Finding Mashiach - An emotional search for the Jewish Messiah

And... I don't know what to tell you. I don't know if this guy actually exists. I don't know if this candidate is out there. You know it's a shame. It's really a shame because if we do find this guy, there's so much money on the table. I don't think that we've tried at all. I don't think that we've exhausted every single resource. If we don't place this guy, I'm scared not only for our client, but to be honest with you, I'm scared for us. Berel, we tried our best here. We're going at this every single day. I was counting on this. We were all counting on this. Berel, your wife is trying to reach you. Hey, sweetheart, how are you? Hi, Berel. Shabbat's in 30 minutes. Where are you? What? Oh, my gosh. You're right. I didn't even realize. I'm so sorry. Are you there? Yeah, I'm here. Where were we? Look, you known, we tried hard this week. I don't think there's anything more that we could have done. I think that you're right. And next week will be a better week. What could I say? All right, I'm home in a minute. Good Shabbat. I'll speak to you on Monday. Good Shabbat. Talk to you then. Okay, bye. Here mommy. Thank you, Shaina, for helping me. Ah, Daddy ! Hi, Meny. Hi, Papale. Hi. Hi, Ellie. Welcome, Berel. Hi. Please, can you get the kids ready for Shabbat? Yes, absolutely. Okay. All right, come. Let's go, guys. Let's hurry up. All right. We have to go. How's your day, Menachem ? Great, Barouch Hashem, - Yeah. We went to school. Ok guys, I'm going to go get dressed. We have to hurry up. We're late. I'll see you guys in the car, okay? Seat bells on, please. Okay, guys, go ahead. I'll be up in a minute. Oh my gosh. It's not looking good for the Jews right now. Life in Egypt was becoming more and more difficult for the Jewish people. And Pharao had made a new law saying that all Jewish boys had to be thrown into the Nile River. Tatie, why does every time the Jews have to be killed? In Hannouka, in Pessah, in Purim, and now that we learned about the Holocaust? It's a good question. Look, I don't have the answer. But what I do know is that we're here today, and that's an amazing thing, and that's what matters. And do we still have to be scared? You know what, guys? It's getting late. I think that we're going to finish tomorrow, okay? No, no, no, no. Yes, yes. Okay. To bed everybody. Anything good out there? - Nothing. Everything looks really bad. It's just terrible what's going on. You? It's disgusting. Did you see what just happened in Israel? Yeah, I saw. And in New York, did you see what happened? It's so bad. So scary. Honestly, we need Mashiach already. The darkness in this world is almost miraculous. It doesn't even make sense how quickly the whole world turned on Jews. I went to a Jewish but non-religious high school. And ever since I was a kid, we heard the word Mashiach, and it was always something that was never taken so seriously. Throughout Jewish history, there's been one thing that has given Jewish people hope in the hardest, most difficult times. Jewish people on trains on the way to concentration camps, saying one song in hopes to see the day where Mashiach will come. The problem is the subject is so elusive that as soon as you start speaking about Mashiach, people almost tune out. And when October seventh happened, I found myself so incredibly hurt, despondent. And I need to find something on the side of light and on the side of truth. And there's nothing that I know of besides Mashiach, that is that miraculous light. Hey, Berel. How's it going? Rabbi, good morning. It looks like you're learning very seriously today. I'm definitely trying to. What are you studying? I am trying to learn about Mashiach. I have just been a mess with everything that's going on in Israel, but it's not so simple. There's so many conflicting opinions. It's not such a simple subject. Mashiach is a big topic in Judaism. It's the essence of Judaism. Do you have any suggestions, maybe, of where to start? Why don't you consider going to New York? The Rabbi spoke about this topic for over 40 years. There are many rabbis that dedicate their lives to understand this. Maybe go there and you find some answers. I have a wife, five kids, I have a business. I don't know how practical it is for me to go take off to New York right now. To go learn about Mashiach. Well, it's a tough decision. But if it's a priority for you now, that's the way to go. I find myself affected, even in my work. Maybe he does have a point. But this is going to be tough on my wife, and I have a lot of responsibilities. I'm not sure how she's going to take it. Hey, how are you? Hi, Good. Barouch Hashem and you ? How was your day? - Thank God. How was yours? - Thank God. It was an interesting day. I went to Synagogue, like we spoke about last night, to learn about Mashiach, and rabbi Laine saw me learning. Yeah. And he suggested maybe going to New York for a few days to learn from some rabbis over there. To New York? Wow. Okay. You're going to go to New York? I would like to. It's going to be difficult for me. that you're going to go all the way to New York, but... explain to me a little more about the trip. Look, I haven't been myself lately. You know this more than anyone. Right. So there's a lot of great rabbis in New York, and he suggested it. Okay. I'm going to miss you. It's going to be hard for us for sure. When are you going to go? Well, I know. I see you're already made up your mind. I'm going to send you a list of things that we need for the house for the kids in the Jewish store. If you're going there? It's a small price. Okay. Does that mean I could go? Yes. You're the best. A part of me is scared to let go of everything that I have going on. But this is something that I have to do for myself, and I feel that I also have to do for others. And there I was. Any time I've ever traveled to New York has always been for business. And here, I'm essentially traveling for Mashiach. Before I go speak to any of the big experts, I want to hear what the people on the streets of New York City have to say about Mashiach. Hey, guys. How are you? Welcome to New York. I just landed also. I have a quick question for you. Good afternoon, sir. Can I ask you a question? I was told I could find more about Mashiach, about the