from the WRITER's ALMANAC (Garrison Keillor listserv -- Minnesota Public Radio)
Today is traditionally held to be the birthday of William Shakespeare, who was baptized on April 26, 1564, in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. He left behind no personal papers; so much of what we know, or think we know, about him comes to us from public and court documents, with a fair measure of inference and speculation. We do know that his father John was a glove maker and alderman, and his mother, Mary Arden, was a landed heiress. William's extensive knowledge of Latin and Greek likely came from his education at the well-respected local grammar school. That was the extent of his formal education, which has led to hundreds of years of conspiracy theories disputing the authorship of his plays, since many found it unbelievable that he could have written so knowledgeably about history, politics, royalty, and foreign lands on a grammar school education. Various figures, such as Francis Bacon, Christopher Marlowe, the 17th Earl of Oxford, and even Queen Elizabeth I, have been put forward as possible -- though unproven -- ghost writers.
We know that he married the older -- and pregnant -- Anne Hathaway when he was 18 and she was 26, and she gave birth to a daughter, Judith, six months later. Twins Hamnet and Judith followed two years after that, and son Hamnet died at age 11. It's speculated that his son's death hit Shakespeare hard, because he began to write Hamlet soon afterward.
He moved to London around 1588 -- possibly to escape deer-poaching charges in Stratford -- and began a career as an actor and a playwright. By 1594, he was also managing partner of the Lord Chamberlain's Men, a popular London theater troupe. He was popular in his lifetime, but his popularity didn't rise to the level that George Bernard Shaw referred to as 'bardolatry' until the 19th century.
In 1611, he retired to Stratford and made out his will, leaving to his wife, Anne, his 'second-best bed.' He died on or around his birthday in 1616, and was buried in the Church of the Holy Trinity in Stratford, leaving a last verse behind as his epitaph: 'Good friend, for Jesus' sake forbeare / to dig the dust enclosed here. / Blessed be the man who spares these stones, / and cursed be he who moves my bones.'
Though biographical details may be sketchy, his literary legacy is certain. He wrote 38 plays, 154 sonnets, and a couple of epic narrative poems. He created some of the most unforgettable characters ever written for the stage, and shifted effortlessly between formal court language and coarse vernacular. The Oxford English Dictionary credits him with coining 3,000 new words, and has contributed more phrases and sayings to the English language than any other individual.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Islamic Center (Dearborn, Michigan) wins round against Qur'an burning pastor Terry Jones of FL
posted at M-Live dot-com (article coverage of Detroit area event on April 22, 2011):
A Florida pastor's planned demonstration outside a Michigan mosque was scuttled Friday after a jury determined the protest would constitute a breach of the peace and he was briefly jailed for refusing to pay what authorities called a "peace bond."
The Rev. Terry Jones, whose past rhetoric against Muslims has inflamed anti-Western sentiment in Afghanistan, said he refused to pay the $1 bond because to do so would violate his freedom of speech. He later paid it and was released.
Jones had planned a demonstration Friday evening outside the Islamic Center of America in Dearborn, a suburb of Detroit that is home to one of the largest Muslim communities in the nation. An estimated 30,000 people in Dearborn, about a third of the city's population, trace their roots to the Middle East.
Prosecutors worried the protest would lead to violence and asked Dearborn District Judge Mark Somers to intervene. Somers conducted a one-day jury trial to determine whether Jones would pose a threat to peace. They did, and Somers then ordered Jones and an associate to post the bond to ostensibly cover the costs of police protection.
While largely symbolic, the bond also came with conditions that included a prohibition on Jones from going to the mosque or the adjacent property for three years.
Somers said he spoke to the jury after they reached their verdict and they told him they were concerned with the "time, place and manner and not the content of the speech."
But Robert Sedler, a constitutional law professor at Wayne State University, called the entire proceedings unconstitutional. He said the U.S. Supreme Court has found that it's the job of the police to protect speakers at such events and said it is unconstitutional to require protesters to post a bond for police protection.
"What basis did the state have for arguing that they would breach the peace?" Sedler said. "It's a matter of First Amendment requirement: The government can't stop a speaker from speaking because of danger from a hostile crowd."
