TRULY CONNECTING WITH MY JEWISH HERITAGE FOR THE FIRST TIME

TRULY CONNECTING WITH MY JEWISH HERITAGE FOR THE FIRST TIME

I wasn’t the type of Jewish young adult you might expect to be interested in a trip to Israel. I grew up estranged from the Jewish heritage of my mother. And estranged may be a mild word. You see, my family had more than simply assimilated into a generic suburban Ohio culture—my Jewish mother married a fundamentalist Baptist minister, my father—and my belief system as a child and even into the college years reflected this upbringing.

During my 17 years of childhood in Ohio, and throughout the following four years attending a Baptist college, I never met a single peer who identified with the Jewish culture or who practiced Judaism.

Then, as a 25 year old 1L in lawschool, I quickly developed a friendship with one particular Jewish law student. For the first time, I heard about the birthright program-- a free trip to Israel for Jewish young adults. Eager to visit the place which was the focal point of so many memorable stories learned of in my Christian Sunday School and where I knew my ancestors lived many centuries ago, I—along with one of my younger brothers- applied to the program. –In fact, we were the first of our ten Jewish cousins to do so.

THE FLIGHT

Several months later, the journey was underway via a flight from NYC to TelAviv. Somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean, most of the passengers around me still sleeping, one of the Hassidic men onboard approached my seat, politely asking whether I would accompany him for morning prayers, including applying the tefillin. When I informed the man of my unfamiliarity with the practice, he offered to guide me through the Ve-haya Im Shamoa — for the first time.

As I bound the teffilin repeating, out loud, those words in the 13^th chapter of Deuteronomy, an incredible emotion took took hold of me “Put these words of Mine on your heart and on your soul, tie them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be 'totafot' between your eyes….”

While I am not particularly religious in practice, the importance of my spiritual experiences on this trip cannot be understated. As a child, my religious indoctrination taught that the only way to spiritual peace was through my particular religion. This limited view of the world constricted my exposure to other thought—and left me with an impression of Jewish people (whom I did not spend time with) as “lost” and the intellectual leaders as “blinded.” Nearly everything on this trip, beginning with that El-Al flight, exposed me to a different view.

DISCUSSION WITH THE RABBI/ SYNAGOGUE

For Shabbat, the first I’d ever experienced, a rabbi stayed with our group. Several of us read and discussed the Sabbath’s Torah portion with the rabbi that evening. Unlike many of the religious education classes I’d attended, in this one debate was encouraged, arguing allowed, questions permitted, and critical thinking unfettered!

The following morning, I attended synagogue for the first time in my life. Sitting by the wall in the back row, I observed the hundreds of worshippers singing and praying. Then, the rabbi delivered a thunderous sermon. I remain inspired by his articulate and powerful plea that we never shy away from being a force to confront evil.

Rather than finding confusion, blindness, and despair in the Judaic religious tradition, my first experiences revealed certainty, enlightenment, and confidence!

At Masada, we walked through the ruins of the fortress and I heard the story of the Jewish patriots who chose to forfeit their lives at the top of that rock rather than surrender their heritage and freedom. A young IDF soldier, rifle by his side, reading a prayer book after applying teffilin seemed to me a living tribute to their bravery. .

Thoughts and emotions from these experiences and many more fermented within me as my brother Joshua and I stood overlooking the valley next to the Golan Heights. With our arms around each others’ shoulders, I thought back to the traditional idea of God’s promise to Abraham thousands of years ago….

I was home..

I’m happy to say, that my personal transformation continued. My experience in Israel encouraged me to continue to discover Judaism. I was now emotionally able to relinquish the faith of my childhood which had caused so much intellectual conflict. I realized that as I was losing one community of shared but sometimes forced religious belief, at last I was free to embrace the heritage, the faith, and the culture that has been forgotten by many in my family…and which had lain dormant within my soul.

My brother relocated to Chicago – partially to spend time with me-- but more importantly to develop relationships with the large Jewish community here. We are enjoying Shabbat dinners, studying with several rabbis, and immersing ourselves in traditions long forgotten by our family.

I hold immense gratitude in my heart for those people whose generosity made it possible for my brother Joshua and me to discover the beauty and uniqueness of their Jewish heritage. I left for Israel thinking I was a young man whose mother had Jewish parents. Today, I know that I too am a Jew.