This is Itzik HaKadosh.

It’s an audio clip of him speaking about his efforts to get closer to Hashem, shortly before he was murdered at that ‘Nature Party’ in Re’im, two weeks ago.

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I got to know Itzik pretty well, 3-4 years ago, when he was spending a lot of time in my house during the Covid lockdowns.

He went through a lot of tests during that time, including a really bad motorbike accident that broke his leg in 14 different places and required numerous surgeries and metal pins to hold his bones together.

To look at him, he was pretty scary – especially at the beginning, when I didn’t know him so well and he was still giving me the ‘tough guy’ vibes.

But underneath… he was a very big neshama.

He was full of Rabbenu’s Torah.

He never stopped believing in Hashem, even when he had one massive test after another, beating him down again.

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He knew that the Torah lifestyle was the right path, but he got stuck in a massive klipah that was very hard to break.

Until Hashem finally ‘broke’ it, and delivered Itzik to the highest spiritual level in one shot, as a person who died al kiddush Hashem, at that party two weeks ago.

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His funeral was last week, and of course I cried.

But not as much as I thought I was going to, and the sadness dissipated pretty fast afterwards, because I came away knowing 100% that Itzik managed to do what he was sent down to do in this world, spiritually.

And also, that he is going to be a fantastic mellitz, or advocate, for the Jewish people above, in this time of great need.

He used to get into trouble a lot, because he was so determined, and so naughty, and he just wouldn’t take ‘no’ for an answer.

Upstairs right now, I’m sure these traits are being put to very good use, on behalf of Am Yisrael.

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Ah, Itzik HaKadosh.

That’s what they wrote on his gravestone.

And it’s so true.

I just wish that there could have been some way for that kedusha to have been released in a less harsh way, but his death – the death of all those hundreds and hundreds of kadoshim two weeks ago – sweetened things for all of us.

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From hints from the Rav and bits and pieces of info floating up, it’s very clear that what happened two weeks ago was meant to be way worse.

Somehow, Hezbollah didn’t join in, and all the rest of them.

Somehow, the terrorists were contained and neutralised much faster than ‘the plan’ – even with the devastation and human carnage they caused.

Somehow, the ground invasion has been postponed for two weeks, and will hopefully be totally cancelled.

And somehow…. more and more info is starting to float up that more and more people are taking notice of, about who was really behind this, and why it was really done.

Even with all the censorship and threats, Israel is a small country, everyone is connected, and people talk.

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Everyone has their ‘Itzik HaKadosh’ right now.

And their blood is screaming from the ground, that justice should be done, and that the people who planned this and funded and equipped ‘Hamas’ should be exposed and properly dealt with.

And they will be.

One way or another.

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In the meantime…. continue with the tehillim!

Jerusalem, at least, is starting to feel semi-normal tonight, after a fortnight of non-stop funerals and shiva calls.

But we are still in a very difficult time, and we still need all the prayers and teshuva we can get.

And please…. turn off the news.

It’s just a pointless waste of time, at best – when it’s not leaving people totally traumatised, fear-ridden and despairing.

And may we hear good news soon.