Armed with Spirit

Yakov is an observant young man who drafted as a combat soldier for the Nachal Brigade’s Battalion 50, of whom the majority are nonobservant Jews from the Shomer Hatzair Kibbutz movement. Yakov’s father, senior lecturer for the Jewish Identity Branch of the IDF Rabbi Shalom Hammer, knew there were religious challenges yet to come; so every single day, from the first day of his service, Rabbi Hammer WhatsApped his son an inspirational dvar Torah. These messages based on the weekly Torah readings anchored Yakov’s service in the yearly Torah-reading cycle and helped him stay strong in his commitment to serving his people and his land as an observant soldier. “The book is honest and inspirational.… I can recommend this book to all Jews, wherever they may live, because within it breathes the Jewish spirit and the heart and mind of the Jewish generation in which we live.” – Rabbi Berel Wein, Jerusalem, Israel “Rabbi Hammer’s correspondence with his son resembles an ongoing chavruta through the parashiyot and moadim (festivals) of the year…strengthening and inspiring Yakov together with all our sons to face a reality we have not encountered for nearly two thousand years – an Israeli army defending the State of Israel!” – Rabbanit Shani Taragin, Midreshet Lindenbaum “I was mesmerized reading this book…[which] should serve as a source of inspiration for all chayalim and for parents who are privileged to have children serving in Tzahal.” – Rabbi Yosef Tzvi Rimon, Alon Shvut, Israel