Kirk Douglas Theater screens account of October 7

Anyone who closely followed media reports about the murderous invasion of southern Israel by Hamas on October ober 7 will be familiar with Noam Tibon. A retired IDF general, he rushed from Tel Aviv to Kfar Aza to save his son, daughter-in-law, and two grandchildren. 

He was also in the audience at the Monday night premiere of Voices of Pain, Hope and Heroism, the 80-minute Aish production that details what happened to five families on October 7 and its aftermath, in which an interview with Tibon was included.

Prior to the screening in the Kirk Douglas Theater of the magnificent five-story Aish building, guests were treated to a poignant rendition of “Jerusalem of Gold,” on the rooftop, from where they were able to watch a large contingent of soldiers dancing in the center of the Western Wall plaza on their way to the Kotel to pray.

The video, which opens with a scene repeated during Tibon’s interview with the chief media and marketing officer at Aish Jamie Geller, has him saying: “Sometimes you have to make decisions according to your values. You don’t leave people behind.” A soldier of the old school with a military career that spans over three decades, Tibon lives according to those values – as do others of his generation to whom he gives credit for their actions that day. On his way to save his family, Tibon saved civilians and soldiers and managed to kill a few terrorists as well. 

Other interviewees in Voices of Pain, Hope and Heroism were less fortunate. Julie Kiperstein has accepted the fact that her hostage son Bar Kiperstein – who had been working at the Nova festival and was taken hostage while tending to the wounded – is in the hands of God, who will decide his fate. Meanwhile, she and her family have decided to do something positive until Bar is released from captivity. Based on the fact that when taken, he had left his tefillin at home, the family started a campaign asking people to lay tefillin daily in Bar’s name until he returns – and to post pictures to that effect on social media. The response has been overwhelming, including from men who may have last laid tefillin at their bar mitzvah, if at all. 

Since her son Yotam Haim, a heavy metal drummer, was kidnapped, escaped, and was then tragically killed by friendly fire, his mother, Iris Haim, a nurse by profession, has become one of the most strident voices on behalf of the families of hostages. Because she understands the situation that brought about the death of her son, she bears no grudges and has invited the soldiers of the unit in question to her home. Hundreds of people have visited her and have been inspired by her attitude.

Haim echoes those clear-thinking people who attribute the Hamas attack to the rift in Israeli society. “Our enemies are using [our] divisiveness against us. We must listen to each other to other voices without hate,” she says.

Parents honor children's memories in heartfelt and uniquely personal ways. 

 When 21-year-old Sgt. Binyamin Airley of the 101st Battalion of the Paratrooper’s Brigade fell while fighting in Gaza, his mother Jen Airley went singing to his funeral because she knew that it was what he would have wanted. She also knew that he would gladly have given his life for Israel all over again. To honor Binyamin’s memory, Airley and her husband, Robert, established Binyamin’s House in a property they had purchased in Safed, converting it into a retreat center for anyone suffering from the trauma of war who is in need of a healing environment close to nature. 

Alon Mesika and Sheerie Mesika found a unique although expensive way to memorialize their son Adir, murdered by Hamas at Nova. Adir died while fighting off Hamas and trying to protect his girlfriend, Yuli, who manged to survive. A friend of Adir’s had sent Alon a video of an army wedding and, while watching it, Alon, who is a jeweller, decided that the first soldier who requested army leave in order to propose to his girlfriend would receive a diamond engagement ring. Word spread and more rings were given away. Unfortunately, the first soldier to propose, Dor Zimmel, was killed in battle. At the time that the video was made, Alon and Sheerie had presented 100 rings to couples and, since then, have given away even more rings, glad of the opportunity to do so in memory of their son.

All the interviews in the film are powerful, but the finished product is too obviously a plug for Aish and shows too much of the documentary’s producer, of Geller, and of senior educator and co-host Rabbi Dov Berr Cohen, who sit in close proximity, facing each other and looking somewhat uncomfortable. 

Voices of Pain, Hope and Heroism can be viewed at givebutter.com/9avfilm.

 THE GREGORIAN calendar date of the birth of Israel’s first right-wing prime minister, Menachem Begin, 111 years ago, was August 16, but he always preferred the Jewish calendar date in Menachem Av, on the first Sabbath after Tisha B’Av. This year, the two dates will almost coincide. Like prime ministers before and after him, Begin made a point of visiting Lubavitcher Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson and benefiting from his wisdom. It is quite amazing how the Rebbe, who never set foot Israel, had so much influence on the country’s leaders – including the present incumbent. Despite the fact that the Rebbe was the last in a seven generation dynasty, he continues, through his writings, to exert great influence on Israel and other parts of the Jewish world.

