I have been kidnapped!

Shock.
Horror.
Tragedy.
Outrage.

There are literally no words that can accurately describe the profound loss
we feel this week.

For 18 days, I checked the news first thing each morning to see if the boys
had been found. Eyal, Gilad and Naftali have been in our hearts and on our
minds virtually non-stop. We prayed fervently and wholeheartedly that our
boys would be found alive. I listened to Eyal's grandfather pray at a rally
with 10,000 people. When I heard him scream from the depths of his heart, I
was sure the heavens would pierce open.

But after 18 days we received the shocking, brutal news that Eyal, Gilad
and Naftali had been shot dead in cold blood just hours after they were
abducted. We were brought to tears when Rachel Frankel, Naftali's mother,
cried, "Rest in peace, my dear son,"

We also finally heard the phone call Gilad placed shortly after entering
the car. He was able to call the police and whisper, "I've been kidnapped."
In the background are Arab voices screaming, "Put your heads down!" and
then shots are fired, which is when the boys were most likely killed.

But the police center did not react. They thought it was a prank call. The
call should have created an emergency alert, mobilizing every Israeli
agency from the Shin Bet to Shabak, the IDF to the police. Instead, it was
ignored. Every single person involved in security should have been woken
and put on alert, but alas, the call was ignored and the kidnappers had a
10 hour head start, resulting in an 18 day manhunt and the kidnappers are
still at large.

In this week's Torah portion the Jewish nation is likened to a lioness,
crouching in the field, ready to pounce. Often we lie dormant, but when the
call comes, we wake up and pounce.

While Gilad wasn't able to initially mobilize the police force, he was
certainly able to mobilize the global Jewish community. There are rare
moments in life where we get "that call" - a call to action. This was one
of them. "I have been kidnapped." The call of Eyal, Gilad and Naftali
grabbed hold of us, shaking us to the core, refusing the loosen its grip.
And even though we, as a nation, disagree sharply on so many things, this
call mobilized us as a single unit. We responded as one nation, with one
heart. One family. We prayed, studied Torah, lit Shabbat candles, put on
tefillin and committed to keeping new mitzvot in their merit.

For 18 days it didn't matter if you live in Japan, South Korea, Alaska,
America or Israel. It didn't matter which branch of Judaism you identify
with or which community you belong to. The truth became abundantly clear -
we are all Jewish and we are all in this together. Eyal, Gilad and Naftali
awakened us and we pounced.

The unity that prevailed is unprecedented. The immense power of social
media enabled us to connect with one another, pray together and cry
together. And then tragedy struck. But that does not mean we should abandon
the call. No, instead, we should listen and internalize it.

We read in the Torah this week, that the Jewish people are a "nation that
dwells alone." We saw that too, over the last 18 days. Nobody cares about
us like we do, but the love and care we have for each other stretches
across the entire globe. Let's make a concerted effort to continue what
Eyal, Gilad and Naftali started - unparalleled love and unity through all
segments of the Jewish population. When we are truly united, nothing can
stand in our way.

We continue to demand from our dear Father in Heaven #bringbackourboys,
bring Moshiach and redeem us from this bitter and dark exile, when we will
be reunited with Eyal, Gilad and Naftali.