"Am I therefore become your enemy,because I TELL YOU THE TRUTH...?"
(Galatians 4:16)

Aharit HaYamim - The End of Days Festival

“You are the new Israel! I have never seen anything like this,” the Tel Aviv DJ tells the crowd on the wooded Gush Etzion hilltop.
Festival-goers, a fusion of biblically garbed hilltop youth, Jerusalem hipsters and post-India searchers, scream back: “Thank you! We love you too!”“I’ve come to the Aharit HaYamim [End of Days] festival for three years now,” says Roni, a dread-locked star famous on Israel’s reggae scene. “Two years ago, the festival took place during the Disengagement period. It was smaller; subdued, but with an intense energy. Last year, it was during the Second Lebanon War, and nobody knew what was going to be with our country. This year, it seems like our situation is even worse, but strange things are happening. There is a great and mighty spirit in the air and we all feel it here tonight.” This year's festival took place on July 1, the 16th of Tammuz.The crowd was larger and more animated than ever before. Tents dotted the forest and a large chai-shop and dining area replicated the relaxed atmosphere many had savored after their army service, during travels in India.“Sitting under a fig tree, looking toward Jerusalem, when will the Shechina [Divine Presence] return, it’s been 2,000 years?…How did she Jerusalem sit in desolation, the splendorous city? And you, what are each of you doing? In this whole story-what are you doing so that Jerusalem is rebuilt?”The words, some original, others a mix of metaphors from Psalms and Lamentations, echo across the forested hilltop, itself a destroyed community being rebuilt through the annual festival. It is organized by Yehuda Leuchter and his brothers on the site their grandparents, Yoni and Rachel Doron, lived prior to the founding of the state. “It has been 59 years since our little community was destroyed and we were taken into captivity by the Jordanians,” Rachel Doron says, taking the stage between songs. “But it has also been 40 years since we returned to Gush Etzion and we are overcome with joy at seeing this place so alive.”
To read more and watch the pictures go to:
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/123045
As in the days of Noah...