Tammuz 17 fast today (but you may be able to not fast and at least drink if you are over 60-see yesterday's blog) and The Annual stargazing experience: Tuesday, July 14 with Shalom Pollock and Visitor Center at Beit Hogla Farm! Celebration on July 22 and Judge says the city can ban churches to keep downtown 'fun' and Locked, loaded and 53 years too late: Jordanian ammo found under Western Wall and Biden's Foreign Policy Boss Called for Anti-Israel DNC Platform-Avril Haines' disturbing connections, and the power of candle lighting on Shabbat and Channukah

Can't see images? Click here... Yehuda Lave, Spiritual Advisor and Counselor Tammuz 17 fast today (but you may be able to not fast and at least drink if you are over 60-see yesterday's blog) Yehuda Lave is an author, journalist, psychologist, rabbi, spiritual teacher, and coach, with degrees in business, psychology and Jewish Law. He works with people from all walks of life and helps them in their search for greater happiness, meaning, business advice on saving money,  and spiritual engagement. Now also a Blogger on the Times of Israel. Look for my column Love Yehuda Lave The Annual stargazing experience: Tuesday, July 14 Ira Machefsky, "The Starman of Mitzpe Ramon" will be our host for the very best stargazing program in Israel. He and his staff will provide three sophisticated powerful telescopes to pierce the heavens and bring the stars down to us. His expert and lively explanations are enhanced by entertaining musical accompaniment.  Please bring something warm for the chilly desert night. We will begin the program at 8:30 PM as the heavens begin to show off their amazing stuff. The date chosen is the best for that month. You may want to bring food for dinner. Departure: 5:30 PM from the Inbal hotel. We will return after midnight. Our bus driver will make stops along the way in Jerusalem until we arrive at our final stop, the Inbal hotel. Cost: 300 shekels. To register: shalompollack613@gmail.com Visitor Center at Beit Hogla Farm! Celebration on July 22 at 6 PM (18:00) The Visitor Center at Beit Hogla Farm! Dear Shofar So Great Partners, Friends and Family,More Breaking News! We are very excited to announce our new association with The Heart of Israel, a long-standing advocate for the rights of the Jewish People to our ancestral homeland in Judea and Samaria, www.theheartofisrael.org!  This 501(c)(3) Non-Profit NGO with offices in Suffern, New York, and Esh Kodesh, Samaria has acknowledged Beit Hogla Farm as aligned with their mission and vision for Israel's future.  As such, they have posted our Visitor Center fundraising campaign on their website that has a large existing worldwide subscriber base! We urge you to please visit their website, www.theheartofisrael.org, and sign the petition that we, at Shofar So Great and Beit Hogla Farm, subscribe to.  Then, simply click on "Projects" where you will see an opportunity to make a one-time or recurring Tax-Deductible donation to "The Visitor Center at Beit Hogla Farm."  Donations are accepted in USD, GBP, EUR or CAD.  If your haven't done so already, what a great B-Day gift opportunity to make your pledge and contribution to the restoration of the Land of Israel!Currently under construction, targeting a completion date in time for the dedication ceremony commemorating the 19th Birthday Anniversary of the establishment of Beit Hogla on 1 Av 5780, July 22, 2020.Announcing the planned 19th Birthday Anniversary and dedication ceremony scheduled for July 22, 2020, with Rav Dov Lior for the dedication blessing, the honorable Uri Ariel, formerly Israel's Minister of Agriculture, for the Mezuzah blessing and keynote speaker, Rav Dr. Hagi Ben Artzi, resident archeologist and adjunct Rabbi of Beit Hogla Farm in addition, other honored official guests from the Regional Council and Israeli Government.  You are all invited! May the G~d of Israel Bless You Mightily! Robert Weinger - Rosh Tekiah robert@ShofarSoGreat.com ernajericho@gmail.com www.ShofarSoGreat.com www.JewishJericho.org.il My trip to Beit Hogla Farm 062220 On the edge of the desert, looking out over the Jorden River and Jerico, is the new settlement of Beit Hogla with one of the residents the world's greatest shofar blower! Shofar so Great. The power of candlelighting to remember Jewish events The power of candlelighting to remember Jewish events The following story is especially appropriate before candle lighting on Shabbat or Chanukah, even though it is about Chanukah. December 1980. Natan (Anatoly) Sharansky's ninth Chanukah in Soviet Prison. Sharansky is serving in a Siberian labor camp as a Prisoner of Zion. In his ongoing efforts to retain his Jewish identity under the cruelest of conditions, he fashions a small wooden Chanukah menorah, with which to light the Chanukah candles. On the sixth night of Chanukah, the authorities confiscated the