Tuesday, May 31, 2016
Ode to Staci Fleishman
Staci Fleishman,how many years I must have yearned
for your's lips against mine.
Pheromones, newly born, were floating
between us. There was hardly any air.
You kissed me again, reaching that place
that sends messages to toes and fingertips,
then all the way to something like home.
Some music was playing on its own.
Nothing like you ,Staci Fleishman, a woman who knows
to kiss the right thing at the right time,
then kisses the things you missed.
How had I ever settled for less?
I was thinking this is intelligence,
this is the wisest tongue
since the Oracle got into a Greek's ear,
speaking sense and sensuality . It's was that Good,
You have your kiss digital Staci Fleishman my lovely dandelion .
Now, lets marry on Thursday in love in Zion.
Malagasy of Madagascar enter the Covenant of Abraham of Zion
Four of the twelve brides, holding ketubot (marriage documents) and challah covers that were a gift from Kulanu and the Tifereth Israel community of Sefwi Wiawso, Ghana.
“The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to bring good tidings unto the humble; He hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the eyes to them that are bound.” Isaiah 61:1 (The Israel Bible™)
Over 100 people from Madagascar entered into the covenant of Abraham, converting to Judaism, on May 13. They are devoutly observant, but their motivation may be surprising to many. Some experts, though, see this as the future of Judaism.
The dramatic story began in 2013, when Jewish travelers contacted Kulanu, a non-profit organization based in New York City that helps isolated and emerging Jewish communities learn more about Judaism. The tourists had discovered a community of Christians in Madagascar who were observing Jewish rituals. They had been teaching themselves Judaism from the internet for five years with no connection to any Jewish community.
One of the Jewish Malagasy brides stands with her husband, family and Kulanu staff members with her challah cover and ketubah (marriage documents). (Photo: Barbara Vinick/Kulanu Madagascar)About 200 Malagasies were praying together in a synagogue on Saturday, keeping the Jewish Sabbath, and observing the dietary laws (kashrut). Since there was no kosher meat available, the entire community became vegetarian.
Bonita Sussman, Kulanu’s vice-president, contacted the community and began to help them in their goal to connect with Judaism. Her husband, Rabbi Gerald Sussman, answered the multitude of halachic (Torah law) questions that arose.
Malagasy Jewish men take part in the laws required upon marriage. When some members of the community decided they wanted to officially convert to Judaism, Kulanu made the arrangements to bring a rabbinic court (bet din) to the island of Madagascar. The rabbinic court was led by Rabbi Achiya Delouya, a Moroccan Orthodox rabbi living in Montreal. As a French speaker, he was able to conduct the conversion in the Malagasies’ native tongue. Instead of the anticipated 30 conversions, the court sat for twelve hours, approving the conversion of over 100 people.
The Malagasies chose to follow a Sephardi format for their conversions and traditions. Bonita Sussman explained, “They considered themselves to be people of color, and they know that Sephardim are darker than Ashkenazim.”
After the bet din, a site on a nearby river was set up so the new converts could perform the ritual immersion. A few days later, three canopies were set up and 12 couples re-consecrated their marriage vows as Jews.
When Tudor Parfitt, a professor of religious studies at Florida International University, went to study the Madagascar Jewish community, he discovered that legends and oral tradition in Madagascar linking them historically with the Jewish people were much more widespread than he had anticipated.
Parfitt told Breaking Israel News, “One of the members of the royal family took me to their family tombs, where I saw 18th and 19th century tombstones with Hebrew written all over them.
“There is good reason to believe that Portugese Anousim (Jews forcibly converted during the inquisition) settled in Madagascar,” Parfitt explained. “Sofala, across the channel from Madagascar, was a major trading hub for hundreds of years, and there would certainly have been Jews who arrived there. There is no reason to doubt a historic connection with the Jews but in the absence of any proof, it would be audacious say there was a connection.”
