Summer 2017

Will you help protect the children of Nofei Nechemia?

Nofei Nechemia

Emergency needs are a tricky thing. Like any insurance— medical, life, fire– you
invest, paying your premiums month after month, year after year, praying never to
cash in on your policy. The people of Nofei Nechemia are concerned for what is
most important to them… their families and their homes. They need to ensure that
their families are protected.
In the name Nofei Nechemia you find the Hebrew work for view… scenery… and if you
visit this lovely community, you’ll look out at some of the most breathtaking vistas of
Samaria. But if you look past the beauty, you realize just how vulnerable they really are.
Nofei Nechemia is situated in hostile territory, a region that has suffered terrible terrorist
attacks. The people of Nofei Nechemia know they must settle this beautiful piece of land,
but they also know they must never take their safety for granted. They need emergency
lighting, life-saving medical equipment and a public address system.
Won’t you answer the call and help them take care of their most pressing emergency
needs?

Request your copy of the summer 2017 Nahala

Stand Up For Israel.

Joy Heylen: An Aussie on a Mission of Love

Joy Heylen

Australian Joy Heylen came to Israel for the first time in 1999.She admits she didn’t have a clue about Israel but then she started reading… Isaiah… Zechariah… “And suddenly I saw it all and started meeting with others who loved Israel.” In 2001 Joy visited the Kotel for the first time. She touched the wall “and I was down like a pack of cards. I started sobbing, feeling like the Shechina— the Holy Spirit of God—had never departed from this place.” Joy has returned to Israel every year since… sometimes twice. “There’s something about the people, the land. In Australia I feel like I am in exile. In Israel I feel closer to God.” And then, in 2003, Joy came to Shiloh on a Feast Tour with CFOIC Heartland. It was her first time visiting Judea and Samaria and the rest, as they say, is history. Little by little, through talks with director Sondra Oster Baras and

Students in Judea and Samaria

through readings on her own, Joy realized what God wanted her to be doing with the settlements. And she likes to use the word settlements (a word which the media uses disparagingly), because that’s what the Israeli pioneers of the Biblical Heartland are doing— settling the land. Joy learned that the so-called settlements make up a very small part of Judea and Samaria. “And the world says Israel is occupying Palestinian land? Pushing them out of their land? Such lies!”

Pioneers in our day

Aviva Yisraeli:

Aviva Yisraeli

Aviva Yisraeli’s Family

Though Aviva was only nine years old when her family made Aliyah from Canada, she remembers clearly, feeling wonderfully excited. She was young enough not to be nervous about making the move and was ready to enjoy what living in a Jewish country would mean. Outside of Israel she always felt that being Jewish set her apart… made her different. In Israel she was home. And one of the perks was being able to go to the mall and eat everything in the Food Court because all the restaurants were kosher! Though she realizes that moving to Israel was her parents’ choice, Aviva claims that her insistence and ability to acclimate and acclimate well, was her own. She remembers convincing her mother to send her on a camping trip with her friends because “You become Israeli in the summer!” Her family lived in Efrat for five years and then moved to Tekoa, another community in Gush Etzion, and there she has stayed.

Give Thanks

Neve Zuf Firefighters

We stand in awe, thankful to God for the great miracle, that He bestowed upon our community and its inhabitants, by thwarting their plans and insuring that there were no fatalities. The great embrace that we have received from people in Israel and from our Christian friends throughout the world has given us added strength. To those that brought supplies and food, day and night with very little rest and all those that have aided us financially we owe a great debt. Your support, added a lot of light during the dark days. We hope that thanks to your generous contributions and together with the assistance we receive from governmental and municipal agencies, we will be able to revive our infrastructure, our services and our forest. Most importantly we will begin the process to rebuild the lives and homes of our neighbors and friends. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

With great appreciation,
Shulamit R imel
On behalf of the residents of
Neve Zuf – Halamish

An Eye on Zion: Kochav Yaakov

Just over a century later, a group of devout pioneers sharing the same love and passion for the Land of Israel, founded a new community just north of Jerusalem. Drawing their inspiration from Rabbi Yaakov Abuhatzeira, they named it “Abir Yaakov,” the same venerated title that was used to address the late Rabbi during his life. Subsequently renamed “Kochav Yaakov,” (“Star of Jacob”), the community has absorbed many Jews who, like Rabbi Abuhatzeira, left their respective countries of birth to live in the Land of Israel.

Mar 3, 2025

The Evil That Surrounds Us

As we watched the return of what we thought were the bodies of four beautiful Israelis, we wept with the families and with all of Israel. Shiri Bibas and her two gorgeous red-headed children, Kfir and Ariel — their story and their pictures traveled the world and became the symbol of the evil and cruelty of the Hamas terrorists.

Feb 25, 2025

An Eye on Zion: Kiryat Arba

On April 4, 1968, Rabbi Moshe and Miriam Levinger, a visionary couple, registered themselves and dozens of others to stay at Hebron’s Park Hotel. Just ten months after the People of Israel liberated Hebron and the rest of the Biblical Heartland during the Six Day War in 1967, this dedicated group excitedly planned to hold the city’s first Passover Seder in several decades.

Feb 17, 2025

The Price We Pay for Caring

What an emotional roller-coaster! Last Sunday and again this past Saturday, we waited with baited breath to see which hostages would be released and what they would look like. It had been more than a year since the last hostage release, and no one knew what their condition would be.

Jan 28, 2025

A Week in Washington D.C.

The experience of participating in what could be one of the most pivotal moments for Judea and Samaria left an indelible mark on me. I want to share with you, my friends, the highlights of this extraordinary journey.

Jan 23, 2025

An Eye on Zion: Yakir

The pioneers named the nascent community “Yakir,” meaning “precious,” the precise Hebrew word used by God to describe His “son,” Ephraim (Jeremiah 31:19).

Jan 13, 2025

Life in a Villa in a Jungle

It is hard to believe that another year has gone by—another year of seemingly unending war, tragedy, loss. There are still 100 hostages being held by Hamas in Gaza. While at least 36 have been murdered, it is not clear how many of the remaining 64 are still alive.

Dec 31, 2024

An Eye on Zion: Avigayil

Drawing their inspiration from the Biblical figure Avigayil (Abigail), Elisha and his friends decided to establish a new community in the southern Hebron Hills. They parked an old bus on a plot of land facing Maon, the ancient Biblical site where Avigayil lived.

Dec 9, 2024

Israel Welcomes Trump

What an astounding result in the US elections! While this regime change will have significant effect on many issues in the US, as an Israeli, I want to share with you my thoughts, which reflect the thoughts of so many in Israel, on how this change will affect Israel.

Nov 19, 2024

An Eye on Zion: Bet Hagai

On Friday evening of May 2, 1980, a group of students from Nir Yeshiva, located on the outskirts of the Biblical city of Hebron, excitedly headed to the Cave of Machpelah. There, they joyfully welcomed in the Sabbath with uplifting prayers.
That evening, however, terrorists threw grenades and fired bullets in the direction of the students, murdering three of them.

Nov 11, 2024