Messiah. Do you know where I could find him? What do you mean, Messiah? The Messiah, the Mashiach. This man that's going to end all wars, build the third temple in Jerusalem, bring all the Jewish people back to the land of Israel, and create a land in a time of prosperity. No? Okay, if you find out, let me know, okay? - Yeah, sure. Never heard of it? It's coming. Get ready. Okay? I love you. Have a great day. Anybody? Anybody see the Messiah? What's that? Very, very glad to hear from you. It sounds nice. Very, very glad to see this. Yeah, it sounds nice, right? These people aren't even from here. I'm going to go to my hotel and check in, and then I'm going to Times Square to hear what real New Yorkers have to say about Mashiach. You know, it's interesting. There's all kinds of people on the streets of New York. There's people who are apathetic, they couldn't care less. There's people who believe. There's people who don't believe. There's people who hate me just because I'm me. Okay, let's get to work. Have you ever heard of something called the Mashiach before? Mashiach? Yeah. No. Never heard of the Mashiach? Never heard of the Mashiach. The Mashiach No. Never? How are you doing? Good. What's your name? Hassan. Nice to meet you. Free Palestine ! We believe in Muhammad. You don't believe. Can we come up with a chant ? Peace, peace in the world. Where's my friend? How are you doing? It's okay. No hate, only love. Can I give you a hug? Absolutely not. Come on, man. We believe in this thing called the Mashiach, and he's going to create a beautiful new world. You're going to be able to see Godliness in this world and create an era of peace and prosperity for the world. Yeah. Does that sound good to you? Sounds good. The Mashiach. Ben David? Yes. Are you excited for Mashiach? Yes. Say, we want Mashiach now. I want Mashiach now. My man, my man, my man. Do you mind if I ask you, are you Jewish, sir? You bet you. Are you Jewish, by any chance? Yeah, I am. Can you see that? The Israel headband. Let me see that. Could you put that on for me? Put it on ! Bro, you're an undercovered Jew. We got to get a cover on this, man. I got you, I got you Did you put on Tefilin ever? I did it in Rhode Island once. Some guy at another station was like... Try to put on. If you truly want to bring Mashiach faster, put on Tefilin every day. Allyeah, give me a hug ? Yeah. I love you, bro. I love these things. If the only reason why I came to New York was to inspire that one kid, that beautiful Jewish soul, it was all worth it. I am on fire. All I want to do is dance. The funny thing is, these guys didn't know that this Jew used to be in the nightclub business before he was religious, and they didn't know that I can dance. NYC, make some noise ! That's my my landord right there. He told me to do this for half of my rent this man. I love you. Shabbat Shalom. It's kind of a beautiful morning in New York and it's time to finally get down to real business. My first stop is Rabbi Manis Friedman, an absolute expert in all areas that have to do with the inner parts of the Torah. And one of my biggest role models. Rabbi Manis Friedman, thank you for being here with us. Appreciate that. It is a pleasure, and the topic is important ! We have to do this ! It's not even an option. Let's jump right in. So, Rabbi, I guess, let's cut to the chase. Mashiach, the Messiah. Big concept. At the end of the day, who is the guy? Is he flesh and blood? Is he an angel? Who are we talking about over here? That is fundamental. That is really crucial. Rambam says, It should not enter your mind that Mashiah will perform miracles. The whole idea of giving the Torah at Mount Sinai; of 3,000 years of observing God's Commandments, it is all because there is a divine potential in nature. By keeping the Commandments, observing the Commandments, we're bringing out and revealing the divine that is concealed and hidden in nature, which means Mashiach has to be a human being. The whole point is humans have the potential to be Godly. Nature has the potential to be Godly. So he's a regular person. Regular human being. He has a heart that beats, eyes that sees. Is he alive right now? He must be because he has to come tomorrow. So I've learned that Mashiach could come one of two ways. One is we're in such dire straits that there's no other option, and he's going to have to come and save the day, or we earned it, and he's going to come and reward us for earning his arrival. So the Rabbi said many times, it's both. When we're so desperate for the truth, you can describe it in one of two ways. Say you've never been so low, you've hit rock bottom. On the other hand, you've never been so ready. The world has never been so ready. And the world is going to listen to him? The world will listen to him because the world is desperate for leadership. Which country admires its own president or king or whatever, Prime Minister? It seems that you're pretty hopeful that any moment now that Mashiach is going to come. Well, first, it's inevitable, and we're getting really close to the deadline. We desperately need it to be more than soon, but now, because the stage is set, everybody is ready, and there's no reason that it can't happen immediately. What a first stop. I'm beginning to see that this trip was definitely needed. The next scholar I'm meeting with is Rav Herschel Schechter, Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshiva University. I'm excited to learn about Mashiach from somebody that has dedicated his entire life to teaching thousands and thousands and thousands of students, Torah. Why is Mashiach important and integral to Jewish faith? God only does miracles if he's going to accomplish something with it. He's not going to make a miracle unnecessarily. Why in the world did he create this world? What did he accomplish by this? People are just killing each other, right and left. They hate each other. They're jealous of each other. So we are told in the Hummash, there will be a period in history in the end of days when Mashiach will come, and there'll be peaceful in the world. People will not be killing each other. The Kingdom of God will be recognized by all of mankind, and it'll be peaceful. That's the main thing. So forgive my ignorance. It seems that in the Hasidic sects, they speak about Mashiach