Dear Friend,

This past Wednesday, a few hundred from our community came together to mourn the tragic loss in Israel this week . Here are some thoughts that came to mind during the service as I watched our united community. My thanks to Rabbi Uriel Vigler for sharing these some of these ideas with me.

Shock.
Horror.
Tragedy.
Outrage.

There are literally no words that can accurately describe the profound loss we feel this week.

For 18 days, I checked the news first thing each morning to see if the boys had been found. Eyal, Gilad and Naftali have been in our hearts and on our minds virtually non-stop. We prayed fervently and wholeheartedly that our boys would be found alive. On Sunday night, while in New York with a group from Chabad of Cary, we heard words of encouragement from Rabbi Steinsaltz, the dean of the Yeshiva where two of the boys studied, as well as Rabbi Lau, the Chief Rabbi of Israel.

But after 18 days we received the shocking, brutal news that Eyal, Gilad and Naftali had been shot dead in cold blood just hours after they were abducted. We were brought to tears when Rachel Frankel, Naftali's mother, cried, "Rest in peace, my dear son."

We also finally heard the phone call Gilad placed shortly after entering the car. He was able to call the police and whisper, "I've been kidnapped." But sadly, the police center did not react. They thought it was a prank call. It was ignored and the kidnappers had a 10 hour head start, resulting in an 18 day manhunt and the kidnappers are still at large.

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In this week's Torah portion the Jewish nation is likened to a lioness, crouching in the field, ready to pounce. Often we lie dormant, but when the call comes, we wake up and pounce.

While Gilad wasn't able to initially mobilize the police force, he was certainly able to mobilize the global Jewish community. There are rare moments in life where we get "that call" - a call to action. This was one of them. “I have been kidnapped.” The call of Eyal, Gilad and Naftali
grabbed hold of us, shaking us to the core, refusing to loosen its grip. And even though we Jews disagree on many things, this call mobilized us as a single unit. We responded as one nation, with one heart. One family. We prayed, studied Torah, lit Shabbat candles, and committed to keeping new mitzvot in their merit.

For 18 days it didn't matter if you live in Japan, South Korea, Alaska, America or Israel. It didn't matter which branch of Judaism you identify with or which community you belong to. The truth became abundantly clear - we are all Jewish and we are all in this together. Eyal, Gilad and Naftali awakened us and we pounced together.

And then tragedy struck. But that does not mean we should abandon the call. No, instead, we should listen and internalize it.

We read in the Torah this week, that the Jewish people are a "nation that dwells alone." We saw that too, over the last 18 days. Nobody cares about us like we do and the love and care we have for each other stretched across the entire globe and the world of social media. Let's make a concerted effort to continue what Eyal, Gilad and Naftali started - unparalleled love and unity through all segments of the Jewish population. When we are truly united, nothing can stand in our way.

We continue to demand from our dear Father in Heaven #bringbackourboys, bring Moshiach and redeem us from this dark exile, when we will be reunited with Eyal, Gilad and Naftali and our own loved ones.

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This Shabbos, we're excited to have Esti Herman with us visiting from Pittsburgh! Davening at 909 Reedy Creek Rd. begins at 9:30 am with Torah Reading and discussion at 10:30 am and a kiddush at around 12:30 pm. The kiddush is sponsored by Ella Grach in memory of Polina and Issac Grach.  

Good Shabbos

Rabbi Yisroel and Rebbetzin Chana

PS July 4th is a fitting day to reflect upon and appreciate the tremendous blessing that this country has been for our people, a place that the Rebbe would often refer to as "A Country of Kindness." More here.