Return Again

Now, I know that I’ve always interviewed people who have been in Israel long enough to have perspective, but

I met with him recently in his Ramat Bet Shemesh home, and we talked about his story, as well as the larger issue of

Here’s Michoel Weichbrod, returning again.

Rabbi Elan Adler is a formerly American rabbi with a fantastic sense of humor, a wonderful story and an inspiring career renewal since making the big move.

Rabbi Adler was a successful community rabbi in Baltimore, but eventually, the strong feelings his wife Rivka had for so many years hit him like a ton of bricks, and he knew that Israel was the place for him to continue

Rabbi Pesach Wolicki told me that he’s been clear on Israel as his destiny for as long as he can remember. So why is it that he came to Israel as a kid, and went back to Canada, and then, when his parents made Aliyah, he decided to stay back in Canada? And why did he make aliyah, only to leave again to spend 5 years in the US?

Well, it’s an incredible story of his commitment to life in Israel – and to the Jewish nation – that led to all those things happening, and I was pleased to sit with Rav Pesach recently to hear all about it.

Ari Abramowitz grew up in Houston, Texas, to a proud

Lenny Solomon grew up "a modern Orthodox Jew from Queens," and eventually became a Jewish music sensation, playing for audiences around the globe. He's the only Jewish performer to ever play all 50 US states.

So what would make him move to Israel?

Find out more from Lenny himself.

Rav Gidon Weitzman grew up in the United Kingdom – first in London and then in Cardiff, a town in Wales. He came to Israel as a teenager and dove in head-first into a life of Torah learning and spirituality. He’s now doing important work for Machon Puah, but there have been many stops along the way – including Kansas City, Missouri – and Rav Gidon had some serious wisdom to share. I greatly enjoyed the conversation in his Modiin home.

I met Danny Bibbins on a recent vacation I took, and when I heard his story, I just had to figure out a way to have him share it with you, even though it

Danny Hain grew up in a small town in Virginia – Danville, and was a member of one of the only religiously-observant families in that tiny community. His life eventually took him to medical school, and he became quite a successful physician. All seemed to be going well, and he and his wife decided to move their life to Israel, so they could raise their children in the Land promised to our forefathers and foremothers. Well, it wasn’t as easy as it seemed at the time, and the family endured a serious challenge before finally turning the corner and proceeding with their plan.

Lots of wisdom in this episode from Danny, and wait until you hear what he has to say during the rapid-fire questions.

Stuart Schnee grew up in Teaneck, New Jersey, went to college at Rutgers and seemingly, was living a fairly straight-forward American life. But a couple of childhood trips to Israel, as well as a few "moments" changed his perspective, and his life, forever.

This episode also includes a short monologue by Goel about the current situation in Israel.

Football, Israel and Torah!? Are you kidding me?! When I heard about today’s guest, Chaim Cohen – coach of the Judean Rebels Israeli football team, I just had to meet him and speak with him about his Aliyah! 

And that’s just what happened. I visited him in his Ramat Bet Shemesh home, where we talked about his story, about football, about how a kid who chose his college in part so that he could get AWAY from Jewish people wound up in Israel, and about what ultimately led him home to Israel.