יום שישי, כ״ה תמוז תשפ״וFriday, July 10, 2026
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Slovie Jungreis Wolff is a noted teacher, author, relationships and lecturer. She is the leader of Hineni Couples and the author of “Raising A Child With Soul.” She gives weekly classes and has lectured throughout the U.S., Canada, and South Africa. She can be reached at sloviehineni@gmail.com.
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I don’t know what the state of the world will be in by the time you read these words. I do know that every day brings more confusion, more anxiety, loss of trust, and even loss of life. What can we do? What must we do?
I wonder how many stood there, opening up their hearts and souls. How many knew that this would be their final prayer and yet they called out to Avinu Shebashamayim, ‘bring us home to Yerushalayim!’
Would we think it possible that one day we would be standing at Sinai, receiving the Torah and becoming Hashem’s chosen people?
Hundreds of chayalim, in all types of uniforms, walking together, right before my very eyes! The same window through which the Nazis would look in, now we were looking out and seeing a miracle unfold before our eyes.
Fathers must consider that beyond their financial inheritance, there is a spiritual yerusha that is their true inheritance. A life occupied with hours spent in the office or making deals but at the cost of family life is not a yerusha after all.
Who could envision the massacre on a serene beach in Australia while lighting the Chanukah menorah? Who could contemplate the vicious mobs shouting to ‘globalize the intifada’, taking over shopping malls, college campuses and city sights? All this while jihadists in suits call out ‘there is only one solution’, for the extermination of our land and people.
We are given clear direction. When you look around the world and feel frightened. When the darkness feels crushing. Take another look.
My mother and her siblings became malachim of Shabbos in the Gehennom of Bergen Belsen. It was a message that was held onto. To be the angel of Shabbos infused my mother with a sacred light, and the power to be greater than her fears.
How many beautiful souls have given their lives for Am Yisrael and Eretz Yisrael as their seats remain mournfully empty? How many broken families, and broken hearts?
How often do we see suffering before our eyes, but somehow we do not notice what is happening?
We are living in a world of chaos, never sure what tomorrow brings. As I write these words it is impossible for me to know what our days will look like by the time you read my message.
The students who harassed Jewish students, destroyed property, disrupted classes, and ruined graduations with their blood libels against our nation. Your misguided protests have blurred the lines between truth and falsehood.
Notice that we do not speak in the past tense. Omdim alainu – they stand against us attempting to wipe us off the face of this earth. As we sit down to our seder, we discover the eternal secret of the Jew.
The real question is where was man? Where was man when six million were being shoved into cattle cars and burned in the crematoria? We were waiting for someone to say something, do something, bomb the railway stations as we were taken to the concentration camps. No one did a thing. The world remained silent.
I believe that Agam and her mother were bequeathed with the moral courage needed in these times from the days that our mothers stood tall in Mitzrayim.
It is not enough to scream out from your pain and suffering. You must hear the cry of the person sitting next to you. You must open up the gates in shamayim for the aching hearts of those waiting for refuahs, yeshuas, simchas and shalom.
At that moment both Avraham and Yitzchak created a cosmic reality that had never existed before. They gave birth to the spiritual gene within Am Yisrael of mesiras nefesh. From that moment on we were given the fortitude to walk through fire, to resist those who wish to extinguish our light.
I believe that if we take just one life lesson from this tragedy we have the ability to infuse purpose into the pain. We can see glimmers of light that shine through the shards of glass that cut into the very heart of our nation.
We are allowing others to define us, blood libel us and tell our story. We must give our children Jewish pride, identity and roots.
I would never get to hear my bubby’s voice as she sang me a lullaby. My bubby would never hold me in her arms. I would never get to see her smile. I would never get to taste her delicious Hungarian cakes and delicacies. I would never feel her hand in mine. So many ‘nevers’.
No one in this generation has any clue. This makes me so sad to tell you but it’s true. Either they don’t know or they don’t care. They are clueless.
It is time to say goodbye to Shai. Maayan wraps her arms around her family, his family, all ages and generations, join together as one. She stands strong, you can see it in her eyes.
I felt that this would be a most memorable night that could not easily be duplicated. After all, how often in life do we get to hear the words of a survivor who transformed their life and discovered Hashem in the process of healing?
Roi and Adan relayed the horrific happenings of October 7. As they spoke, they often had to stop and collect themselves. Their hands were shaking while recounting coming face to face with terrorists who were shooting at them. One could not help but feel as if you were there with them, hearts pounding, trying to escape death’s door.
I listen as one woman, Chaya, as she is being interviewed about her twin brother, Arnon. She describes how on October 7, her brother was not called up. He simply went to the Gaza border when he heard what had happened. ‘But you have no ammunition! You were not yet called!’ he was told.
Adar gives us a message of empowerment. Ani Dar – I live with you; Hashem speaks to us. No matter where we are in the world. No matter the time, the country, the generation. We must know that we are not here alone.
At a recent shiur, I spoke of my bubby and her endless nights of tears. I asked that each of us take the time to feel the pain of the mothers, the fathers, the bubbies and zaydies who are waiting for their children to come home from this battle for the existence of our land, and of our people.
I hear my mother’s voice, in the final years of her life, that she sees her childhood visions haunting her. The world is on fire and we are sleeping, she would insist over and over again.