menorah. "A camp is not a synagogue. We won't permit Sharansky to pray here," they said. What follows is Sharansky's account of his response: "I was surprised by the bluntness of that remark, and immediately declared a hunger strike. In a statement to the procurator general, I protested against the violation of my national and religious rights, and against KGB interference in my personal life... I was summoned to Major Osin's office two days later, in the evening. Osin pulled a benevolent smile over his face as he tried to talk me out of my hunger strike... Osin promised to see to it personally that in the future nobody would hinder me from praying, and that this should not be the concern of the KGB. "Then what's the problem?" I said. "Give me back my menorah as tonight is the last evening of Chanukah. Let me celebrate it now, and taking into account your assurances for the future, I shall end the hunger strike." But a protocol for its confiscation had already been drawn up, and Osin couldn't back down in front of the whole camp. As I looked at this predator sitting at an elegant polished table wearing a benevolent smile, I was seized by an amusing idea. "Listen," I said, "I'm sure you have the menorah somewhere. It's very important to me to celebrate the last night of Chanukah. Why not let me do it right here and now with you!" Osin thought it over and promptly the confiscated menorah appeared from his desk. He summoned Gavrulik, who was on duty in the office, to bring in a large candle. "I need eight candles," I said. (In fact, I needed nine, but when it came to Jewish rituals I was still a novice.) Gavrulik took out a knife and began to cut the candles into several smaller ones. I arranged the candles and went to the coat rack for my hat, explaining to Osin that during the prayer he too must stand with his head covered and at the end say 'Amen.' He put on his major's hat and stood. I lit the candles and recited my own prayer in Hebrew which went something like this: "Blessed are You, God, for allowing me to rejoice on this day of Chanukah, the holiday of our liberation, the holiday of our return to the way of our fathers. Blessed are You, God, for allowing me to light the candles. May You allow me to light the candles many times in your city, Jerusalem, with my wife Avital, and my family and friends." I added, "And may the day come when all our enemies, who today are planning our destruction, will stand before us and hear our prayers and say 'Amen'." "Amen," Osin echoed back. Judge says city can ban churches to keep downtown 'fun' Case appealed to 9th U.S. Circuit CourtBy WND Staff Published June 20, 2020 The Pacific Justice Institute is appealing a federal judge's ruling allowing Salinas, California, to keep churches out of its downtown in order to have a "fun" street there. "Salinas deems churches as less deserving of equal treatment under the law than the live children's theatre, two cinemas, and event center that share the city's downtown corridor with New Harvest Fellowship," said Kevin Snider, lead attorney in the case. "Salinas' zoning policy seeks to promote a lively pedestrian-friendly street scene by clearing out street-level religious assemblies. Since the lower court's decision, ironically downtown Salinas has experienced a lively pedestrian street scene in the form of protests. Those types of assemblies may not be the fun city officials were hoping for to replace churches." The legal organization said the judge's ruling "determined that churches do not contribute to a vibrant and fun atmosphere and therefore may be excluded from Salinas' downtown area."   "In 2017, it seemed the church's prayers were answered when a larger building just across the street went up for sale. With property at a premium in Northern California, the church seized the opportunity and bought the building in early 2018," PJI said. But the city imposed limits on the church's use of its building for worship and then demanded retail locations on the ground floor. PJI stepped in, since the city also was permitting theaters and live entertainment venues to operate nearby. The city refused to budge when it was presented with the legal requirements of the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, so PJI sued. But then U.S. Magistrate Judge Susan Van Keulen of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California found "churches generate limited interest, do not draw tourists, and therefore detract from the city's goals of vibrancy," PJI said. "The court further believed a city is justified in promoting a 'street of fun' that excludes churches at the same time it allows even larger concert and entertainment venues," the legal team said. "This continues to be one of the most striking examples of unequal treatment of a church in the land use context that we have seen in the past 20 years. We have appealed