United in Sorrow

Tags: Living Israel, Terror

Imagine it: your teenage kid is going back home from school. On his way he is abducted by terrorists. THIS IS NOT AN IMAGINARY STORY.

The entire nation of Israel faces a painful reality. Three Israeli teenagers went missing in Judea and Samaria, kidnapped by Palestinian terrorists.

These are their names: Yaacov Naphtali ben (son of) Rochel Devorah Gilad Michael ben (son of) Bat Galim Ayal ben (son of) Irit

Soldiers are continuing a widespread search with a single goal: to bring Gilad, Naftali, and Eyal home.

In such a situation, so many of us ask ourselves - How can we relate? What image appears in our minds as we try to comprehend? Shall our conception of this be solely linked to our political affiliations? Or is it possible that we can set our differences aside and come together in prayer, in hope, that these 3 Jewish youths will be found, alive, and returned safely to their mothers, fathers, and to our nation?

Heartbreak in Israel. Terrorists have kidnapped a boy from our yishuv and two other innocent children. There are no words. Only prayers and tears. Three innocent boys on their way home to spend Shabbat with their family. Bring back our boys to their families..................Tzippi Schechet

48 hours that Gilad, Eyal, and Naftali have been in the hands of Palestinian terrorists. 48 hours that their friends and families have faced uncertainty. 48 hours which have shocked the entire nation. Share, because ‪#‎LivingUnderTerror‬ is an unbearable reality.

Three father's in Israel praying for their boys. Father's day in Israel. - Joanne Ginsburg

"Where are our boys? Do they have blankets? Have they had dinner? Did they get any rest? Have they been allowed outside? Do they even know Shabbat has come in? Are they together, and does this give them strength? Can they support each other, encourage each other, reassure each other? Or have they been separated, injured, tortured, or worse?

Our boys – all of our boys – they’re her son, your nephew, my neighbor. Israeli children belong to all of us."
Hilary Faverman These Boys Belong to Me, to You, to Us.

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, מַתִּיר אֲסוּרִים.

May God protect our sons and daughters from all harm. May Hashem watch over them and protect them and may Shabbat come to us in peace. May God forever grant us the honor of living in this beautiful land, the eternal home to the Jewish people. We have no other land, no other place we can or will call home. No one living on this planet has the power to take from us what God has given to the Jewish people. We will forever stand strong and protect ourselves and our children. Never again will we live under the rule and terror of others. This is our land. This is my land." Paula Stern The Heart of Israel

There are two things that every Israeli shares, love of life, and love of our children. Those who kidnapped our boys have struck our very soul. The mood in Israel is not one of mercy, kindness, or understanding for the terrorist perpetrators. With the help of Hashem, we will find you, We will hurt you and hurt those that support you. - Bobby Brown

"That this crazy country that I call home and Home seems to have it’s priorities straight right now. Listening to the news bulletins where EVERY point was about these boys. Where asking people to say tehillim (psalms) on national radio was absolutely natural. Where we have all taken to social media doing whatever we can do…perhaps nothing tangible, but sharing in our communal anguish, and joining together in our hopes and prayers for our boys." Laura Ben-David  What Really Matters

Citizens of Israel, in our region, states are collapsing and coming apart under the murderous assaults of extremist Islam and the terrorist organizations operating under its auspices. Only a strong and united stand by the entire nation is preventing – and continuing to prevent – their victory here. Again and again we have discovered that we can rely only on ourselves – on the IDF, the ISA, the security services and on your strength of spirit – soldiers and citizens of Israel. - Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu

I'm afraid to say what I'm afraid of for these boys. All of Israel is holding back the anguish and fear, and the most a small person like me, sitting in front of the computer, can do, is pray and add a tiny drop of media consciousness here. People, pray and spread the news. - Miriam Kresh

https://www.facebook.com/BringBackOurBoysNow

My heart has been heavy with sorrow since I first learned of the missing Israeli teens. Though I am worried for their safety, I am grateful to the global Jewish community as we stand as one people. Prayers for their safe return can be heard around the world. This is not something happening "there". This is an attack on all of who love and care about Israel and her people. Heidi Krizer Daroff

It's hard to be happy today, but I am happy to be part of a nation that cares so much about these boys because they are literally all our sons. - Rivkah Lambert Adler

"Yeshiva students" and "settlers" are the type of descriptions that prevent the pro-Palestinian Jews among us from feeling empathy toward the abducted teenagers. But they do not dictate how we live -- this is the truth for us: Over the weekend, the latest batch of terrorists kidnapped three Jewish boys. - Dror Eydar

My boys are missing. Three of them. Scratch that. They aren’t missing – they’ve been taken – kidnapped – abducted by people whose sole goal in life is to destroy us. To tear us down at our root. To hit us at our core. They handed out candy in Gaza when they heard of the abduction. Sussmans b'Aretz 