Local schools in Madagascar teach that the roots of the African island lie in the Bible. Some scholars have speculated that the Biblical nation of Ophir, renowned for its wealth, is the island of Madagascar of the region of Sofala. King Solomon received a cargo of gold, silver, sandalwood, pearls and ivory from Ophir every three years.
And they came to Ophir, and fetched from thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to king Shlomo. I Kings 9:28
Rabbi Sussman was surprised that the reason many gave for converting, in addition to a love of Torah, was that Judaism was an expression of freedom for the new converts.
A new Malagasy Jew prays with his talit (prayer shawl) and siddur.
”There was definitely a feeling that they were going back to their roots and overcoming colonialism,” Rabbi Sussman told Breaking Israel News. “Working with emerging Jews in Africa, I found this to be the case as well. Judaism has never been associated with colonial powers. And the Jewish story is a story of freedom and justice.”
Parfitt also noted that for the community, Judaism is viewed as a powerful expression of anti-Colonialism.
“Neocolonialism is felt in Madagascar wherever you go. Judaism was, for them, the religion of freedom,” Parfitt told Breaking Israel News. “Christianity was perceived as the religion of their oppressors.”
However, the role of the new members of the tribe going forward is as yet unknown.
“Right now, the Jewish world doesn’t really know how to deal with this,” Rabbi Sussman said. “Keep in mind: we don’t go to them. They come to us. It is a significant difference.
“They want to be a part of the chosen people and they like the rigorous observance and rituals. They like the Jewish distinctiveness.”
Parfitt felt this new phenomenon is vital to the future of the Jewish People.
“Judaism is changing at such a rapid pace and unfortunately the institutions of Judaism are not keeping up with it,” Parfitt said. “I think the future of the Jewish people is, for a large part, in these groups and it may be the salvation of the Jewish people.”
A Jewish Malagasy couple stands under the wedding canopy
”There was definitely a feeling that they were going back to their roots and overcoming colonialism,” Rabbi Sussman told Breaking Israel News. “Working with emerging Jews in Africa, I found this to be the case as well. Judaism has never been associated with colonial powers. And the Jewish story is a story of freedom and justice.”
Parfitt also noted that for the community, Judaism is viewed as a powerful expression of anti-Colonialism.
“Neocolonialism is felt in Madagascar wherever you go. Judaism was, for them, the religion of freedom,” Parfitt told Breaking Israel News. “Christianity was perceived as the religion of their oppressors.”
However, the role of the new members of the tribe going forward is as yet unknown.
“Right now, the Jewish world doesn’t really know how to deal with this,” Rabbi Sussman said. “Keep in mind: we don’t go to them. They come to us. It is a significant difference.
“They want to be a part of the chosen people and they like the rigorous observance and rituals. They like the Jewish distinctiveness.”
Parfitt felt this new phenomenon is vital to the future of the Jewish People.
“Judaism is changing at such a rapid pace and unfortunately the institutions of Judaism are not keeping up with it,” Parfitt said. “I think the future of the Jewish people is, for a large part, in these groups and it may be the salvation of the Jewish people.”
A Jewish Malagasy couple stands under the wedding canopy
Trump vs. Clinton: Battle of the Jewish sons-in-law
Somebody had better put a mezuzah on the Lincoln Bedroom.
Whoever ends up winning the election in November, one thing seems certain: For the first time in history, Jews will be in the president’s inner family circle.
Both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton have Jewish sons-in-law, and of course Bernie Sanders — in the unlikely event he makes it to the White House — is Jewish himself (though his daughter-in-law is not).
With the head-to-head contest between the two likely nominees heating up, we decided to take a closer look at Jared Kushner, who is married to Ivanka Trump, and Marc Mezvinsky, who is married to Chelsea Clinton.
Age
Kushner: 35
Mezvinsky: 38
Occupation
Kushner: CEO of family real estate firm Kushner Properties and owner-publisher of The New York Observer.
Mezvinsky: Investment banker and co-founder of hedge fund Eaglevale Partners.
Education
Kushner: High school at Frisch, a modern Orthodox yeshiva in Paramus, New Jersey; B.A. from Harvard (sociology); J.D. and MBA from New York University.