a lot, for sure in Chabbad. Is Mashiach that big of a talking point in the modern Orthodox world as well? We don't talk about it that much. Three times a day in our prayers, we pray to God that he should bring Mashiach. So that's like the Ramam says, we all have an obligation to hasten the comming of Mashiach. We don't control Mashiach. God has control over Mashiach. We have to pray to God. He should hasten the comming of Mashiach. They have special busses that go to Hevron to visit the Maarat Hamachpela, every month on Erev Rosh Hodesh. People go to daven with the Avot, with Avraham, Isaac and Jacob, that He should bring, Hakadosh Barouch Hou, He should bring the Mashiach. May we merit to see him very quickly. Amen. Rabbi, thank you so much for your time. I'm excited for my next interview, which is with Rabbi Lawrence Hajioff, he's the author of a book called A Guide to the Jewish Messiah, Israel, and the End of Days. I'm particularly interested to go meet with him because a lot of people are talking about the End of Days, Gog and Magog, the ultimate war that will happen before the time of Mashiach. And it feels like the war of Gog and Magog is right here, right now, playing out in front of us. I need to hear from him exactly what his thoughts are. Rabbi Lawrence Hajioff, thank you so much for being here with us. I guess since you wrote the book, you probably know a little bit about the subject. And there's a big discussion that at the end of days, there will be something called the war of Gog and Magog. And are we there? Are we in the middle of it? Are we at the end of it? I would love to hear your thoughts on that. So the idea of Gog and Magog appears in the prophets. Ezekiel, the prophet, speaks about it, and Zaharia speak about this idea of some final battle. Most of the commentators, however, tell us this will be three separate battles, all of them taking place in Israel, and the nations of the world are going to come, collaborate in order to fight against Israel. We're not too sure who these nations are exactly because they're given different names in the prophets. However, one does stand out that we do know, and that is Paras, Persia, which is modern day Iran. So many of the commentators nowadays look at this as a sign that what we're going through right now are relating to this particular prophecy of Ezekiel and Zaharia. What are the things that this man has to do in order for us to confidently call him the Mashiach? He's got to fight the wars of God. He's got to build the third and final temple in Jerusalem. And most importantly, he's got to be the final catalyst to bring every single Jew back to the land of Israel. He's going to be a king. Kingship, royalty is going to return to our people. He's got other jobs as well. But that's his main mission, to bring peace and return the Jewish people to the land of Israel. Do you think that we are in the final moments before Mashiach? I have no doubt. I'm 100% sure that we are right now living in the pre-Messianic times. The signs given to us by our prophets and by our sages even after the prophets, it's very, very clear. That was an incredible interview. Such an interesting perspective on Gog and Magog. I'm happy that one of the things that Mashiach has to do is fight God's wars, because when Mashiach is on our side, we can't lose. In Brooklyn, New York, can be found a very special lady. Her name is Miriam Ezagui. She's one of the largest Orthodox Jewish female influencers in the entire world right now. She has a very unique perspective on anti-Semitism and how to portray Judaism in a positive light so that we could combat so many of the falsehoods that have been plaguing us for so long. How do you deal with the vile anti-Semitism that exists on the internet? We're talking about Mashiach. Let's talk about Mashiach. I don't share my videos with a Jewish audience in mind. Interesting. One of the reasons that I do that is because I felt that there was a void. I found that when people have a lack of understanding, sometimes that void is filled with hate, not intentionally, but because of the society that we grew up in. If they don't understand something, they could be anti-Semitic, not because they really have a hatred of Jews, but because they don't have a proper understanding. Well, don't stop. Keep on going. Don't give up. Because it says that the Ba'al Shemtov, somebody once asked him, When will Mashiach come? And he answered, when your teachings will be spread throughout the world. So continue spreading goodness and kindness and light. Amen. And may be merited to see Mashiach very, very soon. Amen. I'm on my way now to go visit one of my personal heroes in my life, Rabbi YY Jacobson. I spent countless hours listening to his classes online, and to have the opportunity to go sit down with him and to learn about Mashiach with him is something that I never thought that I would have the opportunity to do. I'm excited for this one. So what's all the excitement about? From what I understand, Mashiach comes. We're going to be free to enjoy learning Torah, learning the Bible all day, getting closer to God all day. And I'll be honest with you, for me personally, it's very exciting to go make a deal. I'm a businessman, okay? To go make a deal, to go make a new project, a new this, a new that. That's exciting. What's all the excitement about it? It's a great question. I think it comes from a misconception of what Mashiach means. Some people think it's basically the era of the nerds, or the era, I should say, of the bookworms. If I'm a bookworm, great. I think we need to graduate some of our primitive conceptions. What does Mashiach really mean? Fundamentally, the time of exile is a time of profound dysfunction. Now we're looking for substitutes. I go to the books, you go to your business deal. This one is doing his thing. We're all on our phones. Some good stuff we do, some not such good stuff. We're all running around for substitutes. The fundamental truth of human existence, the fundamental truth of existence is in jail in our minds and our hearts. So it seems like in the hardest points of history, Mashiach has always been that thing that the Jews have turned towards. Why is it that that is what gives us hope? Out of all things, Mashiach is a man. Why that? Excellent