Prior to Rosh Hashanah, which fell out this year on Shabbos and Sunday, several Gedolim, including HaGaon HaRav Moshe Shternbuch and HaGaon HaRav Yitzchak Zilberstein, spoke more than once about the fact that when the shofar isn’t blown on the first day of Rosh Hashanah, the din for Klal Yisrael could be more severe.

Both Gedolim emphasized the importance, especially this year, of being mechazeik in shemiras and kavod Shabbos, including learning hilchos Shabbos every day. HaRav Zilberstein even promised that anyone who is mekabeil to learn hilchos Shabbos on a regular basis will be decreed for a good year. Additionally, the Rav’s talmidim say that in recent months, Rav Zilberstein constantly stresses during his drashos, shiurim, and sichos about kedushas haShabbos and the terrible punishment for those who are mechallel Shabbos or lend a hand to chillulei Shabbos by not acting against them. More recently, the Rav often asks for the song ‘כי אשמרה שבת ק-ל ישמרני’ to be played at simchos.

As YWN reported, the residents of two communities near the Gaza Strip that are Shomer Shabbos were largely spared from the carnage that occurred last Shabbos. A video [as seen below] even shows the Hamas terrorists arriving last Shabbos morning at the gate of Kibbutz Sa’ad, which was locked to traffic in accordance with the request of its Shomer Shabbos residents, and moving on.

Another amazing story that was confirmed from a reliable source by YWN is that of M., a 22-year-old from a Chareidi home who has been struggling with his Yiddishkeit.

He and his friends, also struggling, drove to the Negev on Thursday night of Chol Hamoed to attend the music festival. They partied late into the night, slept for a few hours in a tent, and the next day decided to remain for Shabbos/Simchas Torah but resolved to be shomer Shabbos the best they could.

But at 4 p.m. on Hoshanah Raba, M. and his friends went into their tent for a break. The quiet inside the tent had an effect – the excitement of the partying and loud music outside dissipated and their moods changed. They looked at each other and remembered past years – when they were mekabeil Shabbos/Simchas Torah very differently – in their homes and yeshivos. Each could see the yearning in each other’s eyes – no words were necessary. Silently, they began packing up their belongings, headed to their car, and drove toward their homes – in Yerushalayim, arriving right before Shekiyah.

The massacre that they avoided by their last-minute decision does not need to be repeated here. Hashem should send all of those who were wounded a refuah sheleimah b’nefesh u’vaguf and a yeshuah to those who were abducted.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)