bmackler

Zionism isn’t just a Jewish movement – it is a movement that contributed to the benefit of the entire world. The identity of the earliest Zionists is a matter of debate; many consider Abraham following God’s command to “Go from your birthland to a different land,” to be the seminal moment of Zionism, others point to the first Zionist Conference in Basel, Switzerland to be the start of Zionism. Those moments focused on bringing the Jewish people to Eretz Yisrael, but the movement itself was never designed to only assist the Jewish people. Zionism raised the level of social rights, justice and morality in the world. Today’s Israel is a truly unique place. It is the only country in the world that hosts an ancient people who once called their land home, were exiled, and has now returned to its ancestral homeland to restart its nation. I’d like to recount three short stories to explain what I think makes this land so special – the people.

I’ve given numerous lectures delving into the various factors that make Israel so special. There almost seems to be no end to the list you can create of all that makes the Jewish homeland unique. There is the feeling a Jew gets when they walk the streets, knowing they’re stepping the same steps as their ancestors, there’s the sanctity of the land, and the feeling a Jew has knowing that while in Israel, they’re home. Today’s Israel is a truly unique place. It is the only country in the world that hosts an ancient people who once called their land home, were exiled, and has now returned to its ancestral homeland to restart its nation. I’d like to recount three short stories to explain what I think makes this land so special – the people.