Dateline Jerusalem — It was 8½ years ago that I made aliyah to Israel. Aliyah is defined as “the act of going up,” progressing toward Jerusalem, the immigration of Jews from the Diaspora (the scattering of Jews outside of Israel), returning to the Land of Israel. I made aliyah under the Law of Return. This allows any Jew — and non-Jew with at least one Jewish grandparent — the legal right to immigrate to Israel and become an Israeli citizen. Both my parents, and all my grandparents were Jewish so there was no question I would be eligible.
Most people understand that Israel is a refuge for Jews around the world. They come here to escape oppression, violence, tyranny, dictatorships, bloody revolutions, death, communism, poverty, poor economic conditions and anti-Semitism. To religious Jews, living in Israel means the fulfillment of 2,000 years of longing to return to their ancient Jewish homeland promised to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob by G-d. They understand that only in the Land of Israel can certain mitzvot (commandments) be fulfilled. Among these are shmita, the observance of Shabbat, kosher laws, and religious customs. They can be followed without discrimination since Israel is the only Jewish nation in the world. Living in the Land of Israel is a Torah (Bible) commandment. Sifre, commentary on the books of Numbers and Deuteronomy, says that the mitzvah of living in the Land of Israel is as important as all the other mitzvot put together.
Why would I, a proud, patriotic American whose father was a U.S. Naval Academy graduate, whose mother was a U.S. Marine, leave my children and grandchildren, my beautiful home, my job as an attorney, and the ease, comfort, economic prosperity, and luxury of a relatively safe democratic America? Why would I choose to make aliyah to a country surrounded by terrorist enemies outside and within its borders, a country faced with rocket fire and wars, a country boycotted throughout the world? Why would I choose to live in a country where groceries, autos, computers, cellphones, furniture, apartments — prices for everything — are sky-high while salaries are lower for the same positions compared to other countries?
Since my first trip to Israel 36 years ago, when I stepped off the plane and touched Israeli ground and got shivers from head to toe, goosebumps down my arms, and tears in my eyes, I knew I was home, in the home of my ancestors. I knew that the peace and comfort and closeness to G-d would consume my every thought. I knew that I would have to move to Israel to fulfill that yearning to be home. Unfortunately, it took 28 years for me to fulfill that dream of making aliyah.
Where I Am Surrounded
Yet I am not alone. Jews from Western countries who live in comfort and peace, security and safety, and have material wealth or economic stability are making aliyah in droves. According to Natan Sharansky, president of the Jewish Agency, “For the first time in Israel’s history, the number of immigrants who came to Israel from the free world is greater than that of immigrants fleeing countries in distress.” In 2015, although aliyah from North America decreased by 7 percent, British aliyah rose 43 percent. For the second year in a row, aliyah from France provided Israel with the largest number of Jewish immigrants.
Israel’s Ministry of Immigrant Absorption reported that the number of Jewish immigrants from throughout the world who moved to Israel this year was the greatest amount in the last 10 years. The majority came from Russia (a 44 percent rise over last year), the U.S. and France. A record number of Jews arrived from Brazil and the Ukraine. The three largest Jewish communities in the world are in Israel, the United States, and in France.
Although the concept of aliyah, originated during the Babylonian exile, modern large-scale Jewish immigration began in 1882. The city where I currently reside was founded 125 years ago, in 1890. Since establishment of the State in 1948, more than 3 million Jews from 90 countries have made aliyah. The country absorbed hundreds of thousands of Jewish refugees from Arab nations, from war-torn Ethiopia, and from the Soviet Union when it collapsed. The Jewish Agency brought Yemenite Jews to Israel as part of Operation Magic Carpet, Iraqi Jews as part of Operation Ezra and Nehemiah, Ethiopian Jews as part of Operation Solomon and Operation Dove’s Wings.
Israel has definitely become an ingathering of the exiles. It represents the fulfillment of biblical prophecy. The return to the land of Israel is an integral theme in our daily prayers and our holiday services. Who can forget the words “Next year in Jerusalem” every Passover and Yom Kippur? Once again Israel is the physical and spiritual center of the Jewish people, where they can function as a Jewish nation to ensure their very existence and survival.
I never have regretted my decision to move here. Despite all the sacrifices and terror threats, according to the most recent World Happiness Index, Israel ranks 11th of 158 countries for happiness. The U.S. ranks 15th, Britain 21st, Germany 26th, France 29th, Russia 64th, and South Africa 113th. As for happiness, I cannot imagine being anywhere else. I feel G-d’s presence at all times, walk in the steps of my ancestors and biblical prophets, live history, experience miracles on a daily basis. I often feel safer here than in the States.
L’hitraot. Shachar