question. Here, too, there's a misconception. For the Jewish people, Mashiach represents a time in an era when we'll be able to look back and say, That's why it all happened. Now, think about that. Tell me, there is something that can happen in the world that will justify for 2,000 years of torment? Is there even any great goodness that can happen in the world that will justify the death of one child, the death of one innocent person? Tell me what exactly can happen in our world. That you and I, and anybody can look back and say, that's why we went through this. The answer is, there's nothing. You know why? Because we completely don't even begin to grasp what Mashiach is. Clinging to Mashiach meant clinging to the fact that hatred is dysfunctional. That's what Mashiach meant collectively and individually to the Jewish people. It meant that as much pain and horrors as we saw, our core is unscathed. Belief in Mashiach means the world may be dysfunctional. We may be alienated from ourselves. Humanity needs a lot of healing, and the Jewish people need a lot of healing. But it's healing to come back to who we truly are. That's what belief in Mashiach meant for the Jewish people. In New York, I can understand why people want Mashiach. It's a little bit of a rough environment. It's cold outside today. Funny policies, crazy people running around in the streets. But Miami, such a nice place, warm place, friendly to the Jewish people, expanding Jewish communities, palm trees. Do you think they want Mashiach as badly as the New Yorkers do? So I've had the privilege of visiting Miami and Florida many, many times, and my gut tells me that there, too, they want Mashiach. I'm going to have to go check it out for myself. Do that. Hello, sunny Miami. I am excited to be here. And for everybody that's watching, yes, I did get a blessing from my wife to continue my trip for a few more days. Let's see what Florida has to offer. I I watch your stuff every day. You're kidding. That's so cool. That's a great one. Thank you, man. Do you mind if I ask you a question for a documentary that we're filming? In Judaism, we believe that there is this man. He's going to end all wars, bring peace in the world. He's going to end all famine, No women are going to miscarry, and we're going to live happily ever after. Have you ever heard of this concept before? Have you ever heard of that before? No. It's coming, baby. Have you ever heard of such a concept before? It sounds nice, no? I guess the Jewish people would call it the Mashiach, but it comes less volcano-y. This trip would not be complete without a little bit of Sfardi flavor. I'm on the way now to go visit Rabbi Galmidi from the Safra Shul in Aventura. One of the reasons why we came to Miami Aventura in the first place was, who needs Mashiach in such a beautiful place? Do the people here care about Mashiach? Do they want Mashiach? Who wants to leave here? I mean, it's beautiful. Why should people even want it in the first place if they could enjoy life here? You're touching an excellent point. Aventura, the United States provides whatever you need. That's why our sages called United States a country of kindness. But regretfully, with October 7, suddenly we see a new face that we never even thought that it existed. Fear factors, demonstrations against Israel. Regretfully, you come into the synagogues, now you have metal detectors, schools became a fortress, all kinds of security measures that in the past, they were not that enforceable. Mashiach will bring harmony to the world, peace into the world. Anger, jealousy, envy, war will not exist. Why will all of these things, why will war not exist? Envy will not exist. What's the change? I think that we need to go a bit deeper and explain what is prompting all these things now and what will change. And I like to quote, with your permission. Sure. The Rambam at the end of Hilchot Melachim, the Loss of Kings, Isaiah, chapter 11, verse 9. Translation. The Earth, the world, will be filled of God's knowledge like the water covers the ocean. Today, Godliness in certain areas is revealed, but in many areas it's hidden. But the world will have this spirit of Godliness that the fear, especially of anti-Semitism, will disappear. The enemies will bring down the weapons and will be a world of peace, of harmony, of belief in Hashem. If we change that, if we increase the goodness, we can change the world. My next talk is with rabbi Lipskar, the rabbi of the Shul in Bell Harbor. He's world famous for the work that he's done not only in Bell Harbor, but the incredible work that he's done all around the world. I'm excited to hear his thoughts on Mashiach. A question that many people have is, when is Mashiach finally coming? And I've heard people say that they almost have given up on Mashiach coming. So when is Mashiach coming? So you have to understand first about what does it mean when is he coming? They've been asking that for three and a half thousand years. I believe that until recently, we have been waiting for Mashiach. Now, Mashiach is waiting for us. There's a fundamental question which many people I will have asked me, was it meant to be a Jew? Hashem chose us, loves us, and at the same time, in order to achieve that, he puts us at risk for the time we're born. So Isaiah says,. You're a light. A Jew is a light. The nature of light is that it dissipates darkness, because darkness is not a substance. Darkness is just a negative. So Hashem says to us, you're a light. In order to be a light, there's a challenge out there. But I'm going to give you a secret potion. I'm going to connect you with a level of power that transcends nature. The Jew is not limited by that. Which means each of us can live within the scope of our homes. We can live a Mashiach life. The exact moment is now. Wherever you are, the exact moment is now. Mashiach is here. It's peaked through the cracks and knocking on the door, waiting for us to open the door. That's it. Thank you for your time. My trip to Florida would be incomplete without visiting Rabbi Efron Goldberg of Boca Raton. What this man has achieved and created in transforming the Jewish life in Boca Raton is an incredible thing to see. And I'm asking myself, how could he leave such an amazing, beautiful place when Mashiach comes? I'm excited to