Blessed are those whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the Lord. Blessed are those who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart—they do no wrong but follow his ways. You have laid down precepts that are to be fully obeyed.
Oh, that my ways were steadfast in obeying your decrees! (Psalm 119:1-5)
It has been very devastating for all the Islanders affected by the horrendous fire that has totally destroyed parts of Maui in Hawaii. The main town of Lahaina, which is of tremendous historical importance suffered severely.
There were a number of Jewish families living in the area, and just outside the evacuation zone was the Synagogue community of Kalo Yujuico and that became a location for shelter and the donation of emergency supplies. But another synagogue - Chabad of Maui was inside the evacuation zone. Many Israeli families lost everything in the fire. One man lost his house and his bakery that was attached to it, another lost his fishing boat, but all were thankful they were alive.
Let us continue to pray for all those affected by this tragedy.
The Caribbean - It is not often we have a story from this part of the world. A Mother and daughter from Antigua and Barbuda, won a lottery organised by Virgin, the prize being a short flight into space. The Mother, Keisha Schahaff is married to an Israeli, and so she took an Israeli flag with her into space. The flight, which took off from the Virgin Galactic Spaceport in New Mexico, only lasted a few minutes. But it was long enough to unbuckle the seatbelts and float around.
USA - Sometimes it pays to be Jewish. According to the Sun Newspaper, Ghislaine Maxwell, whose father, Robert, was Jewish, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for her involvement in the Epstein sex abuse ring. She has not publicly identified herself as Jewish in the past and is not considered Jewish under traditional Jewish Law. But American prisons are obligated to honour inmates’ religious obligations in most cases - meaning that Jews are often given access to Kosher food, prayer supplies and changes in work schedules to account for Shabbat and holidays. Maxwell has used her Jewish identity through her father, who was buried in Jerusalem in 1991, and made use of it by allegedly using it to take refuge in Israel while under investigation for her role in Epstein’s sex abuse scheme.
Russia/Ukraine - An Israeli cargo ship has become the first vessel to openly defy Russia’s Black Sea blockade which prevents Ukraine exporting grain. The ship Ams1, which sailed from Ashdod, seemingly ignored Russian threats and entered the Ukrainian branch of the Danube at the beginning of August. It crossed the Black Sea while the American aircraft P8 Poseidon provided aerial security, reports said. Ams1 was followed by four more vessels that arrived shortly afterwards. Russia stepped away from the UN/Turkey brokered grain deal in mid-July, arguing that demands to improve its own food and fertiliser exports had not been met and that not enough Ukrainian grain had reached the poorest countries under the Black Sea deal.
Azerbaijan - Azerbaijan, well known for its love of Israel and lack of anti-Semitism, will welcome hundreds of European rabbis to discuss Jewish affairs in the first such convention in a Muslim nation. The biennial convention of the Conference of European Rabbis is scheduled to take place in Baku, between November 12-15th at the invitation of the Azerbaijan president Ilham Aliyev who will serve as the honorary host, with 500 rabbis expected to attend.
Greece - The Israeli team of firefighters has returned home from battling severe wildfires in Greece. For two days, Israeli aircraft conducted numerous sorties, dropping substantial quantities of water on raging fires. The Israeli team completed the mission, and the operational and professional co-operation enabled the team to meet tight schedules. The Israeli Police Air Division Superintendent Chaim Bar-Gil, who served as the mission commander stated “Our primary focus was to suppress the fires, preventing further outbreaks, and despite challenging weather conditions, we achieved our goal.”
Israel - Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has finally got approval from the Knesset of his divisive plan to curb the powers of the country’s justice system. His victory has come in spite of 6 months of massive nationwide protests that exposed unprecedented fissures in Israeli society. Massive demonstrations erupted after the vote outside the Knesset and in Tel Aviv. Thousands of Doctors walked out of work, labour leaders threatened a general strike and senior justices rushed home from a trip abroad after the government approved a law weakening the country’s Supreme Court that critics say will erode the system of checks and balances.
Netanyahu, who had had a heart pacemaker fitted only a few days before, and his right-wing allies say that the changes strengthen democracy by limiting the powers of unelected judges and giving elected officials more powers over decision making. But protesters see this overhaul as a power grab fuelled by personal and political grievances of Netanyahu - who is on trial on corruption charges.
Jordan - Israel and Jordan have signed a letter of intent in Abu Dhabi for a “water-for-energy” project, under which Jordan will build a massive solar farm in the desert that will generate clean energy to be sold to Israel in return for desalinated water.
“his is going to be a flagship example of bilateral relations and also of Israeli integration into the region” Said Oded Eran, a senior research fellow at the Tel Aviv based Institute for National Security Studies and former Israeli ambassador to Jordan.
It is expected that the agreement will be signed during the COP28 climate conference, which will be held in Dubai at the end of the year. The project will be funded by the United Arab Emirates.
Please continue to pray for the IDF forces on land, sea and in the air, as they continue to defend the Promised Land,
Maranatha
Steve
