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An IDF Soldier’s Wisdom, and the Jewish Meaning of Belonging
Israel Defense Forces soldier Hillel Nehemiah Ofen died during training near the central city of Elad, Aug. 14, 2023. Photo: Screenshot
The modern thinker and social philosopher Brené Brown writes: “True belonging doesn’t require you to change who you are; it requires you to be who you are.” It’s a powerful idea — that real belonging isn’t about fitting in; it’s about being seen, accepted, and valued for exactly who you are.
In a world where we’re constantly encouraged to edit ourselves, curate our lives, and conform to expectations, this kind of authentic connection can feel rare — even revolutionary.
I’ve spent the last few days haunted by a simple, handwritten note. It wasn’t particularly long and didn’t come from a famous philosopher or great thinker. But it carried more meaning than a hundred speeches ever could.
It came from the backpack of Hillel Nehemiah Ofen, a 20-year-old IDF soldier who tragically collapsed and died during a training exercise last week. The day after Hillel’s funeral, Israeli journalist and author Tsur Ehrlich shared a remarkable discovery on social media: a handwritten note found in Hillel’s backpack.
“This note,” Ehrlich wrote on Facebook, “belongs in the pocket of every Jew. It’s a profound meditation on identity, on life, on what it means to be part of something bigger than yourself. In the midst of a kind of social heatstroke that’s overtaken us, Hillel’s words are like a cool drink of water — reviving, grounding, and deeply human.”
The note began with two powerful words: “Ani Shayach!”— “I belong.”
And it didn’t stop there. Hillel expanded the thought with breathtaking simplicity: “I belong — to my family, to my people, to the land of Israel. I belong to love. I belong to fear. I belong to hope and to disappointment. I belong to joy and to pain. I belong to this moment.”
Who writes like that? It’s profound. The thoughtful words of a soldier in the prime of life, reflecting on his future, somehow channel something timeless — even eternal.
In a world increasingly obsessed with individualism, self-branding, and curating flawless images for public consumption, here was a young man who had peeled all of that away. No filters. No hashtags. Just a raw, honest declaration of connection — to people, to place, to purpose.
And that’s when it struck me: this wasn’t just a private reflection scribbled by a young man on the cusp of adulthood. It was a sacred manifesto — reminding himself, and all of us, that real strength doesn’t come from standing apart. It comes from showing up. For each other. For our communities. For something greater than ourselves.
And as fate (or providence) would have it, this week’s Torah portion, Pekudei, makes precisely that point — in a different register, but no less powerful. Let me explain.
Pekudei is the final portion in the Book of Exodus — and let’s be honest, it’s the part many people skim or skip altogether. It’s filled with endless inventories of materials used in the Mishkan, the portable sanctuary the Israelites built in the wilderness. Gold clasps, silver sockets, blue and purple yarn, lists of beams and curtains — it reads like divine DIY instructions for a holy IKEA project.
But buried in all that detail is something deeply profound. Because the Mishkan wasn’t just a mobile synagogue — it was a collective creation, a spiritual home that every Jew had a stake in.
The wood was donated. The fabrics were hand-woven by members of the community. The silver came from the half-shekel that everyone contributed — rich or poor, no exceptions. Every person was part of it. Every soul was counted. Every Jew belonged.
And here’s the point: God doesn’t need a house. Let’s be honest — the Mishkan wasn’t for Him. It was for them. The people needed it. They needed a place that declared: We are here. We matter. We belong.
Just like Hillel Nehemiah Ofen. His quiet note, tucked into a backpack, was his own small contribution to the broader Mishkan — a deeply personal acknowledgment of his role in his family, his people, and his country. And in making that contribution, he uncovered something essential: “I belong.”
Hillel wrote it without fanfare, without drama — just truth. In doing so, he echoed Pekudei’s deeper message: that belonging doesn’t just happen. It’s not accidental. It’s something we must build and recognize — with care, with intention, thread by thread, soul by soul.
And maybe that’s what we’ve started to forget in our modern world. We’ve built towers of success, of status, of innovation. But somewhere along the way, we’ve stopped noticing the granular, sacred details — the threads and clasps that bind us to one another.
