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This week our community is excited to be hosting 12 severely injured IDF soldiers for 10 days of fun—our first post-Covid trip. We’ve been showering them with love and treating them to all kinds of exclusive activities that most would otherwise never experience. 

We took them to a Ferrari-Maserati dealership for a tour of the different models, and they were even given a ride—a real thrill! One of the Ferraris was stowed away in storage and may only be touched with white gloves. It’s one of only 300 worldwide and has a price tag of $2 million, we were told. 

I listened as the owners explained about the different models. They showed us one model that they won’t sell to a first-time owner. You cannot buy it until you already own two other Ferraris!  

The soldiers were so excited and I needed to understand the hype. Why is this the most luxurious brand in the business? So I sat myself in the driver’s seat and they showed me all the special features and told me about the horse emblem in the front. 

All I could think of was the words we pray each morning: “G-d does not desire the strength of the horse, G-d desires those who fear Him,” and I was thinking … Ferrari!

But what truly makes the Ferrari so special is its speed. Nothing can compare, or even come close to it. It’s like magic!

The Tzemach Tzedek, the third Chabad Rebbe, had a student who was into fast horses. The Rebbe asked him, “Why is a fast horse so much better than a slow one?"

The student explained how a fast horse takes you from place to place with such speed, you reach your destination much faster. 

“Yes, but what if the fast horse is going in the wrong direction?” asked the Tzemach Tzedek. “Then the speed is a disadvantage, because you end up much further in the wrong direction than you would on a slow horse.”

“But as soon as you realize you’re going the wrong way,” answered the student, “you turn around and go in the right direction much faster.” 

The Rebbe looked at him with a penetrating gaze and repeated three times, “Yes, as soon as you realize it’s the wrong direction. As soon as you realize. As soon as you realize.”

What was the Tzemach Tzedek trying to tell him? 

He was pointing out that we need to be certain we are galloping along in the right direction in our spiritual growth and development too. 

Take a good look at your morning routine. You race through your coffee, to the gym, to work, from meeting to meeting … we are zipping through life faster than a Ferrari! But are we moving in the right direction? Are we focused on what is truly important? How can we make sure?

We need to slow down and examine our motives. Are we focused on what we can take or what we can give to the world and those around us? Is it all about the next dollar, the next deal, the next concert, the next meal? Or is it about putting good deeds out into the world? Taking time out for a friend who needs a listening ear. Stopping mid-afternoon to connect with G-d and daven Mincha. Disconnecting for 25 hours at the end of the week to observe Shabbat. By making our life one of mitzvot, one of a higher purpose, we can be sure we are galloping along in the right direction. 

This weekend, Shevy and I will celebrate the bar mitzvah of our beloved son Mendel. We are exceedingly grateful to the Almighty G-d for allowing us to reach this precious milestone. 

How 13 years have flown by so quickly is beyond me. It feels like just yesterday that Mendel was born. I remember the day so clearly. It was a Shabbat morning and I was thrilled to have the opportunity to be able to do the (fortunately rare) mitzvah of saving a life superseding Shabbat—i.e., calling a taxi and driving to the hospital on Shabbat, still in my tallit. The bris was also on Shabbat, and now, 13 years later, his bar mitzvah again falls on Shabbat. 

So, why are we so happy?

