Rebbe Shimon bar Yochai didn’t just appear—he arrived, against all odds, as a soul born of impossible tefillos and impossible beginnings. In this stirring Lag BaOmer teaching, Rav Shlomo Katz channels the fiery words of Rav Elimelech Biderman, uncovering how Rebbe Shimon’s birth was not just a moment in time but a statement from Heaven: Am Yisrael will never be dry wood.

From the shattered aftermath of Rebbe Akiva’s 24,000 talmidim to a single sapling watered by a righteous woman’s tears, this episode dives deep into the miracle of renewal. Because Lag BaOmer isn’t just a celebration. It’s a cry of defiance, a crown of hope, and the whisper that even when all seems lost, something holy is still being born.

Lag BaOmer marks a shift from the sweetness of redemption to the maturity of purpose. Rav Shlomo Katz brings Reb Levi Yitzchak of Berdichev to the center of the circle, showing how our journey from Egypt wasn’t about fireworks—it was about getting to Sinai.

Are we still chasing the lollipop of past miracles, or ready to wear the crown of where we’re heading? This is the day we stop gazing at the wedding album and start raising the next generation. Gratitude for the past, yes—but excitement for the future is the real avodah now.

What filled the room the moment Rebbe Shimon bar Yochai began to ascend? In this luminous Lag BaOmer teaching, Rav Shlomo Katz brings us into Rashbi’s final hours where fire returned, the Shechinah hovered, and the secrets of creation began to flow. As tzaddikim from Gan Eden filled the space, only a few were allowed to stay. Why? Because being present at the end meant being loyal all along.