Rest in Peace Rabbi Sholom Gold. A biography of an American-Jewish rabbi in Israel whose speeches and articles on Torah, Zionism and Aliyah have been ubiquitous in Israel’s English-speaking community for over 40 years. Plus, the history of the Orthodox Union and its founder Rabbi Henry Pereira Mendes, a Sephardic American leader who championed Zionism in its early years and composed melodies we still sing in synagogues today. These two rabbis, both affiliated with the OU, lived in different eras but shared the same passion for education and pro-Israel activism.

Young American yeshiva students rock out at Unity of the Bands

Ben Bresky

Published: Mar 10, 2009

https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/130359

English-speaking yeshiva students studying in Israel competed against each other at Unity of the Bands. The contest drew an audience of 700 at Jerusalem’s Great Synagogue this past Saturday night. Thirteen different bands competed.

Unity of the Bands drew about 700 people to the Great Synagogue in Jerusalem, almost all of them young American yeshiva students. Proceeds of the ticket sales went to charity.

First place went to Az Yashir from Yeshivat Kesher. Second place went to Jesse and Hello Sid from Yeshivat Reishit. Tied for third place was The 104 from Yeshivat Sha'arei Mevaseret Tzion and the Levi Teitz Band from Yeshivat Har Etzion.

The event was organized by Rabbi Eli Goldsmith, "the midnight rabbi", known for helping troubled young adults channel their energy into music and Torah study. Rabbi Goldsmith often meets with students on the street at midnight and offers use of his recording studio and yeshiva. He runs a new program called Music4TheYouth.com which is planning more musical gatherings. The event was produced by Jonty Zwebner of RNY Productions and Yehudit Singer. The evening ended with performances by popular Israeli bands Yood and haMAKOR.

The town of Tekoa has it’s roots in the Bible as the hometown of Amos the prophet and many other biblical figures. Today it is a thriving township of over 4,000 people locate din the Gush Etzion region, south of Jerusalem. I visited Tekoa this past week for the 8th  Tekoa Beer festival. About 3,500 people from around the country attended the event which featured locally brewed beers and other beverages and famous Israeli rock singer Barry Sacharoff.  In addition to beer there was a variety of food. Non alcoholic beverages such as infused tea and health drinks were available as well.

The following are some interviews with people at the event. Full disclosure, I did not actually drink any beer and gave away my free beer ticket.

Thank you to Erica Schachne, Josh Hasten, Ezra Amichai, Yehuda Leuchter and everyone else who participated in this podcast.

In lieu of attended Vegan Fest in Tel Aviv, this podcast serves as a brief history of vegan and vegetarian beliefs in the Jewish community. Meet Fania Lewando, author of a 1938 Yiddish Vegetarian Kosher Cookbook who ran a kosher vegetarian restaurant in Vilna. Plus, Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak Kook and his teachings on the vegetarian diet as related by his top student rabbi David Cohen the Nazir. What do Jewish vegans put on their seder plate? Find out in this episode. For questions or comments email me at [email protected].

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The Great American SongBook