ARZA Chairman awarded OAM in Australia Day honours
January 27, 2009 by Steve
Chairman of ARZA, Ian Samuel was awarded the prestigious Medal of the Order of Australia (see below) on January 26 2009 as part of the Australia Day celebrations.
In the Australian honours system appointments to the Order of Australia confer recognition for outstanding achievement and service. The Medal of the Order of Australia is awarded for service worthy of particular recognition. Recipients of the Order of Australia are from many fields of endeavour and all walks of life.
Ian Samuel was recognised “for service to the community, particularly through the promotion of tolerance and social justice.”
ARZA, the Union for Progressive Judaism and the World Union for Progressive Judaism have all paid tribute to Ian on this well-deserved recognition of the decades of tireless voluntary work carried out on behalf of so many wonderful causes.
The details of the award are as follows:
MEDAL (OAM) OF THE ORDER OF AUSTRALIA IN THE GENERAL DIVISION awarded to: Mr Ian Bruce SAMUEL, 8/50 Grant Street, Malvern East Vic 3145
For service to the community, particularly through the promotion of tolerance and social justice.
These are the organisations he has volunteered his time and devoted his energies to over the years so far and for which he was given this award:
Member Executive Committee, Union for Progressive Judaism, for 20 years.
National President, Australian Reform Zionist Association; Secretary and Honorary Solicitor.
Coordinator, Progressive Trust of the United Israel Appeal.
Member, National Executive, Zionist Federation of Australia, 1981-1992 and since 2000; current Chairman, Information and Public Relations.
Current Member, Board of Management, Temple Beth Israel, Melbourne; involved in a number of committees; Life Member, 2001.
Councillor, Executive Council, Australian Jewry.
Board Member, State Zionist Council of Victoria and Chairman of Information.
Co-Founder, Makor; Board Member; volunteer, for 20 years.
Fundraiser, King David School, Melbourne; previously on the School Council and Legal Adviser.
Treasurer, Australian Council of Stoma Associations Inc, 1994-1998; Member of Executive; Legal Adviser.
President, Ostomy Association of Melbourne Inc, 1992-1994, 1999-2000 and since 2005; magazine Editor, Founding Member; Legal Adviser.
Master, Wesley Collegians Masonic Lodge No 358, 1978-1979; Member, 1970-1997.
Member, Masonic Lodge Fraternal No 603, since 1997.
Member then Chairman, Banking and Finance Committee, Law Institute Victoria; Member of Executive.
Awards/recognition include:
Jewish Community Council of Victoria Award, 2006.
Menorah Award, B’nai B’rith Melbourne Chapter, 2001.
Ner Tamid Award Australian, New Zealand and Asian Union for Progressive Judaism, 2000.
Askan Award, United Israel Appeal, Australia, 2005.
A Prayer for Israel’s Soldiers
January 5, 2009 by nicola
May the One Who Blessed
our ancestors,
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob,
Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah,
Bless the soldiers of Israel’s Defense Forces,
and every one who stands guard
in order to protect our people.
May the Holy One, Blessed be God, protect them
and save them from all troubles and afflictions,
from all sickness and injury
and send blessing to all their endeavors.
May the words of the Prophets
come to fruition through them:
“and they shall beat their swords into ploughshares
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war any more.
And each one shall sit under the vine
and under the fig tree and none shall be afraid,”
And let us say, Amen.
מִי שֶׁבֵּרַךְ אֲבוֹתֵינוּ וְאִמוֹתֵינוּ,
אַבְרָהָם יִצְחָק וְיַעֲקב, שָׂרָה רִבְקָה רָחֵל וְלֵאָה,
הוּא יְבָרֵךְ אֶת חַיָּלֵי צְבָא הֲגַנָּה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל,
וְשְׁאָר מָגִנֵי עָמֶנוּ,
הַעומְדִים עַל מִשְׁמַרְתָם. יִשְׁמֶרם.
הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא וְיַצִּילִים
מִכָּל צָרָה וְמצוּקָה וּמִכָּל נֶגַע וּמַחְלָה,
וְיִשְׁלַח בְּרָכָה בְּכָל מַעֲשֵׂה יְדֵיהֶם.
וִיקֻיַּם בָּהֶם הַכָּתוּב:
“וְכִתְּתוּ חַרְבותֵיהֶם לְאִתִּים,
וַחֲנִיתותֵיהֶם לְמַזְמֵרוֹת
-לא יִשְׂאוּ גּוֹי אֶל גּוֹי חֶרֶב,
וְלא יִלְמְדוּ עוֹד מִלְחָמָה.
וְיָשְׁבוּ, אִישׁ תַּחַת גַּפְנוֹ וְתַחַת תְּאֵנָתוֹ
-וְאֵין מַחֲרִיד.” (מיכה ד)
וְנאמַר: אָמֵן.
ARZA Chairman, Ian Samuel, makes statement on the current Middle East situation
January 1, 2009 by nicola
ARZA Statement on the Middle East situation by Chairman, Ian Samuel
It is with very great sadness that on the eve of a New Year, the time when we renew our hope for a safer and more peaceful world, that we are, once again, witnessing death and injury caused by the blind determination of a group of people committed to the destruction of the State of Israel.
As we express our sadness for all involved we re-affirm that we stand with Israel in her vital effort to ensure the security of all who live within her borders. We also re-state our support and endorsement for every effort that is made by Israel to pursue peace with the neighbouring nations and the Palestinian People.
We remind the world that Hamas chose to end the existing cease-fire and that they have cynically chosen to use Palestinian civilians as cover for their military operations. We also remind those whose immediate response is to blame Israel that, even today, Hamas openly declares its commitment to destroy Israel. We can only hope that Hamas will make the decision to move beyond this bloody conflict by stopping all attacks on Israel from the territory it controls.
We welcome the words of Israel’s Defence Minister Ehud Barak that every effort will be made to limit casualties among the civilian population of Gaza. We also welcome the words of the Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, who emphasized that “while confronting Hamas, Israel continues to believe in the two-state solution and remains committed to negotiations with the legitimate Palestinian Authority in the context of the peace process, launched at Annapolis.”
At this time we are deeply saddened and pained by the threat to the civilian population in Israel who have been suffering from a continual barrage of indiscriminate bombing by the outlawed Hamas terrorists from within Gaza and can only pray that the extremist Hamas leadership, which is governing Gaza to the detriment of the civilian Gazan population, will take the simple action required to end this current situation – their agreement to stop firing rockets into Israeli civilian population centres.
It is our hope that compassion and reason will replace the blind hatred that is the hallmark of Hamas and its supporters. It is our plea that the international community will turn its focus away from the incessant criticism of Israel toward those who see the lives of their own women and children as expendable and pressuring them to relent. Ken yehe ratzon (May this be God’s will).
Ian Samuel
Chairman