ON THE subject of rabbinic dynasties, they are quite acceptable in hassidic and other ultra-Orthodox circles, but apparently not when it comes to the Chief Rabbinate of Israel. Large advertisements in the Hebrew media request that Rabbis David Yosef and Moshe Chaim Lau retract their candidatures from among those vying for the respective positions of Sephardi and Ashkenazi chief rabbi. While acknowledging that both candidates may be worthy, the advertisement says that the rabbinate is not a family business. The above-mentioned rabbis are the brothers of outgoing chief rabbis Yitzhak Yosef and David Lau, respectively, whose fathers were Ovadia Yosef and Yisrael Meir Lau, also chief rabbis. The Chief Rabbinate warns that nepotism will lead to people distancing themselves from Judaism.

 IN SECULAR circles, there are also advertisements calling for a change to the status quo, but on a different issue. One such ad, signed by former Mossad directory Tamir Pardo; former Mossad deputy chief Amiram Levin; former Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) director Nadav Argaman; David Tzur, the former commander of an elite counter-terrorism unit in the IDF the Coastal Plain District Police; and later chief of staff in the Public Security Ministry have warned of the perils facing Israel and emphasized the importance of the return of the hostages from Gaza, the end of the war, and the need to reorganize a strategic path to victory. 

They charge that a Netanyahuy-led government is endangering the security of Israel for which thousands of combatants, soldiers, police, security agents, and ordinary citizens have risked their lives. The four signatories to the advertisement have told members of Knesset that it is now their turn “to leap on the grenade” and to put an emergency brake on what’s happening to the nation.

IN ANOTHER large advertisement, B’Tselem, the watchdog association which monitors human rights violations against Palestinians, warns that the storming of Sde Teiman detention camp was just the tip of the iceberg. Rather than cast blame on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, its report states that the government is headed by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir who has been exploiting the national trauma since the Hamas massacre to exercise his own agenda of racism and violence. 

Harel and Menashe's story tells of a growing connection to religion, to each other, and to their families. 

TU B’AV, often referred to as the Jewish Valentine’s Day, is just around the corner. It’s a time when romantic gifts and experiences come to the fore. But it can also be a time of true confessions, such as husband and wife team Eden Harel and Oded Menashe’s presentation of “We don’t see eye to eye” which tells the story of their marriage and their transition from a secular, hippie lifestyle to one of religious observance. 

A somewhat wild MTV star in the 1990s, Harel eventually looked for a quieter, simpler life and traveled to India, where she experienced a degree of spirituality in a Buddhist monastery. Returning to Israel, she was married for a short time, giving birth to her first child. Then she met the rather reserved Menashe, a popular star of television programs for children. Cupid shot his arrow and, despite the differences in their backgrounds and personalities, the couple got hitched and produced six children. 

As their family grew, so did their connection to religion but not at the cost of their careers. Harel continued to work as an actress, model, and television anchorwoman. Due to their ability to keep a foot in each world, they became public speakers in high demand on the lecture circuit, where they talk about how they found religion and what it means to be parents of such a large family. This will all be part of their Tu B’Av show on Sunday, August 18, at 7:30 p.m., at the Ofer Mall in Rehovot.

 MANY SERVICES that should be offered by the government are provided by NGOs, often aided by financial support from the Jewish Diaspora. One such service is free therapy for those suffering from trauma. The service was initiated by Brig.-Gen. (Res) Nitzan Nuriel, former director of the Counter Terrorism Bureau of Israel’s National Security Council. Nuriel realized that soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were also affecting their spouses, parents, children, and siblings. Today, when the whole country is affected by trauma, the service he and others provide with the help of the Friends of the IDF (FIDF) is designed to benefit the entire family – and is available anywhere in the country. Some of those in treatment are Yom Kippur War veterans whose condition was not recognized at the time because little was known about PTSD in those days. Additionally, 50 years ago, there was a certain shame to admitting to any kind of mental illness.

AFTER MONTHS of negotiations and wrangling, the final documents have been signed, making Edmond Safra – a scion of the famous Syrian-Lebanese-Brazilian banking family of big-time philanthropists – the owner of Hapoel Tel Aviv Soccer Club. 

Safra – whose name is the same as that of his late uncle, a most generous donor to educational, cultural, medical, and scientific research projects, as well as religious programs in Israel – has concluded the deal with the club’s previous owners, the Minzberg Group. The delay in signing was due to Safra’s refusal to take over the club’s debts. He is one of the five children of the late Moise Safra, who died 10 years ago. Safra’s personal estimated worth is around $2.2 billion, and his wife, Marielle Safra, is the daughter of Lebanese-born billionaire art collector David Nahman, who lives in Monaco.

