What is Aliyah?

A new phase of my life is unfolding. On 22 August 2006 I am moving to Israel.

In Hebrew, Aliyah means ascent, and ascent to the land of Israel is amongst the 3 main components of Judaism. There is the God of Israel (the words of whom were passed on to Moses on Sinai which he transcribed as The Torah) the People of Israel (Jews), and the Land of Israel (Israel). The religious, nationalist and cultural identifications that galvanized my move are not mutually exclusive, they are a interconnected. My identity, the one granted to me by my parents, mixed with the identity I have with the Jewish community and finally, the identity I have built for myself work together to fuel a passion for Israel, it's people and it's teachings.

So Why are you Making Aliyah?
My culture is one of history, right up to my parents. It's a history of mixed blessings. We hold a culture of deeds that celebrates life, justice and peace, but with our beliefs comes a strange hatred that has infected nations throughout our history.

In the wake of the latest Holocaust, Jews had to establish a secure place for themselves. The world agreed when they allotted us a small portion of Palestine through the United Nations. Unfortunately, the surrounding Arab nations had no interest in such a move and have been trying to immolate the Jews of Israel ever since, finding every grievance on God's green Earth and even some in heaven and hell to wage war instead of building up their own countries with the most basic infrastructures. For the past 65 years, many of these nations have spent their national treasures in this destructive persuit and for the most part, their efforts have only united the Jewish nation. And that's where I come in.

I'm a modern 21st century Jewish American guy. My family tree, however, goes back to Lithuania, Egypt, Iraq, and Poland, all places of Jewish persecution in just the last hundred years. The history culminated when my parents met around the time of the Yom Kippur War. They met in the Israeli Army, an army that hasn't exhisted in 2000 years, and the outcome gave me life. In my heart, call me narcisistic, but I do believe that there was divine inspiration in the creation of the world's greatest person - me. =) We lived in Israel until I was 5 and then we moved to the Boston suburbs. My brothers and I have always dreamt of returning and so far, they both have done it,.

In part, I am making this move for my own sake - I'm going to the place I feel most welcome and comfortable in this world - but I'm also moving for my community and family's sake - enforcing my belief that Jews are in fact responsible for one another, and should be in Israel - and in case anyone is upstairs, it doesn't hurt that I'm doing what He wants me to do, at least, so far as I know. =)