Why Does It Take Tragedy for Us to Become One?

Every year, as we approach Lag BaOmer, we’re reminded of a painful truth.

Rabbi Akiva had 24,000 students—intellectual giants, people of immense Torah knowledge. And yet, we don’t know their names. Not one.

Because they didn’t treat each other with proper respect.

And then, after that devastation, Rabbi Akiva rebuilt—with five students whose teachings live on forever. The difference wasn’t brilliance. It wasn’t scholarship.

It was how they treated one another.

That lesson feels especially relevant right now.

Living in Israel, you can’t ignore the tension—the divide between Haredi and non-Haredi, religious and secular. It’s loud, it’s present, and it’s especially visible in the Knesset.

And it’s disheartening.

Because leadership isn’t just about........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)