Becoming Best Friends

Exactly 10 days ago we began our 2016 Belev Echad trip. It's fascinating to see just how much has changed between that first day, and today, less than two weeks later. 

On the first day, our 12 IDF soldiers arrived as guests. A couple had been injured together, and were deeply bonded, some knew each other peripherally from spending time in the same hospitals, but for the most part, they were strangers. 

Over the last ten days, however, they stayed together, ate together, toured together and traveled together. They cried and laughed together, and inspired others as a group. By now, any shyness 
has been completely wiped away, replaced with deep personal connections, and intense bonds that will undoubtedly last for years to come. 

We know that loving our fellow Jews is one of the most important commandments, and one many of us struggle with. But if a group of people can bond, becoming lifelong friends, after only 10 days of shared experiences, what's our excuse?

What cemented our soldiers' friendships? Essentially, for 10 days, they spent every waking moment together, in a foreign country, with a shared mission and sense of purpose. 

Likewise, we Jews are foreigners in this world, with a shared purpose—to elevate the world, spreading G-dliness to those around us, in preparation for the final Redemption. 

And, like the soldiers, we have a shared history. We've been through the same experiences as a nation over the last 4,000 years. 

If they can bond in 10 days, surely we can manage, over the course of our lives, to bond with and learn to love and respect the rest of our "entourage"—our fellow Jews. 

In fact, this week we celebrate the Jewish holiday of Lag BaOmer. 

The Talmud relates that in the weeks preceding Lag Baomer a plague aged amongst the disciples of the great sage Rabbi Akiva, “because they did not act respectfully towards each other.” These weeks are therefore observed as a period of mourning, with various joyous activities proscribed by law and custom. On Lag BaOmer the deaths ceased. Thus, Lag BaOmer also carries the theme of the imperative to love and respect one’s fellow (ahavat yisrael).