IDF Veteran Brings 300 People to Ohel to Daven For Hostages

Over 300 people, representing diverse Jewish communities from across NYC, came to the Rebbe’s Ohel in Queens, NY this week to Daven for the safety of the IDF soldiers and residents of Israel, currently under attack during the war with Hamas.

Buses came from Washington Heights, Bowery, Chelsea, and the Upper East Side of Manhattan; from NYU, Rutgers, Yeshiva University, Hunter, and FIT, with the cooperation of different Jewish groups, organizations, and Chabad Centers to support all hostages’ families, and those who have lost loved ones in the recent Hamas attacks.

Lior Morgenstern, 23, an IDF veteran, Israeli and American citizen and student at Yeshiva University, coordinated the event.

“We stand together in solidarity during times of grief and offer our unwavering support,” Morgenstern said. “I noticed many people did not feel like they were doing enough. It troubled me to see fellow Jews didn’t understand their own potential, especially in the USA. They are exactly where they need to be to spread the light!”

Before going into the Ohel to pray, the group was addressed by renowned speaker and lecturer Rabbi Manis Friedman who spoke about the holiness of the Ohel and the power of prayer, and the Heaven-reaching power of prayer that is done in unity.

Participants then wrote a Pan note and recited Tehillim, mentioning the many Israeli hostages who are still languishing in Hamas captivity in Gaza.

“In times of hardship, we are called to ponder our purpose and the actions required of us. Each of us possesses a divine spark of Hashem, a spark that is above nature, it’s infinite and holy,” Morgenstern said. “What is our role amidst this ongoing struggle? It’s simple yet profound: Be the light. As the esteemed Baal Shem Tov taught, even the smallest glimmer of light has the power to dispel vast amounts of darkness. We are the light and we are the strongest when we are one.”

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