Mezvinsky: High school at Friends Central in the Philadelphia suburb of Wynnewood; B.A. from Stanford (religious studies and philosophy); M.A. in international relations from the University of Oxford, England.
Family
Kushner: Grew up in Livingston, New Jersey. Father: Charles Kushner ran a real estate empire until his imprisonment and is involved in various Jewish philanthropic endeavors. Mother: Seryl Kushner is involved in the family’s business and philanthropy. Has three siblings.
Mezvinsky: Grew up in Philadelphia. Both parents served stints in Congress as Democrats. Father: Edward Mezvinsky served two terms from Iowa in the 1970s (and decades later went to prison). Mother: Marjorie Margolies-Mezvinsky, a former TV journalist, served a single term from Pennsylvania in the mid-1990s. Parents are now divorced. Has one full brother, four half-siblings and five adopted siblings.
Professional track record
Kushner: Often described as a wunderkind, Jared Kushner has doubled the assets of his family’s real estate empire since taking over as CEO in 2008. In 2014, Kushner Properties did $2 billion in transactions.
Mezvinsky: Worked at Goldman Sachs for eight years before launching Eaglevale in 2011, which now has$326 million under management. But the hedge fund was down 3.6 percent in 2014, largely due to Mezvinsky’s bad bets on Greek debt.
Campaign involvement
Kushner: Helped draft Donald Trump’s AIPAC speech, advises the presumptive Republican nominee for president on Israel issues and is involved in assembling his White House transition team. Kushner’s newspaper endorsed Trump for president.
Mezvinsky: Appears at non-political events with the Clintons, but has no known involvement with Hillary’s campaign.
Jewish practice
Kushner: Belongs to an Orthodox synagogue, Manhattan’s Kehilath Jeshurun, observes Shabbat and kosher restrictions, and is raising children as Jews.
Mezvinsky: Grew up in a Conservative synagogue, has been seen in shul on occasion with wife Chelsea Clinton and is raising daughter with both Jewish and Methodist traditions.
Wife’s relationship to Judaism
Kushner: Ivanka Trump underwent Orthodox conversion after studying with an Orthodox rabbi, Haskel Lookstein. She now observes Shabbat and keeps a kosher home. “We’re pretty observant,” she has said.
Mezvinsky: Chelsea Clinton is still a practicing Methodist. The couple married in an interfaith ceremony featuring a huppah and co-officiated by Rabbi James Ponet of Yale University and Methodist Rev. William Shillady.
Why Dad went to prison
Kushner: Hired a prostitute to seduce his brother-in-law, secretly recorded the encounter and sent the tape to his sister as part of a blackmail scheme. He served 16 months after guilty pleas to 18 counts of tax evasion, witness tampering and making illegal campaign donations.
Mezvinsky: Bilked friends, family and strangers out of some $10 million in bogus schemes disguised as investments in Africa and oil development. He served five years after pleading guilty to 31 counts of felony fraud, including bank fraud, mail fraud and wire fraud.
Residence
Kushner: Stylish 10-room apartment on Manhattan’s Upper East Side at – where else? – Trump Park Avenue.
Mezvinsky: A sleek apartment in Manhattan’s Flatiron district, on 26th Street, that the couple bought in 2013 for $10.5 million.
Children
Kushner: Theodore James, 2 months; Joseph Frederick, 2; Arabella Rose, 4.
Mezvinsky: Daughter Charlotte, 1, and one on the way.
Look
Kushner: “Baby-faced,” “sandy haired” and “handsome.”
Mezvinsky: Bespectacled with a perennial 5 o’clock shadow.
Zion Remaps Shomron and Yehuda again
Israel remapped over 15,000 acres of West Bank last year to enable its citizens to undertake settlement construction in the territory that Palestinians claim belongs to them. The exercise was carried out by "Blue Line," a special team working for the Civil Administration, the Haaretz reported.