this case to the Ninth Circuit, and we are optimistic that a different result will be reached upon review by a higher court," said PJI President Brad Dacus. Locked, loaded and 53 years too late: Jordanian ammo found under Western Wall Locked, loaded and 53 years too late: Jordanian ammo found under Western Wall Archaeologists unearth weapons stash dating back to Six Day War, 'frozen in time in a water cistern' at the holy siteBy TOI STAFF Magazine of a Bren machine gun found during an excavation under the Western Wall tunnels (Yoli Schwartz, Israel Antiquities Authority) Israeli archaeologists have uncovered Jordanian ammunition under the Western Wall tunnels, likely stashed there during the 1967 Six Day War as Amman battled Israel over the Old City, and left untouched under the holy site for 53 years. Among the items found, during an excavation of a water cistern under the lobby of the Western Wall tunnels, were "ten full magazines of a Bren light machine gun, full clip chargers and two bayonets of a British Lee Enfield rifle," according to the Israel Antiquities Authority and Western Wall Heritage Foundation. "Usually, in excavations, we find ancient findings from one or two thousand years ago, but this time, we got a glimpse of the events that occurred 53 years ago, frozen in time in this water cistern," said IAA archaeologists Dr. Barak Monnickendam-Givon and Tehila Sadiel in a joint statement on Wednesday. "Apparently, this is an ammunition dump that was purposely hidden by soldiers of the Royal Jordanian Army during the Six Day War, perhaps when the IDF liberated the Old City," they added. Assaf Peretz of the Israel Antiquities Authority said the ammunition had been manufactured in Leeds in 1956, and was later provided to the Jordanian army. A general view of Jerusalem's Western Wall and the Western Wall Tunnels. (Yaniv Berman, courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority) Noting the find, the Western Wall Heritage Foundation said: "Along with other glorious discoveries of our nation's past from the Second Temple period, we are also happy about discovering findings from the war of this past generation to restore the Jewish nation's heart and allow us to cling to the stones of the Western Wall." Broken magazine of Bren machine gun, found during an excavation under the Western Wall tunnels (Yoli Schwartz, Israel Antiquities Authority Israel captured Jerusalem's Old City and East Jerusalem and the West Bank from the Jordanians during the June 1967 war, in addition to the Golan Heights from Syria and the Sinai Peninsula and Gaza Strip from Egypt. Water cistern where the ammunition was stashed (The Western Wall Heritage Foundation)It's not (only) about you. Biden's Foreign Policy Boss Called for Anti-Israel DNC Platform Avril Haines' disturbing connections. Jewish Democrats are working hard to convince American Jews that Biden will be friendly to Israel, but his latest move once again sends a very different message. The Biden campaign is busy putting together its transition team and Avril Haines, Obama's deputy CIA director, will head foreign policy and national security. Putting a former deputy CIA director in charge of foreign policy would be an odd choice, but Haines was already an inappropriate pick at the CIA. Haines was an Obama legal adviser who was brought in to replace Michael Morell who took the fall for the Benghazi talking points. Bringing in Haines to serve under Brennan was a blatant attempt at embedding an Obama loyalist near the top of the CIA. And Haines has stayed loyal to her former boss. In May, Haines joined other Obama staffers in signing on to a letter by the J Street anti-Israel lobby which complained that previous DNC platforms had been "silent on the rights of Palestinians, on Israeli actions that undermine those rights and the prospects for a two-state solution." That isn't true, but the J Street letter nevertheless urged the DNC platform to be more critical of the Jewish State. Haines' role taking point on foreign policy for Biden signals that the DNC platform and, more importantly, his administration, will take an anti-Israel direction. And that's not surprising. Currently, Avril Haines heads up Columbia World Projects. A big part of the university's internationalization effort is the Obama Foundation Scholars initiative. Being a Foundation Scholar requires "a proven commitment to service and leadership within a community, region or country outside the United States" and, it ought to go without saying, the right set of political agendas. The Obama "Scholars" at Columbia World Projects include Mor Efrat, the head of the Occupied Palestinian Territories Department for PHR-I. Physicians for Human Rights-Israel (PHR-I), despite its name, isn't really about medicine, it's an anti-Israel organization whose founder promotes BDS and which seeks to try Israeli soldiers