AS PART of Herzog College’s annual Biblical Study Days, Dr. Tovah Lichtenstein and her daughter Rabbanit Esti Rosenberg, principal of Midreshet Migdal Oz, shared a frank and personal conversation about the biblical characters who have inspired them.

Lichtenstein, a New York-born social worker, is the daughter of Rabbi Joseph B. Soleveitchick, the legendary head of the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS) at Yeshiva University. She moved to Israel in 1971 with her late husband, Rav Aharon Lichtenstein, who became head of the Har Etzion Yeshiva at the request of its former rosh yeshiva Rabbi Yehuda Amital.

Mother and daughter each selected two characters. Despite describing herself as “not a feminist” Lichtenstein chose Isaac’s wife Rebecca and Moses’s wife Tzipporah as her role models; while Rosenberg chose Abraham and Moses. Their conversation was about the relevant lessons that can be learned from these personalities. 

In a clear reference to her own experience, Lichtenstein said: “Tzipporah and Rebecca were willing to make sacrifices to support their husbands because they were tzaddikim – righteous men. In every marriage, there are times when either the husband or the wife has to make sacrifices for their spouse. Today, it’s the wives of miluimnikim (reservists) – the women whose husbands are fighting our holy war. Just as Tzipporah had to raise her sons alone because Moses was busy with saving the Jewish nation, many women in Israel today are facing similar challenges.”

Rosenberg spoke of the challenges faced by Abraham, particularly his willingness to sacrifice his beloved son at God’s request. “Today, Israel is undergoing a collective test of Akeidat Yitzchak (the sacrifice of Isaac),” she said. “But, actually, this is nothing new – throughout history, the Jewish people have often been called upon to make difficult personal sacrifices.”

Reflecting on the philosophy of her upbringing and in response to the issue of what God expects from us, Lichtenstein answered: “I was not brought up to ask what God wants from me. The Torah makes it very clear that we must just get on with doing what God has commanded us to do.”

Their conversation was the highlight of a dedicated Jewish Educators’ Day, which attracted 50 English-speaking teachers, including participants who flew in specially from New York, Baltimore, and Los Angeles. The lecturers included Rabbi Dr. Jacob J. Schacter and Dr. Deena Rabinovich from Yeshiva University, Rabbi Yitzchak Etshalom of LA, and Rabbi David Fohrman from Aleph Beta. Local speakers included Rabbi Doron Perez from the Mizrachi World Movement, and Rabbis Dr. Benny Lau, Chaim Navon, Alex Israel, and Moshe Taragin.

During the four days of Bible Study, despite concerns over a possible attack by Iran, over 5,000 people attended lectures in Hebrew and English, as well as, for the first time, in Russian and French. The annual Bible Study Days are now in their 33rd year. Recordings of all the sessions are available from Herzog College.

ALTHOUGH ISRAELI Ambassador to Japan Gilad Cohen was not among the diplomats invited to the annual commemoration ceremony of the bombing of Nagasaki in 1945, there was no tit-for-tat in Israel last week. Japanese ambassador Yusuke Arai was invited to the finale of the Sports Social Impact (SSI) One Team Sports Camp at which his daughter had joined Jewish and Bedouin participants to learn karate, form friendships, and become empowered. SSI is a project of the Azrieli Foundation, chaired by martial arts champion Danny Hakim.

 LESS THAN a month after receiving the Shenkar Life Achievement award, Castro Co-CEOs Etty Rotter and Gabi Rotter have added Alon Livne, one of Shenkar’s leading fashion graduates, to their design team. During the award ceremony, Gabi Rotter said how happy he and his wife have been to be able to support Shenkar over the past 25 years, and emphasized their pride in employing Shenkar graduates. 

It is a tribute to Castro’s reputation in the local and global fashion industry that Livne, 40, who has made a name for himself as an international fashion designer, has agreed to become part of the Castro team. Following his graduation from Shenkar, he went abroad – as many Shenkar graduates tend to do – and worked with some of the world’s iconic fashion designers, such as Roberto Cavalli and Alexander McQueen.

Among the celebrities who have worn his creations are Lady Gaga, Kim Kardashian, and Paris Hilton.

Livne will be working with Noy Dror, the head of Castro’s design team, and, hopefully, some of his designs for Castro will hit the fashion runways by the end of this year or early in 2025.