The exercise was significantly higher in scale when compared to previous years, the publication said. While 3,000 acres were remapped in 2013, the exercise spanned about 5,000 acres in 2014.
The existing rules mandate that areas declared as state land before 1999 need to be remapped by the Civil Administration to allow construction.
Once the exercise is completed, Palestinian homes would be declared as those built on state (Israeli) land. Also, such an exercise would deprive Palestinians living in "military fire zones" from seeking the High Court of Justice's intervention to stop any (Israeli) activity in those areas.
The news comes even as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hinted at reviving the 2002 Arab peace initiative in response to a statement by Egyptian president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi a few days ago.
"The Arab peace initiative includes positive elements that can help revive constructive negotiations with the Palestinians," Reuters quoted Netanyahu as saying in Jerusalem on Monday.
"We are willing to negotiate with the Arab states revisions to that initiative so that it reflects the dramatic changes in the region since 2002 but maintains the agreed goal of two states for two peoples," he added.
The 2002 Arab peace initiative assures Israel diplomatic recognition from Arab countries if the Jewish state grants statehood to Palestinians.
The initiative was modified three years ago to incorporate "possible land swaps between Israel and the Palestinians" as against the original position that Israel would get full diplomatic recognition only "if it gave up all land seized in the 1967 Middle East war and agreed to a just solution for Palestinian refugees," according to the news agency.
The news comes even as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hinted at reviving the 2002 Arab peace initiative in response to a statement by Egyptian president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi a few days ago.
"The Arab peace initiative includes positive elements that can help revive constructive negotiations with the Palestinians," Reuters quoted Netanyahu as saying in Jerusalem on Monday.
"We are willing to negotiate with the Arab states revisions to that initiative so that it reflects the dramatic changes in the region since 2002 but maintains the agreed goal of two states for two peoples," he added.
The 2002 Arab peace initiative assures Israel diplomatic recognition from Arab countries if the Jewish state grants statehood to Palestinians.
The initiative was modified three years ago to incorporate "possible land swaps between Israel and the Palestinians" as against the original position that Israel would get full diplomatic recognition only "if it gave up all land seized in the 1967 Middle East war and agreed to a just solution for Palestinian refugees," according to the news agency.
The Civil Administration re-mapped over 15,000 acres in the West Bank last year, which suggests an intention to embark on wide-scale settlement construction.
The mapping was done by a special team called “Blue Line,” working for the Civil Administration.
The project involves the examination of maps of areas designated as state lands last century.
The old maps are digitally scanned, making them more accurate.
In order to permit construction on land that was declared as state land before 1999, the Civil Administration is required to map it again.
Mapping over 15,000 acres is a significant increase in the rate of mapping carried out, in comparison to previous years. In 2014 only 5,000 acres were mapped, while in 2013 slightly over 3,000 acres were mapped.
Apparently, one of the objectives of the new mapping is to prevent Palestinians living in military fire zones from petitioning the High Court of Justice against the activity taking place near their homes.
The assumption is that if the mapping clarifies that the land is state land, Israel can argue that Palestinian houses were built on it after the area was designated as state land.
Judging by the distribution of these areas, one can assess where the state is intending to allow settlements to be built. Thus, 240 acres were mapped near Nokdim. Almost one acre is near the settlement of Gitit. Almost 11 mapped acres near Tarkumiya are not close to any existing settlement.
Settlement researcher Dror Etkes, who analyzed the data,said that “it’s important to realize that these mapping efforts are directed almost exclusively deep into the West Bank and to settlements that are far from the settlement blocs, and to areas designated earlier by Israel as fire zones, even though it’s obvious that they comprise part of the pool of land that Israel is gradually handing over to settlements.”
Hatikvah- New Wordsworth wanted for the National Anthem of Zion
President says Arab Israelis can’t be expected to sing about ‘a Jewish spirit yearning,’ hopes that every citizen will one day be able to identify with state
Israeli President Reuven Rivlin with Education Minister Naftali Bennett and Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat during a meeting with high school students in Jerusalem, on May 29, 2016.