'The world should be looking at how Israel Responds to Arab Terrorists who kidnapped three teenage boys....Pride, Courage and Strength. Please keep the following thoughts in mind: the teens missing are human beings, they are students, they are sons and friends. Most of the media, including Israeli media, insists on referring to them as “settlers.” In addition, the fact that the boys were believed to have been hitchhiking when they were kidnapped does not mean they “deserve” what happened. Genocidal terrorists kidnap human beings to use as bargaining chips. Those terrorists are the ones solely to blame.' - Kenneth Blum

Why should we have any empathy for these boys? Zahava Englard

Let one thing be clear, The kidnapping of three Jewish students, has changed the rules of the relationship between Israel and those who seek to destroy us. No longer can we allow terrorists to organize and freely act, no longer can we allow the incitement reminiscent of the Nazis to continue, no longer can we be limited in building and living in our ancient homeland. In that car stealing our children, the tightrope of political correctness that we tried to walk, was broken, forever. - Bobby Brown

Post by Nachman Rosenberg.

Acheinu kol beit yisrael, han'nutunim b'tzara uvashivyah, haomdim bein bayam uvein bayabasha. Hamakom Y'racheim Aleihem v'yotziem mitzra lirvacha um'afaila l'orah umishiabud lig'ulah, hashta ba'agala uvizman kariv.V'nomar: Amen

אַחֵינוּ כָּל בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל, הַנְּתוּנִים בְּצָרָה וּבַשִּׁבְיָה, הָעוֹמְדִים בֵּין בַּיָּם וּבֵין בַּיַּבָּשָׁה, הַמָּקוֹם יְרַחֵם עֲלֵיהֶם, וְיוֹצִיאֵם מִצָּרָה לִרְוָחָה, וּמֵאֲפֵלָה לְאוֹרָה, וּמִשִּׁעְבּוּד לִגְאֻלָּה, הַשְׁתָּא בַּעֲגָלָא וּבִזְמַן קָרִיב.

As for our brothers,​ the whole house of Israel, who are given over to trouble or captivity​, whether they abide on the sea or on the dry land: May the All-prese​nt have mercy upon them, and bring them forth from trouble to enlargeme​nt, from darkness to light, and from subjectio​n to redemptio​n, now speedily and at a near time; and let us say, Amen.

A Community Trembles By Emily Amrousi

The Chief Rabbi of Israel has asked "All of Israel come together to pray for the boys and for the forces rescuing them." Psalm 121

שִׁיר לַמַּעֲלוֹת אֶשָּׂא עֵינַי אֶל הֶהָרִים מֵאַיִן יָבֹא עֶזְרִי
all raise my eyes to the mountains, from where will my help come?

עֶזְרִי מֵעִם יְהֹוָה עֹשֵׂה שָׁמַיִם וָאָרֶץ
My help is from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.

אַל יִתֵּן לַמּוֹט רַגְלֶךָ אַל יָנוּם שֹׁמְרֶךָ
He will not allow your foot to falter; Your Guardian will not slumber.

הִנֵּה לֹא יָנוּם וְלֹא יִישָׁן שׁוֹמֵר יִשְׂרָאֵל
Behold the Guardian of Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

יְהֹוָה שֹׁמְרֶךָ יְהֹוָה צִלְּךָ עַל יַד יְמִינֶךָ
The Lord is your Guardian; the Lord is your shadow; [He is] by your right hand.

יוֹמָם הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ לֹא יַכֶּכָּה וְיָרֵחַ בַּלָּיְלָה
By day, the sun will not smite you, nor will the moon at night.

יְהֹוָה יִשְׁמָרְךָ מִכָּל רָע יִשְׁמֹר אֶת נַפְשֶׁךָ
The Lord will guard you from all evil; He will guard your soul.

יְהֹוָה יִשְׁמָר צֵאתְךָ וּבוֹאֶךָ מֵעַתָּה וְעַד עוֹלָם
The Lord will guard your going out and your coming in from now and to eternity.

This is an inspirational Psalm. It expresses our hope that so shall things be, not necessarily how they are; it expresses our hope in times of great fear and trepidation. It concretizes our hopes and prayers even though we know that we cannot identify God's hand acting in history - Loren Sykes

A Song of Ascents. I turn my eyes to the mountains; from where will my help come? My help comes rom the Lord, maker of heaven and earth. Adonai will not let you foot give way; your guardian will not slumber; See, the guardian of Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps! The Lord is your guardian, the Lord is your protection at your right hand. By day the sun will not strike you, nor the moon by night. The Lord will guard you from all harm; Adonai will guard your life. The Lord will guard your going and coming now and forever. May our three sons be returned alive today!

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS, SHARE YOUR SUPPORT. TOGETHER, WE FIND STRENGTH IN OUR CONNECTION TO ISRAEL AND HER PEOPLE.