Surviving Hell: Israeli Hostages Bear Witness to Horrors BACKGROUND – TALKING POINTS – DISPELLING FALSEHOODS – ACTIONS – PERSON OF THE WEEK – STORIES ‘The vile lottery of Jewish lives continues’ As hostages are being released in a slow and painful process, the captives and their families are suffering devastating psychological effects, now 500 days […]
Emaciated Hostages Cast Holocaust Shadows, Trigger National Trauma BACKGROUND – TALKING POINTS – ACTIONS – PERSON OF THE WEEK – STORIES The three Israeli hostages recently released by Hamas were so emaciated and frail that images broadcast from Gaza sent shockwaves throughout Israel and much of the world. The appearance of the three men was eerily […]
“When Pharaoh sent the people off …” With the plagues past, the blood dried, the matzah baked and packed, the people are leaving Egypt. But no celebration ensues. There would be no straight road to Canaan, only carping and complaining and delay. Even behind pillars of cloud and fire, the Israelites were unprepared for the […]
Confronting Campus Antisemitism: Progress Amid Persistent Threats BACKGROUND – TALKING POINTS – ACTIONS – HOSTAGE UPDATE – STORIES Combatting antisemitism – anti-Jewish hatred – on university campuses has been an arduous process this past year, requiring an all-hands on deck approach. In the face of pressure from alumni, student groups and government agencies, some campuses […]
“(God) secures justice for those who are wronged, feeds the hungry, God releases the prisoners” (Psalms 146:17). Malbim* says “it is to say that a human king, in freeing a prisoner from his sentence, has already done enough justice and goodwill, and a person will not ask for any more help, but God frees the […]
Holocaust Remembrance and Confronting Today’s Challenges BACKGROUND – TALKING POINTS – ACTIONS – HOSTAGE UPDATE “Whoever listens to a witness, becomes a witness. It is all about memory. The survivor’s duty is to bear witness for the dead and for the living. To forget the dead would be akin to killing them a second time.” – Holocaust survivor, author […]
During these days of “Operation Wings of Liberty,” we rock back and forth between outbursts of joy, deep sadness and disappointment, anxiety and fear, despair and once again hope. Sixteen months of war, during which we have hoped, anticipated, prayed to witnesses the release of our sisters and brothers held in anguish and captivity. In […]
Israel’s Painful Sacrifice: Trading Convicted Murderers to Save Innocent Hostages BACKGROUND – TALKING POINTS – ACTIONS – STORIES Relief and dread descended over Israelis with the latest release of three Israeli hostages by Hamas in exchange for 90 Palestinian prisoners. The release of innocent hostages – held under inhumane conditions – comes at the heavy cost […]
Rabbi Hillel Skolnik, President, MERCAZ USA Wednesday, January 22, 2025 This past Monday morning, as our country marked Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, his almost prophetic words expressed in February 1968, two months before his assassination, rang particularly true. “We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.” Reading through the Book of […]
A friend showed me an Islamic prayer rug that his son took when he served in Gaza. Deuteronomy 23:10 teaches: “When you go out as a troop against your enemies, be on your guard against any evil thing.” Nahmanides (1194–1270) explains that in war, “the most naturally upright person becomes cruel and wrathful …” My […]