Israeli President Reuven Rivlin suggested on Sunday that Israel might consider revising its national symbols and its anthem, “Hatikva,” to make the more inclusive to its Arab community, which makes up over 20 percent of the population.
Speaking to Arab and Jewish students on Sunday at Jerusalem’s Himmelfarb High School, Rivlin said he “can’t expect loyal Israeli citizens who are not Jewish to say that they have ‘a Jewish spirit yearning [as the lyric goes] because they are not Jewish, and maybe their spirit is yearning for their country but not as part of the Jewish people but they are not part of the Jewish people.”
Rivlin was responding to a question by an Arab student who asked if it was possible to change or add anything to the symbols of the state so that Arab citizens can identify with it and feel a part of the country.
Accompanied by Education Minister Naftali Bennett and Jerusalem mayor Nir Barkat, Rivlin said “this dilemma must be solved by Israeli leaders, one of whom is sitting right next to me,” in reference to Bennett.
“The question you are asking needs to be on the national agenda in the next generation or two. This is a dilemma we can’t ignore. It needs to be addressed by leaders, by members of Knesset who were chosen by the people,” Rivlin urged.
“At this point, where we have to base the existence of the state of Israel on a Jewish state, and a democratic one, we have to hold onto and strengthen the Zionist dream which comes, often, causes friction with those citizens who are not Zionist,” he said.
“I await the day that every Israeli citizen can identify with the State of Israel and not just the deep, important idea of the 2,000-year-old quest of the Jewish people to return to their homeland,” he added.
Last year, Rivlin said he understands why Israel’s Arab citizens feel uncomfortable with the national anthem and maintained they should not be forced to sing it.
“I am very touched every time I sing ‘Hatikva’, but I know that my Arab friend doesn’t have a ‘Jewish spirit yearning deep in the heart’,” Rivlin told students, quoting from the lyrics. “I must continue to insist on singing my anthem wherever I wish, but I don’t need to force anyone to sing those words,” he added.
"Hatikvah" (Hebrew: הַתִּקְוָה, pronounced [hatikˈva], lit. English: "The Hope") is the national anthem ofIsrael. Its lyrics are adapted from a poem by Naftali Herz Imber, a Jewish poet from Złoczów (todayZolochiv, Ukraine), then part of the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, Austria-Hungary. Imber wrote the first version of the poem in 1877, while the guest of a Jewish scholar in Iași, Romania. The romanticanthem's theme reflects some Jews' hope of moving to the Land of Israel and declaring it a sovereign nation.
History
The text of Hatikvah was written in 1878 by Naphtali Herz Imber, a Jewish poet from Zolochiv, a city nicknamed "The City of Poets", in the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, Austria-Hungary, today Zolochiv, Ukraine. In 1882 Imber immigrated to Ottoman-ruled Palestine and read his poem to the pioneers of the early Jewish colonies - Rishon Lezion, Rehovot, Gedera and Yesud Hama'ala.
Imber's nine-stanza poem, Tikvatenu ("Our Hope"), put into words his thoughts and feelings following the establishment of Petah Tikva (literally "Opening of Hope"). Published in Imber's first book Barkai[The Shining Morning Star], Jerusalem, 1886, the poem was subsequently adopted as an anthem by the "Hovevei Zion" and later by the Zionist Movement at the First Zionist Congress in 1897.
Before the establishment of the State of Israel
Hatikvah was chosen as the anthem of the First Zionist Congress in 1897.
The British Mandate government briefly banned its public performance and broadcast from 1919, in response to an increase in Arab anti-Zionist political activity.
A former member of the Sonderkommando reports that the song was spontaneously sung by Czech Jews in the entryway to the Auschwitz-Birkenau gas chamber in 1944. While singing they were beaten by Waffen-SSguards.
Adoption as national anthem
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When the State of Israel was established in 1948, Hatikvah was unofficially proclaimed the national anthem. It did not officially become the national anthem until November 2004, when an abbreviated and edited version was sanctioned by the Knesset in an amendment to the Flag and Coat-of-Arms Law (now renamed the Flag, Coat-of-Arms, and National Anthem Law).
