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Global Diaspora Week

The Global Diaspora Week was founded by the Israeli government in order to strengthen ties between the State of Israel and the Jewish people living abroad.

This year, the event is crucial as Jewish communities from around the world have been facing the struggles of war, COVID-19, and the closing and opening of Israel’s borders.

The event gives Jews around the world the ability to connect through culture, education, and more. Most importantly, the event will teach Jews around the world that they are never alone.

The Global Diaspora Week is organized by the Diaspora Affairs Ministry of Israel in conjunction with other organizations and government departments, including the President’s House, the Jewish Agency, the Education Ministry, AMI, Masa, ANU Museum of the Jewish people and other organizations.

Several of these organizations will be holding events throughout Israel. Those abroad can participate virtually and post to social media using the events hashtag, #Forever_Am . “Am” in Hebrew means “nation”.

Christmas Market in Jerusalem

Celebrating Christmas in the holy city is a unique experience. The Old City’s Christian and Armenian quarters become decorated while the city’s churches celebrate the holiday by holding Christmas services.

The Church of the Nativity will be holding numerous Christmas services.

For more information about Christmas events in Israel, read Christmas in Bethlehem, Christmas in Nazareth, and Christmas in Tel Aviv-Jaffa.

For more information about Christmas in Israel, read our blog: Christmas in Israel: Decking the Halls of Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Jaffa, and Nazareth.

Christmas Market in Bethlehem

Celebrating Christmas in Bethlehem is an unforgettable experience as the city is believed to be where Jesus was born 2000 years ago. A Christmas tree rises in the Manger Square next to the Church of the Nativity.

The Church of the Nativity will be holding numerous services leading up to the Christmas Mass that will be held on Christmas eve.

For more information about Christmas events in Israel, read Christmas in Nazareth, Christmas in Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and Christmas in Jerusalem.

For more information about Christmas in Israel, read our blog: Christmas in Israel: Decking the Halls of Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Jaffa, and Nazareth.

Lag BaOmer

Lag BaOmer is a minor holiday that occurs on the 33rd day of the Omer, the 49-day period between Passover and Shavuot. A break from the semi-mourning of the Omer, key aspects of Lag B’Omer include holding Jewish weddings (it’s the one day during the Omer when Jewish law permits them), lighting bonfires, and getting haircuts.
When the great Kabbalist, Rabbi Isaac Luria, came to Tzfat in 1570, he instituted several new customs linking Jewish mysticism with conventional Jewish rituals. Among them included a Lag BaOmer pilgrimage to the tomb of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai. Tsfat, located a 4-hour walk from the tomb of the “Rashbi,” was the logical point from which pilgrims would set off on their pilgrimage. Since the 16th century, Tsfat and Lag BaOmer have been intertwined.
Today, under Knesset law, formal celebrations for Lag BaOmer begin with the Torah procession that begins in Tzfat’s Kikar Abu erev (the day before) Lag BaOmer.
Bonfires are lit throughout the city to commemorate the soldiers of Bar Kochba who fought against the Romans in the 2nd century C.E. The central bonfire is on Mt. Meron. However, throughout Tsfat neighborhoods gather to light their own bonfires. Some of the largest and most active bonfires occur in the Hassidic neighborhoods of Kiryat Chabad (Canaan northern neighborhood), Meor Chaim (Darom-Southern neighborhood), and Kiryat Breslev (just below the Old Jewish Quarter on HaAri Street).

Diaspora Day

Diaspora Day: A Worldwide Festival for All Jews

Diaspora Day, known in Hebrew as Yom HaTfutzot, is a modern holiday established by the Israeli government in 2014 to celebrate and strengthen the connection between diverse Jewish communities worldwide and the Jewish homeland. Falling on the 7th of Cheshvan (typically in late October or early November), the day serves as a powerful reminder of the enduring bond of Jewish peoplehood. One that’s persevered for thousands of years.

Rather than large festivals, the day is centered on more intimate and educational events. Activities designed to build bridges and celebrate the diversity of the Jewish experience. Communities in Israel hold events that connect directly with partner communities abroad through video conferences, sharing music, poetry, discussions, and more. Workshops in schools and synagogues also highlight the history and traditions of different Jewish cultures, from Sephardi to Ashkenazi to Persian and beyond, creating a space for dialogue and storytelling that reinforces a common bond.