hear his perspective and to learn on what he feels Mashiach is all about. I think one of the confusions of why people should be excited about Mashiach today is they don't even know why they should be excited. I think a lot of people think they're going to have unlimited amount of money. The food is going be great. We're all going to be on the beach relaxing forever. I mean, what is that thing that we should be excited about when Mashiach comes? What is the essence of really what it is? A lot of people hear Mashiach, and they picture actually where we're sitting, Boca Ratton, sitting under palm trees, sipping Pina coladas. They never have to work again. There's no more problems ever again. But that's not at all what it's going to be like. Most of the way we live now is how we're going to live then. We're going to go to work. We're going to interact. We're going to shop. We're going to cook. We're going to have to find our mate. We're going to get married. We're going to have to live life the the way God wants us to in this physical material world. The difference will be, first of all, we'll have a peace. That confidence, that calm, that it all comes from above. It comes from God. So that's what we're longing for, Berel. What we're looking forward to, we'll be able to live with calm and peace and tranquility. And in fact, the people who previously were our enemies, the whole world, they're going to want a piece of, they're going to want a part of. And the address to tap into that light will be the Jewish people. That pleasure, that is wisdom, that is truth, we will be the dispensary of it, and the world will be coming us to get access to it. So Mashiach sounds amazing. Boca Raton feels amazing. And I mean, why would you want to leave here? I mean, I don't see anti-Semitism, at least revealed in a way that I feel scared. Where does Israel come into the whole picture? Sure. Life is good, and we should be grateful for the life that we've been given. Imagine you have a home and you're building your family, and that's where it's comfortable, and that's where you belong. But you have a business trip you have to go on. So on that business trip, you stay somewhere else. You're in a hotel. You're getting your work done. The whole time you're on that business trip, you know that you belong there at that moment. There's work to be done. But eventually, the goal is to go home where you belong. We're on business trips in different parts of the world. There's business to be done. There are sparks to collect. There's redemption to advance. There's an impact to have. There's an influence to be felt. But eventually, our mission, our job is to go home. And home is Israel. That's where Mashiach will come. That's where Mashiach will collect us. That's where we belong. Kibutz Galouyot, it's one of the things that we pray for every single day, the ingathering of the Jews from the exiles. Is what you're trying to say is this is not home? No. We're grateful and we're comfortable, but it's not home. They also said that Berlin was the Jerusalem of Germany. That wasn't home, and this isn't home. You know, it's a hard pill to swallow. You grow up your whole life, and you feel that this is home. This place, although it has been really kind to the Jewish people, ultimately, is not our final destination. And after learning so much and having a clear picture of what it will be like when Mashiach does come, if I've realized one thing is that Jews cannot become comfortable anywhere. We were sleeping. October seventh, 2023, made us realize that we were sleeping amongst the enemy. Our neighbors, our friends, our followers on social media have spoken out. They told us who they are. They told us why they don't like us. They told us why they don't think that we deserve to live. And the one Jewish place, the one Jewish country, the one Jewish land in this world, that's what they want to destroy. Iran and the Ayatollah regime is the number one threat to the Jewish people and to the existence and survival of the land of Israel today. They are hell-bent on the destruction of the Jewish people. They spend their days, their hours, their their energy and their resources, figuring out how to wipe a people off the face of the Earth. The worst part is their reverberations have spread and their poison has spread. They've managed to capture the dull minds of the population that have always scapegoated the Jews. We thought that this was over. It's far from over. I'm not a guy that gets scared easily, but I have to admit, I'm afraid for my kids, I'm afraid for my family. And do we still have to be scared? I don't think that this trip can possibly be compl and to fully understand the grand idea of Mashiach without experiencing it through the lens of the land of Israel. Landing in Israel in Ben Gurion Airport is a feeling that only a Jewish person could truly understand. Landing in a country that was given to us by God himself. I'm glad to be here, and I'm glad to see the land of Israel through the lens of Mashiach. I have to admit something that I'm a little bit ashamed of. Before October seventh, on social media, I would not post anything about Israel at all, partly because I didn't want to lose followers. I was scared of the backlash, and probably the thing that I'm the most embarrassed about is that their rhetoric and their propaganda is so strong that it actually starts to manipulate even my mind. Why is this land so important? Why could it not have been Uganda? Why could it not have been any other country? Come, I want to show you something. On this wall, there is a Pasuk. There is a verse written from one of the last prophets in the Tanakh, in the Bible. His name is Zaharia. What he says after the Jewish people lost this country, they lost everything they owned, they lost their house, they lost their family, they lost their country, the people feel terrible. He comes and says, Guys, cheer up. Why ? You'll have women and children walking through the streets of Jerusalem. The city streets, Yimal'u, will be filled the city streets will be filled with boys and girls playing in them. And when he wrote this, it was desolated. He had lost his country. And today, what do you see? You see this happening. Do you need more proof than this that Mashiach is on his way? When you see this