The state law allowing a judge to require a bond "for preservation of public peace" originally dates to 1846. As recently as 1999, the state Court of Appeals upheld it as constitutional in a case involving feuding neighbors who sought peace bonds against each other.
A burning of the Quran in March at Jones' church in Gainesville, Fla., led to a series of violent protests in Afghanistan that killed more than a dozen people. Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said fears that Jones could incite violent counter-protests led them to court.
"These proceedings were solely about public safety. This was never about prohibiting free speech or fearing rioting but about a situation that could potentially place the public in danger in Dearborn," Worthy said.
A Florida pastor's planned demonstration outside a Michigan mosque was scuttled Friday after a jury determined the protest would constitute a breach of the peace and he was briefly jailed for refusing to pay what authorities called a "peace bond."
The Rev. Terry Jones, whose past rhetoric against Muslims has inflamed anti-Western sentiment in Afghanistan, said he refused to pay the $1 bond because to do so would violate his freedom of speech. He later paid it and was released.
Jones had planned a demonstration Friday evening outside the Islamic Center of America in Dearborn, a suburb of Detroit that is home to one of the largest Muslim communities in the nation. An estimated 30,000 people in Dearborn, about a third of the city's population, trace their roots to the Middle East.
Prosecutors worried the protest would lead to violence and asked Dearborn District Judge Mark Somers to intervene. Somers conducted a one-day jury trial to determine whether Jones would pose a threat to peace. They did, and Somers then ordered Jones and an associate to post the bond to ostensibly cover the costs of police protection.
While largely symbolic, the bond also came with conditions that included a prohibition on Jones from going to the mosque or the adjacent property for three years.
Somers said he spoke to the jury after they reached their verdict and they told him they were concerned with the "time, place and manner and not the content of the speech."
But Robert Sedler, a constitutional law professor at Wayne State University, called the entire proceedings unconstitutional. He said the U.S. Supreme Court has found that it's the job of the police to protect speakers at such events and said it is unconstitutional to require protesters to post a bond for police protection.
"What basis did the state have for arguing that they would breach the peace?" Sedler said. "It's a matter of First Amendment requirement: The government can't stop a speaker from speaking because of danger from a hostile crowd."
The state law allowing a judge to require a bond "for preservation of public peace" originally dates to 1846. As recently as 1999, the state Court of Appeals upheld it as constitutional in a case involving feuding neighbors who sought peace bonds against each other.
A burning of the Quran in March at Jones' church in Gainesville, Fla., led to a series of violent protests in Afghanistan that killed more than a dozen people. Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said fears that Jones could incite violent counter-protests led them to court.
"These proceedings were solely about public safety. This was never about prohibiting free speech or fearing rioting but about a situation that could potentially place the public in danger in Dearborn," Worthy said.
Friday, April 22, 2011
Storms, hail, and security slow Holy Land pilgrims carrying the cross on Good Friday
online version of VANCOUVER Sun Newspaper -- story posted Friday April 22
Thousands of Christian pilgrims braved storms, hail and heavy security in Jerusalem’s Old City to pray along the route tradition holds Jesus took to his crucifixion on Good Friday.
As part of the Good Friday ceremonies, the faithful descend onto the Old City to walk the Via Dolorosa, or Way of Suffering, the route tradition says Jesus carried the cross on which he was to be crucified by the Romans.
Latin Patriarch Fuad Twal, the Catholic Church’s representative in the Holy Land, led an early morning procession, beginning at the Monastery of Flagellation, where Jesus was beaten, mocked and crowned with thorns.
Later in the morning, other denominations walked the same route that follows the narrow often climbing street and the 14 stations of the cross along its way, including where Jesus met his mother, fell several times, was helped in carrying the cross, and met the lamenting women of Jerusalem. The procession ends at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, built over the sites where Christians believe Christ was crucified and buried.
However, heavy Israeli security — with police setting up road blocks and metal barriers — prevented many from reaching the sacred shrine. "We were late and now all the ways into the church are blocked off," said Degratias Shumbusho, a 54-year-old Catholic pilgrim from Tanzania. "It is the first time I’ve been here and maybe the last as I won’t be able to afford it again," he said.
"Seeing the Church is what brought me here. It’s the backbone of Christianity. Maybe we will get in tomorrow," he said, the disappointment evident on his face.
