A Beautiful Finish

Last night's 11:30 pm Havdalah ended our first Isralight Inward Bound program for the Summer of '09. I am completely speechless, but I'll write anyway. The 10 days that we spent living and learning in the Old City and all over the Land of Israel in general were magical, transformational, unforgettable, among other superlatives. Really, ten days is only the beginning of getting to know each other and ourselves, so from that POV, it was a good start. Stay tuned for MP3s, videos, pics, and text. And hang tight... the next program is starting in 4 days! We still have a few spaces, so get in touch with us ASAP. Call Rabbi Mottle at 050.444.2054. Shalom!

What A Trip!

Wow. Yesterday was amazing. We left the Old City at 7:30 am and headed east toward Jericho, then turned north to drive up the Jordan Valley, through Beit Shean to reach the Golan Heights.

Rabbi Mottle told us some incredible stories about the Yom Kippur War and how a small group of Jewish soldiers bravely fended off the entire Syrian army. 

Then, we made our way west to the holy mystical city of Tzfat where we broke off into smaller groups to follow our neshamot's longings. A group of us guys went down to Arizal's mikveh and then took some quiet time in the ancient Tzfat cemetery where some of the greatest Kabbalists of all time are buried. The others took walks, went shopping, visited synagogues, and relaxed in the main square of Tzfat's Old City.

The drive down from Tzfat to Tiveria (Tiberius) was breathtaking, as well as the view of the Kinneret (Sea of Gallilee) from the restaurant where we ate - Decks. Dinner was tremendous with Israeli grilled meats, salads, and chummus, among other foods. It was also a great bonding time for the group, and we even got to dance with an American Bar Mitzvah boy.

We returned to the Old City at around 1 am, then slept a good sleep!

This morning was our tour to the Excavations of the Southern Wall of the Temple Mount. It was a usual enlightening trek through the history of our holy city, especially walking on the paving stones of the original ground level walkway along the southernmost portion of the Western Wall. Rabbi Mottle ended our tour with a sing-along inside one of the ancient mikvaot (ritual baths).

Lunch is just now over, featuring the usual balanced and tasty food of Shira Rachel. See our lunch menu twitter. 

https://twitter.com/isralight

Pictures and videos to come...

We Have A Great Attention Span

Today was a very unique day at Isralight. We had non-stop classes the whole day. First was Rabbi Wolf with a Morning Meditation followed by a class called the Paradise of Paradox, where we clarified the two most important names of G-d - Hashem, and Elokim, and realized that Judaism is NOT monotheistic, and NOT pantheistic, but rather panentheistic (you have to hear the class!). 

Rabbi David Mason showed up next with his Judaism and Environmentalism class, sharing authentic Jewish sources on our obligations to take care of the planet.

Then we packed in another class (delaying our usual lunchtime) with Rabbi Ken Spiro, who presented The Seven Wonders of Jewish history, helping us understand our collective Jewish identity in the context of prophecies from the Torah. 

Lunch was clearly really good, since by the time I arrived (a bit late), there was very little food left. Compliments to Shira Rachel on cooking up more flavorful healthy food.

At 2pm we gathered back into our double-domed classroom and learned from Rabbi Aaron and from Rav Kook how being jealous of G-d is very very unhealthy. The only way to avoid that unhealthiness is to have a proper healthy understand of who G-d really is and who we really are. 

At 3:30 Rebbetzin Chana Rachel Frumin helped us understand the two aspects of strength and how to use them for our spiritual growth. 

The day ended with our 7pm arrival at Tuesday Night Live, a Jewish talk show recorded live here in Jerusalem, hosted by Ari and Jeremy, two very close friends of Isralight.

Laila tov from the Old City, and stay tuned for our next update, hopefully tomorrow night at the end of our heavy-duty day of traveling.

Evening Time

Here's the daily wrap up - the class 'Jewtopia' was a hit. The Burnt House Tour presentation made an impression, including one comment that it reminded them of a Spanish-language soap opera. Shira Rachel's Mexican/Middle Eastern lunch was a hit. Rabbi Aaron's class was of course a hit. Rabbi Baruch Z'ev's autobiography along with the Neshama meditation and the group Shema unity experience were wild and fun. Maybe we'll get Brad Pitt to stand in for him in the BZ Movie. Tonight is a relaxing night in the Holy City.

Tomorrow's action includes Rabbi Mottle in the a.m. followed by Rabbi David Mason presenting Judaism and Environmentalism, lunch, then Rabbi Aaron, and finishing with Rebbetzin Chana Rachel Frummin (who, by the way, set up Rabbi Baruch Z'ev with his wife!). At night we will have an optional trip to the hippest live TV show in Jerusalem: Tuesday Night Live.

Nighty night holy brothers and sisters. See you all tomorrow...

A New Day With New Activities

Shalom friends. Yesterday's class about Hashem and what we're looking for in life was both heavy-duty and thoroughly enlightening. We had a whole lot to think about last night. This morning was another peaceful morning meditation followed by Rabbi Mottle's 'Jewtopia' class. Imagine a world totally saturated with the influence of the Jewish people and our Torah. You don't have to imagine, because you live in it! What an impact the tiny Jewish people have had on this big world, from China to Hawaii (the long way around the globe, of course), from the Arctic Circle to Antarctica, but especially on the Western World.

