Ancient calendar offers glimpse of biblical times
(Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) Ever wonder how the people in biblical times arranged their schedules? The answer may lie with a 4,000-year-old silt tablet recently discovered in the ruins of Larsa, an ancient Sumer city located in modern-day southern Iraq.
Larsa’s neighboring city was Ur Kasdim, mentioned in the book of Genesis as the birthplace of Abraham.
The tablet, currently on display at the Bible Lands Museum in Jerusalem, lists a schedule for one of the temples in Larsa that corresponds with eight days in the Hebrew month of Shevat and includes a to-do list for a festival on the 8th day. The schedule is written in Akkadian.
“This silt tablet, which dates back to the time of biblical Abraham, is the only Mesopotamian text we know of to describe temple rituals stretching eight days. It also illustrates the similarities between our calendar and its Babylonian origins,” Bible Lands Museum Director Amanda Weiss said.
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First Hebrew/Judeo-Yemeni Arabic dictionary published
(JNS.org) The first Hebrew/Judeo-Yemeni Arabic dictionary was recently introduced by its editor, Rabbi Dr. Aharon Ben-David. The lexicon aims to offer the Hebrew equivalent for a popular North Yemeni dialect, once common in the Jewish communities of Hidan, Najran, and Higra.
The Yar Yair Dictionary, compiled by the late Assaf Yair Madar-Halevy over more than 50 years, comprises over 500 pages. Madar-Halevy died in 1991 and did not live to see his life’s work published.
“I will never forget coming to Israel in 1951, at the age of nine,” Ben-David told Israel Hayom. “A few years later, I watched ‘Roots’ [a miniseries based on Alex Haley’s 1976 novel of the same name] and I decided that I wanted to find my own roots. Since that day, I have always sought ways to preserve the traditions and heritage of the North Yemeni Jewish community.”
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Abbas, Arab foreign ministers refuse to recognize Israel as Jewish state
(JNS.org) Nine Arab foreign ministers told U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in Paris on Sunday that they would not accept Israel as a Jewish state, a move they made in support of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’s statement on Saturday that he would also refuse such recognition for Israel.
Abbas also said that Palestinians would reject any peace deal that does not make eastern Jerusalem the capital of a Palestinian state.
“We won’t recognize and accept the Jewishness of Israel. We have many excuses and reasons that prevent us from doing so,” he said. Furthermore, Abbas declared that Palestinians “don’t love death, but we welcome martyrdom if it happens,” the Jerusalem Post reported.
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2014 Golden Globes feature Jewish winners, spur Woody Allen controversy
(JNS.org) Among this year’s Jewish winners at the 2014 Golden Globes, which took place Sunday, actor Michael Douglas won the award for Best Actor in a Miniseries or TV Movie for his role as Liberace in “Behind the Candelabra,” and Andy Samberg won the award for Best Actor in a TV Series, Comedy for his role on “Brooklyn Nine-Nine.”
While Jewish filmmaker Woody Allen was honored with the Cecil B. DeMille Award for lifetime achievement, Allen’s estranged partner and son, Mia Farrow and Ronan Farrow, criticized the tribute. Allen and Mia Farrow were together for 12 years until Farrow discovered the director was having an affair with her adopted daughter, Soon-Yi Previn. Previn is now Allen’s wife. Farrow sued Allen for allegedly molesting her then 7-year-old daughter, but the charge was eventually dropped.
“A woman has publicly detailed Woody Allen’s molestation of her at age 7. GoldenGlobe tribute showed contempt for her & all abuse survivors,” Mia Farrow tweeted.
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Scarlett Johansson inks new deal to represent Israel’s SodaStream
(JNS.org) SodaStream, the popular Israeli carbonated drinks company, has announced that Jewish-American actress Scarlett Johansson will be its “global brand ambassador” in a new multiyear contract.
Johansson, 28, who was named Esquire magazine’s “Sexiest Woman Alive” in 2013, will kick off the new partnership by appearing in SodaStream’s upcoming $4 million Super Bowl ad.
“We are thrilled to welcome the remarkably talented Scarlett Johansson into the SodaStream family,” Daniel Birnbaum, the CEO of SodaStream, said in a statement.
Headquartered near Tel Aviv, SodaStream offers devices that allow consumers to use regular tap water to create homemade carbonated beverages. Last year, the company generated more than $436 million in revenue.
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Israeli cabinet approves plan for further agricultural development of Golan Heights
(JNS.org) The Israeli cabinet has approved a plan by the agricultural ministry to establish 750 new farming estates on 30,000 dunams (7,400 acres) of land in the Golan Heights region.
The proposal includes a NIS 375 million ($108 million) investment in agricultural training, upgrading the water systems and clearing mines from the region.
“The Golan residents rely heavily on agriculture as a source of income. The decision came in an effort to expand the employment opportunities and create anchors that reinforces the [Golan Heights community],” Israeli Agriculture Minister Yair Shamir said on his Facebook page.
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Former Bank of Israel head Stanley Fischer appointed vice chair of U.S. Fed
(JNS.org) U.S. President Barack Obama appointed former Bank of Israel head Stanley Fischer as the vice chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve.
Fischer, 70, will serve as second-in-command at America’s central bank under recently appointed chairwoman Janet Yellen.
As governor of the Bank of Israel from 2005-2013, Fischer was widely credited with helping to successfully steer Israel through the global recession.
“Fischer is one of the great macroeconomists of our generation,” Steven Plaut, an economics professor at the University of Haifa, told JNS.org. “He literally wrote the textbook that I used as a PhD student to learn macro [economics]. Under his stewardship, Israel managed to keep steady and evade most of the pitfalls of the financial crisis that broke out worldwide starting in 2007. Monetary management for the U.S. of course is a very different set of problems, but Fischer is one of the better-qualified people on the planet to tackle it.”
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Hamas leaders looking for rapprochement with Iran
(JNS.org) The Palestinian terror group Hamas has indicated that it is rekindling ties with old patron Iran.
“Relations between us are now almost back to how they were before [the crisis over Syria]. We believe we will soon be back at that point,” Taher al-Nounou, an aide to Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, told The Guardian.
For years, Iran and Syria were Hamas’s main patrons, providing the terror group with financing, training, and weapons to attack Israel. But when protests broke out against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in 2011, exiled Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal voiced support for Syrian demonstrators. Mashaal eventually closed the terror group’s office in Damascus and relocated to Qatar. As a result, Iran began cutting off funding to Hamas.
According to The Guardian, however, Mashaal has met several times with Iranian officials and may visit Tehran soon.
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Russian-Jewish teacher Ilya Farber released from prison
(JNS.org) Russian-Jewish teacher and painter Ilya Farber was released from Russian prison on Friday.
Farber was jailed on bribery charges in 2011 after receiving a seven-year prison sentence. Local residents, Jewish groups, and the Kremlin’s human rights council protested the decision, suggesting that anti-Semitism played a role in Farber’s conviction after a prosecutor said during his trial, “Can a person with the last name Farber truly help a village for free?”
“The release of Ilya Farber was a long time coming. Unfortunately, both of his trails were marred by hints of overt anti-Semitism. National Conference Supporting Jews in Russia, Ukraine, the Baltic States & Eurasia (NCSJ) is glad Mr. Farber will be reunited with his family,” NCSJ Executive Director Mark B. Levin told JNS.org in December after a regional court reduced Farber’s sentence.
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Preceding provided by JNS.org