In its modern rendering, the official text of the anthem incorporates only the first stanza and refrain of the original poem. The predominant theme in the remaining stanzas is the establishment of a sovereignand free nation in the Land of Israel, a hope largely seen as fulfilled with the founding of the State of Israel.
Music
The melody for Hatikvah derives from La Mantovana, a 16th-century Italian song, composed byGiuseppe Cenci (Giuseppino del Biado) ca. 1600 with the text "Fuggi, fuggi, fuggi da questo cielo". Its earliest known appearance in print was in the del Biado's collection of madrigals. It was later known in early 17th-century Italy as Ballo di Mantova. This melody gained wide currency in Renaissance Europe, under various titles, such as the Pod Krakowem (folk song) (in Polish), Cucuruz cu frunza-n sus [Maizewith up-standing leaves] (in Romanian) and the Kateryna Kucheryava (in Ukrainian).[7] The melody was famously used by the Czech composer Bedřich Smetana in his symphonic poem celebrating Bohemia,Má vlast, as Vltava (also known under the German title as Die Moldau).
The adaptation of the music for Hatikvah was done by Samuel Cohen in 1888. Cohen himself recalled many years later that he had hummed Hatikvah based on the melody from the song he had heard inRomania, Carul cu boi [The Ox Driven Cart].
The harmony of Hatikvah follows a minor scale, which is often perceived as mournful in tone and is uncommon in national anthems. As the title "The Hope" and the words suggest, the import of the song is optimistic and the overall spirit uplifting.
Official text
The official text of the national anthem corresponds to the first stanza and amended refrain of the original nine-stanza poem by Naftali Herz Imber. Along with the original Hebrew, the corresponding transliterationand English translation are listed below.
| Hebrew | Transliteration | English translation |
|---|---|---|
| כֹּל עוֹד בַּלֵּבָב פְּנִימָה | Kol ‘od balevav penimah | As long as in the heart, within, |
| נֶפֶשׁ יְהוּדִי הוֹמִיָּה | Nefesh yehudi homiyah, | A Jewish soul still yearns, |
| וּלְפַאֲתֵי מִזְרָח, קָדִימָה, | Ul(e)fa’atei mizrach kadimah, | And onward, towards the ends of the east, |
| עַיִן לְצִיּוֹן צוֹפִיָּה, | ‘Ayin letziyon tzofiyah; | an eye still gazes toward Zion; |
| עוֹד לֹא אָבְדָה תִּקְוָתֵנוּ, | ‘Od lo avdah tikvateinu, | Our hope is not yet lost, |
| הַתִּקְוָה בַּת שְׁנוֹת אַלְפַּיִם | Hatikvah bat sh(e)not ’alpayim, | The hope two thousand years old, |
| לִהְיוֹת עַם חָפְשִׁי בְּאַרְצֵנוּ, | Lihyot ‘am chofshi b(e)’artzeinu, | To be a free nation in our land, |
| אֶרֶץ צִיּוֹן וִירוּשָׁלַיִם. | ’Eretz-Tziyon viy(e)rushalayim. | The land of Zion and Jerusalem. |
Text of Tikvateinu by Naftali Herz Imber
The official text of Hatikvah is relatively short; indeed it is a single complex sentence, consisting of two clauses: the subordinate clause posits the condition ("As long as… A soul still yearns… And… An eye still watches…"), while the independent clause specifies the outcome ("Our hope is not yet lost… To be a free nation in our land").Some people compare the first line of the refrain, “Our hope is not yet lost” (“עוד לא אבדה תקוותנו”), to the opening of the Polish national anthem, Poland Is Not Yet Lost (Jeszcze Polska nie zginęła) or the Ukrainian national anthem, Ukraine Has Not Yet Perished (Ще не вмерла Україна; Šče ne vmerla Ukrajina). This line may also be a Biblical allusion to Ezekiel’s "Vision of the Dried Bones" (Ezekiel 37: "…Behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost"), describing the despair of the Jewish people in exile, and God’s promise to redeem them and lead them back to the Land of Israel.
