We carry a mandate to serve as the Shevet Levi of the Jewish nation

By Eli Paley, Publisher, Mishpacha Media Group

When we launched Mishpacha’s Hebrew edition over 35 years ago, it set a new standard for the chareidi world. The quality of the writing, the design, and the journalistic tone were all novel and trendsetting. But the biggest novelty was that here was a product that could find a warm welcome along the spectrum of frum society. Before Mishpacha, virtually every frum publication in Israel was sectarian, produced by and for a specific stratum of the community. A magazine that embraced and included all frum Jews was a new animal.

I realized, back then, that we would need a very special sort of editor in chief to actualize this vision. In Rabbi Moshe Grylak, we found the perfect architect. He had been appointed by Rav Shach ztz”l as the founding editor of Yated Ne’eman and had extensive life experience serving talmidei chachamim, public service, kiruv and chinuch — the sort of person who could relay Torah concepts in current terms without diluting their essence. He was also a creative visionary who dreamed big — constantly innovating new ideas, new formats, new frontiers — and a master pedagogue who gave our writers practical tools to improve their skills. Most of all, he was a person saturated in yiras Shamayim and the desire to engender greater love of Hashem among all Jews. He was the perfect “father” to our growing mishpachah.

It took some time, but soon enough, Mishpacha became a household name across a broad swath of society, a shared “home” for all our readers. As yirei Shamayim and shomrei Torah, more unites than divides us, so why not enjoy a shared publication?

The magazine quickly grew to include a weekly news package, a separate women’s magazine, and a weekly haven for children — today the standard package for many chareidi publications, but back then a groundbreaking format.

Our team built connections with rabbanim, askanim, and newsmakers. We updated our editorial and production standards. But the key to our success didn’t change. It has always been to drill down to that which unites us — our shared values, shared accomplishments, shared challenges and goals — and reflect them in print.