SPOILER ALERT: For those of you who don’t want to know how this journey ends, please read the next paragraph last.
Your 2013 Rubinites are back in our St. Louis homes! As the last couple of days of our journey were tightly packed (literally and figuratively in some cases), and because jet lag and the comedown from the experience of a lifetime were more physically taxing than the effort to scale Masada, it has taken a while to bring you the final recap of our adventure. Sit back and relax; this one could take a while . . .
Monday morning was dedicated to the workings of Israel’s judicial and legislative branches with a brief and unplanned observation of the executive branch. We began the day at the Israeli Supreme Court Building, the striking 1992 edifice that combines numerous architectural elements from different eras. Dovev, our incredibly learned tour guide, provided us with a basic rundown of the fundamentals of the Israeli justice system which in essence is quite similar in structure to its American counterpart. Unlike the USA, Israel has no Constitution to serve as its legal bedrock, and it relies instead on a combination of principles stated in its Declaration of Independence, a set of “foundational laws” and (like America) its body of legal precedents handed down by its courts. As Dovev delivered his explanation in front of the building’s sweeping picture windows, a series of three police SUV’s followed by three large Audi sedans and then another three police SUV’s whisked down the streets we could see below. Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu was headed off to work!
The 15 member Supreme Court does more than just hear appellate cases and on the day we visited, a panel of three justices was in session to preside over what we understood to be a series of pre-trial conferences. Although none of us could decipher the fast-flowing Hebrew dialogue between attorney and justices, it appeared that the matter we were watching was not going well for the party whose argument we were watching.
We then took a walk through a lengthy park and rose garden that serves as the connector between the Supreme Court and the Knesset, Israel’s legislative assembly building. Following a significant wait for Knesset security to gain assurances from our beloved traveling companion and Federation “chaperone” Mindee Fredman that we posed no threat to the continuity of the Israeli legislative process, we entered the iconic home of Israel’s lawmaking body. While there, we had the privilege to meet with Deputy Speaker and Labor Party Secretary General Yehiel “Hili” Bar who provided us with a comprehensive summary of Israel’s multi-party political system, the mechanics of legislative terms and elections and a preview of what’s to come in the upcoming legislative session which was opening the day we visited (hint: it’s the Palestinian peace process). Deputy Speaker Bar extended an invitation for us to attend the day’s opening festivities, however we had many more items on our daily agenda and thus had to forego the opportunity. We did steal some time, however, to make a quick visit to the observation gallery for the Knesset’s grand assembly chamber.
Next up was a trip to Mevaseret Zion, a suburb of Jerusalem, where we paid a visit to a Jewish Agency sponsored immigrant absorption center. This particular center focused on the formidable community of Ethiopian exiles now living in Israel. Our host Liat Damoza told the story of her family’s exile from Ethiopia when she was 3 years old – an incredible journey covering hundreds of miles on foot over several months. She discussed the difficulties that Ethiopian immigrants have blending into Israeli life and how the absorption centers aim to help these immigrants address those difficulties. While at the center, we dropped in on the center’s child care facility where we were literally mobbed by tiny friends eager to bid us “shalom” and offer up some very enthusiastic high-5’s. We then returned to the center’s main hall where we were treated to a traditional Ethiopian lunch and coffee ceremony. And then it was back into the bus for the next visit on the day’s agenda.
The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee is a Federation-partner agency that runs various community assistance programs, including a job-training facility for Haredi Jews that we visited. Many Haredi (sometimes referred to as “ultra-orthodox”) have never held jobs outside of their tight-knit communities, if at all, and this facility endeavors to work with those Haredis who are looking for employment within the general business community. The JDC’s Haredi Job Opportunity Center provides training and assistance in the areas of job readiness, placement and guidance toward vocational training in an environment that is sensitive to such Haredi concerns as mingling of genders. There are separate programs and hours for men and women. JDC operates similar centers which also help such groups as Arab Israelis, immigrants in general, the disabled and young adults. We heard from a few staffers and participants and had the opportunity to review some resumes of past participants to get an idea of the areas in which they could benefit from development through the JDC’s programs.
