News Roundup, March 25th

You can't make up the news - real life is so much more entertaining.

1. Over the years, the Muqata blog has followed all sorts of interesting items sold on ebay -- including the joke offer of the entire Israeli city of Petach Tikva.

However, a synagogue in Givat Shmuel (near Bnei Brak) is now seriously offering for bids on ebay the privilege to name their shul after the highest bidder, starting at $600,000.

2. Its only 2 weeks away from Birkat HaChama -- the special blessing recited only once in 28 years after the cosmic cycle of the (symbolic) approximate location of the sun at the time of creation. The NY Times even wrote about it back in April 1897...(hat-tip, R' Tzvi and DovBear).

Click here for the whole article.

3. Speaking of Birkat HaChama -- for those interested, while it does occur on Erev Pesach this coming year, and Erev Pesach is always a crazy, busy day -- a group of people are arranging the recital of Birkat HaChama on Har Habayit -- the Temple Mount (after ritual purification in a mikva, of course).

Translation:

Unique Experience -- Erev Pesach and Birkat HaChama on Har Habayit (Temple Mount). Going up on Wednesday, 14th of Nissam at 7:30 AM.

+ [Bus and cars] Leaving from the Mikva in Kiryat Arba/Hevron at 4:45 AM.
+ "Vatikin" (Early Morning Prayers) at the Kotel/Western Wall.
+ "Siyum" (Finishing a tractate of Talmud), breaking the "Fast of the First Born", and food before going to the Temple Mount.
+ "Birkat HaChama" according to the custom of Rav Goren.

Mandatory: One must go to the mikva before going to Har Habayit. One must not go to the Temple Mount with leather shoes. One must come with identification.

For more details and registration:
Yitzchak: 054-411-5809
Assaf: 02-996-3020
Gershon: 02-996-1430.

(If you do plan on going, please let me know -- I'd be happy to get a first hand description of your experience...it's too difficult for me on Erev Pesach to go back and forth to Jerusalem...)

4. Has it really been 3 years since I wrote this? Its all about the differences between men and women (Mars and Venus) about how they approach Pesach cleaning.

Worth a read -- nothing has changed since then either, except I've started doing Pesach shopping.

That's all for now.

Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד