There's lots more to read on my more active blogs, Shiloh Musings and me-ander.  I hope you'll visit, thanks!

I live in the ancient Jewish city of Shiloh.  It has a very rich history.  One of the most famous, well-known, is that it was the first Capital of the Jewish Nation for a long period of time, three hundred and sixty nine (369) years.  Towards the end of that time, Jewish History was much like today's.  There was a crisis in leadership.

It took a very special woman, Chana, to turn things around.  She prayed at Shiloh for a son who would lead the Jewish People out of the chaos.  Her son, Samuel, galvanized the people and anointed the first two kings, Saul and David.

Due to today's similar situation, I've begun going to Tel Shiloh every month on Rosh Chodesh, the first of the Jewish Month, to pray for our people.  This coming month, Shvat, falls on Shabbat, so I'll go Friday morning, the Eve of Rosh Chodesh at 9:30am for women's prayers and psalms.

Women from all over are welcome to join us.

תפילת נשים בתל שילה ערב ראש חודש שבט

יום ו' 9:30 15-1 חודש טוב

 כולן מוזמנות, נא להודיע

This Friday 15-1 on the Eve of Rosh Chodesh

 9:30am

 Women's Prayers at Tel Shiloh

"It's so warm outside.  Is it really the end of December?  It must be much colder in Great Neck now."
"Yes, they even had a snow storm."
"The house was always warm.  The end of December? Then it's going to be a new year soon.  And then I will be ninety, right?"

I hope that you click on my other blogs, Shiloh Musings and me-ander, since there's lots more of my articles and essays to read there. 

Thanks New Year, What Year?

During my career as an Israeli EFL (English as a Foreign Language) teacher, I've come across a surprising amount of students who insisted that they lived according to the Jewish Calendar only.  They were sincerely confused and befuddled when I'd give them a list of the English months and tell them to put them in the correct order.  When I was subbing in Ulpanat (the girls high school in) Ofra, my class of relatively recent olot chadashot immigrants from Ethiopia were sure that the English months must be translations of the Hebrew months which they had just learned in Israel.
In Israel it's legal to write Jewish dates on checks and other documents. You can call us a "bi-calendar country."

In Israel it's legal to write Jewish dates on checks and other documents.  You can call us a "bi-calendar country."

I was raised in America and the "goyish calendar" is the one I was raised on and knew best, but with the birth of our children we adopted use of the Jewish Calendar for birthdays.  And that now includes our birthdays, too.

Living in Israel since 1970, we've also been oblivious to American and goyish holidays.  They're irrelevant to our lives.  That includes Thanksgiving. Unfortunately, the Israeli media and commercial interests are getting more goyish.  Here we are in late December and besides the usual annual "what's happening in Bethlehem news," we're being plagued by "New Years" sic stuff.

January first isn't my "new year."  My year begins on the first of Tishrei, Rosh Hashanah.  I celebrate according the the Jewish Calendar, even though I sign my checks with goyish dates. January 1st is the day I must remember to write in a new number, that it's going to be 2010 and not 2009.  I wonder how long it will take me to get that straight.  Each year it's more of an effort, but then again, each year seems to get shorter.  As we get older, each new year is a smaller percentage of our life.

Before I finish with this topic, I'd like to remind you that the Jewish Calendar is based on the moon; it's lunar.  When I'm out at night, I enjoy calculating the day of the month according to how much moon we see in the sky.