As Israel faces its latest crisis, with Eyal Yifrach, Gil-Ad Shaar and Naftali Frenkel still fresh in everyone’s thoughts and with Hamas rockets flying throughout the country, Orthodox Union Executive Vice President, Emeritus Rabbi Tzvi Hersh Weinreb will provide “A Spiritual Response in a Time of Crisis: Lessons from Three Jewish Mothers,” on Monday July, 14 at 7:00 p.m. at Beth Israel Congregation, 770 West 41st Street, in Miami Beach.
The program is being presented by the OU Department of Community Engagement and Beth Israel Congregation, together with local synagogues, schools and the Greater Miami Jewish Federation. Mincha and Maariv as well as appropriate prayers will follow the presentation.
Rabbi Weinreb has returned from Israel where he paid shiva calls on the families of two of the three murdered teenagers, Prior to leaving for Israel and on his return two days later, he delivered an address at two New Jersey synagogues on “Were Our Tears Shed in Vain?” at a memorial service for the boys. His presentations can be found at www.ou.org.
“I personally visited two of the three families plus the cemetery in Modiin,” Rabbi Weinreb said after his return. “I could not visit Gil-Ad Shaar’s family because they had taken a three-hour respite just as I arrived in their community of Talmon and I had to return to Jerusalem urgently. However, other members of OU delegation did visit that family later in the shiva period.”
Without revealing the identities of the three mothers, for greater effect during the speech, Rabbi Weinreb summarized his talk as follows: “There is a crisis facing the Jewish nation. I will reflect on its unique nature. We can overcome this crisis with our actions on a number of fronts. I will outline some of them, focusing especially on the need for Ahavas Hashem, Ahavas Yisrael and Ahavas Eretz Yisrael, which translate simply into deeper spirituality, Jewish unity, and commitment to the Land of Israel. I will provide practical suggestions, and draw inspiration from ‘three mothers.’”