Israeli forces routinely limit the number of worshippers allowed into the church over the Easter weekend, fearing crowd control issues in the flashpoint Holy City.
Others, who made it in, hailed the spiritual experience. "This is the best day of my life," said Milan Ivanovitch, 45, from Belgrade, who was carrying a large wooden cross and a Serbian flag. "I came here with my cross to sanctify it. And I took the cross to Golgotha," he said hugging it in joy.
As bells tolled across the city, black-robed priests and nuns mingled with pilgrims and tourists, many of them in brightly coloured baseball caps following guides carrying umbrellas of the same colour. This year pilgrims had to contend with heavy rains, but said they would not be deterred.
"As Christians, we don’t allow the cold wet weather to cool our ardour or dampen our enthusiasm," said Victor Jack, a Briton, who is chairman of the nearby Garden Tomb, also known as Gordon’s Calvary after the name of the British officer who discovered it in 1894. Jack said it was the coldest Easter he had seen in 21 years working there. Others said the rains added to their experience. "It started raining just as we walked through the gates, and my first image was of heaven weeping," said Elizabeth, an American in her 20s who was sitting under a canopy overlooking Golgotha, the site where Jesus was crucified.
Each year, thousands of Christians flock to tread the route that is based on a devotional walk first laid out by the Roman Catholic Church’s Franciscan order in the 14th century.
Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Christian+pilgrims+brave+stormy+Good+Friday+Jerusalem/4660452/story.html#ixzz1KFgeqjr0
Thousands of Christian pilgrims braved storms, hail and heavy security in Jerusalem’s Old City to pray along the route tradition holds Jesus took to his crucifixion on Good Friday.
As part of the Good Friday ceremonies, the faithful descend onto the Old City to walk the Via Dolorosa, or Way of Suffering, the route tradition says Jesus carried the cross on which he was to be crucified by the Romans.
Latin Patriarch Fuad Twal, the Catholic Church’s representative in the Holy Land, led an early morning procession, beginning at the Monastery of Flagellation, where Jesus was beaten, mocked and crowned with thorns.
Later in the morning, other denominations walked the same route that follows the narrow often climbing street and the 14 stations of the cross along its way, including where Jesus met his mother, fell several times, was helped in carrying the cross, and met the lamenting women of Jerusalem. The procession ends at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, built over the sites where Christians believe Christ was crucified and buried.
However, heavy Israeli security — with police setting up road blocks and metal barriers — prevented many from reaching the sacred shrine. "We were late and now all the ways into the church are blocked off," said Degratias Shumbusho, a 54-year-old Catholic pilgrim from Tanzania. "It is the first time I’ve been here and maybe the last as I won’t be able to afford it again," he said.
"Seeing the Church is what brought me here. It’s the backbone of Christianity. Maybe we will get in tomorrow," he said, the disappointment evident on his face.
Israeli forces routinely limit the number of worshippers allowed into the church over the Easter weekend, fearing crowd control issues in the flashpoint Holy City.
Others, who made it in, hailed the spiritual experience. "This is the best day of my life," said Milan Ivanovitch, 45, from Belgrade, who was carrying a large wooden cross and a Serbian flag. "I came here with my cross to sanctify it. And I took the cross to Golgotha," he said hugging it in joy.
As bells tolled across the city, black-robed priests and nuns mingled with pilgrims and tourists, many of them in brightly coloured baseball caps following guides carrying umbrellas of the same colour. This year pilgrims had to contend with heavy rains, but said they would not be deterred.
"As Christians, we don’t allow the cold wet weather to cool our ardour or dampen our enthusiasm," said Victor Jack, a Briton, who is chairman of the nearby Garden Tomb, also known as Gordon’s Calvary after the name of the British officer who discovered it in 1894. Jack said it was the coldest Easter he had seen in 21 years working there. Others said the rains added to their experience. "It started raining just as we walked through the gates, and my first image was of heaven weeping," said Elizabeth, an American in her 20s who was sitting under a canopy overlooking Golgotha, the site where Jesus was crucified.
Each year, thousands of Christians flock to tread the route that is based on a devotional walk first laid out by the Roman Catholic Church’s Franciscan order in the 14th century.
Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Christian+pilgrims+brave+stormy+Good+Friday+Jerusalem/4660452/story.html#ixzz1KFgeqjr0
Pray for reconciliation among the peoples of the Holy Land (Good Friday letter)
from coverage at jpost dot-com (Jerusalem Post) April 22, 2011
Heads of churches in Jerusalem have urged Christians “to pray for reconciliation among people in the Holy Land, where the deteriorating situation makes peace and justice seem further away than ever before,” in a Thursday message ahead of Easter Sunday.
Latin Patriarch Fouad Twal; Greek-Melkite-Catholic Patriarch Archbishop Joseph-Jules Zerey; Maronite Patriarchal Exarch Archbishop Paul Sayyah; Syrian Catholic Patriarchal Exarch Bishop Pierre Malki; Armenian Catholic Patriarchal Exarch Fr. Rafael Minassian and Holy Land Custodian Fr. Pierbattista Pizzaballa, OFM, are among the signatories on the letter cited by Catholic News Agency.
The message notes the joy of the upcoming Easter, which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ, but adds that “when we in Jerusalem, the city of redemption, see the suffering of our Christian brothers and sisters in Egypt, Iraq and elsewhere in our region our joy becomes more solemn.”
This year’s Easter will also be joyous to Christians since it will be celebrated on the same day by Orthodox, Protestant and Catholic believers, a rather rare occurrence given that Western churches calculate the date using a Gregorian calendar, while the Orthodox church uses the older Julian calendar.
The Holy Fire Ceremony, to take place in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem’s Old City, will be attended by many thousands of Orthodox Christians who will pass on a flame borne by Greek Orthodox and Armenian clergymen exiting the place of Jesus’s tomb within the church.
The ceremony, held on the Saturday before Easter, was in the past a source of tension between the different Christian sects.
A police spokesman on Thursday noted that in past years, the peace between the different Christian sects was kept, and expressed the hope that Saturday’s events would bear no surprises. All police involved in securing the church, he added, will be carrying personal fire extinguishers as a precaution, least a fire break out.
A status quo is tightly maintained over the church – believed to be the location of Jesus Christ’s crucifixion, burial and resurrection – by representatives of the Roman Catholic, Armenian and Greek Orthodox churches.
The ceremony will be broadcast live around the world, and giant screens in the Old City will provide believers the opportunity to see it from nearby. The fire will be later taken to Easter ceremonies around the world.
The Tourism Ministry anticipated some 100,000 tourists – Jewish and Christian – for the Easter and Pessah week. Police will be heavily deployed around the church and the Old City to maintain order.
Heads of churches in Jerusalem have urged Christians “to pray for reconciliation among people in the Holy Land, where the deteriorating situation makes peace and justice seem further away than ever before,” in a Thursday message ahead of Easter Sunday.
Latin Patriarch Fouad Twal; Greek-Melkite-Catholic Patriarch Archbishop Joseph-Jules Zerey; Maronite Patriarchal Exarch Archbishop Paul Sayyah; Syrian Catholic Patriarchal Exarch Bishop Pierre Malki; Armenian Catholic Patriarchal Exarch Fr. Rafael Minassian and Holy Land Custodian Fr. Pierbattista Pizzaballa, OFM, are among the signatories on the letter cited by Catholic News Agency.
The message notes the joy of the upcoming Easter, which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ, but adds that “when we in Jerusalem, the city of redemption, see the suffering of our Christian brothers and sisters in Egypt, Iraq and elsewhere in our region our joy becomes more solemn.”
This year’s Easter will also be joyous to Christians since it will be celebrated on the same day by Orthodox, Protestant and Catholic believers, a rather rare occurrence given that Western churches calculate the date using a Gregorian calendar, while the Orthodox church uses the older Julian calendar.
The Holy Fire Ceremony, to take place in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem’s Old City, will be attended by many thousands of Orthodox Christians who will pass on a flame borne by Greek Orthodox and Armenian clergymen exiting the place of Jesus’s tomb within the church.
The ceremony, held on the Saturday before Easter, was in the past a source of tension between the different Christian sects.
A police spokesman on Thursday noted that in past years, the peace between the different Christian sects was kept, and expressed the hope that Saturday’s events would bear no surprises. All police involved in securing the church, he added, will be carrying personal fire extinguishers as a precaution, least a fire break out.
