Gush Etzion

Explore the vibrant tapestry of Gush Etzion, from its historical landmarks to economic initiatives. From this article, you’ll gain a deeper understanding and appreciation of Gush Etzion’s role in shaping Israel’s past, present, and future. The Rebirth and Flourishing Community of Kfar Etzion Kfar Etzion was established in the 1920s but was abandoned during the Arab riots of 1929. It was re-established in the 1940s by a group of Jewish settlers. The settlement was a focal point of conflict during the 1948 war. In May 1948, just before the establishment of the State of Israel, Kfar Etzion fell to Jordanian...

Ma’ale Adumim (The Red Rock Ascent) is perhaps the closest community, of Judea, to Jeruslaem, located approximately seven kilometers north of the city. The city boasts magnificent views of the mountains of Jerusalem, including Mount Scopus and the Mount of Olives. The name dates back to the times of Joshua. The ancient city rested on the line separating the biblical portions of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. Due to the fact that the area served as an assent (which is the translation of the Hebrew word Ma’ale) and due to the red rocks (Adumim means red) that were part of the topography, the area became known as Ma’ale Adumim and maintains its name till today. After the Yom Kippur War, a group known as the ‘Ma’aleh Adumim group’, which was organized in Jerusalem and included members from all walks of life and from all walks of life set out to inhabit the area of Ma’aleh Adumim. After much effort, in the year 1975, the Government of Israel decided to approve the establishment of a residential camp for the workers in the area (the area now called Givat HaMayasdim) and henceforth a new Jewish community was established. Ma’aleh Adumim is a community largely comprised of families. As such the municipality does a great job of giving the residents a quality family life. One example of the family-friendly nature of the city is the Bnai Zion Municipal Library. The library works to provide maximum access to a wide range of books, reference books and consultation for the purposes of study, enrichment and leisure, with 85,000 titles in the library. New books in various languages, such as Hebrew, English, French, Spanish and Russian are available there. The library’s memberships includes approximately 4,800 families and 16,000 readers. Ma’ale Adumim is located within the jurisdiction of the Gush Etzion Regional Council, but has its own locality due to its size, making it a city. In 2015 it had a population of 37,525, making it one of the largest cities in Judea and Samaria. The city is located in the portion of Israel that was designated for the tribe of Judah.

Bat Ayin is located approximately twenty-five kilometers south of Jerusalem, in the area of Judea known as Gush Etzion (or Eztion Block in English). All of the communities of Gush Etzion are adjacent or connected to a road called Derech Avot (road of the fathers). This road, which still exists, gets its name from the fact that it is the road that all of the Jewish patriarchs traveled while they resided in Israel. Bat Ayin was established by seven families led by Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburg in 1989, on land originally purchased by Jews before 1948, which, under Jordanian rule until 1967, was treated as “enemy property”. Bat Ayin is located within the jurisdiction of the Gush Etzion Regional Council. In 2015 it had a population of 1,226. The city is located in the portion of Israel that was designated for the tribe of Yehudah (Juda). Bat Ayin is also the home of many of our producers! Some of our recent packages contained products from Shlomit Cohen and Elisheva Shira. In fact, Shlomit has an amazing product coming in this month’s package from Lev Haolam.

​ Nevertheless, the festival continued and hundreds of families and took the opportunity to enjoy a healthy, natural and fun day out. Visitors were told that it was an “all you can eat” affair, and that they could take home baskets of fruit for a modest fee. ​ Many took the opportunity to “self-harvest” and filled their baskets with ripe, juicy cherries in the Kibbutz Rosh Tzurim orchards. Tourists came from all over Israel, young and old, religious and secular, to take part in the colorful event which included music, a farmers’ market, tasting stations with dishes prepared by the...

