TOTAL SOLIDARITY

Surreal!

No WORDS can describe the horror we have all just WITNESSED!

Shocked! Horrified! Paralyzed! Scared!

How?… Why?… Such HATE! CRUELTY!

We all believed “NEVER AGAIN”.

How did it happen again? In front of our eyes?

Let’s be CLEAR. The battle to defend and defend the Jewish people and the land of Israel is UPON US ALL.

As I am writing, hundreds of thousands of OUR brothers and sisters are fighting for OUR very survival! They have dedicated their very lives for each and every one of us. We OWE them EVERYTHING.

So what do we DO?

TOTAL SOLIDARITY.

The Jewish people are ONE people. Interconnected and Interdependent. INDIVISIBLE.

We all SHARE the same history. We will all share the same DESTINY.

As our father in heaven is eternal. So are his people eternal. We have survived for millennia ONLY because we have retained our TIMELESS values. Our JEWISH IDENTITY and VALUES are synonymous.

As Jews, we can only afford to love each other. To show kindness to each other. To judge everyone favorably! To speak ONLY positively. To think only GOOD about each other.

These are our TIMELESS values. These will ensure our ETERNITY.

Just one more thing. Our love for one another must be RECIPROCATED. As our brothers and sisters in Israel are fighting for their lives and ours. Making the greatest SACRIFICES to protect the Jewish people. We need to make sure we reciprocate.

We should give CHARITY to Israel - MORE than we can AFFORD.

We should be kind to each other - way BEYOND our comfort zone.

To judge everyone FAVORABLY - even when it’s not very obvious.

To say GOOD things about others - even and especially when we don’t like them.

We can’t AFFORD anything else.

Our very SURVIVAL depends on it!

Rabbi Yosef Vogel