The saddest day on the Jewish calendar will be next Tuesday.

Tisha B’Av arrives on Monday night and observant Jews around the world will fast until sunset on Tuesday to commemorate the loss of both Temples in Jerusalem. Many other tragic events have befallen the Jewish people at this time of year, throughout history.

Today, we see war in Israel, and an upsurge of anti-Semitism has popped up across the globe.

A story to help your tween or teen through this tough time

Now, more than ever, we need to unify with both our fellow Jews and with human beings everywhere. The message of my latest story, “A Vision of the Future,” in this week’s Binyan Magazine (inside Hamodia) is just that: no matter how fractured and angry our world is today, we can work on it to bring a future of unity and peace.

In the story, Moshe Haber — a teen living in a diverse Jewish community — hears that the Rebbe Levi Yitzchok of Berditchev felt that any Jew could have their own vision of the Third Temple during the Shabbat known as Shabbos Chazon. At first he is skeptical, but then something happens to change his mind…

Let’s all pray that the day comes soon when all humankind lives together in peace. And let’s all take it upon ourselves to increase the amount of chessed/lovingkindness we do for our fellow human beings in order to bring it about.

Missed the beginning of “Glixman in a Fix?”

On a side note, my serial in Binah Between, “Glixman in a Fix,” has hit Episode 16 this week. It’s not too late to start reading it. If you’re a latecomer, you can email me via the form below, and I’ll summarize the opening chapters for you.