happening, the in gathering of the exiles happening right before our very own eyes. This is not the prophecy. This is just the words. If you ask me, the prophecy is over there playing with a soccer ball right now. That's the actual story. Amazing. The Prophecies are beautiful, but it's so undeniable that there's been so much Jewish blood that has been shed for the land of Israel. And it seems to be so ingrained in the culture here. The love for this land is so strong that people are willing to give up their lives just to ensure the survival of the Jewish people. We want Mashiach now. They're not just protecting the citizens of Israel. They're protecting every Jew outside the land of Israel as well. Don't ask me how, but I managed to convince one of the commanders of the army to say thank you on behalf of Jews all around the world to this incredible group of soldiers at their ceremony. From outside of the land of Israel, you should know that the Jewish people stand with you so strong. We love you, we appreciate you. We pray for you. Am Israel Chai ! It's hard for Jews living outside of the land of Israel to understand what it means to give up your life for your country. There's a woman, her name is Jenn Eirly. She just lost one of her sons, unfortunately, in the war after October seventh. I want to go understand from her perspective how to reconcile this tremendous darkness with hope for a better future. I know that you lost your son in Gaza in the war after October seventh. My deepest condolences. Thank you so much for sharing your story with the world. You experienced a very hard moment, probably the hardest moment in your life, undoubtedly the hardest moment in your life, very recently. And yet it doesn't seem to get you down. You're smiling. So first of all, I have a motto I live which is I can do hard. And we've been through hard, and our nation has been through hard, and we just... Okay, so it's hard. And... So it's hard. But when you know that we're part of something bigger and we're working towards Mashiach with every fiber of our being, you're charged with this mission of moving forward even stronger. And what is it exactly about the time of Mashiach that you were most looking forward to. Look, us personally, I think it's pretty obvious. If we get Mashiach and we get the Beit Hamikdash, then we also get revival of the dead, and we get to hold our Binyamin, we get to dance with our Binyamin, we get to share again with him in person, not just in spirit. You just brought up, it may seem, the resurrection of the dead after Mashiach comes. It's such a big subject, such an elusive subject, something that we have no conception of. I would love to learn more about that. And I think that you just sent me on my next mission. Techiyat Hametim, revival of the Dead after Mashiach comes is not something that you typically think about, and it's often something that is hard to even grasp. But after hearing Jen's story, it's not just a hope, it's a need. And I need to find out exactly how the revival of the dead is going to actually play out practically. To answer this question, I'm on my way to go visit my old Yeshiva in Jerusalem to learn from one of my old teachers, Rabbi Kaufman. I'm excited to go visit the place where I spent one of the best years of my life. Why Resurrection of the Dead? Why not just keep everybody alive in the first place? Why does everyone have to die and come back to life? What's the relevance of it all? Okay, it's a very good question. I think the first thing that needs to be known about the subject of Techiyat Hametim, resurrection of the dead, is that this is considered to be one of the fundamentals of Judaism. One view is that the resurrection of the dead is the ultimate end goal. The reason why people die is a tragedy due to the sin of the tree of knowledge. In other words, initially, God did not intend for people to die. After the Messianic era, the world is rectified, and then every soul who deserves is able to come back into the world and truly connect to God as a full human being. Because a human being is not their soul, it's not their body. The human being is a unified being, and in that unity, they connect to God. So, Rabbi, of course, it sounds nice, but it's hard conceptually to get there to believe that's actually going to happen. Resurrection is something we're very unfamiliar with. We've never experienced it. That's true. But, logically, if someone who has never been alive could become alive, so that's a much larger leap than to bring someone back to life. So why does the resurrection have to come after Mashiach? So the resurrection requires that the world be unified in the service of God. And that's really what the role of Mashiach, unify the world in the service of God, Jews and Gentiles alike. And obviously, there's differences between Jews and Gentiles in terms of how we serve God. But as long as the world is not unified in his service, that's not the world that God wants to have this amazing event occur in. Until now, I've been focusing mainly on the Jewish perspective of things, and I think that I have to now look at it from the non-Jewish perspective of things. It's interesting. The whole world is going to experience a change. The Christians, the Muslims, Atheists, Hindus, and everybody in between. If there's one Rabbi that I know that could tackle such a big subject, it's Rabbi Tovia Singer. So we believe that obviously God runs the world in every facet of the world. And we can't ignore the fact that he brought Jesus and he brought Muhammad into this world. And there must be a purpose. We can't discount them completely. So how do they fit within the context of God's plan? As it turns out, more than half the world, because of Christianity and Islam, believe in the Torah is the word of God. Moses appears in the Quran more frequently than Muhammad. Why is this? Why do we have a world that's filled with Abrahamic religions? The majority of this planet believes in this. The reason is very simple. They believe that Judaism is a default baseline. They believe there were mitzvot that were given to the Jewish people. The only thing is these other Abrahamic religions believe that the Commandments found in the Torah are no longer obligatory, and therefore, they believe in those religions, and