A status quo is tightly maintained over the church – believed to be the location of Jesus Christ’s crucifixion, burial and resurrection – by representatives of the Roman Catholic, Armenian and Greek Orthodox churches.
The ceremony will be broadcast live around the world, and giant screens in the Old City will provide believers the opportunity to see it from nearby. The fire will be later taken to Easter ceremonies around the world.
The Tourism Ministry anticipated some 100,000 tourists – Jewish and Christian – for the Easter and Pessah week. Police will be heavily deployed around the church and the Old City to maintain order.
Today is Earth Day (41st Anniversary of original day) -- Writer's Almanac capsule "history"
from Garrison Keillor daily listserv description/definition of the Environmental Movement largest secular holiday - day of action =
Today is Earth Day. It was first observed in 1970, but its roots go back to the 1962 publication of Rachel Carson's landmark book exposing the effects of pesticides and other chemical pollution on the environment. Troubled by the lack of attention pollution was receiving on the national stage, Wisconsin senator Gaylord Nelson began going on speaking tours, trying to educate people and politicians about environmental issues. And while the public was concerned, the politicians didn't pay much attention.
During the late 1960s, Senator Nelson had the idea to harness the energy and methods of the student protests against the Vietnam War to organize a grassroots conservation movement. At a press conference in 1969, he announced plans for a nationwide demonstration, to take place the following spring. It was a gamble that paid off, and the public's response was enthusiastic. Gladwin Hill wrote in The New York Times: 'Rising concern about the environmental crisis is sweeping the nation's campuses with an intensity that may be on its way to eclipsing student discontent over the war in Vietnam.' Twenty million people nationwide participated in the first Earth Day, on April 22, 1970, and the government finally took notice, forming the Environmental Protection Agency and passing the Clean Air, the Clean Water, and the Endangered Species Acts.
In 1990, on the 20th anniversary, organizer Denis Hayes took Earth Day to the international arena, and coordinated events in 141 countries worldwide, boosting the awareness and practice of recycling. The year 2000 marked the first time the event was coordinated on the Internet, and the message was the need for clean energy to counteract climate change.
According to the Earth Day Network, Earth Day is celebrated by a billion people, making it the world's largest secular holiday.
Today is Earth Day. It was first observed in 1970, but its roots go back to the 1962 publication of Rachel Carson's landmark book exposing the effects of pesticides and other chemical pollution on the environment. Troubled by the lack of attention pollution was receiving on the national stage, Wisconsin senator Gaylord Nelson began going on speaking tours, trying to educate people and politicians about environmental issues. And while the public was concerned, the politicians didn't pay much attention.
During the late 1960s, Senator Nelson had the idea to harness the energy and methods of the student protests against the Vietnam War to organize a grassroots conservation movement. At a press conference in 1969, he announced plans for a nationwide demonstration, to take place the following spring. It was a gamble that paid off, and the public's response was enthusiastic. Gladwin Hill wrote in The New York Times: 'Rising concern about the environmental crisis is sweeping the nation's campuses with an intensity that may be on its way to eclipsing student discontent over the war in Vietnam.' Twenty million people nationwide participated in the first Earth Day, on April 22, 1970, and the government finally took notice, forming the Environmental Protection Agency and passing the Clean Air, the Clean Water, and the Endangered Species Acts.
In 1990, on the 20th anniversary, organizer Denis Hayes took Earth Day to the international arena, and coordinated events in 141 countries worldwide, boosting the awareness and practice of recycling. The year 2000 marked the first time the event was coordinated on the Internet, and the message was the need for clean energy to counteract climate change.
According to the Earth Day Network, Earth Day is celebrated by a billion people, making it the world's largest secular holiday.
Monday, April 18, 2011
Media-Fast Week (April 18 - 24): voluntary "switch off the TV" week (So We Might See dot-org)
Yes, I am signed up --
2011 Media Fast: Screen-Free Week
How can you hear the voice of God with the TV on so loud?
Americans spend 8.5 hours a day absorbing media from TV, computers, phones, and video games. Children ages 8-18 watch 4.5 hours of television a day, seeing more than 25,000 commercial messages before they even start school.
This year, April 18-24, the interfaith So We Might See Coalition is organizing a week-long Media Fast: Screen-Free Week to celebrate activities that reconnect us with nature, art, reading, and the world around us.