​ It was after Shlomit and her family moved to Bat Ayin that a chance encounter created the impetus for Shlomit to start producing her own organic cosmetics. Shlomit recounts that about 11 years ago, her husband Tomer, who was running a survival training camp for the boys in their community, became sick and was unable to continue leading the camp. He asked Shlomit to take over the camp that day and to teach the kids something special. Shlomit took the opportunity to first teach the boys about a variety of plants and to then gather those plants with the...

​ The IDF specifically wanted to present the soldiers with packages assembled and arranged by Lev Haolam so as to match the message and theme of the event. Since the ceremony marked the jubilee of Jewish life in Judea and Samaria, Lev Haolam – a company whose mission is to promote products produced in Judea and Samaria – seemed like the most natural fit. ​ At the ceremony, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated a promise he had made just over a month ago. Netanyahu remarked, “I tell you clearly and before anything: There will be no more uprooting of...

Olga is the mother of 6 children. She lives in Tekoa (pronounced T’koa) a beautiful community in the Judean Hills, just south of Jerusalem. Tekoa is part of the area of Judea known as Gush Etzion (Etzion Block). Tekoa like all the communities in Gush Etzion, is located near the historical road called Derech Avot (Path of the Patriarchs) - a road traveled by all of the Jewish patriarchs. We traveled to Tekoa to meet with Olga, to hear her story and - although we did know it beforehand - to stand in awe by her masterpieces. Olga crafts stunning handmade candles that are bright even before being lit. Olga is truly an artist. The work that went into creating the engraved candles designed for our Lev Haolam subscribers requires an acute attention to detail and an intuitive spark of creativity. During our interview, we discovered that Olga’s passion for candle making came much later in life. “I’ve always dreamt of being a professional artist,” Olga tells us. “I love to paint, I love ceramics. And I searched for a long time for a profession that I could make money from and a profession that I would enjoy working in.” “By chance, I thought about candle making. I searched for as much information that I could find about candle making. And I began to become more talented at the art of making engraved candles. I became inspired,” Olga recalls emphatically. “And I knew that this was the profession for me.” We then asked Olga about the quaint community of Tekoa that she now lives in and how she came to find out about it. “I’ve been living in Israel for 18 years now and I made Aliyah (immigrated) from Ukraine… I really love yishuvim (small communities in Israel) and I have searched for a long time for a community like this one. And this community appeared to me. I also have family living here.” Olga went on to tell us, “The people here are very open. We live here like a family. I haven’t seen people in any other place. Also in our neighborhood in particular, we live like a family. When I leave my house, I don’t feel the need to lock my door. This says something,” Olga continued. “ is also a place which is very suitable for raising children. They leave the house without fear, despite the fact that our community is surrounded by many Arabs.” When we asked Olga about her business, she responded by telling us that it has grown. “It’s been about 4 years since I began this business. Today, I have come a long way from where I started. I now have a website which has enabled me to sell my products online. I also sell products in Israel - in Jerusalem, Tekoa. Tekoa in particular, I have been selling candles for many years and also candles for Havdalah (a post-Sabbath ceremony).” Olga also wanted us and the subscribers of Lev Haolam to know that she was thankful for their support for her and her family. “This really helps. It helps when so many people see it and when many people recognize it . And in particular, through the support of Lev Haolam, people outside of Israel also become aware of what we are doing, which is certainly good. And it is also good for the Jewish people that live outside Israel to know that we don’t just make candles, but that we make specially engraved candles and candles for Havdalah as well.” “I hope that with the help of Lev Haolam the business will be able to further develop, not just in Israel but also outside of Israel as well.” Would you like to help support the families and small businesses of Judea and Samaria? Consider signing up for the Surprise Monthly Package Project today.

​ “My husband is a tour guide who likes guiding tourists but mostly he enjoys guiding solider groups. As he was instructing everyone to put their bags back on the bus – a truck came and hit him. The terrorist killed the soldier he was talking to instantly and my husband was thrown back, he rolled on the grass. He was surprised to discover he could get up and understood it was a terrorist attack and right away ran to shoot at the terrorist; he just shot his whole magazine and shortly was joined by others. A few seconds later,...