Dear Rabbi Lamm, on occasion, when visiting my beloved in-laws Mordy and Nicky Katz at their Englewood home, I have the happy opportunity to peruse their overflowing bookshelves and borrow a book or two. The Katz family library is a repository of scholarly and thought-provoking Jewish-themed texts (many of which they have sponsored through their largesse), and their athenaeum is usually my first stop when preparing my Yom Tov reading list. This past Rosh HaShana I noticed a new addition to the library entitled Festivals of Faith, and I eagerly withdrew the book in the hope of enjoying it over the anticipated holiday season – indeed, your derashot were my personal guests and companions for the duration of the chagim. I simply wish to write a note of hakarat hatov to you for both writing and publishing this beautiful book. For someone such as myself who wrestles with the challenge of uncovering depth, meaning, and value in the world of our tradition, your words resonate extremely deeply – I particularly appreciate the idea you develop in “The Illusions We Live By,” that halakha can be viewed as an interpretive matrix whereby we are asked to experience the world through the lens of the ideal, the possible, the not-yet-but-should-be – how brilliant and optimistic! I look forward to reading many more of your books in the future. B’shalom, Rob Sidlow (YC ’91).