In Hebron, the army has evacuated the disputed home. In Afula, a town in the North, both the families of Gavriel and Rivka Hertzberg are sitting shiva, seven days of sitting on small chairs and receiving those who comfort them. But even mourning takes a break on Shabbat, from Friday night to Saturday night. As the week comes to an end, our pace changes. Tomorrow night I will wear white clothes and go to my synagogue, join with hundreds of others in the harmonious singing that welcomes the Sabbath, like a bride, into our hearts.

From Jerusalem,
Barbara Sofer

This morning I went to a conference on Chronic Diseases for Children at Hadassah’s Mount Scopus hospital. Several hundred medical professionals from different fields and from all different ethnic backgrounds were there. There was a particularly interesting lecture about the dilemmas of child adoption.

Today in Jerusalem, our new mayor Nir Barkat takes office. He’s a person of good character, intelligence and vision and I wish him the best in helping to solve the complex problems of our very special city.