An Indian Jew in Jerusalem...

Two nights ago, I went to the Birthright Megaevent, celebrating the 100,000 Birthright participant in Israel. It was a huge celebration, featuring Shimone Peres, a host of Israeli singers and dancers, as well as plenty of lights and fireworks. It brought back some warm memories for me of my megaevent, only six months ago.

The fact that over 100,000 young Jews have been granted the opportunity to experience Israel is incredible. The fact that the Jewish community has paid for it is even more so.

I think the most amazing thing about Birthright that many people overlook is its international nature. It would be one thing if the state of Israel and Jewish organizations were making an investment in a bunch of rich American Jews, who would then invest in the future. These trips do exist, but Birthright is much more universal. There were Jews from the US, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Russia and other countries. I talked for several minutes with an Indian Jew, certainly someone I wouldn't expect to meet in a lifetime. But that is the remarkable thing about Israel.

I think that when many people view Israel, they see the image of Orthodox Jews of European dissent praying at the Western Wall, all dressed in the same manner. The reality is that Israel is a truly multi-cultural nation. Many people see it as a divided land between Jews and Arabs, but the population of Israel includes many others that do not fit into either of these categories. There are Christians, Armenians and many other groups.

Furthermore. the Jewish and Arab populations are far from homogenous themselves. Within the Jewish population, there are European Jews, Middle Eastern Jews (during the winter I spent a few days with an Iraqi Jewish family), Russian Jews (right now, my hostel is filled with Israeli soldiers who speak to each other in Russian), Ethiopian Jews, South African Jews, etc.

Two things allow for this cultural diversity. One is the right of return. Obviously, the fact that Israel is a Jewish state and allows for any Jew to become a citizen makes it a magnet for Jews around the world. The second factor, though, that allows for the diversity is the tolerance in Israel.

While Israel is a Jewish state, it is also a liberal democracy that grants rights for minorities. Even Arabs have more rights in Israel than in Arab states. Few people realize that Israel is one of the only states in the Middle East where Arab women have the right to vote. In talking with Arabs around the city, this is why so many of them are happy to live in Israel. That story of Israeli Arabs happy to be Israeli certainly does not appear too often in the media.

I'm still kind of trying to find my format with this blog, so if you have any suggestions, please post a comment.