It had already been a very full Monday, but there was one more site to visit before the business portion of our day was done. That was the Crossoads addiction prevention program. This organization, which is located just a handful of steps away from one of the busiest gathering places for young people (especially young people with addiction issues and other social challenges), is open five days and three nights a week and offers a series of activities and programs in a safe, non-threatening environment. Crossroad employs social workers who canvas the nearby streets to mix with young people and identify those whom they believe could benefit from their services. Aside from resources like game rooms, computer access, movies, art programs and the like, Crossroads also offers educational support, counseling, crisis intervention and even possible referral to treatment centers. In addition to Federation support, Crossroads also receives funds from other private foundations as well as some limited support from the Israeli government. We had the privilege to meet with Crossroads’ director and a social worker as well as one of the program’s current participants.
The reward for an extremely fast-paced day was a relaxing dinner at Bardak, a nearby pizza place that just so happens to be owned by Dovev’s brother Sion. Not only was the food exceptional, Sion treated us like family and it didn’t hurt that he treated us to some samplings from Bardak’s abundant beer taps as well as some other complementary liquid refreshments. We ended the day once more with food and fellowship, just a couple of the many recurring themes of this year’s trip.
And then there was one. One final day in Israel. And it was truly fitting that we would end our journey on a high note, well, at least a high location. Just past dawn, we ventured out past the Bedouin encampments southeast of Jerusalem and made our way to Masada. There atop a formidable rock formation on the western edge of the Judean Desert we toured the complex of King Herod which became the home to the Jewish resistance in Roman times. Although the resistance ultimately met its fate by its own hands (suicide over surrender to the coming Roman onslaught,) the story of Masada is an inspiration to Jews as an example of the sacrifices our people have often made to remain true to their religion.
From the heights of Masada, we next ventured to the depths of the lowest spot on Earth – the Dead Sea. During a fairly quick visit , several Rubinites enjoyed the literal embrace of the world’s saltiest body of water. The relaxing float did not last long as we had a pressing appointment with Abraham – yes, THAT Abraham (or, perhaps just a guy with an English accent and hiking boots who claimed to be Abraham). In any event, the gentleman who may or may not have been THAT Abraham, was our host at Eretz Bereshit, “Genesis Land.” It was there that we learned about the ancient hospitality customs that were the norm during biblical times and which continue today within some Bedouin societies. In addition to the abundant, multi-course lunch, we were also offered the opportunity to travel the distance between the parking lot (not a fixture of ancient Bedouin cultures, we presume) and the tents of our host via camel.
Although Abraham’s hospitality afforded us a leisurely lunch, it was, alas, a treat that had to come to a close, for we had one final item of business to take care of prior to closing out our Israel trip. That was a visit to Kol HaOt, an organization that specializes in the expression of Jewish themes and rituals via the arts. We met with Rabbi Matt Berkowitz, the leader of Kol HaOt who explained a little about the organization and who introduced us to the artistic storytelling of David Moss. He presented Moss’ wordless scroll that, using only colors and iconography, tells the story of the binding of Isaac. We were then taken to an art studio where we were given materials to produce a similar scroll of our own whereby we would recount our own experiences of the past nine days. Rather than produce our own individual story scrolls, we chose to each take on certain segments of the journey and produce one large scroll featuring our collective experiences. The panels were then brought together into a single, cohesive story, much as we as individuals had been woven together into a single, cohesive family – the Rubinites of 2013.
We enjoyed a final Israeli dinner at the garden restaurant Café Itamar, and then it was time for our charming driver Sammy to deliver us to Ben Gurion Airport where we bade our great new friend Dovev a heartfelt “Shalom,” cleared a very thorough Israeli airport security process and boarded our flight back to America.
Shortly after 8:45 a.m. on Wednesday, October 16, 2013, we were back in St. Louis and officially Rubinite alumni. There were hugs all around as we parted ways at the airport, and while we were all a bit sad that the adventure was over, we are confident that this is just the beginning of a meaningful friendship and a deeper commitment to our own Jewish community as well as the state of Israel.
And while this is the final blog entry for the 2013 trip, it is not the final update. Thanks to limited internet connectivity as well as time, we did not have an opportunity to add a lot of pictures to accompany our words. Over the next couple of weeks, that will be rectified, so do check in again to see more photographic evidence of our exploits and adventures. Until then, Shalom and Todah Rabah!
