Showing posts with label Mayor Moshe Goldsmith. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mayor Moshe Goldsmith. Show all posts
Friday, May 20, 2011
Friday, April 15, 2011
Read Rabbi Goldsmith's letter summarizing the last 30 days on Itamar:
Dear Friends it has been slightly over a month now since the terrible nightmare that struck our community resulting in the slaughter of Harav Udi, Ruty, Yoav, Elad and Hadas HYD. It has been a very difficult time for all of us here on Itamar. The community has been working very hard in all realms. Our number one concern, at the moment, is to assure that our town has the proper security it needs in order to protect itself from, G-D forbid, future attacks. We have been turning to all those who can make a difference. Our voice has been heard from the Prime minister and down; it is our hope that Israeli government will take the important steps that will enhance our security. In addition, despite our town's financial limitations, Itamar has made some significant changes on the ground which have strengthened our security situation.
On top of this, we have been focusing on the emotional stability of our community as well. Itamar, which has unfortunately suffered more terror attacks than any other community in Israel, must make sure that our residents feel happy and secure. Our youth as well as adults have been receiving counseling and therapy. We have been providing many community and youth activities in order to shed off the feelings of pain and sorrow. This week our youth went on a two day Bnei Akivah hike up north and the focus was on dealing with tragedy. Tamar Fogal participated in the trip together with other Itamar orphans. These amazing children spoke with so much pride and understanding. They are very aware of their important role in building the land of Israel. Of course, they cried together with their friends as they spoke about their precious loved ones. Tamar told about her brother Yoav that when driving through a local village with his parents opened the door of the car and put his foot on the ground. When asked why he did this his response was a verse from Joshuah 1:3 Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread I have given to you, as I said to Moses."
As we approach our precious Pesach Holiday, we can reflect upon how from slaves in Egypt we became a free nation with the important mission of declaring G-D's word from our precious home land in Eretz Yisrael. Just as a seed before it grows into a plant it must break down and rot and only then will it root and spring forth with beauty and splendor, so to the redemption process! After the ashes of the Holocaust the state of Israel was reestablished. This terrible tragedy on Itamar as well, is no way a personal tragedy. We have been targeted because we are on the front line representing all of Israel. We are hated because we are not afraid to say that Hashem gave the land of Israel to His people as an everlasting inheritance. Those who deny this are denying the word of G-D. We are a peaceful people a people that love and sanctify life. There is no doubt that from this horrific nightmare a great growth spurt will be triggered bringing us all closer to redemption.
Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach
Rabbi Moshe Goldsmith
On top of this, we have been focusing on the emotional stability of our community as well. Itamar, which has unfortunately suffered more terror attacks than any other community in Israel, must make sure that our residents feel happy and secure. Our youth as well as adults have been receiving counseling and therapy. We have been providing many community and youth activities in order to shed off the feelings of pain and sorrow. This week our youth went on a two day Bnei Akivah hike up north and the focus was on dealing with tragedy. Tamar Fogal participated in the trip together with other Itamar orphans. These amazing children spoke with so much pride and understanding. They are very aware of their important role in building the land of Israel. Of course, they cried together with their friends as they spoke about their precious loved ones. Tamar told about her brother Yoav that when driving through a local village with his parents opened the door of the car and put his foot on the ground. When asked why he did this his response was a verse from Joshuah 1:3 Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread I have given to you, as I said to Moses."
As we approach our precious Pesach Holiday, we can reflect upon how from slaves in Egypt we became a free nation with the important mission of declaring G-D's word from our precious home land in Eretz Yisrael. Just as a seed before it grows into a plant it must break down and rot and only then will it root and spring forth with beauty and splendor, so to the redemption process! After the ashes of the Holocaust the state of Israel was reestablished. This terrible tragedy on Itamar as well, is no way a personal tragedy. We have been targeted because we are on the front line representing all of Israel. We are hated because we are not afraid to say that Hashem gave the land of Israel to His people as an everlasting inheritance. Those who deny this are denying the word of G-D. We are a peaceful people a people that love and sanctify life. There is no doubt that from this horrific nightmare a great growth spurt will be triggered bringing us all closer to redemption.
Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach
Rabbi Moshe Goldsmith
Friday, April 8, 2011
Mayor Moshe and Leah at Stand With Israel Rally - Manhattan March 27,2011
Please excuse the poor sound quality - especially Moshe's speech
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Twin Peaks: Itamar’s Mayor Knows The Blessing And Curse
The (New York) Jewish Week Tuesday March 29, 2011
Article by Jonathan Mark - Associate Editor
From the highest elevation in Itamar you can see everything but the future. On a clear day, says Rabbi Moshe Goldsmith, Itamar’s mayor, “We can see the three seas”: the Dead Sea, the Mediterranean and the Kinneret (Galilee). To the west, “We can see Gerezim and Ebal,” the twin mountains linked in the Bible to “the Blessing and the Curse,” but untrained eyes can’t tell one from the other.
To be the mayor of Itamar is to be the mayor of a yishuv, a settlement of about 160 homes deep in the rocky Samarian highlands, where more Jews have died from Palestinian bullets, knives and bombs than have died of old age; 22 murdered Jews in the last 10 years, including five members of the Fogel family on March 11.
Three weeks ago, Goldsmith was in shul on a Thursday night, studying Gemara, when he looked to his right and saw his friend, Rav Udi, a teacher in the local hesder yeshiva. Rav Udi had some 24 hours left to live.
Read More...
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Monday, March 28, 2011
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Letter From Mayor Moshe and Leah Goldsmith
Source: A letter to our Face Book friends, from Moshe and Leah Goldsmith By FB Itamar Israel Support Group
Dearest Friends of Itamar, First of all we want to thank you from the depths of our hearts for all your support and encouragement to the Fogel family and to all the residents of Itamar in the last few days.
Itamar has been our home for 27 years. It is also the home to over 100 jewish families. Itamar is the heart of Israel, our identity and our roots. After 2,000 years of being exiled from our land, the remnant of the Jewish people has come together and returned. It is God's work, a war for the Jewish people's survival. We see hatred all around us. I ask you; what hasn't Israel given for peace? We are a people of peace. And all we've got back is bloodshed. The world need to know this is our home. We are here to stay and the world is going to have to live with that
Friday's horror has made Itamar stronger and more determined to live and grow. The Israeli government's announcement on Sunday that it would permit the construction of more than 400 new homes in West Bank settlements. This does not honor the dead. It is an insult to us and to the dead. Expansion of Itamar is an unassailable right, not a payment for these terrible murders
Dear friends, Exodus 1, which states that the more Pharaoh caused the Jews in Egypt to suffer, the more they increased and became stronger. We have now had 20 victims of terror attacks here in Itamar, a much higher number relative to our population than nearly anywhere else in Israel. With the devastating murders of the Fogel family which include 3 precious children, Itamar is more committed than ever to grow and prosper. We thank you for standing with us during this most tragic time. May G-d bless you and your families as you bless us! Moshe and Leah Goldsmith
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