Haveil Havalim #360 - Bat Aliyah's Maiden Voyage

It took me awhile to understand the concept of Haveil Havalim. And then, when I understood that it was a way for new readers to learn about my blog, I started submitting blog posts for awhile before I volunteered to host. 

And can I just tell you something? I inadvertently picked a very busy week to host my maiden edition since this week, I am coordinating the Great Ma'ale Adumim English Book Swap and Sale which raises thousands of shekels for tzedaka by selling 2000+ English books really, really cheaply.

Okay, back to Haveil Havalim. Here's the boilerplate: Founded by Soccer Dad, Haveil Havalim is a carnival of Jewish blogs -- a weekly collection of Jewish and Israeli blog highlights, tidbits and points of interest collected from blogs all around the world. It's hosted by different bloggers each week and coordinated by Jack.

Disclaimer: Opinions expressed in the posts linked below are those of the respective bloggers and not necessarily endorsed by the carnival host.

Also, you should consider subscribing, by email or RSS feed, to any blogger whose writing delights you. 

And now, on with the show:

In a new blog called Questions in Hashkafa, D. Fastag, the woman who wrote one of my all-time favorite Jewish books The Moon's Lost Light: A Torah Perspective on Women from the Fall of Eve to the Full Redemption under the pseudonym Devorah Heshelis writes about the significance of the Yovel year and what the role of non-Jews will be during the geula.

Bat Aliyah (shameless self-promotion) writes about the price we pay for making aliyah and responds to a pained reader whose aliyah seems to have failed.

Following up on the theme of, "Who said life in Israel would be easy?" Esser Agaroth writes A Letter To A Fellow Immigrant To Israel.

On a related theme, Andyboy discusses what it’s like to have failed to master Hebrew after 25 years in Israel at The Israel Situation.

Especially significant if you're reading this on Yom Yerushalayim, Batya at Shiloh Musings shares personal historical and spiritual recollections of the Six Day War.

On her blog Me-Ander, Batya shares how she overcame her lack of enthusiasm for baking challah and even shares her recipe. By the way, I just learned this week that the Hebrew word for recipe (meersham) is the same as the Hebrew word for prescription. I found that fascinating.

Batya had a busy blogging week. In this piece, she reports on two ancient coins that were found in Tel Shilo. 

If you enjoy photo blogs, head over the Real Jerusalem Streets for pictures of eight US actors sweating during a martial arts class at the Inbal Hotel in Jerusalem. The post also mentions what they were really doing in Jerusalem. Also shared this week: what else was going on in the streets of Jerusalem on Nakba.

Speaking of politics, Joel Katz produces an independent weekly review of media coverage on issues of religion and state in Israel. Last week’s review includes plenty of stories about the haredi community. For real-time updates, readers can visit http://twitter.com/religion_state

Sometimes she's political, sometimes she's personal. Reading this post from A Soldier's Mother, you might feel like you're inside her brain as she recounts profound truths, in parenting, in history and, as always, in Israel.

How You Can Participate: If you have a Jewish blog, or have written a post about something Jewish on a non-Jewish blog, we would love to include your work in future editions. To submit your blog post, please go to the Havael Havalim Facebook Page, found here and use the "Docs" tab to look for the current week's host and how to contact him or her.