Sivan Says

Moriah Chen from the Hidabroot website published the following questionnaire for anyone who wants to gain a clearer picture of themselves and of their mission in the world: 1. What would you do for free? Think about the activities you do without noticing the passage of time. What makes you forget to eat or sleep? What subject can you talk about for hours without stopping? Sometimes your profession or direction in life is hidden in the things you would do even without being paid.

Odelia Eliav is the mother of Adiel, a paratrooper who was moderately wounded in Lebanon and is now hospitalized at Rambam Medical Center in Haifa. From there, she began sharing updates unlike any others. At first, she simply kept people posted about the injury, the surgery and the recovery. But by the next day, I saw a different kind of update from her: a list of thank-yous, one after another.

Chaim Elchanan Idan lives with cerebral palsy. He cannot walk, eat or speak on his own. A few years ago, when he tried typing on a computer as usual, he felt once again that his fingers weren’t responding quickly enough. His nose, on the other hand, tapped out letters in rapid succession. “Right now I’m typing to you with my nose,” he wrote when I reached out to him on WhatsApp.

Last week, in a single moment of terror, a missile fell near the home of the parents of the Peretz family in Bet Shemesh. The house that had been filled with memories and warmth was reduced to a pile of rubble.

I recently had the opportunity to spend Shabbat in Jerusalem with 100 Israelis, most of whom were observing Shabbat for the first time. The Kesher Yehudi organization has been pairing haredi and secular Israelis for Torah study for many years. Lately, though, there has been a growing demand for something else: Shabbatot for those who want to experience Shabbat up close.

I recently spoke with Phil Rosen, chair of World Jewish Congress (American division) and a board member of Yeshiva University. He is intimately familiar with the situation of the Jewish people both in Israel and in the US, and is optimistic about our future. “I’m not worried, because we have the best youth in the world. The younger generation shows us what our future will look like. Take a look at the role models of young people in the West today. For example, Greta Thunberg. She is a young woman with mixed-up values who has become a symbol without really knowing anything at all, not about climate change nor about terror. Her values are so confused that she is supportive of Hamas. Is this a suitable role model for young people?”

A year ago, I gave a lecture in Kiryat Motzkin about Chanukah. I spoke about the battle of the Jews against Greek culture, the ideological struggle that the Jewish people still face today against foreign influences, and the profound message of bringing light specifically at the height of darkness when the days are so short, dark and cold. I added several modern stories of courage and light from our times.

Most people have not heard about this rally, and that’s a shame because it’s a deeply important part of our story. Julie Kuperstein, mother of released hostage Bar Kuperstein, had been dreaming of this rally for almost two years. Her husband, Tal, who had been injured in a car accident, achieved astonishing physical and emotional milestones: He managed to stand again and regained his speech, “for Bar.” At the same time, Julie reached new heights of maternal and Jewish strength, forging a profound and unlikely bridge between the secular and haredi communities.

Several days have gone by since the return of the last living hostages from Gaza, and the relief and elation are still fresh in our minds and hearts. How many stories have you heard about them? How many stories did we miss, stories that didn’t make it onto this list?

ROSH HASHANAH 5786 SECTION D, PAGE 23 So many dramatic events, so much upheaval — where is all this heading? When there are so many question marks, it’s worth remembering, …

It was a moment I don’t think I’ll ever forget. This past Simchat Torah, hundreds of young Nova survivors gathered at a Jerusalem hotel to celebrate the holiday alongside bereaved families and families of hostages. Everything in their world had changed since the previous Simchat Torah — Oct. 7, 2023. They talked, hugged, danced with the sifrei Torah. But one guest, a young man, sat off to the side, withdrawn and heavy-hearted.

The accompanying photo of me with Agam and Meirav Berger was taken on Saturday night. When Agam was a hostage in Gaza, the Kesher Yehudi organization arranged so many Shabbatot in her merit, and now Agam herself participated in a Kesher Yehudi Shabbaton — a special Shabbat of gratitude.