The Jewish Home | JANUARY 12, 2017
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Around the Community “dramatically different” than the Obama administration’s hostile posture. Mayor Casriel, Governor Huckabee and the Jewish Chamber delegation then planted an olive tree in the new neighborhood and placed a vessel with the founding document of the new neighborhood in the ground. Visiting the Iriyah On Wednesday morning, following a press conference with Israeli and international media at the King David Hotel, Governor Huckabee and other mission participants took part in a roundtable forum at Yerushalayim Municipal Hall with Mayor Nir Barkat.
rael UN resolution as a harbinger of what can happen when Jews dismiss their religious tradition. “If we don’t respect our traditions, how can we expect the world to respect our historical roots in Eretz Yisroel?” Reb Duvi asked. Naftali Bennett Listens – and Makes a Move on Behalf of Torah and Shabbos Governor Mike Huckabee, Dr. Joseph Frager and Duvi Honig paid a visit to Education Minister Naftali Bennett, head of the Habayit HaYehudi party. They discussed various pertinent issues, such as strengthening U.S.-Israel economic ties
Governor Mike Huckabee, Duvi Honig and Dr. Joseph Frager meeting Education Minister Naftali Bennett
was among the MKs who attended and addressed the Orthodox Jewish Chamber of Commerce’s Knesset symposium the previous day, when Reb Duvi Honig made
L-R: MKs Eli Ben-Dahan and Miki Zohar, Dr. Joseph Frager, Dr. Paul Brody, Duvi Honig, Michael Eisenberg, and Governor Mike Huckabee at VIP Business Networking Dinner
Mayor Barkat detailed the difficulties that he encountered during his tenure, as the Obama administration put immense pressure that the municipality stop Jewish construction in various parts of the city while also pressuring them not to demolish illegal Arab homes. Members of the Orthodox Jewish Chamber of Commerce articulated their dedication to promote economic activity between the U.S. and Israel. Reb Duvi Honig also made an impassioned plea to the mayor not to change the Orthodox status quo at the Kosel Hamaaravi, warning that a commitment to democracy should never supersede fealty to our common religious obligations. He pointed to the recent anti-Is-
and fighting the BDS movement. Reb Duvi reiterated the message he delivered at the Knesset and Yerushalayim municipal hall, urging Mr. Bennett to respect Torah traditions in matters of education, Shabbos and more. In a remarkable development, that very day, HaBayit HaYehudi officially joined the charedi parties in support of maintaining the religious status quo regarding the closure of Israeli businesses on Shabbos. Habayit HaYehudi previously did not align with the charedim in this battle. This significant change was announced via an official letter from MK Bezalel Smotrich to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. Smotrich
his emotional plea on behalf of maintaining Torah true Yiddishkeit. “When I heard of the letter, I thanked Hashem,” Reb Duvi explained. “It’s an amazing zechus to have had a part in this.” Mission Wraps Up at VIP Business Networking Dinner The event hall at the prestigious King David Hotel in Yerushalayim was upbeat on Wednesday evening, as approximately one hundred business leaders, elected officials and community leaders gathered for a VIP business networking dinner wrapping up the U.S.-Israel Business Alliance mission. Duvi Honig commenced the event, marveling at the many high level guests in atten-
dance, including several who traveled from the U.S. for the dinner alone. “We think big,” he exclaimed. “We are uniting Jewish community businesses at a global level.” The dinner epitomized the goal of the Jewish Chamber and this mission to Israel, which is focusing on networking Jewish communal and economic powerhouses to advance economic success within the U.S. and Israel and between the two countries. The speakers list included Michael Eisenberg of Aleph Venture Capital; Knesset members Zeev Elkin, Minister of Jerusalem Affairs; Eli Ben-Dahan, Deputy Defense Minister; Oren Chazzan; Miki Zohar and Bezalel Smotrich; Consul General in New York Danny Dayan; and Efrat Mayor Oded Ravivi. Dr. Frager was clearly moved by the vibrancy of the mission and its success, noting that the dinner also heralded the upcoming fiftieth anniversary of the reunification of Yerushalayim. Audience members rose to applaud Dr. Frager when he spoke of making “the Jewish people a greater people; Israel a greater Israel; build Judea and Samaria into a greater Judea and Samaria and build Yerushalayim to be the greatest city on earth.” Odeleya Jacobs hit at the core of the mission, stressing the importance of the Jewish Chamber goal to help Jewish businesses thrive across the globe. “We need to teach
people how to fish, rather than just give them fish,” she explained. Governor Huckabee recounted with his trademark oratory skills the story of a father who took his eleven-year-old daughter on a tour of Yad Vashem for the first time. After they walked through exhibits of the horrific events prior to and during the Holocaust, particularly what was done to Jewish children, the girl simply wrote in the museum guestbook, “Why didn’t somebody do something?” The governor then shared that this occurred with him and his daughter Sarah. He was proud of his young daughter’s insight and how she internalized the Holocaust’s most important lesson for future generations. Sarah Huckabee is now a senior aide to President-elect Trump and will serve in his administration. Her father expressed confidence that she will be a forceful advocate against evil, particularly those that seek to harm Israel and the Jewish people. Governor Huckabee derided the two-state solution as “diplomatic fantasy” and confirmed the sense in the room that the incoming president will be a strong ally for Israel. “The partnership between the United States and Israel are deeper than political and economic,” he summed up. “It is based on the values of what it means to be a human being.”