I would just like to single out who I felt was the real hero of the day on Friday.
As I was standing outside The Dan Family Aish HaTorah World Center, I was approached by two teenage brothers. They said they were from Malibu and had never been to Israel before. I had some time so I offered to take them to our roof to see the Western Wall. While we were taking in the view, they mentioned that they were in Israel with their family and they would love to have a traditional Friday night dinner. I was at a loss. I was acting at the Yeshiva which is not the best place to host a family looking for intimate conversation. I was unsure where to direct them so I took down their contact information.
Right after they left, I had a thought. In the past year I have become friendly with one of the great leaders of the Jewish people, Jeff Seidel. Jeff runs The Jewish Student Information Centers around Israel. They are located on many campuses but are headquartered in the Old City. Jeff is constantly setting people up for Shabbos so I thought I would give it a try.
Jeff immediately emailed me back that it was no problem. They should just meet him at the men’s washing fountain at the Western Wall Plaza at 8:05pm. I passed along the message and went back to hosting our visitors.
Later that night, I went to the appointed meeting place to make sure everything worked out. What I saw left me speechless. A huge group was gathered around Jeff and he was working as hard as the maitre d’ of a busy restaurant. He was pairing up Jews looking for Shabbos meals with Jews eager to host. It was one of the most beautiful sights I have ever seen.
I believe in my heart that what the Almighty desires most in the world is Jewish unity. When we rebuild the third Temple, it will be as a result of the Jewish people coming together in selfless dedication and support of one another. I would like to publicly thank the real hero of this past Friday, Jeff Seidel, for showing me the true path to Jewish unity.
George Deek is an Arab-Israeli diplomat. In 2018, Deek was appointed Israeli ambassador to Azerbaijan. He is the first Israeli Arab Christian to become an ambassador. Deek grew up in an Eastern Orthodox Christian family in the Ajami neighborhood of Jaffa, in a building where the other tenants included Muslims, Catholics, Jews and a Catholic priest of Jewish ancestry.[2][3] His father, who worked as a tax advisor,[3] was one of the leaders of the Christian community in Jaffa who served as chairman of the Orthodox Association, and was considered a well-known and popular figure in the city until in 2015 a square was inaugurated in his memory in Jaffa in the presence of Mayor Ron Huldai.[4] According to Deek, his grandparents fled to Lebanon for safety when the 1947–1949 Palestine war, having been told that the Jews would slaughter them if they remained in their homes, but expecting to return home once Arab armies defeated the Jews.[3] According to Deek, when the war ended, his grandparents felt that they had been “deceived”, and decided to return illegally to their home in Jaffa rather than remaining in Lebanon as refugees. Since reentering the country was illegal, Deek’s grandfather, an electrician, was arrested and jailed.
