In my conversations this week with one of the finest soldiers in Israel Yair Ansbacher, I asked him where are we heading from here.
He responded, "The difficult events surrounding the outbreak of the war in Gaza brought together between religious Jews and other segments of the population, and even revealed a sense of appreciation from the secular left and leaders of the protest against the government, to the most ultra-religious who rallied to save lives in a time of crisis.
In these days, Yair Ansbacher serves as a volunteered reservist fighter in the Lotar unit on the day everything started when we realized a major event was happening in the South, he recounts. Initially, there was a very severe shock, both mentally … Read More »
Parasha Insights
We are one people
WE WILL RESPOND WITH OUR CORE
Everyone is horrified beyond words at the unthinkable mass murders committed on Simchat Torah in Israel by Hamas, inside our country, across a dreadfully unprotected southern Israel — a valiant southern Israel where our people fought against impossible odds against an enemy.
We Were Shaken to the Core; We will Respond with Our Core.
Since the Holocaust we never had so many Jews killed in one day. Yet it also differs from the Nazis, because the Jews now thank G-d have a country and, while shocked and horrified by what has befallen us, resurrected the unified will, to protect ourselves and root out the cancel of terror and sadism.
President Biden said this week: I visited Israel 50 years ago. Golda Meir revealed to me the secret weap… Read More »
WE ARE UNITED! AM ISRAEL CHAI!
I write this article five days after the Hamas massacre of Jews in Israel. It is one of the most difficult articles I have ever written. We cry bitter tears over the more than twelve hundred beautiful precious souls that were cruelly and inhumanely snuffed out. We are paralyzed by the sheer magnitude of the horror that our brethren experienced. We imagine their terror, the agony of knowing they are about to die, the unbearable trauma of watching their loved ones tortured to death, and the sheer pain of their own death. We imagine and we cringe. We wring our hands. We close our eyes, but the images remain.
We are in grief. We are in mourning. We are numb. And we are enraged. We want to rise like lions and reverse this tragedy. We want to tu… Read More »
CHAZAK CHAZAK VENITCHAZEK!
Sol calls the Rabbi. “Rabbi, I am preparing for the end. I am searching for the right rabbi to officiate at my funeral and give the eulogy. So, I am shopping around for the right one. It all depends, of course, on the price.
Sol was wealthy but stingy, and a tough guy.
“Rabbi, how much would you charge to do my eulogy?” The Rabbi responds: Depends on what you want. If you want a super deluxe package, it costs $10,000.
For that, you get a beautiful eulogy, during which I cry. For $5000 you can get a deluxe package. I give a beautiful eulogy, I say beautiful things about you, but no tears.
Rabbi! That’s too expensive. What can I get for 500 bucks? “For 500 dollars,” says the rabbi, “I will s… Read More »