This past summer, JLIC hosted more than 300 students in Israel during five seven-week programs and three two-week volunteer trips. Those in the seven-week programs took part in internships at such organizations as Shaare Zedek Medical Center, Hadassah Hospital Ein Kerem, PwC, Deloitte, Shalva and The Jerusalem Post. They also attended beit midrash sessions in the evenings, learning from Torah scholars on diverse topics. The program included social events and a dozen chesed opportunities.

As the war continued, the need for optimism grew even stronger. Our spring edition, “Hope Amid Crisis,” filled precisely that need, delivering lessons in resilience, faith and spiritual strength. This issue also addressed the domestic effects of October 7th, highlighting the rise in antisemitism at universities and public high schools as well as the proactive responses of the OU’s various programs. Aiming to reach English-speaking communities in Israel, we printed 10,000 copies of the magazine for distribution there for the first time.

Focusing on the intersection of halacha and warfare, our summer edition, “Religion on the Battlefield,” explored real-life halachic questions faced by soldiers. It also provided an inside look at the work of the IDF chevrah kadishah’s women’s unit and introduced readers to the lives of soldiers’ wives, who demonstrate immense faith while managing housework, childrearing and jobs.

As the war in Israel continues, Jewish Action remains dedicated to examining the impact of October 7th on both American and Israeli Jews. Our fall issue featured a groundbreaking, extensively researched article titled “The Great Jewish Awakening,” offering an in-depth look at how that day “lit a fire for Jews around the world” and how many are “hungry for connection.”

To commemorate the first anniversary of October 7th, the magazine invited readers to share how they were impacted by a day that will forever resonate in Jewish hearts. The stirring responses ranged from a non-Orthodox woman in Dallas, formerly intermarried, who is now “living more Jewishly,” to an Israeli seeking to “sanctify her life” in memory of the friends she lost at the Nova Festival.