In Israel, Young Menachem lives in his father's shadow in a Haredim (the Hebrew word for ultra-Orthodox Jews) family, part of an insular community whose life revolves around Torah and tradition. Rabbi Abraham Edelman is a respected rabbi, extremely pious, and he demands that his family follow suit. Menachem soaks up his father's attention, but maintains a quiet dissent in the face of such overwhelming paternal presence. He is a loving and inquisitive child. At school, Menachem admires a mother dove and her young living on a window sill. He learns a song about the story of Abraham and Isaac, and witnesses a neighbor in distress. When Menachem's father commands him to destroy a small photo, calling it idolatry, he argues theology. Menahem's mother, Esther, is more of the here and now, and concerns herself with the family's emotional welfare. She worries about her husband's inflexibility, and does not share in his fervor of “Personal Providence,” nor in his belief that God exists only for the righteous Jew. Esther encourages her son's interest in planning a holiday at the Dead Sea, a trip that will test the family's faith.