Pictures from Israel
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Israel – MEA (c) 20170222 (35) Life in Jerusalem -‘The Flowershop’
“Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; but I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these.” (Luke 12:27)
From our travels throughout Israel and walking around the markets and streets of Jerusalem, these Bible verse certainly ring true. Israel is “a land of wheat and barley, of grapevines, fig trees and pomegranates; a land of olive oil and honey” as the Bible says in Deuteronomy 8:8″. We discover this particular flower shop in Ben Yehuda Mall. It is one of many flower shops in the area, but this is one the prettier ones.
The people of Israel can be likened to flowers whose ‘happy faces’ open up to all those around them. People are blessed by their presence, regardless of the season, the weather, the time of day, or the politics surrounding them. “All people are like grass, and all human faithfulness is like the flowers of the field.” (Isaiah 40:6)
Flowers grown in Israel include lilies, cyclamen, chrysanthemums, roses, tulips, carnations, orchids, iris and gladiolus. Because of the hot and unfavourable temperatures in Israel, flowers are grown and harvested under controlled farming conditions. This enterprise can be found in agricultural communities such as A kibbutz (a collective community where the land is communally owned and each member’s work benefits all or moshav make their income from; or a moshav where each family works its own land, while purchasing and marketing are conducted co-operatively.
As a result, Israel produces huge quantities of flowers for export and it has become a major player in the global florist industry, e.g. supplying traditional European flowers during the winter months. Israel’s flower and plant exports earn an estimated $200 million annually. This is a great achievement considering that more than half the land in Israel is desert and only 20 per cent of the land is arable. As a result and out of necessity, Israel has become one the leading countries on water ‘production’ through advanced research, technology and biological breakthroughs where this small country produces 95 per cent of its own water and food requirements.
As we continue on our way, we say goodbye to this beautiful little flower shop, and bring to mind the miracle of God’s grace over His people and over the Promised Land expressed in this Bible prophecy. “You will no longer be spoken of as Abandoned or your land be spoken of as Desolate; rather, you will be called My Delight is in Her and you land Be’ulah (married)”. Isaiah 62, 4-5.
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Pictures from Israel
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MEA 20170215-(35)-Life-in-Jerusalem–The-Tractor.png-Photos
Whether it’s in the Old City of Jerusalem or in any of the many old cities around the world, deliveries of goods and products must travel through narrow and cobbled streets to their respective shop owners. This fully-loaded ‘mini’ tractor takes up more than half the width of the street. Centre-right shows people taking advantage of the seats built into the alcove, which also provide a temporary safe haven for pedestrians who dodge the constant progress of bikes, tractors, carts and even small cars.
Can you also see where the back wheels of this tractor are riding over small ramps, which are commonly seen in narrow lanes of this hilly city. The combination of stairs and ramps allow easy and safe movement of vehicles and pedestrians together. Along the street stretching to the end of the block, we see buildings made from popular Jerusalem Stone, which is also used in many constructions throughout Israel. This stone is said to be one of the most beautiful and meaningful in the world.
For 3,000 years, the city of Jerusalem has been built and rebuilt with Jerusalem Stone. The British, who occupied much of the Middle East and Jerusalem during the first half of the Twentieth Century, initiated a common law which required that this stunning ancient stone be used in the construction of every building, so that the outside walls would give Jerusalem a unique and magnificent appearance. And today, the Israeli government still upholds this building code, so that hotels, department stores, supermarkets, high-rise office buildings, apartments, auditoriums are all faced with this stone.
The stones are naturally multicoloured, ranging from pink to beige to white, and when the setting sun floods the Capital, the lightly coloured stones, create a golden glow which gives rise to the term “Jerusalem of Gold”.
Pictures from Israel
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Avir MEA © 170208 (AS214,207,194) Avir at the Kotel
Avir’s visit to the Kotel, Jerusalem
During their stay in Jerusalem, the majority of the 3.5 million tourist visiting Israel each year find themselves at the Kotel (also called the Western Wall). And this was the case with Avir. This photo- montage depicts Avir at the Wall reading and praying. It has been a place of prayer and pilgrimage for centuries. People write prayers and place them in the crevices of the Wall. More than a million notes are left each year. Every six months the notes are collected and buried in the Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives.
The Kotel is the western retaining wall of the Second Temple Mount complex situated in Jerusalem. Built by Herod the Great in the First Century B.C., the Kotel stands at the foot of the Temple mount’s western side. For almost nineteen-hundred years, the Jewish people were exiled from their homeland, with little opportunity of making Jerusalem and the Kotel part of their everyday lives. However, when Israel was granted Statehood in 1948, it found itself in a bitter war against the Jordanian army who took over lands from East Jerusalem to the Jordan River—lands which the United Nations awarded Israel. In 1967 when Israel recaptured these same lands, they annexed this area for prayer and study. It is hard to believe that the United Nations and the media have convinced the world that Israel no longer own these lands, and should not build on these ‘occupied’ territories. Rather bazaar really.
Anyhow, this Jewish Homeland has drawn this part of the Temple into their hearts and minds, and the Kotel is host to hundreds and thousands of people who come for the many religious celebrations, such as daily and national prayers, Bar-Mitzvahs, the ancient annual Aaronic Priestly Blessing over the people. Also, the Nation gathers for the traditional annual celebrations in Jerusalem of Pesach (Passover), Shavuot (Pentacost) and Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles).
Should you want to visit the Kotel from your home, any time from anywhere in the world, you can do so by logging on to the real-time live-feed webcam at the Kotel: www.aish.com/w/ Perhaps you might like to see a friend waving at you from the Kotel—only remember to check the time difference.
