El Al's spiritual message

(JNS) — Did you know that the name of Israel’s national airline, El Al, comes from the Bible? Like so much in Israel, its source is in our ancient texts. The prophet Hosea says, “They call them el al” or “to the One Above.” In Hebrew el means “to” and al means “above.” So El Al means “to the above,” definitely a great name for an airline.

Last week’s Torah reading began with the words ki tetzei lamilchama al oyvecha, “When you will go out to war against your enemies.” The usual word used for “against” would be neged, but here the Torah uses the word al. Commentary suggests there is a good reas...