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Written by: Miles Kuttler 5/4/2008 5:06:55 AM

This begins the 10th anniversary edition of Jerusalem Greetings. We leave this morning for a 9-week stay at our apartment in Jerusalem and look forward to sharing our adventures with you.

Miracles in Perspective:

Every Passover I wonder how one million Jews could have wandered in the desert for 40 years. Okay, so God provided food and water, but what did they do all day? Where did they put their garbage, not to mention their personal waste? One million was a lot of people. Was it a miracle or was it miraculous? Implausible or impossible?

Jump ahead 3263 years to the winter of 1947. The UN had voted in favor of partitioning Palestine into a Jewish state and an Arab state. The British Mandate would end in less than 6 months and the Arabs were certain to attack. The Jews needed weapons but first they needed money to pay for those weapons. Golda Meir was sent on a desperation fundraising trip to the United States. She had no winter clothing and only $10 in her purse. Her goal was to raise $5 million from our parents’ generation of American Jews.

Two months later she returned and presented Ben Gurion with $50 million – cash on the barrel. That is FIFTY as in FIVE-OH. It was perhaps the single greatest fundraising feat in the history of the world. Miracle? Maybe. Miraculous? Definitely. Plausible? No. Possible? Yes. It happened in our lifetime. Maybe a million Jews wandering around in the desert for 40 years is not so farfetched after all.

Factoids in Perspective:

From May 1948 thru January 1952, a period of 44 months, 687,000 Jews arrived in Israel, more than doubling its Jewish population. If only Israel had been established 10 years earlier that number could have been 6,687,000, and the most terrible chapter in Jewish history need not have been written.

In the last 30 years over one million Russian Jews immigrated to Israel. Twenty percent came in the 1970s and 80% came in the 1990s. No doubt most of them were the grandchildren of our grandparents’ friends. If our grandparents had not left Russia when they did, THEY would have been US.

Da or Duh?

Just as Spanish has crept into the English language in the form of Spanglish, so too Russian has crept into the Hebrew language. In Russian the word for “yes” is “da”. “Da” has made it into mainstream Hebrew as a way of succinctly saying that something is so obvious and clear that even an idiot would understand it. “Da” is now the Hebrew equivalent of “Duh?” Got it? Duh? No, da! Or maybe you are thinking, la-di-da.

More Factoids in Perspective – 1948 to 2007:

In 1948 there were approximately 785,000 people living in what is today the state of Israel. By 2007 the population had grown to almost 10 times that number – 7,116,700. In 1948 there were 17,500 births. In 2007 there were more than 20 times as many – 148,000. In 1948 the illiteracy rate was over 15%. In 2007 it was under 3%. Tourists: 22,000 vs. 1,825,000. Political parties: 21 vs. 21 – no change. Just as crazy as ever. Hospitals: 66 vs. 373 – an INCREASE of almost 500%. Mental institutions: 19 vs. 14 – a DECREASE of 25%. More illness but also more sanity? Population of Jerusalem: 87,000 vs. 870,000 – an INCREASE of 1000%. Finally, and most troubling, Muslim population: 132,000 vs. 1,140,000 – an INCREASE of over 750%. We have got to get them something else to do at night.

Dr. Chicken Lady to You:

After receiving an Honorary Doctorate from Yeshiva University in Israel, Clara Hammer, the Chicken Lady of Jerusalem, is now DOCTOR Clara Hammer. Not only that, the soon-to-be 98 year-old Clara led the gathering in a rousing rendition of Hatikva. Clara is still at it, filling hungry children’s stomachs with a weekly Shabbat meal. You can help Clara by sending your checks to Clara Hammer Chicken Fund, 4 Mishmar Ha’Gvul, Ramat Eshkol, Jerusalem, Israel. Postage to Israel is now 94 cents. If you do not want to go to the Post Office use 3 regular stamps. The extra postage will not change your life; but, your check will definitely change the life of a disadvantaged Israeli family. Thanks so much.

Roberta and I met in 1976 on a Jewish Federation mission called, “This Year in Jerusalem”. That was almost 32 years ago. We just celebrated our 30th anniversary. 1976 was a good year for us. Now it is 2008 and we are still spending part of every year in Jerusalem. Don't you think it is time for you to “get lucky” and go to Israel also? “This Year in Jerusalem” is our wish for each and every one of you. Come celebrate Israel’s 60th anniversary with us.

We are planning to hit the ground running. We will visit with the Miami Federation Mission and the South Florida March of the Living contingent at their dinner this Monday evening in Jerusalem. Then come two of the “Yom’s”. This Tuesday night and Wednesday is Israel’s Memorial Day – Yom Ha’Zicaron. Wednesday night and Thursday is Israel’s 60th Independence Day – Yom Ha’Atzmaut. Wherever you are, take a few moments to honor the memory of those who helped make the state of Israel a reality. More than anything, it is the existence of the state of Israel that keeps Jews safe around the world. Then, celebrate with pride and gratitude.

Happy 60th, Chag Sa’me’ach and L’Hitraot from somewhere over the Atlantic on the way to Israel

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