HaMelachim (the King of Kings), HaKodesh Baruch Hu (the Holy One, Blessed Be He), to rely upon.

As the navi writes, Jerusalem will be a cup of poison for the nations. Yet they seem to wish to rush to drink, for they neither read nor believe the words that they themselves appropriated.

Happy Yom Yerushalayim. May we celebrate with Hashem (G-d) in the Beis HaMikdash (the Holy Temple) THIS YEAR for the pilgrim holy day of Shavuos.