Gavriel Bloom z"l: A Hero in a Land of Heroes (222)

Orthodox Conundrum

Later this week we will celebrate Rosh Hashanah, also known as the Day of Remembrance, Yom HaZikaron. According to Chazal, Hashem (so to speak) remembers us on this day for the good… and we, too, should look at those people who set sterling examples for us over the past year, and try to learn from their deeply meaningful lives. One of those people whose life was exemplary was Gavriel Bloom, zichrono livracha.

Gavriel was killed on January 8th during a mission in central Gaza. He was the second of David and Jennifer Bloom’s six children.

David wrote up a series of remembrances and lessons that we all can learn from Gavriel’s life. This episode begins with David's reading the words that he composed. After that, David and Scott have a conversation about Gavriel. They also delve into some serious and painful social topics, such as the general ultra-Orthodox refusal to serve in the IDF, as well as other very troubling trends involving common Chareidi attitudes towards the people of Israel as a whole.

Rosh Hashanah is a time to reflect on the past year - which has unquestionably been one of the most fraught and difficult years that many of us have ever experienced. We are honored that David was generous enough to share his thoughts and memories of Gavriel with us. There could not be a more meaningful way to go into this coming Rosh Hashanah.

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Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com