Passover in Samaria

Passover lasted for a week. A week of not eating leavened bread and instead eating Matzah (unleavened bread), a week of occupying ourselves with the story of the Exodus from Egypt even more so than on regular days, a week of celebrating our first redemption as a nation and being grateful for our current redemption, a process that is going on and developing in front of our very eyes, in our day and age - the return of the Jews from all corners of the world to their ancient, G-d promised homeland.
On the week of Pesach (Passover) I make it a point not to work. My boss knows it, and she knows it is a matter of principle with me - I take my free days during Pesach and Succot, and except for thanking HaShem (G-d) for the job that he gives me, which I love and which allows me to pay my rent and buy food, I try not to think about work at all. The weather is perfect, the sky is blue, the flowers are in full bloom and it is perfect time to travel around our beautiful land, the land of Israel.

So last week I went on a special tour with a group of Zionist Jews from different parts of the world to visit special people who live in outposts in our ancient heartland of Samaria.
We met with Yael Shevach, a young woman, mother of 6 children, whose husband was murdered by a Muslim terrorist a few weeks ago. She lives in the Havat Gil'ad outpost, trying to raise her children on her own. She met us at the local synagogue and spoke with us. We expected to meet a broken woman, with signs of crying on her face. But instead, we met a strong, beautiful woman, radiating so much light, and full of faith and optimism. She told us what it is like to live in Havat Gilad, an unauthorized outpost on Jewish lands in Samaria (the lands were bought from the Arab owners by a Jewish man named Moshe Zar): for many years they had no proper electricity system, and no proper water system. They had to coordinate with the entire community who is going to use the washing machine when, so that all the other families would not use any electricity or water at that time, etc. Her husband used to do all the Jewish functions in the outpost: he was the Rabbi, the Mohel (the man who does circumcision for 8-day-old male infants), Sofer Stam (a special scribe who writes Torah scrolls, Mezuzahs, etc.). Now that he is gone, it takes a few people to replace him.
She told us of his devotion to people: On the eve of Rosh HaShanah, a big family holiday, a family called him and asked him to come to their house in another settlement to do a Brith (circumcision). If he went, he had to stay there for the whole holiday, because we do not drive cars on holidays. He agreed. His wife, Yael, and the children spent the holiday with Yael's parents in Kfar Saba. He went alone, without them, and spent the entire holiday with strangers, not with his family, only to fulfill the important Mitzvah of circumcision and to help others. When they asked him if he has a family and where they are, he said he has a big family and they are celebrating with his wife's parents. "Why didn't you bring them along?", they asked him. The answer was that he didn't want to impose on them having to host such a big family. On the day of the murder he went to visit the circumcised baby. On his way back home he was murdered by a terrorist. Such was the man - putting the good of others and G-d's commandments before himself and his needs. And Yael, his wife, is just the same. I took her contact details. If any of you are planning to visit Samaria, visiting Yael and other women like her is an option you may want to consider. To read more about the Havat Gilad outpost: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Havat_Gilad

We later visited another outpost, Aish Kodesh. Both these outposts, Havat Gilad and Aish Kodesh are sadly named after Jewish men who were murdered by hate-filled terrorists. The people in Aish Kodesh also hold on to the land against all odds, and without government authorization. Our government is secular in big part (this is the main reason why I do not vote for Netanyahu), and the fact that these settlers occupy the land, making it flourish and bloom, and clinging to G-d's word and Mitzvot (commandments) is just awe-inspiring. If I didn't love Jerusalem so much, which makes it hard for me to live anywhere else, I would have loved to live in one of these outposts, just to help the effort and give my share in making the divine prophecies come true.
Surprisingly enough, many Arabs are actually FOR these settlements and the right of the Jews over the land, including and especially over Judea and Samaria. The leftist Media would never show them or let their words be published, but they live here and they are our friends.

After visiting the outposts and traveling in Samaria, we visited Shiloh, a modern community named after the ancient town of Shiloh. There we saw the local synagogue, built and designed to look a lot like the Tabernacle that used to be there: the ark in which the Torah scrolls are placed looks like the Ark with the Ten Commandments in the Tabernacle; the Bimah (a podium for reading the Torah) looks like the Golden Altar; there are even 12 drawers, to remind us of the 12 trays with loaves of the Showbread; the entrance to the women's section looks like the ramp on which the Kohanim (Jewish priests, descendants of Aharon) walked up to the Altar. The whole building looks like a Tabernacle from the outside, but also from the inside. There are a few other things there that were designed like the original tabernacle. I know I have to go back there to see it in more detail. Those of you who read Hebrew can read more about it here: https://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/בית_הכנסת_זיכרון_משכן_שילה

Pesach is over, and I am back to work, which is a delight for me. But I am already thinking about the next trip. When I go, I'll try to write about it here.

Shavua tov (have a nice week!)
Revital