they believe that you and me miss the boat. What will happen when the Mashiach comes? Everyone will come to the Jew and say, now I know that God is with you. Let's go with you. It's really quite beautiful. Everything we're talking about sounds nice, where all the people are going to come serve God as one, but it seems so far off. If you and I were having a conversation 100 years ago, and I describe that the Jewish people return to the land of Israel, you would say, that's insane. Well, here we are 100 years later, and these prophecies are already unfolding before our eyes right now. There are organizations that are devoted to the coming of Mashiach. The Temple Institute, as an example, are forging, are creating the vessels to be used in the final temple, training priests how to carry out their mandate as kohanim on one of them. Well, I think you just gave me my next mission to go on. My friend Yitzhak Rubin was kind enough to give us a tour of the Temple Institute. It's incredible to see all of these utensils that we always read about in the Torah and to see these replicas that will be used in the Beit Hamikdash. Yitzchak wanted to show me the crown jewel of the Temple Institute, which is a Menora made out of solid gold. This is the crown jewel of the Temple Institute, the golden Menora. Incredible. Made out of 45 kilos of 24 karat gold. As precious as it is monetarily, it's even more precious, spiritually, because it represents the light. It represents spirituality in the world. Wow. It's a paradigm shift about how to look at building the third temple because they were so esoteric, and now you're really bringing it down into real life. Yes. We need to show Hashem that we want to do these things. Maybe if we show some signs of life that we want this, maybe that's all that Hashem is waiting for it to bring it on. The Beit Hamikdach, the The third temple seems to be at the epicenter of everything that has to do with Mashiach. It seems to be the focus of the entire world right now, the most disputed, controversial, spoken about piece of real estate on planet Earth. I need to understand from the ground up exactly what was, what is, and what will be the Beit Hamikdash, the third temple. Let's go discover some hidden secrets. I want to show you the Western Wall Stones, and I want to show you something above us. These are the Western Wall Stones that you'd see when you go outside. These are the original Western Wall Stones from 2000 years ago. Wait, So what you're saying is that the famous wall that we all go to, the Western, the Wailing Wall. What you're saying is it doesn't stop there. It goes, this is part of it? Definitely. People don't realize. They stand next to the wall. They think that's it, and they don't realize the depth of this thing. It's incredible. They don't get a feeling for the enormity of what was here, the effort that was made to honor God 2,000 years ago. This is a ritual bathroom 2,000 years ago. This is one of the secrets of Jerusalem. Jerusalem still has secrets. And think about it, when the Third Temple comes, this ritual bath is just waiting for the people to come. The Temple, according to the oral law, was 150 feet high. Okay. 500 meters, 200 meters long. That's the size of the temple. And when Mashiach comes and he rebuilds the Beit Hamikdach, is it going to be the same size? Is it going to look the same? Well, Ezekiel, in his prophecy, gives us a picture of the third temple, and it's larger than we have here. It's going to be enormous, room to accept all nations to come to Jerusalem, and the Jewish people collect them from all over the world to come back to Jerusalem. This adventure has changed my life in so many ways, but I still have one last question that I think that only one person in this world could truly answer for me. And that's my dear sweet Rabbi. His name is Rabbi Zalman Kaplan. He's a Rosh Yeshiva in Sfat. And I'm hoping that he's going to help me answer my one final question. Traveling from Jerusalem to Sfat, I stopped on my way in Tel Aviv to get a sandwich. I haven't been here in so long. There's no question that this place is gorgeous, but I can't help but feel there's for sure a different energy here than there was in Jerusalem. I can't exactly put my finger on it. I would love to spend more time getting to know Tel Aviv, but my Rabbi is waiting for me, and hopefully I'll be back. The reason why Rabbi Zalman Kaplan is so important to me was when I was becoming religious, he was the first Rabbi that really spent time to talk to me, to teach me, to help me grow. He ended up moving from Montreal, that's where I had grown up, to go take over his father's old yeshiva, and he brought it back to life and filled it with hundreds of incredible students learning Torah every single day. Berel, I'm so happy you came here. Thank you for having me. So how's it going? How's the trip doing? It's been amazing. It's been more than I thought that it was going to be. And it's a lot, to be honest with you. And I have one question more that's bothering me, which is, Mashiach, it's amazing. I want it. We all want it. But the last thing is, how do we physically bring him? Are we sitting ducks just waiting for this moment to happen? I'll tell you, I knew that you were going to ask me this question because that's obviously the most important question. Let's go, Berel. Let's sit down. I want to show you something from the Torah itself. This is Maimonide's in the laws of Tshuva, the laws of repentance. Every person must see himself as if he's on a scale where he's 50/50. He's half meritorious and half guilty. And he says, If you do one wrong deed, you can tip the scale in the wrong direction, God forbid. One positive action, one mitzvah, one merit, if you make the right choice, you tip the scale towards redemption. I think that's the key point. The key point is, can we live like that? Can we live every moment of our life and every choice that we make have in mind, maybe this act, maybe this move will tip the scale. Before I went on this whole journey, I was terrified of the annihilation of the Jewish people because of all the anti-Semitism and everything that was online. But today, I see that Jewish people are more vibrant, then Mashiach is closer than ever. I still have that question, which is, what about