The following letter was sent to all the ministers in the Government of Israel
together with an unnumbered proof coin.

In addition, a regular coin was sent to every member of the Knesset (Israel's Parliament).

And All The Ministers Rejoiced (II Chronicles 24:10)

How we remember the faces of the children, all dressed up for Purim, being told that there would be no celebration this year, because the enemies of Israel had perpetrated the most vile of atrocities that day.

They stole our joy that Purim. And that day, I determined to restore our joy a thousand fold.

Our tradition teaches us that the restoration of the custom of giving the Holy Half-Shekel is a source for true national rejoicing, for both our government's Ministers and the general population.

Eighteen months later, you hold in your hand, the first independently motifed Holy Half-Shekel in 1928 years.

The Half-Shekel comes to teach the dormant Jew that they are at least half a shekel, and the Haredi Jew that they are only half a shekel. It represents the ultimate manifestation of the equality of every Jew. There is no Hiddur (beautifying or adding on to) for this Mitzvah, you can not do it better than the next person, only the same.

And this is a Zionist's Mitzvah. It is a Torah Commandment only for those Jews who have an army ID number, as it was and is primarily a soldier's Commandment. And of course, yes, we receive it from every Jew, even from the Jews of the Diaspora.

Taken to heart, this Commandment carries the Tikun (fixing) for the baseless hatred and separations that exist today among our people. If a person acknowledges to them self, that they are only half a shekel, and that the other person is at least half a shekel too, then there can exist no hatred among equals. It is only when a person thinks them self a whole shekel, with the other not worth a prutah [an ancient penny], that hatred can exist.

The restoration of the custom of giving the Holy Half-Shekel will also give the Jew in the Diaspora an annual participatory relationship with Jerusalem.

This year's ceremonial coin is dated the year 50, following the custom of our ancestors, as they dated their coinage from the liberation of the Land of Israel, and the ascendancy of Jewish sovereignty over the Land.

It is with this ceremonial coin that we open the celebrations of the 50th year of the State of Israel.

A real cause for rejoicing! A rejoicing that does not come on the backs of any vanquished.

G-d Bless,


Reuven Prager
Beged Ivri



The following are responses from the various ministers and members of Knesset on receiving their coins.

Finance Minister

Jerusalem

1st Kislev, 5758
30th November, 1997

Reuven Prager
Beged Ivri
P.O. Box 28052
Jerusalem

Dear Mr Prager,

Greetings,

I hereby acknowledge with gratitude your letter and the accompanying half-shekel.

I was very impressed by the beautiful and special idea, and I hope that it will truly contribute to the unity of the Jewish people wherever they are.

With much respect and friendship


Yaacov Neeman



Letter to Finance Minister, Yaacov Neeman

15 Kislev 5758 (14/12/97)

The Honorable Yaakov Neeman
Minister of Finance
The Treasury
Jerusalem

Dear Minister Neeman,

Thank you for your prompt and insightful letter. Please forgive my speaking to one more experienced and wiser than myself, I humbly submit the following for your consideration:

This is the Half-Shekel of a Reform Jew:

A regular coin package, labelled in English was inserted here.



This is the Half-Shekel of a Haredi Jew:

A regular coin package, labelled in Hebrew was inserted here.


The Half-Shekel provides the plane of equality upon which compromise can be achieved.

If you would hand each participant at the beginning of the next meeting a Half-Shekel, and have everyone present acknowledge that they are ONLY Half a Shekel, and that everyone else in the room is AT LEAST Half a Shekel, not only will you have created the plane of equality upon which compromise can be reached, you will have sent forth a message from the State of Israel that EVERY Jew in the world wants to hear.

Please let me know how many Half-Shekels you need and I will be happy to provide them to you free of charge.

G-d Bless,

Reuven Prager
Beged Ivri



Minister of National Infrastructure
3 Kislev 5758
December 2, 1997

Mr. Reuven Prager
Beged Ivri
P.O. Box 28052
Jerusalem

re: Holy Half-Shekel

Greetings,

I thank you for the Half-Shekel coin and I bless you for the idea and the beautiful design.

