As we near the 4^th of July, our celebration of 236 years of our country's independence, I feel humbled by the amazing opportunities and freedoms we have and continue to experience in America. We learn about and comfortably identify with Israel. We do so daily in our tefilot, celebrations and oftentimes in certain acts of protest, as well. May God bless America on the anniversary of its independence, and may we, as proud Americans, continue to employ our energies to keep our ties to Eretz Yisraelstrong and work to secure our democratic partnership with Medinat Yisrael.

We have uploaded a few clips from this year's
Yom Ha'Atzmaut, Israel's Independence Day program, for you to enjoy. The short film features the IDF band that followed our Tefilah Chagigit and also includes an insightful and passionate presentation by Ms. Miriam Krupka of the Tanakh Department.

Please enjoy the spirited IDF performance!