Below is the full text of the original nine-stanza poem Tikvateinu by Naftali Herz Imber. The current version of the Israeli national anthem corresponds to the first stanza of this poem and the amended refrain.
| Hebrew | Transliteration | English translation |
|---|---|---|
| –I– | ||
| כל עוד בלבב פנימה | Kol-‘od balevav penimah | As long as in the heart, within, |
| נפש יהודי הומיה, | Nefesh yehudi homiyah, | A Jewish soul still yearns, |
| ולפאתי מזרח קדימה, | Ul(e)fa’atei mizrach kadimah, | And onward, towards the ends of the east, |
| עין לציון צופיה; | ‘Ayin letziyon tzofiyah; | An eye still looks toward Zion; |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| עוד לא אבדה תקותנו, | ‘Od lo avdah tikvateinu, | Our hope is not yet lost, |
| התקוה הנושנה, | Hatikvah hannoshanah, | The ancient hope, |
| לשוב לארץ אבותינו, | Lashuv le’eretz avoteinu, | To return to the land of our fathers, |
| לעיר בה דוד חנה. | La‘ir bah david k'hanah. | The city where David encamped. |
| –II– | ||
| כל עוד דמעות מעינינו | Kol ‘od dema‘ot me‘eineinu | As long as tears from our eyes |
| יזלו כגשם נדבות, | Yizzelu kegeshem nedavot, | Flow like benevolent rain, |
| ורבבות מבני עמנו | Urevavot mibbenei ‘ammeinu | And throngs of our countrymen |
| עוד הולכים על קברי אבות; | ‘Od hol(e)chim ‘al kivrei avot; | Still pay homage at the graves of (our) fathers; |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| –III– | ||
| כל עוד חומת מחמדינו | Kol-‘od chomat mach(a)maddeinu | As long as our precious Wall |
| לעינינו מופעת, | Le‘eineinu mofa‘at, | Appears before our eyes, |
| ועל חרבן מקדשנו | Ve‘al churban mikdasheinu | And over the destruction of our Temple |
| עין אחת עוד דומעת; | ‘Ayin achat ‘od doma‘at; | An eye still wells up with tears; |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| –IV– | ||
| כל עוד מי הירדן בגאון | Kol ‘od mei hayarden bega’on | As long as the waters of the Jordan |
| מלא גדותיו יזלו, | Melo’ gedotav yizzolu, | In fullness swell its banks, |
| ולים כנרת בשאון | Uleyam kinneret besha’on | And (down) to the Sea of Galilee |
| בקול המולה יפֹלו; | Bekol hamulah yippolu; | With tumultuous noise fall; |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| –V– | ||
| כל עוד שם עלי דרכים | Kol ‘od sham ‘alei drachayim | As long as on the barren highways |
| שער יכת שאיה, | Sha‘ar yukkat she’iyah, | The humbled city gates mark, |
| ובין חרבות ירושלים | Uvein charvot yerushalayim | And among the ruins of Jerusalem |
| עוד בת ציון בוכיה; | ‘Od bat tziyon bochiyah; | A daughter of Zion still cries; |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| –VI– | ||
| כל עוד דמעות טהורות | Kol ‘od dema‘ot tehorot | As long as pure tears |
| מעין בת עמי נוזלות, | Me‘ein bat ‘ammi nozlot, | Flow from the eye of a daughter of my nation, |
| ולבכות לציון בראש אשמורות | Velivkot letziyon berosh ’ashmorot | And to mourn for Zion at the watch of night |
| עוד תקום בחצי הלילות; | ‘Od takum bachatzi halleilot; | She still rises in the middle of the nights; |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| –VII– | ||
| כל עוד נטפי דם בעורקינו | Kol ‘od nitfei dam be‘orkeinu | As long as drops of blood in our veins |
| רצוא ושוב יזלו | Ratzo’ vashov yizzolu, | Flow back and forth, |
| ועלי קברות אבותינו | Va‘alei kivrot avoteinu | And upon the graves of our fathers |
| עוד אגלי טל יפלו; | ‘Od eglei tal yippolu; | Dewdrops still fall; |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| –VIII– | ||
