Metamorphosis of the Soul
By Alison Weiss, Wilmington, DE

Alison Weiss and Pennie Fields

How do you write about a metamorphosis of the soul? How do you translate into verbal terms feelings for a homeland that is not the physical land where your house is built? These are my personal struggles as I returned to my family in Wilmington, DE. Last week I completed the July Melton Israel Seminar, "Struggling with the Angels: Encounters with Jewish History", lead by Zohar Raviv and assisted by Judy Kupchun. At our farewell dinner, Judy told the group that for many on this trip, the experiences we shared would prove to be a personal milestone on par with childbirth. She's not far from the truth.

As I approached 40 several years ago, I found myself searching for more meaning in my life. I had the basics; nice home, good husband, adorable children (when they weren't fighting), but I was looking for a better understanding of who I was. I became a Bat Mitzvah on my 40th birthday and through my studies, I gained a better appreciation for the religion I was born into than if I had completed my studies at 13. After finishing two years of the Florence Melton Mini School I gained a better understanding of the roots of my religion and how our history and lifecycles evolved. But it was the Melton Israel experience that connected me to Israel; the land and its people, and gave me a clear understanding of the personal responsibilities I need to accept to stay a knowledgeable Jew in the Diaspora.

One of the lessons I learned is that Jews in Israel are Jewish because they are living in the land of Israel. Whether the person I spoke to was the wife of a Jerusalem Yeshiva Headmaster or a secular dress shop owner in Tel Aviv, they are Jewish and were connected to Israel because of the land they shared with a history over 3,000 years old. The majority of Jews in Israel do not belong to a synagogue. Yet in America, we tend to measure our Jewish identity by the movement we affiliate ourselves when we join a synagogue.

The same is how we see Israel. When I announced to my family that I wanted to take the graduate seminar in Israel, I was met with incredulous responses. My parents and in-laws thought I was being irresponsible leaving the country and traveling to the Middle East while my children were still young. For them, Israel is a place on the map that they would like to visit one day, when they feel their personal security is not at stake. For them, the news reports only proved their case. I tried citing the news of their own cities and from the headlines tried to show them that TV and reality sometimes occupy different dimensions. I told them I loved them, but I felt that the seminar would be very responsible in picking the places we would visit and that our personal security would be as carefully considered as any reputable seminar in the world. I was ready to go.

When you look at me I'm a typical suburban Mom. I teach preschool, I'm a Girl Scout leader, I play tennis on a USTA team. We're members of a synagogue and my children attend a Jewish Day school. All of my parents, grandparents and great grandparents were born in the USA so I'm not a child of Holocaust survivors. The only Yiddish I know is from Woody Allen movies. I give you this background to make you realize I'm not so different from you. But if you want to better understand why you are a Jew and explore what Judaism means to you, then the Israel seminar will be the path you will want to take.

How do you connect with an ancient land when you live in a world of soccer practices and mini vans? The first challenge Zohar, our teacher, gave us was how do we define ourselves and how do we define our Judaism? Can we break down the walls of our own beliefs so we can be educated on the Jewish story?

The first week we spent the majority of our time in Jerusalem. This city is the heart of the Jewish people. You know the history, but imagine having a lesson under a 700 year-old olive tree overlooking the old city. On one side is the "Wall" separating Israel from the Palestinian territory. It stands as a modern reminder of ancient tensions. This land has never known lasting peace and as Zohar recalls the battles to save the first and second Temple, the Romans, Byzantines, the Ottomans, the British and finally statehood, one wonders whom else this tree has shaded.

It happens again as we tour the tunnels beneath the Western Wall. I walk down the ancient street and place my hand by the gate to the Holy of Holies. I am here in a place that is over 2,000 years old. My ancestors have walked down this road and now I am joining their footsteps. There are tears in my eyes, as well as those in my class. We are just one link in a historical saga that is continually being told. One can feel the whispers of the past as we look at these magnificent walls. The street is narrow and dark and the walls glisten with moisture. Above us is the Arab quarter and another layer of the history of Jerusalem. It is my hope that one day my granddaughter will take this same journey and I will be able to witness another generation safeguarding our religion for the future.

Our first Friday comes and we walk to the old city to light candles at the Tomb of David. It doesn't matter that David isn't buried there, it only matters that we are together lighting candles as a group as the sun is setting over the Old City. Safeguard and Remember are the two candle's names. The flames bring a warm glow of peace and also a sense of community. We are together as a group, arms holding each other as a way to never forget the physical feeling that this Shabbat is giving us. I realize that my candle's flame is the same light the Jewish people have been burning for so many generations. I feel a strong need to make sure my children remember to light candles well after I am gone. I do not want this flame to die out. We walk down towards the Kotel. There is a golden glow over the city walls. It is truly a magical city. We are joining a flood of humanity. From every direction, people are streaming towards the Wall. There are no cars and the city's sounds have subsided. Pedestrians rule the area. The groups are as different as the colors of a rainbow. I see men in fur hats (remember this is July) and children running in groups. I see ladies in various styles of modest clothing, all looking their best. I hear chanting and songs as people gather to welcome the Shabbat queen. It doesn't matter what kind of Kippa you have, what's amazing is that everyone is united for the night to share a single experience, to be at the Wall when Shabbat begins.

During my seminar I got to hear about Masada on Masada. I got to learn about Jewish Mysticism in Tsfat. I got to listen to the poems of Rachel on the shores of the Kinneret where she is buried. I never learned so much in so short a time. During our ten days we never missed an opportunity to learn a personal story about the land we stood on. Since Melton attracts such a wonderful group of people, we were also learning from each other. Members of our group shared experiences such as archeological dives in Caesarea, and witnessing Eichmann's trial.

Don't take this seminar if you're looking for a vacation in Israel. Melton puts more into a day then most people do in a week. The pace was intense and the group was incredible and no one would want to change a thing.

I would like to issue a challenge to those members in our communities who have taken leadership positions in Jewish organizations and charities. As members of different Boards of Directors, you will be faced with challenges of allocating resources and setting agendas. Do you have a clear understanding of what Jewish priorities are? Did you know that when a new community is built, the first priority after securing shelter is to build a school and appoint a teacher? Lessons like this are common occurrences in the Melton curriculum and I challenge our Jewish leadership to enroll in Melton so we do not become Jewishly illiterate. As more Jews assimilate into the American culture, how do we keep our identity and our history? In Israel, most of the Jews I interviewed (yes, that's part of the curriculum) named the destruction of the second temple as the worst thing that happened to the Jewish people. In America, I will be hard pressed to find Jews who even know when Tisha B'AV is let alone who know what the holiday commemorates.

The Jews outside Israel face a unique challenge. How do we educate our children in our religion in a manner that will keep the traditions and its history alive? Is it only the responsibility of our more observance members to stay informed? When our children choose not to follow our religion, is it because we have not shared with them the splendor of the holidays and the meaning of our history? We have a chance to change the trend. Melton is just one of the ways Jews around the world can lean and become Jewishly literate. The responsibility is ours. When I visited the Dead Sea, I learned that due to evaporation, the sea has shrunk by 45% in the past 100 years. If we do not better educate our children and ourselves about our Jewish religion, what will happen in 100 years? Will we be like the Dead Sea? Will the Diaspora evaporate away?

The choice is yours.

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