As I am about to set off on my sabbatical journey to Israel I realize that this is the 31st time I have visited. I have been there twice for almost a year as a student, first at the Hebrew University and then at HUC to begin my rabbinic studies. I have been there for as little as 3 days on a mission of rabbis at the conclusion of the first Gulf War. I had even signed on to that trip before the war was over.
While I do have my brother Bob to visit and other friends and family the pull for me to return time and again goes beyond individual people. I have an internal connection that I view as spiritual and almost might be termed mystical in that I feel my being which began on May 15, 1948 is integrally tied up with the state. Each time I return I feel a sense of being where part of me truly belongs.
This visit is the conclusion of my latest sabbatical and I will be teaching in the Modi’in schools about Diaspora (mostly American) Jews and Judaism to 5th graders. It is part of their curriculum of “Friends Across the Sea” which was instituted partly because of our Rochester-Modi’in Partnership. I have done a bit of this in the past but hope to visit more schools and students this time than I had the opportunity to do in the past.
At this time I have to plans for formal study but will learn at every opportunity that comes my way, even if it is only from the students and teachers I encounter. I hope to share some of my experiences and insights during the next two months.
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