The Mishkan wasn’t about the grandeur of the finished product. It was about the togetherness, the humility, and the shared identity embedded in every piece. It was a space where everyone mattered. A space where everyone belonged.
Hillel saw that — and with his passing, he gave us that message. His note, written for himself, wasn’t just about himself. It was a blueprint, made up of feelings and fears and hopes — with space in it for everyone. It included not only love and pride, but also doubt, pain, and vulnerability. He understood what it meant to be whole and part of something holy.
And here’s the deeper truth: belonging isn’t simply a warm, fuzzy feeling. It’s an obligation. It’s on each of us to make space for others, to invite them in, to say: You are part of this, just like I’m part of this. You matter. You are not alone.
That’s what the Mishkan did. That’s what Hillel’s note does. And that’s what we must do.
So, here’s a thought for this Shabbat, as we read Pekudei and close out Sefer Shemot: Let’s ask ourselves — where is my Mishkan? What am I building that brings people in? That helps others feel seen, valued, and connected enough to say, “I belong,” as Hillel did so simply and so powerfully. “I belong — to my family, to my community, to my people, to this moment.”
We need to remember that we are all architects of belonging. Every kind word, every act of generosity, every moment of presence — these are the silver sockets and golden threads of a modern-day Mishkan.
May we merit to build it with the same love, clarity, and quiet strength that Hillel carried in his heart. And may we all one day look around — at our homes, our communities, our people — and say, in unison and without hesitation: “Ani Shayach.” I belong.
The author is a rabbi in Beverly Hills, California.
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Israel Blocks Ramallah Meeting with Arab Ministers, Israeli Official Says
A closed Israeli military gate stands near Ramallah in the West Bank, February 18, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ammar Awad
Israel will not allow a planned meeting in the Palestinian administrative capital of Ramallah, in the West Bank, to go ahead, an Israeli official said on Saturday, after Arab ministers planning to attend were stopped from coming.
The move, days after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing government announced one of the largest expansions of settlements in the West Bank in years, underlined escalating tensions over the issue of international recognition of a future Palestinian state.
Saturday’s meeting comes ahead of an international conference, co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia, that is due to be held in New York on June 17-20 to discuss the issue of Palestinian statehood, which Israel fiercely opposes.
The delegation of senior Arab officials due to visit Ramallah – including the Jordanian, Egyptian, Saudi Arabian and Bahraini foreign ministers – postponed the visit after “Israel’s obstruction of it,” Jordan’s foreign ministry said in a statement, adding that the block was “a clear breach of Israel’s obligations as an occupying force.”
The ministers required Israeli consent to travel to the West Bank from Jordan.
An Israeli official said the ministers intended to take part in “a provocative meeting” to discuss promoting the establishment of a Palestinian state.
“Such a state would undoubtedly become a terrorist state in the heart of the land of Israel,” the official said. “Israel will not cooperate with such moves aimed at harming it and its security.”
A Saudi source told Reuters that Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud had delayed a planned trip to the West Bank.
Israel has come under increasing pressure from the United Nations and European countries which favour a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, under which an independent Palestinian state would exist alongside Israel.
French President Emmanuel Macron said on Friday that recognizing a Palestinian state was not only a “moral duty but a political necessity.”
Palestinians want the West Bank territory, which was seized by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war, as the core of a future state along with Gaza and East Jerusalem.
But the area is now criss-crossed with settlements that have squeezed some 3 million Palestinians into pockets increasingly cut off from each other though a network of military checkpoints.
Defense Minister Israel Katz said the announcement this week of 22 new settlements in the West Bank was an “historic moment” for settlements and “a clear message to Macron.” He said recognition of a Palestinian state would be “thrown into the dustbin of history.”
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Gaza Aid Supplies Hit by Looting as Hamas Ceasefire Response Awaited
Palestinians carry aid supplies which they received from the U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, in the central Gaza Strip, May 29, 2025. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed
Armed men hijacked dozens of aid trucks entering the Gaza Strip overnight and hundreds of desperate Palestinians joined in to take supplies, local aid groups said on Saturday as officials waited for Hamas to respond to the latest ceasefire proposals.
