The Zionist Election You Can Participate

I have always wanted to make a difference for Jews around the world. This "election" will in a way fulfill that wish if I decided to vote. Since the elections just happened today I've been thinking a lot about what I would do if I could vote, how I would try to make a difference. This is mostly because we had a conversation about it but nonetheless I was thinking a lot about it. This article touches on problems in Israel today such as the settlements. In the Jewish community we all have an opinion on problems in Israel and through this voting process we could in a way effect the outcome of Israel. Obviously not in a big way but the smallest bit counts. We all care a lot about Israel and are invested in it's survival so when there's an opportunity to help Israel I would think Jews would pounce on it.  We wouldn't be able to face problems like settlements directly but would be able to create centers that promote Israel which in a way can help Israel.

If I could try to change an aspect of Israel I would try to improve the cost of living in Israel. Just the overall economic living in this country. It's a big problem and affects people on a daily bases. Of course the potential from Hamas and Iran and other groups against Israel is scary but they don't affect us everyday. This problems in Israel society where people can't pay there rent, or the cost of food is to much affects people every single day. So that's why if I had to help Israel I would try to face these problems. So much media talks about the violence of Israel so people forget that Israel is also a country with economic struggles too. These problems need to be brought to day light and I hope in this upcoming election it will start to do that.

Tel Aviv

Over the weekend my parents gave me the opportunity to visit Tel Aviv. In EIE we've been there a couple of times but this was the first time I got to truly experience what it was like. As I walked through the beach on Friday there wasn't a vibe of Shabbat like there is in Jerusalem and at our Kibbutz. It showed me that Tel Aviv is a different from the other cities. It reminded me of New York and the atmosphere back home. It really made me nostalgic about back home and my friends. Tel Aviv is a type city I can really see myself living in some day. Not physically Tel Aviv but a city like it back home. I've been thinking about college a lot since I'm a Junior and I realized that I could definitely see myself going to college in a urban area. So not only did I learn about Tel Aviv and the different vibe it has there but also about myself and what I want.

Matisyahu and His Drug Problems

First off this was one of the most intresting articles I have read so far. Learning about Matisyahu struggle with drugs was a very unique experience in that I got to know more about his life. Before I had thought that Matisyahu had grown up in a Ultra Orthodox community and that he just happened to start writing music. I didn't realize how much it meant to him. We all have something that keeps us from doing things that were not supposed too. For Matsiyahu it was religion and music, for other people it might be family, sports, art, etc. We all have aspects of our lives that help us make the right decisions. It's just are job to find what those things are. For people who are lucky that thing is given to them. For others it takes them time to find what's meaningful to him/her.

Something that I was lucky to have been given to me was the connection to camp. It's something I talk about a lot but it shows how much this place truly means to me. Camp Newman puts me in the right path and helps me make better decisions. Through camp I have grown as a person and as a Jew. It's helped me find my path in Judaism. Of course it's not all there, part of the reason I came to EIE, but it's given me a lot I can be thankful for. We all have parts of our lives that we should thankful about for Matisyahu it's music and Judaism, for me it's Camp.

Jesus Geneaology

The religion of Christianity has always intrigued me. I have always wondered what pull factor it had to convert millions of people to it's beliefs. When we started looking at Jesus's Genealogy I was surprised to see that it had such a big whole. The fact that Joseph, Jesus's father is a dissident of David leaves a huge whole in the Christian story because Jesus is supposed to be the son of God. There for Jesus is not a dissident of David because he does not share blood with Joseph. When Aaron pointed this out in class I started to get anger, almost as if it was a personal insult to me. I don't know why but I think it's because people judge the stories of Judaism so much and they identify as Christian. So when I see this evidence of a whole in there belief it makes me angry that they would criticize my religion when they have gaps in theirs too. We are able to prove these stories are real through multiple sources. The same can be said for Christians. Both religions have gaps in their stories so instead of judging each other we should just come to peace with the fact that some things can't be explained.

Will There Be One Jewish People

This article talks about how there are two different types of Jewish people, a maximilist and a minimalist. The maximilist is centered around meeting all sorts of Jewish people and meeting all the Jews that are in the world. A minimalist is someone who is "narrow in there studies" according to Ben Greenberg. For me it's interesting to think about how there are different types of Judaism besides Orthodox, Conservative and Reform. This type of Judaism is split by how social you are compared to how religious you are. I think that the people who try to meet other Jews are going to be the ones who will be able to keep Judaism united. Of course studying is important but when your whole life is just studying there's only so much you can do to get to know other Jews except for the ones who are like you. The ones who meet other sects of Judaism are going to be able to understand how others think and will be able to make decisions that would benefit all parts of Judaism.

The scary aspect to me is the fact that these two types of Judaism could lead to a split of Jews. We've seen through the past that when were not united we get tossed around. As a united religion there's not a lot that can take us down but if we have a split it creates a weak point for Judaism. We can already see that split happening today in the world. Orthodox Jews and Secular Jews don't always tend to get along. They both have two valid arguments for why they believe what they believe but at the end of the day they need to realize that were all one Am and being united is crucial to our survival.

Gadna

While on the 10 day break, my class and I spent 4 days in Gadna, which is an army base located in the South. This whole experience was supposed to give us an idea about what the army is like. Something that I found interesting though was the fact that everyone said that the real army was way better than this. For me the beginning was miserable, my clothes didn't fit, it was cold and my sleeping bag was really uncomfortable. But as the week went on I started to become more comfortable with everything.  I started to realize that it didn't matter if I looked ridiculous because we all did. There was this one moment on our last day when we were all eating tuna for that last time. I just remember being comfortable in my own body, which I hadn't been all week. This was a turning point for me in that it showed me that I didn't have to care if I had a hole in my pants, or if the pants were very tight in the back and very loose in the front. So if Gadna changed me in any way I think it would have to be that I shouldn't care so much and I should be more comfortable with my body.