We were driving southeast in Lebanon, from Beirut back down towards Marjayoun, when the shelling started. Our Jeep driver was in a near panic. He was not part of our regular unit; he was a …
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By Rabbi Binny Freedman
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6/5/19
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If you would have asked me what Abir would end up doing with his life, I would have imagined him as a bouncer....
Abir, an ex-paratrooper, is one of the unsung heroes of the battle of the …
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By Rabbi Binny Freedman
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11/19/20
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I recently heard a wonderful story by a flight attendant who, after being throttled by one too many rude comments, was starting to think she needed to change careers. Then a passenger had a heart …
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By Rabbi Binny Freedman
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6/16/16
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Many years ago, I had the opportunity to take a long-overdue vacation with my family in Walt Disney World. For our children, who had just spent the better part of a year dealing with the …
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By Rabbi Binny Friedman
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4/7/21
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It was known as shavua Tirgolot, the week of training drills. It sounded pretty innocuous, but as it turned out, it was a week of hell.
The IDF prides itself on being prepared for any eventuality, …
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By Rabbi Binny Freedman
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2/22/18
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First, there was the screaming and yelling. When my blanket was thrown off and I felt the freezing air, I finally woke wup. It was 3 am and we had seven minutes to get dressed in full uniform and be …
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By Rabbi Binny Freedman
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3/30/16
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This week’s portion, Tetzaveh, opens with a particular mitzvah which seems at first glance to be rather out of place:
Hashem tells Moshe:
“Ve’Atah Te’tzaveh Et B’nei Yisrael, Ve’Yikchu’ Eilecha’ Shemen Zayit Zach- Katit La’Ma’or – Le’Ha’alot Ner Tamid.”
“And you shall command the children of Israel, and they shall take to youpure olive oil which was crushed for the light, to raise up a continuous [daily] flame” (Exodus 27:20)
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By Rabbi Binny Freedman
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2/21/13
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Allah Hu Akbar [G-d is great].” These are the final words witnesses say the terrorist screamed before ramming his car into a crowd, killing three month old Chaya Zissel and wounding several …
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By Rabbi Binny Freedman
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10/30/14
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We had just come in from manning an impromptu roadblock all day and I was still on edge. Six of us had been tasked with setting up the roadblock round a bend in the road in Lebanon’s Bekaa …
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By Rabbi Binny Freedman
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6/28/17
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There are places in this world that are so powerful, so full of meaning that they allow us to tap in to why we are really here. Such a place is Emek HaBacha, The Valley of Tears.
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By Rabbi Binny Freedman
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3/15/12
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