The Burnt House tour has given us a more real-life understanding of the Old City right before the destruction of the Second Temple, as well as appreciation that Hashem preserved it from all of the ensuing invaders of the Old City until we returned here properly in 1967. All of these tours we're taking are deepening our sense of Jewish identity. We are inextricably soul-bound to our unbelievable history.

Check out our updated photostream, or just watch the slideshow on your right.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/isralight/

We should have the lunch menu up on Twitter within the hour. Shalom

Mid-Day Update - Sunday

We just returned from a healthy tasty lunch (see Twitter for the menu), wonderful tour of Migdal David (The Tower of David) where Rabbi Mottle gave us clarity on the various periods of history and the cultures that had been in possession of Jerusalem from the Caananite period up to today. One of the highlights was the very top of the highest tower which commands an unbelievable view of the Old City all the way to Jordan on one side, and the new city of Jerusalem on the other. Pictures will be up on Flickr as soon as possible. Right now, Rabbi Aaron is speaking about the true Jewish definition of 'G-d' and how we can make sure to have a proper Jewish orientation toward the reality that we live in. Hashem is the be-er, we are the be-ing.

What A Shabbat Experience!

Wow. With Shabbat experiences like this, who needs the rest of the week! We had such an uplifting, bonding, meaningful time, full of food, niggunim, talking Torah, life, growth, and of course, rest. But now, we're back in the rush of the week. Shavua Tov. On the program for today is Rabbi Leibowitz's 'Let's Get Biblical' class (in progress), a lunch break, then another installment of our Old City tour series and another dose of Rabbi Aaron to cap off the day. Stay tuned for pics and vids. Shalom.

Videos And Shabbat Coming!

Shalom. Our first 26 hours were great, capped off by our night hike to Lifta. And what can we say about this morning's very special trip outside of the walls of the Old City to Ir David, the City of David, a.k.a. Biblical Jerusalem? What a Jewish-conciousness-expanding experience! Right now we're preparing for Shabbat, and in a bit more than an hour we'll be stepping into a completely elevated and sublime realm: our first Isralight Shabbat experience. We will never be the same...

Plus, check out our freshly edited videos below, also on YouTube. Special thanks to our tireless staff for all their work this week. Shabbat Shalom from the Old City of Yerushalayim. 'Jerusalem, If I Forget You!!!'

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5le3uUjCmsc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2615rafhx4

Today's Activities

What an great day so far. This morning at 7:15 we had the Modeh Ani morning meditation, then the Goal To Be Whole class both with Rabbi Mottle. Rabbi Aaron followed with a kabbalistic class on Freedom & Slavery, and how Judaism wants us to be TRULY free, not enslaved thinking that we are free. Then we had a great lunch (see our Twitter feed www.twitter.com/Isralight) and went on an emotionally powerful tour around the Jewish Quarter of the Old City (our home for these 10 days and beyond). As I type, Rabbi Aaron is giving an interactive class called 'The Search For The Essential I', based on a piece from Rav Kook. If there is an 'Essential I', then there must also be an 'Unessential I'. How can we know the difference? 

Tonight is our night hike and tomorrow is our tour of The City of David (the original city of Jerusalem). We have the whole afternoon to prepare for Shabbat, and then at 6:00pm, we prepare for lift-off. Shabbat Shalom!

Last night's Wine & Cheese event on the roof was wonderful.

We followed it with Rabbi Aaron's first class, Unpacking Jewish Baggage,

where Rabbi Aaron shared his personal life story and gave everyone an

opportunity to unpack our Jewish baggage with a list of what we dislike

about Jews and Judaism, then a list of what we love. What a surprise:

what we don't like is actually the flip side of what we love!

We settled into the dorms, got a good night sleep, then woke up early for

Rabbi Mottle's guitar-led Morning Meditation, full of niggunim 

(songs without words) and unique insights into the Modeh Ani.

Next was breakfast...and we'll be updating after the next class.

Inward Bound!!!

Here we go! After a year of planning I am heading up to the Isralight rooftop in the Old City of Jerusalem for the opening session of the 2009 Inward Bound season. pics to follow.

Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

You dream and plan and then...

You dream and plan and plan. And then you get a call at 6am on Friday morning... The first Isralight Inward Bound student has arrived. Jesse Rutiz's flight landed at 4:30 am. Yesterday we met with the madrichim and started getting the dorms ready.

As we stood outside of the dorms on Chabad Street in the Old City, I new in the blink of an eye the summer would be behind us. How many unbelievable, out of this world moments lay between this moment and the one where I am locking the dorm up for the last time at the end of August. How many mindblowing Rabbi David Aaron classes, or transcendent niggunim, or sunset's on the Golan, or just moment of simple laughter at the joy of being a Jew in Jerusalem lay before us?

Personally for me this job is a return to one of the most beautiful elements of childhood. The endless summer with the shortening days of September a far off horizon. I have an entire summer ahead of walking the Land of Israel, and going deep deep inside the spiritual vastness and richness of our heritage.

I took a moment yesterday, and just reveled in that awareness.