I am an American. I am an Israeli. I am an olah chadasha. I am a Jew. I am a Zionist. I am a woman. I am an advocate. I am an educator. Many times, when one goes into a new setting, particularly when discussing Israel, one of the first instructions given is to leave…
The Land of Israel is where they story of the Jewish people began. It is where we first experienced autonomy, where we developed a culture and a sense of identity, and where we longed for throughout generations of exile. Israel, the collective memory of and longing for the land, Eretz Israel (ארץ ישראל), shaped the Jewish experience…
The State of Israel has been described as the greatest project of the Jewish people. Israel provides Jews with the first opportunity in thousands of years to practice self-government, and has given the Jewish people the challenge of determining what it means to govern Jewishly, and what the Jewish State will look like. I will…
With layers of history literally built on top of one another, multiple and sometimes conflicting narratives, a population as colorful and diverse as it can possibly be, and voices shouting over one another in a cacophony of languages, it’s not an exaggeration to call Israel one of the most complex places in the world. Any time…
As a Jew who grew up in the Diaspora, part of the magic that Israel has always held for me is that when I’m here, I get to experience being a part of the majority, something that doesn’t exist for me anywhere else in the world. Even growing up in the large Jewish community of…
Israel might be the most complex place in the world. Everywhere, there are actual layers of history, civilizations built on top of one another in this ancient place. Ancient Israel is everywhere you turn when you walk through this country, in the ruins, the names of places, and the attachments that people and nations have…
For many years as an Israel advocate and educator, I felt a certain disconnect from my peers, and eventually my learners. I don’t remember developing a connection with Israel. I was nine years old during my first visit, and even at that point, I had been hearing about Israel around the dinner table for years.…
