Police have announced that Kever Rachel (Rachel’s Tomb) will be closed to Jewish worshippers on Yom Kippur.  Prior to this week’s announcement, Jerusalem Police Chief Ilan Franco and the local Border Police commander approved a request to pray at the tomb on Yom Kippur of this year.  A group of approximately 50 Jews has prayed at the tomb on every Yom Kippur for the past several years.

MK Chaim Amsalem (Shas) wrote to Public Security Minister Avi Dichter, asking him to ensure that Jews would be allowed to pray at the site this year.  “In another two days it will be Yom Kippur,” Rabbi Amsalem wrote, “the holiest day of the year....I am sure that you see the great importance in the prayers of Jews at their holy places on this holy day.” The group “Yesh Schar L’Peulatecha” (lit. “There is a reward for your actions”) turned to Dichter with a similar request.

Ramadan/Simchat Torah Loudspeaker Nixed in Mixed Akko

In Acco’s mixed Jewish-Muslim Wolfson neighborhood, police have decided to bar both Muslims and Jews from celebrating their religious days noisily.

For Muslims, the use of loudspeakers installed last year to announce the beginning and end of the daily fasts throughout the month of Ramadan have been prohibited.

Loudspeakers have also been banned for the local yeshiva’s hakafot shniyot festivities (the secondary dancing with the Torah the day after Sukkot – on the day Simchat Torah is observed outside Israel – which has become a custom in many Israeli cities).

Sukkandy

Jerusalem’s municipality is constructing a huge Sukkah (temporary dwelling resided in by Jews during the upcoming Festival of Sukkot) made completely of candy.

The 1,000-square-meter Sukka-ria, as is being billed (a pun on the Hebrew word for candy: sukaria), is constructed of two tons of candy and will be host to musical performances and children’s workshops throughout the Intermediate Days of the holiday. Free candy will be distributed and municipal workers hope it will prevent the eating of the Sukkah itself.

Massive Ascent to Homesh Planned

Land of Israel activists are planning a large gathering in Homesh during Sukkot.  Activists are calling on the public to join them in supporting the resettlement of Homesh at all times between the fifth day of Sukkot (Tuesday, October 2nd) and the day after Simchat Torah (Thursday, October 4th).  A group of activists has managed to maintain a steady presence in the town for over two months.

Homesh was destroyed in the 2005 Disengagement and has since become the focus of nationalist groups attempting to undo the damage done by the destruction of Jewish towns. Activists explain that they plan to stay in the city until “Homesh is rebuilt, the disgrace of the expulsion is erased, the IDF goes back to fighting only enemies of Israel, and Olmert finally understands that the Land of Israel is not a piece of real estate.”

Time Travel in Sussia

The Jewish village of Sussia, in the southern Hevron region, will become a “tunnel through time” during the holiday.  Visitors to the town will be able to see what Jewish life was like in Israel 1,400 years ago.

Street actors will show visitors how residents of Sussia drew water, held communal prayers, and lived day-to-day.  Activities for children will be available as well, including costume booths and arts and crafts stations.

Sussia was one of the largest Jewish cities in the land of Israel from 500-800 CE.  The ruins of the ancient city, including the remnants of a synagogue, are located a short distance from the modern town.

Eastern Gush Etzion Focus of Holiday Happenings

* A Kite Festival will take place at the hilltop community of P’nei Kedem, in eastern Gush Etzion on Monday, October 1st. 5,000 kite enthusiasts from across the country will gather at the 933-meter-high community overlooking the Dead Sea. The day will also include crafts, theatrical performances, jeep tours, archery, paintball, donkey/pony rides and a concert by redemption rockers Soul Farm.



This year’s festival is dedicated to Israel’s missing soldiers – balloons will be released in their honor and prayer recited for their freedom.

Click here fore more information

* On Sunday, September 30th, at 7 PM famed Israeli musician Idan Reichal will be performing a free concert in the community of Nokdim. The concert is being held in honor of forty years of the renewed Jewish presence in Gush Etzion.

* On Tuesday, October 2nd, the mixed religious-secular town of Tekoa will host “An inspiring and spiritual event, not to be missed on the cliffs of the Judean desert.” Under the banner "Till the break of dawn," the community is holding a night of music and study, “for both secular and observant lovers of Judaism, with a special workshop ‘on couples and love,’ cheese and wine tasting, and uplifting music with Ehud Banai.”

Banai, also a famed musician, will join Reichel in making a high-profile appearance in the Judean region.

Click here for more information.



* Earlier Tuesday, the nearby Herodion fortress, build by King Herod and used in the Bar Kochva revolt, will be opened for a special “Herodion Experience.”

“Klezmer, Herodion street theatre, guided tours and a treasure hunt for the whole family” are promised by organizers. Entrance is free. Call 057 776 2251 for more information.

If you know of an event you think should be listed, leave it in the comments section and it will be added