ISRAEL TURNS 65 this year with the celebration of
Yom Ha'atzmaut, Israel’s Independence Day, this 6th of Iyyar, 5773 (Monday evening, April 15).
Typically, Yom Ha’atzmaut is celebrated inside Israel with large public parties, fireworks, and music. Outside Israel, we often gather with community, honoring Israel by giving attention to Israeli culture and contributions.
While there are many
Israel-related PJ Library books for children, this year there is a special opportunity for the adults in PJ families as well. The Harold Grinspoon Foundation has partnered with the filmmakers of
Israel Inside: How a Small Nation Makes a Big Difference to offer a special online treat.
Israel Inside: How a Small Nation Makes a Big Difference is a short documentary exploring Israel from a humanistic, psychological, and emotional perspective. According to the film’s website,
www.israelinsidethemovie.com, the filmmakers purposefully sidestep “the usual conversation of politics, conflict, and violence” in order to tell of Israel’s creativity and inventiveness.
PJ Library is inviting any and all website visitors to honor Yom Ha’atzmaut this year with a viewing of
Israel Inside: How a Small Nation Makes a Big Difference. Watch the complete documentary via the embedded video player on this page.
AN ENTREPRENEURIAL FOCUS
For PJ Library founder Harold Grinspoon, the filmmaker’s focus on Israeli innovation was brilliant.
“Entrepreneurship in Israel is just everywhere,” Grinspoon says. “This film really shows us what is being accomplished in our homeland—innovations that benefit the entire world.”
Indeed, the 20-plus interviewees whose voices make up much of the film’s discourse make exactly that point. Such leaders as Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat, Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, Sir Martin Gilbert, Prof. Alan Dershowitz, Prof. Jacob Frankel, Tamar Jehuda-Cohen, and Shai Agassi collectively point to the intellectual, artistic and cultural contributions that continue to make Israel a “flourishing, productive, and caring society.”
April 15, 2013