Parasha Kedoshim (קדושים – Holy), Leviticus 19:1-20:27 and Ezekiel 22:1-19. Pirkei Avot Chapter 2. Yom HaShoah. Yom HaZikaron. Yom HaAtzmaut.
In Pirkei Avot 2:1:
רבי(1) אוֹמֵר: אֵיזוֹ הִיא דֶֽרֶךְ יְשָׁרָה שֶׁיָּבוֹר לוֹ הָאָדָם, כָּל שֶׁהִיא תִּפְאֶֽרֶת לְעֹשֶֽׂיהָ וְתִפְאֶֽרֶת לוֹ מִן הָאָדָ.
Rabbi(1) says, ‘What is the straight path that a person should follow? It is the one that honors him in his own eyes and also honors him in the eyes of others.
Located atop Jerusalem, Mount Herzl, also known as the Mount of Remembrance (Har HaZikaron), is a place of memory, where heroes are honored. It houses the National Cemetery of Israel, various memorials(2), and the Herzl Museum.
Every year, during national commemoration days such as Yom HaShoah, Yom HaZikaron, and Yom Ha’Atzmaut(3), Mount Herzl becomes the focal point of official ceremonies, embodying the spirit of memory, resilience, unity, solidarity, and determination of the Israeli people.
(1) Rabbi Yehuda HaNassi, Rabbi Yehuda the Prince, better known by the titles Rabbi, My Master, or Rabbeinu HaQadosh, Our Holy Master, was a Tanna (Mishnaic sage) of the fifth generation (135 – circa 220 CE).
(2) At the top of Mount Herzl, the place where the tomb of Theodor Herzl is located hosts the opening ceremony of Israel’s Independence Day. Around the square, the National Cemetery houses the graves of numerous personalities, as well as those of soldiers and civilians who sacrificed their lives for Israel. Near the summit on the western slope lies Yad Vashem, the world’s largest Holocaust memorial, honoring Jewish victims of the Holocaust, as well as heroes and Righteous Among the Nations.
(3) Yom HaShoah: Holocaust Remembrance Day, Yom HaZikaron: Israeli Memorial Day for fallen soldiers and victims of terrorism, and Yom Ha’Atzmaut: Independence Day.