| כל עוד רגש אהבת הלאום | Kol ‘od regesh ahavat halle’om | As long as the feeling of love of nation |
| בלב היהודי פועם, | Beleiv hayhudi po‘eim, | Throbs in the heart of the Jew, |
| עוד נוכל קוות גם היום | ‘Od nuchal kavvot gam hayyom | We can still hope even today |
| כי עוד ירחמנו אל זועם; | Ki ‘od yerachmeinu ’eil zo‘eim; | That a wrathful God may still have mercy on us; |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| –IX– | ||
| שמעו אחי בארצות נודִי | Shim‘u achai be’artzot nudi | Hear, O my brothers in the lands of exile, |
| את קול אחד חוזינו, | Et kol achad chozeinu, | The voice of one of our visionaries, |
| כי רק עם אחרון היהודִי | Ki rak ‘im acharon hayhudi | (Who declares) That only with the very last Jew — |
| גם אחרית תקותנו! | Gam acharit tikvateinu! | Only there is the end of our hope! |
| חזרה | Refrain | |
| –X– (unofficial) | ||
| לֵךְ עַמִּי, לְשָׁלוֹם שׁוּב לְאַרְצֶךָ, | Lech ʻammi, leshalom shuv le’artzecha | Go, my people, return in peace to your land |
| הַצֱּרִי בְגִלְעָד, בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם רוֹפְאֶךָ, | Hatzeri vegilʻad, biYrushalayim rofecha | The balm in Gilead, your healer in Jerusalem, |
| רוֹפְאֶךָ יְיָ, חָכְמַת לְבָבוֹ, | rofecha YY (adonai), chochmat levavo | Your healer is God, the wisdom of His heart, |
| לֵךְ עַמִּי לְשָׁלוֹם, וּרְפוּאָה קְרוֹבָה לָבוֹא... | lech ʻammi leshalom, ur(e)fuʼah k(e)rovah lavoʼ...` | Go my people in peace, healing is imminent... |
Alternate proposals and objections
Religious objections
Some religious Jews have criticized Hatikvah for its lack of religious emphasis: There is no mention of God or the Torah. One proposal was to switch the word "חופשי" (free, which in modern Hebrew can allude to a secular Jew being free of mitzvot) with the word "קודש" (holy), thus reading the line: "To be a holy nation", referring to the verse in Exodus 19:6 "וְאַתֶּם תִּהְיוּ לִי מַמְלֶכֶת כֹּהֲנִים וְגוֹי קָדוֹש" (you shall be for Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation).
Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook wrote an alternative anthem titled “HaEmunah” ("The Faith") which he proposed as a replacement for Hatikvah. But he did not object to the singing of Hatikvah, and in fact endorsed it.
Objections by non-Jewish Israelis
Some Arab Israelis object to Hatikvah due to its explicit allusions to Judaism. In particular, the text’s reference to the yearnings of “a Jewish soul” is often cited as preventing non-Jews from personally identifying with the anthem. In 2001, Saleh Tarif, the first Arab appointed to the Israeli cabinet in Israel's history, refused to sing "Hatikvah". Ghaleb Majadale, who in January 2007 became the first Muslim to be appointed as a minister in theIsraeli cabinet, sparked a controversy when he publicly refused to sing the anthem, stating that the song was written for Jews only. In 2012, Salim Joubran, an Israeli Arab justice on Israel's Supreme Court, did not join in singing Hatikvah during a ceremony honoring the retirement of the court's chief justice, Dorit Beinisch.
From time to time proposals have been made to change the national anthem or to modify the text in order to make it more acceptable to non-Jewish Israelis. To date no such proposals have succeeded in gaining broad support.
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