As a toddler, Samuel entered the service of God with Eli the priest at Shiloh, home of the Ark of the Covenant, about twenty miles northeast of Jerusalem.

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    • Emma Klatman Twelve year-old Emma lobbied Congress for increased funding for diabetes research; her involvement made a difference.
    • Lior Liebling Despite his disability, Lior became a bar mitzvah and inspired his congregation to greater spirituality.

    • Samuel

    Reluctant Kingmaker

    About

    Claim to Fame:
    Was the first of the major prophets who preached inside the Land of Israel and the last of the Israelite judges.

    Kings He Anointed:
    Anointed, or performed the ritual that empowered, Saul and David as the first Israelite kings.

    Greatest Disappointment:
    Couldn’t persuade the Israelites to rely on God rather than on a human king.

    Favorite Quotation:
    “Above all you must honor and serve Adonai faithfully with all your heart; and consider how generously God has dealt with you. For if you continue in your wrongdoing, both you and your king will be swept away” (1 Samuel 12: 24 – 25).

    Major Contribution:
    Established a rule of kings, a monarchy, based on loyalty to God’s teachings.

    Beginnings

    • Born in Ramah, in the hill country of Ephraim, second half of the eleventh century BCE.
    • Hebrew Name: Sh’muel, meaning “God has heard.” Samuel’s mother said she named her son Sh’muel because “I asked God for him [and was heard]” (1 Samuel 1:20).

    Groups I Belong To

    First day of Rosh Hashanah (H), B’shalah (H)