This should be this morning's headline. It's surely the headline in Heaven. Eliya Cohen returned from captivity in Gaza, and yesterday under the chuppah, moments before marrying Ziv Abud, who is also a Nova survivor, he stopped everything to say something:
"First of all, I know that what I'm about to do now isn't customary... On October 7th, my life was cut off at exactly this moment. The very thing I dreamed of - proposing marriage - was where my life was interrupted. For so long, in my conversations with God, I kept dreaming of a chuppah, and I would say to God: Father in Heaven, if I ever merit in my life to stand at this moment under the chuppah, I promise You that I will stop the chuppah and kiddushin, say thank You very much, and invite everyone to say 'Shema Yisrael.'
So my dear Father, only You know what I went through. Only You were with me when it was hard. You were hungry with me, You suffered with me, You slept with me on the cold nights. You were with me every moment. Father in Heaven, I want to say thank You so much. Thank You for letting me merit standing under this chuppah, for giving me the biggest surprise I could ever ask for in life, and for keeping the woman I love alive.
Father, I love You. I want to invite all of you to say 'Shema Yisrael' with me. Of course I'm not obligating anyone, and whoever wants to can join me. 'Shema Yisrael, Hashem Elokeinu, Hashem Echad.' Thank you very much."
There isn't much to add to these words. But we're flooded these days with so much background noise, that maybe it's worth simply reading them again.