for war crimes. PHR-I's founder had urged a move to "integrate BDS in every struggle for justice and human rights by adopting wide, context-sensitive and sustainable boycotts of Israeli products, companies, academic and cultural institutions, and sports groups." This is the relationship that the Obama Foundation and Columbia World Projects under Haines have toward Israel. Funding for Columbia World Projects comes from a variety of donors, including a Saudi businessman, a Lebanese billionaire who is the brother of a former prime minister, the daughter of a Turkish media tycoon, a Chilean businessman, and the billionaire head of a major Hong Kong real estate company. Much like the Clinton Foundation, this raises serious questions about Haines' conflicts. An ex-CIA deputy director went to work for a Columbia project closely entwined with the Obama Foundation which received funding from foreign donors and will now head foreign policy for Biden. Why bring in a former legal advisor to do all this? Haines isn't qualified as a foreign policy expert, but she knows the limits of the law. Bringing her in is a way of handling dubious legal matters, whether it was the entanglement of the CIA under Brennan with Obamagate and then serving as Legal Adviser to the National Security Council, or the conflicts of interest from the Obama Foundation and Biden 2020. But it also sends a clear message that Biden is going to build on Obama's anti-Israel foreign policy. Even while at Columbia, Haines continued her political work as the co-chair of Foreign Policy for Foreign Policy for America. The board of Foreign Policy for America includes Jeremy Ben Ami, the head of J Street, while the Advisory Board includes Joseph Cirincione, the head of Ploughshares, a key Iran nuclear legalization pressure group, alongside Haines, and Rob Malley, the Obama adviser initially forced out for his Hamas contacts, who now heads Soros' International Crisis Group. Malley is also an advisor at Columbia. Avril Haines is also a Nonresident Senior Fellow at Brookings, which is heavily funded by Qatar. The wealthy tyranny is closely entangled with a variety of Muslim Brotherhood groups, including Hamas. Haines is not a foreign policy or national security expert. Putting her in the pole position really means that the same foreign policy people who ran things under Obama are the ones who are really in charge. And that should surprise no one. Jewish Democrats had a choice between an anti-Israel legacy candidate and a rabidly anti-Israel candidate, but the choice between Biden and Bernie was just a game of good cop and bad cop. The differences between Rob Malley and Cornel West, or Ben Rhodes and Rep. Ilhan Omar are matters of style, not substance. Bernie's proxies are determined to vent their hate publicly, while Obama's people play a more careful game, shifting America away from Israel through a series of staged confrontations. Bernie's open antagonism toward Israel allowed Biden to appear friendly toward the Jewish State. Haines' appointment makes it very clear that Biden's foreign policy will consist of the same corrupt entanglements with Islamist regimes and attacks on Israel. And pro-Israel Democrats are fooling themselves if they think otherwise. And it's not just foreign policy where Biden is playing that game. Biden's transition team is being drawn from the staffs of some of the most radical Democrat elected officials, including Julie Siegel, Warren's senior counsel, and Gautam Raghavan, Rep. Pramila Jayapal's chief of staff. Raghavan had already become infamous for declaring, "I want to be careful that we don't say there is a kind of balance between equality and religious freedom." The Biden campaign has always going to be a trojan horse for radicals. And as the titular candidate declines, it will become easier for the radicals pulling his strings to maintain control over the campaign. And while they would like to win, their short-term goal is to bend the DNC platform further leftward. Even as Democrats try to sell pro-Israel Jews on Biden, the campaign has already sold them out. The Biden campaign's position on Israel will be that of J Street. Its point woman on foreign policy signed a J Street letter calling for the platform to criticize Israel and heads an organization backing an anti-Israel activist. While Biden is happy to take anyone's money, the only point of view he'll be listening to on Israel will be coming from the anti-Israel lobby. By Daniel Greenfield Wearing A Mask Is Dangerous! Watch This Video! Don't miss this shocking report as Owen exposes the dangers of wearing a mask on a regular basis! See you tomorrow bli neder, We need Mosiach now Love Yehuda Lave Rabbi Yehuda Lave PO Box 7335, Rehavia Jerusalem 9107202 LIKE TWEET FORWARD You received this email because you signed up on our website or made purchase from us. Unsubscribe