The incident was the latest in a series that has underscored the shaky security situation hampering the delivery of aid into Gaza, following the easing of a weeks-long Israeli blockade earlier this month.
US President Donald Trump said on Friday he believed a ceasefire agreement was close but Hamas has said it is still studying the latest proposals from his special Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff. The White House said on Thursday that Israel had agreed to the proposals.
The proposals would see a 60-day truce and the exchange of 28 of the 58 hostages still held in Gaza for more than 1,200 Palestinian prisoners and detainees, along with the entry of humanitarian aid into the enclave.
On Saturday, the Israeli military, which relaunched its air and ground campaign in March following a two-month truce, said it was continuing to hit targets in Gaza, including sniper posts and had killed what it said was the head of a Hamas weapons manufacturing site.
The campaign has cleared large areas along the boundaries of the Gaza Strip, squeezing the population of more than 2 million into an ever narrower section along the coast and around the southern city of Khan Younis.
Israel imposed a blockade on all supplies entering the enclave at the beginning of March in an effort to weaken Hamas and has found itself under increasing pressure from an international community shocked by the increasingly desperate humanitarian situation the blockade has created.
The United Nations said on Friday the situation in Gaza is the worst since the start of the war began 19 months ago, with the entire population facing the risk of famine despite a resumption of limited aid deliveries earlier this month.
Israel has been allowing a limited number of trucks from the World Food Program and other international groups to bring flour to bakeries in Gaza but deliveries have been hampered by repeated incidents of looting.
At the same time, a separate system, run by a US-backed group called the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has been delivering meals and food packages at three designated distribution sites.
However, aid groups have refused to cooperate with the GHF, which they say is not neutral, and say the amount of aid allowed in falls far short of the needs of a population at risk of famine.
“The aid that’s being sent now makes a mockery of the mass tragedy unfolding under our watch,” Philippe Lazzarini, head of the main U.N. relief organization for Palestinians, said in a message on the social media platform X.
NO BREAD IN WEEKS
The World Food Program said it brought 77 trucks carrying flour into Gaza overnight and early on Saturday and all of them were stopped on the way, with food taken by hungry people.
“After nearly 80 days of a total blockade, communities are starving and they are no longer willing to watch food pass them by,” it said in a statement.
Amjad Al-Shawa, head of an umbrella group representing Palestinian aid groups, said the dire situation was being exploited by armed groups which were attacking some of the aid convoys.
He said hundreds more trucks were needed and accused Israel of a “systematic policy of starvation.”
Overnight on Saturday, he said trucks had been stopped by armed groups near Khan Younis as they were headed towards a World Food Programme warehouse in Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza and hundreds of desperate people had carried off supplies.
“We could understand that some are driven by hunger and starvation, some may not have eaten bread in several weeks, but we can’t understand armed looting, and it is not acceptable at all,” he said.
Israel says it is facilitating aid deliveries, pointing to its endorsement of the new GHF distribution centers and its consent for other aid trucks to enter Gaza.
Instead it accuses Hamas of stealing supplies intended for civilians and using them to entrench its hold on Gaza, which it had been running since 2007.
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Hamas Seeks Changes in US Gaza Proposal; Witkoff Calls Response ‘Unacceptable’
US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy-designate Steve Witkoff gives a speech at the inaugural parade inside Capital One Arena on the inauguration day of Trump’s second presidential term, in Washington, DC, Jan. 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria
Hamas said on Saturday it was seeking amendments to a US-backed proposal for a temporary ceasefire with Israel in Gaza, but President Donald Trump’s envoy rejected the group’s response as “totally unacceptable.”
The Palestinian terrorist group said it was willing to release 10 living hostages and hand over the bodies of 18 dead in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons. But Hamas reiterated demands for an end to the war and withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, conditions Israel has rejected.
A Hamas official described the group’s response to the proposals from Trump’s special Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff as “positive” but said it was seeking some amendments. The official did not elaborate on the changes being sought by the group.
“This response aims to achieve a permanent ceasefire, a complete withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, and to ensure the flow of humanitarian aid to our people in the Strip,” Hamas said in a statement.
