'You have 15 seconds to say a prayer'
'You have 15 seconds to say a prayer'Young Israel

The sharp escalation in rocket attacks on Israeli cities has prompted the National Council of Young Israel to urge Americans to identify with the fear of rocket attacks by signing up for an SMS program that alerts them of an incoming rocket attack on Israel. Subscribers receive a message notifying them: "A Kassam has been launched at Sderot…you have 15 seconds" to act.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

 

While Israelis run for shelters, SMS subscribers are given a choice of options: Recite Psalms Chapter 130; give charity, call the United Nations and/or leading American politicians, or "pause for a moment and pray for the people of Sderot."

 

"Once again the people of s<?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />outhern Israel need our help and prayers," said Young Israel President Shlomo Z. Mostofsky. "Project SMS provides us with an opportunity to stand in solidarity with the families of Sderot regardless of where we might be at any given moment.

 

"When the alarm is sounded and the people of Sderot and Ashkelon have just seconds to run for cover, they need to know that there are tens of thousands of people around the world who are saying a prayer on their behalf in their time of crisis."

 

Mostofsky said that while non-stop rockets are bombarding Israeli cities and farms, it is especially critical that people have a way to understand just how often the people are being attacked and to comprehend how quickly they must react at any given time.

 

According to Mostofsky, since the inception of Project SMS, participants have recited Psalm Chapter 130 more than 16,000 times during the 15 seconds after a Kassam rocket has been launched at Israel.

 

To subscribe to Project SMS and sign up to receive the emergency alert text messages, click on: www.smssderot.org or www.youngisrael.org.