The event, which will be held on Tuesday at the Jerusalem Theater, will feature 16 young people competing, 12 from the Diaspora and 4 from Israel.
By Shula Rosen
The annual Bible quiz is an anticipated part of Israel’s Independence Day festivities. Still, in a year marked by the ongoing war with Hamas, the focus will be on courage in times of crisis and the unity of the Jewish People.
The event, which will be held on Tuesday at the Jerusalem Theater, will feature 16 young people competing, 12 from the Diaspora and 4 from Israel.
The contestants were narrowed down after being tested at a Bible Camp, during which they had the opportunity to meet Chief Rabbi David Lau and visit Yad Vashem, the Western Wall, and other sites.
Given that the contest is taking place during wartime, the questions will focus on the theme of war.
Singer Yigal Oshri will perform accompanied by children from war-torn communities in the south.
The judges will include Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana as well as Iris Haim (mother of Yotam Haim, killed by Israeli fire), Rabbi Yemima Mizrahi, Jewish Agency Chairman Doron Almog, and World Zionist Organization Chair Yaakov Hagoel.
Gur Rosenblat, deputy director of the Education Ministry organizing the event, told Israel HaYom, “The quiz will focus on courage and revival this year; this will be reflected in the questions themselves and how they’re asked.”
Some of the questions will be asked by Rachel Edri, popularly known as “Rachel from Ofakim,” who stalled terrorists on October 7th by serving them cookies, Israeli activist Yosef Haddad, a senior reserve office and a representative of the Druze community.
Rosenblat praised the children arriving from overseas to compete in the quiz and their parents for sending them.
He said, “Their families showed extraordinary resilience, sending their children and expressing full confidence in Israel’s ability to protect them.”
He added, “The contest will be impactful, empowering, and unifying – what the country needs now.”
“It will be a different kind of Bible contest that preserves the connection to the Bible while reflecting what’s happening in Israel. We’ve worked six months on this. Nothing connects the Jewish people in Israel and the Diaspora like this contest.” Rosenblat concluded.