Whatever can bring hearts closer, dispel baseless hatred, strengthen the ties between us and the Jews of the Diaspora, is acceptable to me and worthy of my support.

I wish you success in your endeavors.

With Blessings,


Ariel Sharon
Minister of National Infrastructure



The Knesset

Mr. Reuven Prager
Beged Ivri


Jerusalem, 17 Kislev 5758
December 16, 1997

Mr. Reuven Prager
Beged Ivri


Dear Sir,

I wish to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your letter and the accompanying silver Half-Shekel.

I really hope that through the restoration of the custom of giving the Half-Shekel, we can endear the Jews of the Diaspora, and bring them back to Israel.

Your work is an important and blessed undertaking, be strong and courageous!

With Blessings,


Dr. Marina Solodkin,
Knesset Member



The Office of the Minister of Science and Technology

Jerusalem, 17 Kislev 5758
December 16, 1997

Mr. Reuven Prager
Beged Ivri
P.O. Box 28052
Jerusalem

Greetings,

Your letter and accompanying Holy Half-Shekel were received in the Office of the Minister of Science.

Minister Michael Eitan blesses you for the Mitzvah, nonetheless there is no possibility as a Minister in the government to receive a gift, we would thank you to perform yet another Mitzvah and donate the magnificent Half-Shekel to any body or person in need whose interests are dear to your heart.

With much respect,


Yosi Yair
Advisor to the Minister



Reply to Minister Michael Eitan

19 Kislev 5758 (12/18/97)

Minister Michael Eitan
The Knesset
Jerusalem

Dear Minister Eitan,

Shalom. Thank you for your positive letter and the strong message of integrity it contained.

We learn in tractate Shekelim that a person must always strive to be "clean" in the eyes of man no less than in the eyes of G-d. Your letter reflects this teaching beautifully.

With this in mind, if you will permit me to continue, I would like to add a thought.

When we distributed the Holy Half-Shekels to each and every leader: the Prime Minister, the President, all the Ministers, all the Knesset members, the Mayor, the Chief Rabbis, and others, our intention was to give it to the "Office" or position of the leader, and not to the person fulfilling that office. In other words, we did not give you, Michael Eitan, a gift, we presented it to the Minister, as a leader of the people. I would even hope that the Ministers would leave the coins (a new one is to be issued each year) in their office so that each Minister can display the growing collection year after year.

With this understanding, we would like to return the Half-Shekel to your Office, as a trust and honor for the office of Minister of Science, presented on behalf of Klal Yisrael.

Regarding the distribution of Half-Shekels to the needy, we are working on setting up campaigns to provide the following segments with Half-Shekels to enable them to participate with the whole House of Israel in this vital Commandment; Jewish communities of Eastern Europe, India and elsewhere, where the average income would make purchase of the coins prohibitive, the incarcerated and their dependants, the aged and institutionalized, and any special needs group or community that comes to our attention. The very Mitzvah itself, is totally designed for the poorest segment of our people, as it says, "the poor shall give no less".

In Second Chronicles we read "and ALL the Ministers rejoiced". We beg you to reconsider accepting the Half-Shekel, otherwise this generation's Chronicles will read "and All the Ministers, except one, rejoiced".

G-d Bless,


Reuven Prager
Beged Ivri



The Knesset

Chairman
Committee of Legislation, Law, and Justice

17 Kislev 5758
December 16, 1997

Reuven Prager
Beged Ivri
P.O. Box 28052
Jerusalem

Greetings,

Thank you and Yashar Koach [Hebrew expression that defies literal translation - All power to you!] on the Half-Shekel coin.

With great respect,


Shaul Yahalom
Member of Knesset



Office of the Prime Minister

Jerusalem, 5 Adar 5758
March 3, 1998


Mr. Reuven Prager,

Greetings,

I hereby acknowledge receipt of your letter to the Prime Minister regarding the Half-Shekel.

Our Blessings are given to anyone who works to strengthen and produce Israel's heritage in our Land.

With much respect,


Eli Cohen
Advisor to the Prime Minister




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