We know that we are entering the final stages of ikvesa d’Meshicha – the footsteps of Mashiach. How long it will last we cannot know.
This war is not about territory. It is not about land. It is about our future and the future of our children. The very breath of every Jew who walks this planet.
One of the greatest impediments to change is believing that one cannot change.
We who can bring Shabbos in each week with ease. We who have the opportunity to bring the light of Shabbos into our homes, to welcome the malachei shalom to our tables, to bless our children and plug into the menucha that Shabbos brings – how do we welcome the Shabbos Malka?
We face challenges with technology, social media, and a culture devoid of values. At the same time, we are trying to build character and instill middos and derech eretz within our children.
Unconditional love means that you are my cherished neshamala. You are a gift to me from Above.
In front of me the story of Am Yisrael came alive. The world may proclaim our end but here we are. One must only kindle the flame. The spark is never extinguished.
In the years before my mother left this world she said over and over –‘kinderlach, children… I know what I am seeing. I know what I am saying. The world is on fire and we are sleeping.
Four times we mention the word ‘baruch’ – blessed. Because we must know that every child is considered to be ‘baruch’ – a blessing. Yes, even in the most difficult situation, there is bracha to be found. Seder night gives us a new perspective.
Though we live in times of incredible chaos, and there are layers of darkness obscuring Hashem’s light in this world, there are moments of great light where we see the power of hashgacha pratis, a hug from Above.
Abba Zayda filled each home with his towering presence, his laughter, his love of life, his never ending patience and his constant wisdom.
To be a Maccabi today means that you stand with pride for your people and your land. You live inspired. You refuse to allow the world to crush your spirit.
What gives you the strength? I asked. How do you, a boy of 12, find the courage to keep Shabbos all by yourself every week? I am just in awe of you.
My husband and I exchanged worried glances. We had a while till our destination, Shabbos was coming, and we had no idea what we would do. The only thing we knew for sure is that as soon as the plane landed we needed to disembark ASAP.
We are in this dark galus because of the hatred between brothers. Most of the ‘Al Cheits’ we confess to on Yom Kippur are hurts caused by our mistreatment of other people.
We may not always understand our lives, but we must always know deep within our hearts that Hashem is waiting for each and every one of us to come home, that each one of us counts, and that Hashem will never abandon us.
Our nation was alive! We had risen from the ashes. Hashem had restored His light to His children and shown us that we were a nation of miracles.
I told her that I was impressed that she had the humility to listen and make a change.
Our children are facing a world we could never have imagined. They have learned words like pandemic and PCR tests, seen grisly photos of war and urban shootings, and heard of ugly anti-Semitic attacks that never seemed possible.
One day Zayda heard the tragic news. Everyone had been killed in the gas chambers. There was no one left. Zayda was the only one who had survived. My mother watched as her father, in one of his most terrible moments of his entire life, gave out an anguished cry to the heavens above.
The feeling is that people, especially on college campuses or newly graduated young adults, are more interested in fortune and fame than finding their Jewish roots.
Yes, you are so lucky. Hashem made such a big beautiful world and here you are able to see it.
We fill their space with toys and gadgets instead of moments together. Do we ever get down on the floor to enjoy the games we bought? Parenting is about more presence and less presents.
When someone close to us is suffering we are often at a loss. What should I say? What should I do? We do not want to be the cause of any more pain.
If these past 18 months taught us anything it is that no one knows what the day holds. We are not in control.
One year my brother asked “Zayda, why do you give the same exact speech every year before Yizkor? My Zayda answered with tears. “Because every year it is the same thing. Machlokes eats up our families, eats up our homes, and eats up Klal Yisroel.”
I hear your words as if you are standing here at my side. You will not be silent. “The world is on fire and we are sleeping! Wake up! Hashem is talking to us.” There was never a moment that you would rest.
Creating an atmosphere of respect is more than teaching good manners. It is about transmitting a sense of kavod, honor and dignity within our home.
Named for my father’s brother who had been taken away by the Nazi’s, I feel as if I am finally able to give my father a small nechama for all the pain he had suffered.
Torah was given amidst smoke and fire to teach us that forever we must keep the passion, the flame burning within alive.
We are a nation of miracles. We have traveled through the four corners of this earth. We have gone through every type of persecution. We were told that we would be vanquished, thrown into the sea.
When we are stressed and under pressure, we often parent out of emotion. We just want to get through the moment and forget the long term goal of raising children with soul.
Gam zeh yaavor is a beautiful Jewish wisdom. Nothing lasts forever. Not the good and not the bad. This difficult time will pass.
As we got into the car, we made a decision. We would go to see my zaida and my bubby, whom we called Mama, a"h. I needed their brachos, I needed to receive their blessings.
Come. Step out of your home, your stress and anxious moments. Take a seat under the stars. Feel the kanfei haShechinah. Treasure your blessings. Cherish every day.
As I sit now with my book of Tehillim, my mother's words echo loudly in my head. "Pray! Use your ko'ach tefilah and pray!"
Today I got up from sitting shiva for my beloved mother, Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis. I looked for her but her chair was empty. The pain is raw. Where is my beautiful Ema?
July 10, 2026 
