Dear friends of the AMI Center.
We are in the midst of three very important days for the people
of Israel. First is the Holocaust Remembrance Day on April 14,
2026, second is the Israeli Memorial Day on April 21 st , and the
third is Israel’s Independence Day on April 22nd. These dates
are set each year based on the Hebrew calendar, so each of the
days begins the evening before and their dates vary from year to
year on the Gregorian calendar.
The Holocaust Remembrance Day: The Holocaust Remembrance (or
Memorial) Day is a National Day of Remembrance observed every
year on the 27 th of Nisan and is dedicated to the memory of the
Holocaust, perpetrated by the Nazis and their accomplices
against the Jewish people in the years 1933-1945. This is not to
be confused with the international Holocaust Remembrance Day
observed on January 27 th each year on the date the Soviet army
liberated the Auschwitz death camp. In Israel in the evening
before the Holocaust Remembrance Day at 8 PM there is a large
ceremony at the Warsaw Ghetto Plaza at Yad Vashem attended by
the prime minister and Holocaust survivors. Six torches are
carried by Holocaust survivors in memory of the six million
victims. On the Holocaust Remembrance Day (April 14 th ) at 10 AM
in the morning, sirens will sound all over Israel marking the
beginning of 2 minutes of silence showing unity and a time to
remember. All work is suspended, meetings paused, and all
traffic on all roads will cease. Cars even on highways pull over
and stop. All flags are lowered to half mast, many businesses
close, and many events take place. Shlomo told me that no one
can truly understand the Jewish people until they visit the
Holocaust camps in Poland and see the well documented atrocities
which took place. With his encouragement I led a group to Poland
and will never forget what I witnessed of the horror that took
place, why this day of remembrance is so important, and why the
world must never forget what happened.
Memorial Day: Seven days later is Israel’s Memorial Day which is
the National Day of Remembrance to honor the fallen both in
Israel’s armed forces and those who fell because of terrorism.
At 8 in the evening of April 20 th , sirens sound and there is one
minute of silence marking the beginning of the Day of
Remembrance where the entire country comes to a standstill and
flags are lowered to half-mast. Following the siren a large
state ceremony is held at the Western Wall Square in Jerusalem
attended by the President of Israel. Many light a memorial
candle in their homes for the entire day. The names of the
fallen are projected onto the façade of the Knesset and on the
walls of the Old City in Jerusalem. The following morning at 11
AM, sirens sound again, and all of Israel again comes to a
standstill, stopping all traffic, meetings, business, etc.
Prayers are said in synagogues and ceremonies are held to honor
the fallen.
Independence Day: On the evening of the Memorial Day there is a
torch lighting ceremony held at the Memorial Hall on Mount Herzl
which concludes the Memorial Day events and begins the
Independence Day celebrations. The speaker of the Knesset
attends and the Israeli flag is raised to the top of the pole
thus officially beginning Independence Day which celebrates the
establishment of the State of Israel. Many celebrations will
follow on April 22 nd, and the joy, thankfulness, and national
spirit of the Jewish people is wonderful to witness if you can
be in Jerusalem on Independence Day. I have had the privilege to
participate in these celebrations as well as seeing the
“flyover” of Air Force aircraft over the city of Jerusalem and
felt the excitement of a reborn nation of Israel.
I think the order of these three days is important, going from
the devastation of the Holocaust, to remembering those who have
fallen fighting for and defending the State of Israel, to
celebrating the rebirth of Israel as foretold by the Word of
God. It leads us to the hope that is part of the Israeli
national anthem “Hatikvah” or The Hope. The second verse says,
“Our hope is not yet lost, the hope that is two-thousand years
old, to be a free people in our land, the land of Zion and
Jerusalem”. This hope is still fresh and alive today within the
hearts of the people of Israel.
God bless each one as we stand with the Jewish people during
this time.
Bruce Larson