| Friday morning, May 21, began with a visit to the extraordinary community of Beitar Illit, just 15 minutes south of Jerusalem. Beitar was the center of Jewish life in Israel during the period of the Second Temple, which was destroyed in 70 AD. Today's Beitar Illit was founded in 1991, and is one of the fastest-growing communities "beyond the Green Line." (The Green Line is the line on maps that marks the pre-1967 borders of Israel). The former mayor of Beitar Illit, Moshe Lebowitz, served as our guide, informing us about this city of over 25,000 people, where each family has five to seven children. The residents come from the U.S., Russia, and Israel to this Hareidi ("religious") community, discovering an immaculately clean and well-equipped environment. We were especially impressed with their security center, which houses video displays that chart all the activities in the city. Often, Beitar Illit's security equipment allows them to work with the Israeli army in alerting them about potential dangers. Mr. Lebowitz declared, "We live by nissim (miracles)." |