Pledge to hold a Media Fast within your own family, class, neighborhood, house of worship, or other organization. Do a complete Media Fast ... or just turn off the TV after school ... limit videogames ... it's up to you.
2011 Media Fast: Screen-Free Week
How can you hear the voice of God with the TV on so loud?
Americans spend 8.5 hours a day absorbing media from TV, computers, phones, and video games. Children ages 8-18 watch 4.5 hours of television a day, seeing more than 25,000 commercial messages before they even start school.
This year, April 18-24, the interfaith So We Might See Coalition is organizing a week-long Media Fast: Screen-Free Week to celebrate activities that reconnect us with nature, art, reading, and the world around us.
Pledge to hold a Media Fast within your own family, class, neighborhood, house of worship, or other organization. Do a complete Media Fast ... or just turn off the TV after school ... limit videogames ... it's up to you.
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Message on Passover (Monday evening Seder at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., Washington, DC) -- from Pres. & Mrs. Obama
posted at Obama Food-o-rama -- (Google Blog)
President Obama will host a Seder at the White House on Monday, April 18, the first night of Passover. In a holiday greeting for Passover from the First Family, the President wished Jews around the globe Chag Sameach, and noted that "we continue to pray for peace between Israel and her neighbors, while reaffirming our enduring commitment to Israel's security."
The President has held a number of working dinners and lunches to discuss the Middle East peace process; most recently, on April 5th, he welcomed Israeli President Shimon Peres to the White House for a private working lunch. Monday's Seder is the President's third at the White House and guests are expected to include family friends and White House staff and their family members.
The President's Passover message:
My family and I send our warmest wishes to all those celebrating the sacred festival of Passover.
On Monday evening, Jewish families and their friends in America, Israel, and around the world will gather around the Seder table and retell the story of the Exodus, one of the most powerful stories of suffering and redemption in history. The story of Passover - which recalls the passage of the children of Israel from bondage and repression to freedom and liberty - inspires hope that those oppressed and enslaved can become free. The Seder, with its rich traditions and rituals, instructs each generation to remember its past, while appreciating the beauty of freedom and the responsibility it entails.
This year, that ancient instruction is reflected in the daily headlines as we see modern stories of social transformation and liberation unfolding in the Middle East and North Africa. Against the backdrop of change, we continue to pray for peace between Israel and her neighbors, while reaffirming our enduring commitment to Israel's security.
As Jewish families gather for this joyous celebration of freedom, let us all be thankful for the gifts that have been bestowed upon us, and let us work to alleviate the suffering, poverty, injustice, and hunger of those who are not yet free. Chag Sameach.
President Obama will host a Seder at the White House on Monday, April 18, the first night of Passover. In a holiday greeting for Passover from the First Family, the President wished Jews around the globe Chag Sameach, and noted that "we continue to pray for peace between Israel and her neighbors, while reaffirming our enduring commitment to Israel's security."
The President has held a number of working dinners and lunches to discuss the Middle East peace process; most recently, on April 5th, he welcomed Israeli President Shimon Peres to the White House for a private working lunch. Monday's Seder is the President's third at the White House and guests are expected to include family friends and White House staff and their family members.
The President's Passover message:
My family and I send our warmest wishes to all those celebrating the sacred festival of Passover.
On Monday evening, Jewish families and their friends in America, Israel, and around the world will gather around the Seder table and retell the story of the Exodus, one of the most powerful stories of suffering and redemption in history. The story of Passover - which recalls the passage of the children of Israel from bondage and repression to freedom and liberty - inspires hope that those oppressed and enslaved can become free. The Seder, with its rich traditions and rituals, instructs each generation to remember its past, while appreciating the beauty of freedom and the responsibility it entails.
This year, that ancient instruction is reflected in the daily headlines as we see modern stories of social transformation and liberation unfolding in the Middle East and North Africa. Against the backdrop of change, we continue to pray for peace between Israel and her neighbors, while reaffirming our enduring commitment to Israel's security.
As Jewish families gather for this joyous celebration of freedom, let us all be thankful for the gifts that have been bestowed upon us, and let us work to alleviate the suffering, poverty, injustice, and hunger of those who are not yet free. Chag Sameach.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)