The proposals would see a 60-day truce and the exchange of 28 of the 58 hostages still held in Gaza for more than 1,200 Palestinian prisoners and detainees, along with the entry of humanitarian aid into the enclave.
A Palestinian official familiar with the talks told Reuters that among amendments Hamas is seeking is the release of the hostages in three phases over the 60-day truce and more aid distribution in different areas. Hamas also wants guarantees the deal will lead to a permanent ceasefire, the official said.
There was no immediate response from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office to the Hamas statement.
Israel has previously rejected Hamas’ conditions, instead demanding the complete disarmament of the group and its dismantling as a military and governing force, along with the return of all 58 remaining hostages.
Trump said on Friday he believed a ceasefire agreement was close after the latest proposals, and the White House said on Thursday that Israel had agreed to the terms.
Saying he had received Hamas’ response, Witkoff wrote in a posting on X: “It is totally unacceptable and only takes us backward. Hamas should accept the framework proposal we put forward as the basis for proximity talks, which we can begin immediately this coming week.”
On Saturday, the Israeli military said it had killed Mohammad Sinwar, Hamas’ Gaza chief on May 13, confirming what Netanyahu said earlier this week.
Sinwar, the younger brother of Yahya Sinwar, the group’s deceased leader and mastermind of the October 2023 attack on Israel, was the target of an Israeli strike on a hospital in southern Gaza. Hamas has neither confirmed nor denied his death.
The Israeli military, which relaunched its air and ground campaign in March following a two-month truce, said on Saturday it was continuing to hit targets in Gaza, including sniper posts and had killed what it said was the head of a Hamas weapons manufacturing site.
The campaign has cleared large areas along the boundaries of the Gaza Strip, squeezing the population of more than 2 million into an ever narrower section along the coast and around the southern city of Khan Younis.
Israel imposed a blockade on all supplies entering the enclave at the beginning of March in an effort to weaken Hamas and has found itself under increasing pressure from an international community shocked by the desperate humanitarian situation the blockade has created.
On Saturday, aid groups said dozens of World Food Program trucks carrying flour to Gaza bakeries had been hijacked by armed groups and subsequently looted by people desperate for food after weeks of mounting hunger.
“After nearly 80 days of a total blockade, communities are starving and they are no longer willing to watch food pass them by,” the WFP said in a statement.
‘A MOCKERY’
The incident was the latest in a series that has underscored the shaky security situation hampering the delivery of aid into Gaza, following the easing of a weeks-long Israeli blockade earlier this month.
The United Nations said on Friday the situation in Gaza is the worst since the start of the war 19 months ago, with the entire population facing the risk of famine despite a resumption of limited aid deliveries earlier this month.
“The aid that’s being sent now makes a mockery of the mass tragedy unfolding under our watch,” Philippe Lazzarini, head of the main U.N. relief organization for Palestinians, said in a message on X.
Israel has been allowing a limited number of trucks from the World Food Program and other international groups to bring flour to bakeries in Gaza but deliveries have been hampered by repeated incidents of looting.
A separate system, run by a US-backed group called the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, has been delivering meals and food packages at three designated distribution sites.
However, aid groups have refused to cooperate with the GHF, which they say is not neutral, and say the amount of aid allowed in falls far short of the needs of a population at risk of famine.
Amjad Al-Shawa, head of an umbrella group representing Palestinian aid groups, said the dire situation was being exploited by armed groups which were attacking some of the aid convoys.
He said hundreds more trucks were needed and accused Israel of a “systematic policy of starvation.”
Israel denies operating a policy of starvation and says it is facilitating aid deliveries, pointing to its endorsement of the new GHF distribution centers and its consent for other aid trucks to enter Gaza.
Instead it accuses Hamas of stealing supplies intended for civilians and using them to entrench its hold on Gaza, which it had been running since 2007.
Hamas denies looting supplies and has executed a number of suspected looters.
The post Hamas Seeks Changes in US Gaza Proposal; Witkoff Calls Response ‘Unacceptable’ first appeared on Algemeiner.com.