me? What do I have to do right now? Look, Berel, you know very well, Hashem blessed you with a lot of abilities. And the big question that we have to ask ourselves, I think, is, how am I using my special abilities to ignite those sparks in other people, to inspire other people, to do another mitzvah? Just try to make a greater awareness of God, of the fact that we have a mission, of the fact that we can do a mitzvah. I say, I think we have to start looking for that godly spark already now. So I said, you go to Tel Aviv, you can see all of the outside, or you can look for the godly spark. On the way here, I stopped in Tel Aviv for a sandwich, and I can't say that I felt Mashiach vibes in Tel Aviv. Obviously, Beryl, you went for a sandwich, so you got the vibe of a sandwich. I think you have to go back to Tel Aviv, actually, and go with a different perspective. Go with a Mashiach perspective, and you will make Tel Aviv a little bit different. Interesting. It's a completely different way of looking at it. Okay. I have to change my outlook, I guess. It's a big job, Berel. It's a great merit. I love this man so much, and he gave me exactly what I needed, clear marching orders. Before I head back to Ben Gurion Airport, there's one thing that I got to do. I want to ask you, can we put on Tfilin with you? No, not yet, thank you. You sure? Yeah. Okay. God bless you anyways. Do you guys want to put on Tfilin in honor of the hostages that Hashem should release them? You want to put on Tfilin? Come on, 60 seconds. Leave it in God's hands. Leave God. Leave God out of the way? Yeah. We don't always understand Hashem's ways. We never understand Hashem's ways. You want to put on Tefilin? It hurt to be rejected. And maybe I didn't create a fire within this man, but at least I was able to light a spark. Can I still give you a hug? Yeah. I love you. God bless you too. I love you, man. It's going to be okay. I love you. Thank you for understanding. We should see only good things. You want to put on Tefilin ? That's okay. You sure? I'll have you out in 60 seconds. Oh, I see you on TikTok. Yeah. How are you? You want to put on Tefilin with me for 60 seconds? Yes. Yeah. When was the last time you put on Tefilin? Hum, Bar Mitsva. Wow. Beautiful. We're doing it for the hostages. We're doing it for... We're doing it for our soul. For our soul. We're doing it to bring Mashiach. It's been a little bit tough. I'll be honest with you. A lot of people said no. I was feeling very discouraged. Hashem should answer all of your prayers just like you stood up for him at the opportunity for a mitzvah. The true strength of the Jewish people is Hashem, is God. And the only way to bring Mashiach is to do more Torah and more Mitzvot. Shemma Yisrael, Adonai, Elohainu, Adonai, Echod,. You're a good man I love you. Thank you man. I love you. Kol Hakavod ! Thank you very much. Very, very proud. Appreciate it. I can't forget about the most important person in Tel Aviv, My Dad. Love you, Dad. Love you, too, son. Wish me luck. Good luck. But you don't need luck because you have God on your side. Amen. I have news for you, Iran. I have news for you, Ayatollah. I have news for you, Hamas, and anybody who opposes the Jewish people in any way, shape, or form. There is no stopping this great locomotive. There will be peace on Earth, whether you like it or not. I'm heading home to Panama, and I have to get busy the second I land because I have so much knowledge that I feel that I have to share with the world. Hello? Hey, how are you? It's Berel Solomon speaking. Hi, Berel. How's it going? Good, good, good. Thank God. I am heading home. I've been in Israel for the past few days, and I want to see if maybe I could come by to school next week and give a class. Oh, yeah? About what? About Mashiach. Oh, yeah? What would you talk about? That Mashiach is coming. That he's coming? Okay. Look, I'll present it to the students and they'll see. I'm not sure it'll be much interest, but I'll let you know. Okay. Do your best, and I would love to come. Let me know, okay? Okay. We'd like to have you, but I'll see. Okay. We'll be in touch. Okay. Thank you so much. Look, I have to do my best, and I have so much knowledge and information that I have to give over now, and we'll see what happens. How's the food, guys? Is it yummy? It's yummy. Oh, you cook so nicely. Thank you, Mama. Did you have a good day? Did you play with your friends? How are you? Good ! Oh Tattie's home ! Hey ! Hey how are you ? Hi Ellie ! Hi ! Welcome ! Oh I missed you guys! Daddy, don't leave again. Okay, mommy, I won't. How are you? Good. I missed you. I can't believe I was so scared. Us as parents, we have a job to instill in our children to be the next generation of Jewish warriors. God forbid, not warriors that carry guns, but warriors that are ambassadors of light and goodness and truth in this world. Everybody knows that the best place to start when it comes to Jewish education is with Jewish children. Good morning. I'm so sorry, I'm late. We're happy to have you. I actually have a big surprise for you. Every now and then, you get a very special moment when you work so hard on something and you thought that nobody was paying attention. Then you realize that what you were working so hard on meant so much to so many people. And this moment in my life was one of those very special moments. I have good news. Mashiach is ready to come right now. All we have to do is increase in acts of goodness and kindness. It says we have to storm the heavens. So repeat after me. We... Want... Mashiach... Now... Imagine that you were the one... Yes, you right now watching this. That you were the one that finally tipped the scale, and did that last act of goodness and kindness that finally brought Mashiach. What a life worth living. What a beautiful existence that you have that power. And Moses led the Jewish people out of the land of Egypt, and God took them out with a very strong hand. You know what this reminds me of, guys? What? When Mashiach comes, he's going to take the whole world out of exile, and there's not going to be any more war, there's not going to be any more hunger, and there's not going to be any more sickness in the world. Daddy, can you tell Mashiach to buy me a firetruck? Sure, Chaim. I'll tell him to buy you a firetruck.