Poway Rabbi Goldstein Lays Tefillin With Surgeon, Son of Survivors

by Menachem Posner – chabad.org

With his nine remaining fingers wrapped in blue bandages, Rabbi Yisroel Goldstein has become a national icon, advocating for goodness and kindness in the wake of the terrorist attack in the Chabad House he founded.

From the White House to Auschwitz, he has spoken to thousands and touched countless hearts. He recently celebrated a more intimate milestone.

Dr. Yale Kadesky, a San Diego area plastic surgeon, has been treating the rabbi, who bravely shepherded a group of children to safety and spoke to his congregation, even after he lost a finger to gunfire.

When the rabbi learned that the surgeon, the son of Holocaust survivors, had never put on tefillin, he offered to rectify the situation.

The result: an impromptu bar mitzvah in the surgeon’s office.