Bill Berk

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Oct 19, 2021, 5:47 PM

Don’t Call Them Hilltop Youth

Don't call them Hilltop Youth. That name is so romantic. It evokes the courage and ferocious passion of Shimon bar Yochai hiding in his cave, perhaps also the Maccabee warriors. It conjures up images of idealistic young heroes, barefoot...

Mar 20, 2020, 12:31 PM

Standing at Mount Corona

In a new biography of David Ben Gurion author Tom Segev reports that as World War II began Ben Gurion "...now spent much time pondering history, internalizing it as personal experience and making it part of his perception of...

Mar 14, 2019, 12:59 PM

Bumper Stickers for this Election

Bumper stickers I'd like to see: 1. 12 Years is Enough; 2. No One is Above the Law; 3. Good Leaders Instill Love Not Fear; 4. Attacking Democratic Institutions is anti-Jewish; 5. We've Tried Right and Left -- Time for the Center; 6. Forbidden to...

Dec 4, 2018, 8:07 PM

Horn Honking in Israel

I grew up in a place where drivers rarely honked their horns. I remember being taken aback during my first visit to NYC to hear horn honking often. Of course, New York horn honking doesn't compare with Israeli horn...

Oct 25, 2018, 10:20 AM

82% of Israelis in for shock

A Pew poll released in early October showed that 82% of Israelis support President Donald Trump. It would appear that the vast majority of Israelis are understandably grateful for his policies vis a vis Israel—especially moving the embassy to...

May 27, 2018, 8:05 PM

Trouble on the Right

In college I was a leftist. I used to joke that I was slightly to the left of Mao Zedong. I slowly discovered that the left acted the way the right did--lots of exaggeration, small distortions, even lies. I...

May 22, 2017, 7:02 PM

Two minutes with Trump

US President Donald Trump greeting Israeli ministers during his welcome ceremony at Ben Gurion Airport, May 22, 2017. (Hadas Parush/Flash90)

Given the chance, he'd tell the President, 'if there’s one thing you know, it’s how to make a deal'

Nov 15, 2016, 9:38 PM

Hoping for hope

It would appear that half of America is stricken with a bad case of “losing hope.” Despite the fact that I was devastated by the results of the election I want to put in a good word on behalf...

May 23, 2016, 5:08 PM

Does Lieberman Believe in the IDF Code of Ethics?

The news that MK Avigdor Lieberman will be our new Minister of Defense was crushing. The problem is not that he doesn’t know anything about the army. The problem is his values. He is the Israeli leader who led...

Mar 2, 2015, 8:48 AM

We’re Stuck and Everybody Knows It

We’re Stuck and Everybody Knows It: 6 Reasons This Anglo is Voting for the Zionist Union A few months before he was murdered I heard Yitzhak Rabin (z”l) say, “We have to take risks for peace.” You might ask yourself—why? ...

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About Me

Bill Berk was born in California and graduated college from the University of California, Berkeley. He attended rabbinical school (HUC) and served congregations in Palo Alto and Phoenix. Bill made aliyah in 2006, and worked at the Hartman Institute running their educational programs for rabbis. He has worked at Keshet and Makor in the field of educational travel.