By Liela Silbiger, Hasbara Fellowships Canada High School Intern
Having grown up in a modern orthodox Jewish home, I was raised with a deep love of Israel which made up a major part of my identity and faith. I grew up learning about how Hashem (G-d) promised the land to our ancestors and all the stories in the Tanach, the Jewish Bible, which discuss our People’s connection to this land. As I’ve gotten older, especially throughout high school, my love for these stories and the land has grown significantly as I learned about the modern history of Israel and how it came to be an independent Jewish state once again. Yet, despite all of this, I still haven’t been to Israel. I have spent years planning my Israel wish list, and cannot wait until I get the opportunity to visit these places:.
The first place I would like to go is the Kotel, also known as the Western Wall. This is the last remaining piece of the second Beit Hamikdash (Jewish temple) that was destroyed in 70 CE by the Romans. Many people are unaware that it’s not even technically part of the Temple building; in fact, it’s only an outer wall. Hundreds and thousands of people of differing faiths, cultures, and backgrounds visit the Kotel everyday. A popular thing to do there is to write prayers on little notes and to stick them in the cracks of the wall. Many Jews visit hoping to get closer to Hashem. Another activity that happens quite often are daily prayers with a minyan (quorum of 10 men). I want to go there because the Temple was the center of Judaism for centuries, and I would like to be as close to that as possible.
I know it may sound morbid, but I would also like to visit the burial sites of our forefathers and foremothers, such as Mearat Hamachpela (Cave of the Patriarchs) and Kever Rachel (the Tomb of Rachel). These two locations are a huge part of the Jewish history. Mearat Hamachpela was actually the first plot of land purchased by a Jewish person in the land of Israel. Avraham Avinu, who was eventually buried there, bought it from a local man named Efron for 400 shekel (Bereishit/Genesis 23). This place is so special because Adam & Chava, Avraham & Sarah, Yitzchak & Rivka, and Yaakov & Leah are all buried there. Many people go there and pray by their graves, in hopes of getting their zechute (merit).
Kever Rachel is another spiritual location. The first time it’s mentioned is when Rachel died in childbirth while travelling with Yaakov, her husband. According to the sages, Rachel was buried here instead of Maarat Hamachpela because, as the Jews were exiled to Babylon at the time of the destruction of the first Beit Hamikdash many hundreds of years later, they would pray at her grave and it would be a sign that they would return to Israel one day. In the book of Jeremiah, we see the grave of Rachel mentioned again, where he writes of her crying over her children, who were leaving the land of Israel and going into exile. These two burial sites are a huge part of my history and I long to visit them.
The next place on my itinerary is Yam Hamelach (the Dead Sea). This is such an iconic Israeli destination that almost every tourist visits. The legendary sea has the ability to keep a human floating completely on the top of the water, due to the high concentration of salt in the water. Yam Hamelach is supposed to be a gorgeous place where the mud works wonders on your skin. Not only does it allow for some awesome experiences, but it also has its own connection to ancient Jewish history. This is said to be the place where Hashem destroyed the biblical city of Sodom and its neighbouring cities, after telling Avraham’s nephew Lot, who had been living there, to take his family away from the city in order to be saved from the destruction. Nearby is the location where the wife of Avraham’s nephew Lot, turned to salt after she defied the instructions not to look back at the destruction. Some say that it’s still possible to see the pillar of salt.
One last place I would like to visit is the Yad Vashem Holocaust museum. My family came to Canada from Eastern and Central Europe, where they went through the horrors of the Holocaust. I want to go there to honour the memories of those lost and learn as much as I can. This museum also holds the archives of the Righteous Gentiles (Non-Jewish people who saved Jews during this awful time.
Despite never having visited Israel, these locations form a ginormous part of my identity and I look forward to visiting them some day.
