Jewish Moments

Counting Each Person: The Mitzvah of Donating Half a Shekel

What is the biblical commandment of donating half a shekel, connecting with the month of Adar? How can we use the values behind this mitzvah to illustrate the importance that each and every person contribute to bringing the hostages home?

There is a commandment in the Torah which calls on every person over the age of 20 to contribute a half-shekel to the community. This commandment is read in synagogues today during the regular Torah reading cycle, with an additional reading that highlights this commandment on the Shabbat leading into the month of Adar (or Adar Bet during a leap year). How can we use the values behind this mitzvah to illustrate the importance that each and every person contribute to bringing the hostages home?

Adults Middle School Teens Young adults
Come Home: The Jerusalem Orchestra East West, with Ninet Tayeb, filmed at the National Library of Jerusalem.
In partnership with

Dedicate this activity in honor of

Alon Ohel 22
Alon was kidnapped from the party in Re’im.
You May Also Like
Shabbat: Remember & Observe
Remember & Observe: Shabbat Rituals
What inspiration can we take from our weekly Shabbat rituals to remind us of the hostages?
Remember & Observe: Shabbat Rituals
Remember & Observe: Shabbat Rituals
Hear Our Pleas
Hear Our Pleas: Action through Prayer
What prayer traditions and customs do we have to pray on behalf of the hostages?
Hear Our Pleas: Action through Prayer
Hear Our Pleas: Action through Prayer
Weekly Words of Torah
Weekly Words of Torah
What inspiration and learning might we find in this week’s Parsha (Torah Portion) about the issue of the hostages?
Weekly Words of Torah
Weekly Words of Torah
Counting Up
Counting Up
What can we learn from Jewish tradition about the act of counting?
Counting Up
Counting Up
Bringing the Hostages to Your Seder
Bringing the Hostages to Your Seder: Seder Supplement
How might we integrate hope for the return of our hostages into our Seders this year?
Bringing the Hostages to Your Seder: Seder Supplement
Bringing the Hostages to Your Seder: Seder Supplement
Fast on my Behalf: Ta'anit Esther
The Fast of Esther: A Time for Communal Gathering & Solidarity
What might we learn from the Jewish tradition of communal fasting and prayer?
The Fast of Esther: A Time for Communal Gathering & Solidarity
The Fast of Esther: A Time for Communal Gathering & Solidarity
Bring Home the Hostages
Tu B'Shvat Seder
Bring Home the Hostages Tu B’Shvat Seder
A Tu B’Shvat Experience Dedicated to the Hostages
Bring Home the Hostages Tu B’Shvat Seder
Bring Home the Hostages Tu B’Shvat Seder
The 
#BringThemHomeNow 
Educational Toolkit
Stay informed about Everyone Counts updates and new resources

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
Skip to content