1. For one, the moment I walk into shul from now on, I’ll be bringing 20 percent of the minyan with me! How many times on a late summer afternoon or early Friday night do I find myself desperately searching for a 10th man for our minyan? So often our congregants ask why my sons can’t be counted and solve the dilemma. Well, now he can!
2. Moreover, I am thrilled because I will no longer be punished for his sins. Until bar or bat mitzvah, the responsibility for anything a child does wrong is transferred to the parents. Now, trust me, I have enough of my own sins to carry around, so I am grateful to be making the blessing, “Blessed are You, Hashem, Who has taken away my punishments.”  Now considered a man, my son will be responsible for his own actions. Which means I now only have six kids’ burdens to carry! 
3. For the past year, I have been studying daily with Mendel to help him master a maamar (chassidic discourse) by heart. I have spent hundreds of hours (I kid you not!) reviewing it with him. He will recite it from memory at his bar mitzvah. I deeply value all the one-on-one time we’ve spent on this—bonding, learning, talking, arguing, but I must say I’m kind of appreciating all the free time I now have! 
4. I’ve also spent tens of hours teaching Mendel how to read from the Torah, how to lead the services, and how to read the haftara. So I’m thrilled to have another “rabbi” in the house, who can help out whenever needed.
5. Most importantly, though, is that Mendel has now has become a full fledged member of the Nation of Israel. By turning 13, he has received the G-dly soul in all its glory. Words cannot describe the joy I feel when I look at my son and know that he is now linked to his father, grandfather, and great grandfather in an unbroken chain all the way back till Abraham. As my son accepts upon himself to fulfill Torah and Mitzvot, it is as if he is receiving the Torah again directly from G-d Himself! 

I remember myself as a shy, young, innocent 13-year-old boy, marking the milestone of becoming a fully fledged adult. That day is engraved indelibly in my memory. It is the day I read from the Torah for the first time, the day I accepted the yoke of heaven upon myself and became permanently connected to my heritage, my faith, my ancestors, and to my G-d. Watching my son Mendel go through the same process is beyond joyful! 

We are immensely grateful to his teachers at Yeshiva Ketana of Manhattan who do such a superb job, together with the menahel and the entire staff, and his counsellors and learning teachers in camp.

So, I bless you, my dear son Mendel, that G-d give you the wisdom, understanding, and knowledge to make the right decisions in life. As you become an adult in this turbulent world, may you shine your light out into the world, overcome the hurdles you will inevitably face, and develop a deep love and appreciation for Torah and mitzvot. May you be able to fulfill the Torah and mitzvot with a smile and true happiness, and may you be blessed to inspire others with your charm, personality, and grace! 

May you become a chassid, G-d fearing person, and a lamdan! 

Rabbi Uriel Vigler

A powerful picture made the rounds on social media this week. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and that’s certainly true here. In fact, this one picture captures the story of our nation—past, present, and future. 

As Israeli Col. Golan Vach and his crew worked alongside local rescuers to locate the bodies of a Jewish couple buried in the Champlain Towers debris, Vach noticed that many of the books he came across were from the Talmud. A photographer snapped the photo of him handing over several of the holy volumes to a South Florida Urban Search and Rescue team member, with the tremendous piles of rubble and dust in the background. The image soon spread across American Jewish social media and WhatsApp groups.

We are deeply pained by the loss of so many lives. Already 54 bodies have been found, and 80 remain missing. Each one has family and friends who love and miss them. The loss is immeasurable, and the heartache of those still waiting for news is overwhelming.  

And out of the devastation, what was rescued? The Torah. The Talmud. The central text of our nation, the people of the book. 

This is the story of our nation since time immemorial. What has kept us going throughout millenia of exile and persecution? The holy Torah. 

This week we begin the 9-day mourning period, culminating in Tisha B’Av, the day both our Holy Temples were destroyed, turned into piles of rubble and debris. For the last 2,000 years we have been in exile, pained and suffering, longing to be reunited. But one thing has kept us strong: the Torah, our book, our faith. 

In fact, when the Roman Emperor Vespasian was about to destroy the Temple, he granted the Jewish sage Rabbi Yochanan a single request. What did he ask for? He asked him to spare Yavneh—the city of learning—and its sages. This way, although the physical Temple was turned into rubble, the Torah knowledge and texts remained intact, able to serve as our source of strength for the last 2,000 years!

As a Jewish nation we have suffered so much for those 2,000 years. We have faced persecution after persecution, pogroms and tragedies. And what has kept us going and will continue to keep us going through this tragedy too? Our strong belief in G-d and His Torah. 

The pain of the Surfside collapse is tremendous! And while we reach to the Torah for comfort, we demand that G-d end this exile and all the tragedies immediately, with the coming of Moshiach and the ultimate Redemption. May He comfort the families of the Surfside victims together with all other mourners of Zion and Jerusalem!