This I Believe...

What follows is a "This I believe" style essay that I was asked to write about Israel. All of us in our house will be sharing our essays with each other and now I wanted to share it with you!
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I believe that it is our duty to put the well-being of others before ourselves. I believe that if everyone did this we would live in a world where our needs were met. I believe that this world will be hard to achieve, but that we have to start somewhere. I believe in leading by example.

I believe that when discussing the future of Israel, what is at stake is not a political issue but rather a moral one. To understand why I believe that this is so, let me tell you a bit about where I’m coming from. I grew up reciting the Israeli national anthem, every day in elementary school. We said it right after we said the pledge of allegiance. It wasn’t until middle school, when I was first becoming politicized and refused to pledge allegiance to any state that I started thinking critically about what I had been told was our homeland. I had learned the history, but it seemed wrong. How could you give land to the Jewish people, even after something as horrible as the Holocaust, when it wasn’t their land to take? My dad having studied international law in school quizzed me from a young age on both international etiquette and rights. By the time I was 14 I believed that the expansion of the state of Israel was in violation of both international law and basic tenants of human rights. I believe that human beings have a right to self-determination, a home, and the dignity that comes along with it.

In high school I labeled myself as an “anti-Zionist” and I believed that the matter of Israel was strictly political. It was easier to renounce what was supposed to be my homeland if I framed it in those terms. I became involved in many anti-Zionist networks and political groups, but I also grew weary of their methods and rhetoric and took a step back as I was entering college. I became so hesitant because I believe that making Israel a political issue can lead one to lose sight of an inherently human about it. In college I was caught between worlds. I had my world of books and ideals, where on paper respecting others absolutely seemed so simple. Then there was reality. I became a more active Jew and more comfortable with organized religion, yet somehow Israel was supposed to be intertwined with my Jewish identity? I couldn’t place it much like I couldn’t place gefilte fish in my Jewish memory. I had no real connection to it despite what others had told me to have.

I decided to go on Birthright, though only if I could swindle them a little (that’s another story), see Israel myself, and be an active voice of criticism throughout the trip. What I experienced validate all of my political concerns, but something larger came up. I think the best way to illustrate it was what happened when I went to the Wailing Wall… I wailed. I felt the pressure of thousands of years of history, pain, tears, and it was beautiful. It was overwhelming. I was reminded that in the end this is a human issue and I believe that politicking is an excuse we humans use to forget because it’s harder that way.

I believe in the words of the Torah when it states that we are to be a light unto other nations. I believe that means that when the world is at its darkest our tradition reminds us to not stray away from who we are. I believe that the task of being the chosen people is not a gift, rather it’s a responsibility. I believe that Jews must be ever vigilant in our pursuit of justice and that our tradition teaches us that justice begins with the other. I believe that if it weren't for others there would be no Jewish people and so our responsibility begins there. I am truly afraid that turning our backs to this most fundamental principle will bring about an end to the Jewish tradition. I believe when we are afraid for our well-being, we need to reevaluate our tactics of self-defense, because I believe that those very protective decisions might bring about our end.