Every member of WOFI Cohort 4 has sat through countless numbers of History classes at our various schools across Cleveland. From first grade to eleventh grade, we have learned about many cities and civilizations. Today however, the members of WOFI Cohort 4 experienced a history lesson unlike any we have ever had sitting behind a desk. We began our day at the Davidson Center in the Old City receiving a hands-on, heads-up, tour of the ruins of the Second Temple and the surrounding city. From there we moved on to the Temple Mount Sifting Project. There, we sifted through buckets of ancient dirt, discovering pieces of pottery, mosaic, and even a Maccabian coin. After our short stint as archaeologists, we continued to the Israel Museum. There we received another briefing of the history of the Second Temple, saw the Dead Sea Scrolls, and enjoyed a new exhibit about the Hasidim of Israel.
While we had many educational and interesting experiences today, the real lesson came in an unexpected encounter with a Christian school from California. We had an opportunity at the Israel Museum to ask these students about their trip and what exactly brought them to the Jewish State. We learned they were on a senior graduation trip from high school. When asked about what he thought of Israel, one student responded, “I am blown away by Israel. It is way more modern than I expected.” When I asked another student if he likes Israel he told me assertively, “The Lord wanted me here. I want to stay here. I don’t want to go back home.” Other students like him expressed a similar, strong spiritual connection to a place they have only been in for a few days. I really admired and was inspired by the connection these Christian teenagers, kids not so different from the members of WOFI Cohort 4, had with the land Israel.
After our encounter with the Christian students we viewed the exhibit about the Hassidim. We saw amazing photographs of their traditions, their culture, and their enthusiasm for the land of Israel and for God. The connection the Hasidim share with the land of Israel, it appeared to me, really wasn’t very different from that of the Christian students. They both shared an immense religious enthusiasm for the land. It is more than a physical land to these people; to many others like them, it is a spiritual home.
In history class we are instructed to listen to, write down, and understand the complex twists and turns of the human narrative. We are tested on how well we understand the information, and how well we can express our knowledge and make connections. However, some things cannot be written down into a blue book. To explain a deep connection to a land, an intense spiritual bond, a calling from God, these things are difficult to put down in ink. When called upon to defend Israel, this knowledge of collective connection is important to keep in mind. It is not only the home of the Jewish people, but it is crucial to other religions as well.
If more people acted less like history teachers, searching for facts, and more like the spiritually fulfilled people I met today, and searched for connection, perhaps Israel’s history could have been more peaceful. With history facts you prove points, with feelings you build bonds, and that is exactly what Israel needs. Whether that is obtainable, I don’t know, but what I experienced today showed me that Israel needs bonds. Bonds between its citizens and between the various people who call it home around the world. Like a student watching the final minutes tick away in his last period history class, I anxiously await the day that the people who call Israel their spiritual home come together and bring real peace to our collective home.