In our Holy Land Democracy Project’s 10th year of bringing non-Jewish high school teachers to Israel in order to “see it for themselves,” a total of 20 educators traveled with us June 5-15th on our annual trip. Accompanying the teachers this time was the founder of our Federation’s Holy Land Democracy Project , Dr. Daniel Lieber, and his wife Enid, along with other members of the community. This year, schools represented on the trip included ones from the Burbank and La Cańada-Flintridge Unified School Districts, the Albert Einstein Academy, the Environmental Charter Schools and the Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles.
“To understand Israel,” urged Chaya Lester on the group’s first night in Israel, “you have to understand and love paradox.” Chaya and her husband Rabbi Hillel Lester hosted the group in their home in the fascinating neighborhood of Nachlaot for Shabbat dinner through the “Shabbat of a Lifetime” program. They provided a context for understanding Israel that served us throughout the entire trip: Israel is wonderfully complicated.
Learning to hold complex, distinct, and even contradictory ideas in their minds about Israel—without trying to resolve the tension—was the challenge for much of the trip. At Bellofrei Farms the group met Tammy, a Morrocan/Yeminite/Polish/Albanian Sabra, whose passion is teaching Mishna to Golan Heights high school students—yet she is resolutely “secular.” The Givati Brigade soldiers we danced with at the Kotel weren’t religious either—yet there they were praying and dancing at Judaism’s holiest site. Elsewhere on the trip, the idealistic college graduates at the Federation-funded Ayalim Association excited the native idealism of these high school teachers; if these talented young people can choose a life of sacrifice and service to high ideals, then so can our kids in L.A.!
For these outstanding educators and devoted learners—the best teachers are always eager students—curiosities and political hot spots abounded. A charismatic guide from Givat Haviva held us spellbound on the roof of a building in the Arab town of Bartha, describing the imaginary line that runs right down the middle of the village—one side Israel, the other side Palestinian territory. At Yad Vashem, teachers marveled at how a people so devastated by the horrors of Auschwitz had the strength to fight a war and begin a state just three years later.
We were privileged to meet twice with master lecturer Rachel Korazim, once just before our visit to Yad Vashem and then in her beautiful Jaffa home on our penultimate day. The teachers peppered Rachel with questions about applying all they’d learned in Israel to the 5 lessons of the Many Faces of Israel course developed by our Federation’s HLDP staff they’ll be teaching in their classrooms this fall. Speaking to them in the language of lesson plans and meaningful pedagogy, Rachel held these veteran teachers fascinated and left them excited to learn more.
Between relaxing spells in the Dead Sea, Jordan River, Mediterranean and Sea of Gallilee, the trip afforded moments of pleasure. And something quite unique to this trip, as well. Not every HLDP teachers group gets the opportunity to try to get into the Guinness Book of World Records—but this one did. They joined the members of our Federation’s Community Leadership Institute who happened to be concurrently travelling in Israel and thousands of others at the Tel Aviv Port on our last Friday night of the trip—where they succeeded in taking part in breaking the record for the largest Shabbat dinner ever held!
The Jewish Federation’s Holy Land Democracy Project is a unique program which brings diverse, non-Jewish educators to Israel to learn first-hand the realities of the modern-day democracy – which they share with their respective high school classes upon their return, along with a Federation-prepared curricula. To date, the program has made an impact on the lives of over 25,000 students in the Los Angeles area. For more information, contact Rabbi Hal Greenwald at HGreenwald@JewishLA.org.
