By Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz
We read this week in Parshas Toldos about Rivkah’s difficult pregnancy. She is informed that “shnei goyim bevitneich,” she would be giving birth to two distinct personalities, Yaakov and Eisov, who would lead two separate nations.
Yaakov was the epitome of goodness, while Eisov is always pointed to as the embodiment of evil. The pesukim describe their differences somewhat cryptically, and Chazal expound upon what took place.
The posuk portrays Eisov as an “ish yodeia tzayid, ish sodeh,” a hunter, while Yaakov is depicted as an “ish tam yosheiv ohalim,” a fine person who spent his time in the tent of Torah.

Haaretz Hatovah
Real Life Stories and Experiences of Yidden Settling in Eretz Yisroel.
Above & Beyond “Normal”: Life in Eretz Yisroel.
Our family made “aliyah” from the U.S. to Ramat Beit Shemesh about six years ago. I was born in Highland Park, NJ but  I grew up in Baltimore, whereas my wife originates from Maryland.
Moving to Eretz Hakodesh has given us a tremendous opportunity, both physically and spiritually. We were making regular yearly visits to Israel for a while, as my wife’s mother is buried here. On one such occasion, we decided to jump in and just stay here for good!

By Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz
So much in the world is not what it seems. When we were young and naïve, we accepted everything at face value, but the older we get and the more we experience, the more we recognize that too often, our eyes deceive us. Too often, what appears to be good is not and what gives a bad impression can really be something good.
We have to develop methods to protect ourselves from people who seek to do us harm behind a guise of friendship and kindness. Our avos were surrounded by such duplicitous characters.

Real Life Stories and Experiences of Yidden Settling in Eretz Yisroel.

By Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz
As we continue studying Seder Bereishis, we learn more of the immense stature of the avos. Parshas Vayeira is replete with stories from the life of Avrohom Avinu, one of the greatest people to ever walk this earth. From his devotion to the mitzvah of hachnosas orchim to the way he dealt with the nisayon of the Akeidah, every nuance of his demeanor, speech and actions personified the values he sought to instill in his descendants, continuing to guide and inspire us to this day.
“Maaseh avos siman labonim.” The actions of the fathers guide their children, as they point out the path to perfection in this world.

I love nature and I’m also attracted to ruchniyus. It was only natural that I made Eretz Yisroel my home, being the place where ruchniyus is natural and where nature is ruchniyus.
From the Teveria apartment building I live in, there are views of the beautiful Kinneret and its green surroundings. I enjoy looking at the scenery and connecting to the kedusha. It’s not just a big and beautiful lake—all other lakes in the world get their chiyus from HaShem “personally” keeping His “eyes” on this one. This is true as well for all the other elements that make up nature—the mountains, valleys, plains, skies, oceans, and everything else you can think of. The kedusha root of all of it is in Eretz Yisroel.

Various Perspectives and Experiences of English speakers Living in Eretz Yisroel
How We Made It in Eretz Yisroel
It was over fifty years ago when my husband, Meir Miller, first came to Eretz Yisroel as a bochur to learn in yeshiva. He had a strong desire to learn Torah in Eretz Yisroel and therefore worked hard as a waiter for a whole summer just to save up for a ticket (by boat, in case you were wondering). The difficulties that such a move involved did not daunt him.

By Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz
The end of Sukkos is one of the loneliest times of the year. As the decorations are peeled off and the sukkah is taken apart and put away, we feel exposed and removed from the comforting shelter in which we had been enveloped for more than a month.
From the first time we said “L’Dovid Hashem ori” during Elul, we were drawn into a sublime world. B’motzoei Menucha, we felt the tremors increasing, as we ushered in the days of Selichos. The week reached a crescendo as we stood in awe upon hearing the piercing cry of the shofar that filled our hearts.

Various Perspectives and Experiences of English speakers Living in Eretz Yisroel
I want people to know that life in many places here in Eretz Yisroel—the lifestyle, values, and education system—is very different than that in America. I love this life, but it is different, and it does have its challenges. People shouldn’t come here thinking they can continue living just like they did in America, only with the perks of living in Eretz Yisroel. Sometimes the challenges actually “are” the positives. That’s because life here is just “different.”

Various Perspectives and Experiences of English speakers Living in Eretz Yisroel
Present and Future
I came from Los Angeles as a bochur to the Mir Yeshiva, and then got married here in Eretz Yisroel.
I continued learning in the Mir, while my wife worked for Otzar HaChochma, the world’s largest digital seforim library, in its beginning stages of amassing and scanning thousands of seforim.