The land of Israel is like no other. It is the most precious land in the world. Recently I returned from a visit to the USA. It was a wonderful trip. America is indeed blessed with beauty and wealth, and many wonderful people. When I returned home, it took me quite some time to adjust back to life in Israel.
Life outside of Israel is very materialistic. While there is good all over the world, the underlying current is all about money and amassing great wealth. Don’t misunderstand me: We all need money, and without it life would be extremely difficult. However, outside of Israel I feel like the materialism predominates. It is almost like it is a live matter, sitting on your heart and making sure that all you desire to do every day is make money.
The entire world is like a body or a vessel, and Israel is the soul that makes the body run.
It is written that all Jews are responsible for one another. Living and walking the streets in Israel, you can actually feel that responsibility – listening to the news every hour and feeling connected to what is happening, giving a ride home to someone you don’t know, and giving a seat on the bus to an elderly person. The list is long of how much chessed gets done every day.
Of course, there is charity and goodness everywhere in the world. However, in Israel it is part of the DNA. And while there are Jewish people living all over the world, it is only in the land of Israel that we are a nation. Israel is the only land given as an inheritance to the Jewish people. No matter where you are or in which country you were born, Israel will always be your true home.
The Jewish people are kind and merciful and are always doing acts of charity. However, if your neighbor needed help and your mother needed help, obviously you would help family first. And that’s exactly how it is in Israel. When you live in a home with your family, you have obligations at home before you can help others outside. Living in Israel, one feels connected to every Jew since we are all at home here. Obviously, a person is concerned with earning a living in Israel, but there is always the bigger picture. It isn’t only about the individual; it’s about continuing to build our nation together.
A person who lives alone tends to think primarily about himself. But someone living in a large family has responsibilities towards all the others in the family. Responsibility isn’t an easy task. It’s a full time “job” and can be very tiresome. But the satisfaction and appreciation received from the “head of the family,” our father in heaven, makes it all worthwhile and refills our batteries to continue doing for others.
May all the children of Israel return home and unite with all their Jewish families, who await them with open arms and lots of love.