News

I can’t possibly count how many times I’ve visited Yerushalayim; but whenever I go, surprises await me. Several weeks ago, within the space of an hour, I had several unexpected experiences.

David,* a secular Jew, went with friends to hear a shiur on the Torah of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov. The rav explained that every Jew can serve Hashem by focusing on what he can do today without worrying about tomorrow or the next day – one day at a time. David was intrigued. After the shiur, he went over to the rav and asked if that idea applied to someone who wasn’t religious. The rav assured him it applied to every Jew.

Between the endless headlines, the political noise, and the heavy weight of the war, I am always searching for moments of good news. I find many such moments in an Israeli WhatsApp group called G-d’s Miracles and Might in the State of Israel, which is dedicated to sharing uplifting stories from around the country. My phone pings constantly with their messages. I rarely manage to keep up, but that incessant pinging is a comforting reminder that somewhere nearby, something good is happening.

Like most kids, ours spend a lot of time on their gadgets. We brought them into the world with the hope they might savor the gift of life. Or at least ride their bikes once in a while. For young people, plugging in is a divine right. After all, they will live forever, have all of their needs met, and perish the thought of enduring a vacant minute. G-d forbid the Internet is ever down!

Israeli educator Avinoam Hersh recently shared a story about a man named Yehoshua – a story that serves as a powerful reminder that we should never lose hope.

I love the connection of numbers and Torah. In macro-terms, Torah is the blueprint of the universe. What is the secret of six? According to the famous Passover song, Who Knows One?, one is G-d, two are the Tablets, three are the Forefathers, four are the Matriarchs, five are the Books of Torah, and six are the orders of the Mishnah.