Very few Palestinians have written political memoirs documenting their people’s struggle for statehood and liberty. Sari Nusseibeh’s Once Upon a Country is a rarity and therefore a must-read for anyone seeking to see the conflict through the eyes of a brilliant Palestinian, to comprehend and to empathize.
Rabbi Michael Bernstein is the spiritual leader of Congregation Gesher L’Torah in
Alpharetta, Ga. Michael received his ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary in 1999 and is an alumni
of the Rabbis Without Borders second cohort.
This week on the Jewish calendar both great darkness and great light intersect as we read in the Torah the story of Joseph being subjected by his brothers to the bottom of a pit, and prepare to once more kindle the lights of Chanukah. In the Talmud, there are two different teachings by Rabbi Tanhum that are presented one after the other, even though they seem to have little to do with each other. The first is the law that the Chanukah candles must not be placed so high that a passerby's eyes would not naturally be able to see them. The second deals with Joseph and the fact that the pit into which he is tossed is described as being "empty and having no water." It had no water, but, according to this teaching, the pit did have snakes and scorpions!
Secretary of State John Kerry on December 5, 2015 delivered a courageous speech at the Brookings Institute's Saban Forum, cautioning against the emergence of a bi-national state between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean, as a result of the current impasse in Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking efforts.
Following is the Israeli-Palestinian portion of the Secretary's speech. For the full text click here
Americans for Peace Now (APN) applauds Secretary of State John Kerry for his courageous speech Saturday in which he urged the leaders of Israel and the Palestinians to act now to prevent the collapse of the two-state option and to prevent the emergence of a bi-national state between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean.
Yossi Sarid battled against populism and surrendering to public opinion
by Yariv Oppenheimer,
Secretary General of Peace Now
Yossi Sarid (1940 - 2015)
Rare are the leaders who, instead of swimming with the flow, choose the most difficult task of all and work to change its trajectory. Such was Yossi Sarid, a leader who made breakthroughs, who told the truth, who shaped public opinion and did not serve it. A role model, a loud piercing voice, which in times of confusion and dilemmas showed the way for many and served as an ideological compass for many thousands.
