A group of prominent Israeli rabbis and laymen has launched a grassroots initiative aimed at encouraging North American Jews to make Aliyah (immigration to Israel). Operating under the name Aloh Na\'aleh (\"We will rise and succeed\"), the group plans to soon send emissaries - rabbis, academicians, and others - on speaking-tour trips to promote Aliyah in synagogues, day schools, and other centers for Judaism throughout the U.S. and Canada.
The idea was first hatched by Mr. David Hollander, who quickly involved several former American rabbis living in Israel in his plan. Rabbi Shalom Gold, of the Young Israel congregation in Har Nof and an active participant in the program, told Arutz-7\'s Josh Hasten today that Aliyah for North American Jews \"should be part of the planning of their lives, and at some point, preferably sooner than later, they should come to live in Eretz Yisrael.\"
Excerpts from Rabbi Gold\'s remarks:
“Our goal is to raise the consciousness of Jews of the Golah [Diaspora] that their goal and objective should be to live in Israel…In all generations there were voices calling out to people ‘come home.’ We want to be that voice. It is the historic responsibility of the Jews [to live in Israel]…
\"I know that there has been a rise in anti-Semitism over the past several weeks, but that is not how we want to play the Aliyah bit. We want people coming as a result of pull, not as a result of push. We want people to come because they feel that this is the place a Jew belongs… We have to create Aliyah as a value. Saying that Israel is a ‘nice place to visit’ is not enough. That [type of thinking] was not the spiritual baggage of the Jewish people of the last 2,000 years. If that had been our attitude, there never would have been the establishment of a state. We have to revitalize Jewish yearning for the State of Israel… The Israeli government is aware of this project and has given us its blessing.\"
When asked whether or not Prime Minister Sharon’s goal of bringing another million Jews to live in Israel over the next decade was realistic, Rabbi Gold said,
“Anything that has to do with the Jewish people cannot be looked at from the point of view of what’s realistic or not realistic. I always tell my congregation that the law in modern Jewish history is ‘expect the unexpected.’ No one expected the Russian Aliyah. All of a sudden it happened… The only thing that one can safely predict is that within the next few years the largest Jewish community in the world will be in Israel… The center of the Jewish world will be here very soon… But regarding your question: Yes, if my Prime Minister says one million Jews, I trust him.\"
The idea was first hatched by Mr. David Hollander, who quickly involved several former American rabbis living in Israel in his plan. Rabbi Shalom Gold, of the Young Israel congregation in Har Nof and an active participant in the program, told Arutz-7\'s Josh Hasten today that Aliyah for North American Jews \"should be part of the planning of their lives, and at some point, preferably sooner than later, they should come to live in Eretz Yisrael.\"
Excerpts from Rabbi Gold\'s remarks:
“Our goal is to raise the consciousness of Jews of the Golah [Diaspora] that their goal and objective should be to live in Israel…In all generations there were voices calling out to people ‘come home.’ We want to be that voice. It is the historic responsibility of the Jews [to live in Israel]…
\"I know that there has been a rise in anti-Semitism over the past several weeks, but that is not how we want to play the Aliyah bit. We want people coming as a result of pull, not as a result of push. We want people to come because they feel that this is the place a Jew belongs… We have to create Aliyah as a value. Saying that Israel is a ‘nice place to visit’ is not enough. That [type of thinking] was not the spiritual baggage of the Jewish people of the last 2,000 years. If that had been our attitude, there never would have been the establishment of a state. We have to revitalize Jewish yearning for the State of Israel… The Israeli government is aware of this project and has given us its blessing.\"
When asked whether or not Prime Minister Sharon’s goal of bringing another million Jews to live in Israel over the next decade was realistic, Rabbi Gold said,
“Anything that has to do with the Jewish people cannot be looked at from the point of view of what’s realistic or not realistic. I always tell my congregation that the law in modern Jewish history is ‘expect the unexpected.’ No one expected the Russian Aliyah. All of a sudden it happened… The only thing that one can safely predict is that within the next few years the largest Jewish community in the world will be in Israel… The center of the Jewish world will be here very soon… But regarding your question: Yes, if my Prime Minister says one million Jews, I trust him.\"