It’s a timely reminder that Jewish identity takes many forms, seasoned and informed by the places where Jews live. Instead of being divided by these differences though, Diaspora Day honors them while promoting connection between Jews in Israel and those abroad. Through celebration, Jews are reminded that although their history has been marked by exile, it’s also been defined by the richness of the communities they’ve built globally.

Tu B’Av

Tu B’Av (the 15th of Av) is undoubtedly a most mysterious day. A search of the Shulchan Aruch (Code of Jewish Law) reveals no observances or customs for this date, except for the instruction that the tachanun (confession of sins) and similar portions should be omitted from the daily prayers, and that one should increase one’s study of Torah, since the nights are growing longer, and “the night was created for study.” The Talmud tells us that many years ago the “daughters of Jerusalem would go dance in the vineyards” on the 15th of Av, and “whoever did not have a wife would go there” to find himself a bride.

Tzom Tammuz

The fast of the 17th of the Hebrew month of Tammuz, known as Shivah Asar B’Tammuz, is the start of a three-week mourning period for the destruction of Jerusalem and the two Holy Temples.

Shavuot

Shavuot: One of the Three Major Pilgrimage Festivals

In the time of the Bible, Jewish men were commanded to make a pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem and bring the first fruits of their harvest with them as a sacrifice. Shavuot is a two-day Jewish holiday celebrating the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. Although the pilgrimage no longer exists today, Jews all over the world celebrate the holiday across two days internationally and one day in Israel. Some Jews still walk to the Western Wall on the morning of Shavuot to recognize the original pilgrimage as it once happened.

The story goes, the men on the pilgrimage fell asleep the night before the giving of the Torah, but unfortunately, they slept so late that they were late to Mount Sinai the next day. Today, Jews observe Shavuot by staying up late and studying the Torah to make up for their ancestors. You can even have a healthy serving of cheesecake to celebrate Shavuot — it’s a reference to “milk and honey” in Song of Songs 4:11.

Receiving the Torah is a pivotal moment in the Jewish faith. Shavuot celebrates this act and the overall theme of belonging to an inclusive community. Participating in the holiday helps Jews remember where they come from and the important origins of their identity as a people.

Pesach

Pesach (Passover) is a festival of freedom. It commemorates the Israelites’ Exodus from Egypt, and their transition from slavery to freedom. The main ritual of Pesach is the seder, which occurs on the first two night (in Israel just the first night) of the holiday — a festive meal that involves the re-telling of the Exodus through stories and song and the consumption of ritual foods, including matzah and maror (bitter herbs). The seder’s rituals and other readings are outlined in the Haggadah.

Purim

The fourteenth and fifteenth of Adar are celebrated as Purim. The specific day on which the holiday is celebrated depends on the location; in places where it is celebrated on the fourteenth, it is not celebrated on the fifteenth, and vice versa.

The story of the joyous holiday might appear somber at first glance: It tells of the near-destruction of the Jewish people as decreed by Haman, an adviser to the Persian King Ahasuerus. However, Ahasuerus’ newly crowned queen, Esther — who replaced Vashti when she was thrown out of the kingdom — is secretly a Jew. Due to her courage and her eventual role in saving the Jews, the story of Purim is known as “Megillat Esther,” or the Scroll of Esther.

From Europe to the Middle East, Jews have been subjected to some of the most ruthless minority treatment in history. There have been many moments where Jewish communities around the world have thought, “This is the end.” However, most of the time it all works out and as a result, a new holiday is born. One choice joke that American Jews often like to employ during such holidays is, “They tried to kill us, they failed, let’s eat.” On Purim, this sentence is altered to read, “They tried to kill us, they failed, let’s party.”

Purim 2022:

For the last two years, the pandemic canceled this opportunity. However, Purim 2022 is returning with vengeance and several major events in Israel. Grab your costume and your alcohol of choice and take to the streets and bakeries for all the merriment.

This is possibly the most needed holiday in the last few years for the Jewish people and Israel. After all the stress, isolation, and precautions, it is high time that the entire nation let its hair down. Celebrating the continuation of life is a key pillar of many Jewish holidays, including Purim. This upcoming holiday will be a celebration of survival not only for the Jews of ancient Persia but also Jews of the modern age.

Event Tag: International

Global Diaspora Week

Global Diaspora Week

Christmas Market in Jerusalem

Christmas Market in Bethlehem

Lag BaOmer

Diaspora Day

Diaspora Day: A Worldwide Festival for All Jews

Tu B’Av

Tzom Tammuz

Shavuot

Shavuot: One of the Three Major Pilgrimage Festivals

Pesach

Purim

Purim 2022:

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