This essay is part of a continuing series featuring distinguished writers on the bond and shared responsibility between chareidi Jews in the Diaspora and those living in Eretz Yisrael. Through personal experience, reflection, and thoughtful perspective, the series seeks to deepen the conversation and highlight meaningful points of connection. Readers are invited to share their thoughts at [email protected]

You Can Give Far More Than Money
Sivan Rahav-Meir

As you read this you’re probably saying to yourselves: “We already have so many important responsibilities.” That is true.

First and foremost, there is the responsibility to sustain the world of Torah and mitzvos and to secure its future. That is the duty of every Jew, wherever he or she may be, in Tel Aviv, in the Five Towns, or on the moon. Passing our sacred tradition on to the next generation is our Number One mission, everywhere, for everyone, under all circumstances. It is the Jewish people’s true Iron Dome, forever.

What else? Of course, there is the extraordinary tzedakah, your financial support for Israel and for so many vital causes. There is also the growing wave of Aliyah, and the tremendous amount of tourism to Israel. (I live near Shaarei Chesed. Thank you for letting us speak Hebrew in the neighborhood during the holidays!) There are also the many young people who come to Israel for seminaries, yeshivos, and gap-year programs. All of this is wonderful, significant, and deeply impressive.

But at this historic moment, is it enough?

We are living through a time when millions of Jews, both in Israel and in the United States, are recalculating their course and searching for Jewish identity. After the Holocaust, many Jews moved farther away. After the trauma of October 7, many Jews have been drawing closer. Today, each of us is being called upon to become an ambassador for Yiddishkeit, to widen and deepen our sense of what that means.

What can your contribution be?

Let me offer two examples. 

I am a great admirer of the Nefesh Yehudi project, and I have also had the privilege of participating in it as a lecturer. A few years ago, I heard about a group of secular Israeli students who traveled through American Jewish communities. They stayed in the home of Rabbi Aharon Wolfson and said, “Wow, we’ve never met a chareidi Jew like this before.” They spent Shabbat in Lawrence, came to shul, heard divrei Torah, and found the entire experience deeply moving and attractive. The very Torah ideas that might have interested them less in Israel suddenly seemed to sparkle when presented in an American setting.

And here is the second story. Residents of Kibbutz Be’eri were evacuated to hotels after October 7. I met them there, and they were stunned. A group of American chareidim had come to the hotel, in the middle of the war, simply to offer support. They sponsored a beautiful, lavish bar mitzvah and bat mitzvah celebration for the children, and created an event that was deeply religious, yet also festive, moving, and full of heart. It was the first time these kibbutz families had encountered frum people in that way, and they were genuinely inspired.

I think there is a very big message here for all of us. American chareidim have an important educational role to play, and many do not even realize it.

The American chareidi model can inspire an entire generation of Israelis who are now returning to Yiddishkeit. I have long felt that Rabbi Aharon Lopiansky’s book Ben Torah for Life should be translated into Hebrew. Maybe the time has come.

And of course, it is not only Israelis who are waiting for you. The American chareidi model can also inspire a whole generation of young, confused American Jews who are also searching for the road back home, back to their Judaism.

Imagine if every American chareidi baal habayit would adopt one secular Israeli family. Not only through financial charity, but through spiritual generosity: learning with them, influencing them for the good, helping them experience Shabbos and the chagim. A kind of “uncle from America,” but not only as a benefactor — a mentor.

Imagine if every American chareidi baal habayit would adopt one secular American family as well. A family that has never visited Israel. A family that does not have what you may already have: real estate in Israel, relatives in Israel, memories from the last visit to the Kosel and Machaneh Yehudah.

This is an age of moral clarity. Absolute evil has attacked us, and it is demanding that we become the best version of ourselves. The world is thirsty to hear what we have to say. Do we have something to say?

I had the privilege of spending Shabbos with Project Inspire and hearing people speak this language, a language that until now may have belonged mainly to Chabad shluchim: the language of mission. People who are beginning to live with a sense of shlichus: To invite others for Shabbos. To organize Torah classes. To give a “maaser of time” for spreading Yiddishkeit, just as they already give maaser from their money.

May it be Hashem’s will that wherever we are, in Eretz Yisroel, in the United States, on the plane in between, on campus, or at work, we should be Jews who do not only want to make it safely back home to our own Jewish neighborhood. May we be Jews who strive to influence, elevate, and change the world.

It is not the money. Thank you for the money. But first and foremost, it is the mindset.

Sivan Rahav-Meir is a renowned media personality and respected lecturer, celebrated for her contributions to journalism and Jewish education. She was recognized by Globes as the most popular female media personality in Israel and named by the Jerusalem Post as one of the 50 most influential Jews in the world. A passionate teacher of Torah, Sivan has authored several books, many of which have been translated into English. Her inspirational “Daily Thought,” is translated into 17 languages, touches the hearts and minds of readers worldwide.