Rabbi Howard Morrison

This week's brief message is a precis of the sermon I will deliver this Shabbat. 

After two hundred plus years of slavery in Egypt, God promises to Moses that Israel will be redeemed. Five different terms for redemption are provided, referring to five different stages involved in our people's freedom from bondage. Liberation will not happen all at once but over a period of time.

Similarly, the Jewish people today have experienced acts of murder and hostage taking going back almost five hundred days to October 7, 2023. Now, we are beginning to witness gradually in stages the release of almost a hundred hostages. We were ecstatic to see three young women released from bondage last weekend. We are scheduled to see four more hostages let go this coming weekend, and thirty-three in total over a six-week period. Hopefully, before too long, every single hostage will be liberated from their captivity.

While gradual stages of freedom are not easy to endure, this was the case for the Israelites in ancient times, and this is the case for our people right now. We hope and pray for the best. We hope and pray that hostages will never ever be taken again.

Am Yisrael Chai - Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Howard Morrison