Australian educators on the KKL-JNF Educators Study Tour spend a weekend in Jerusalem visiting Jewish heritage sites while experiencing the fabric of the city’s everyday life.
Group photo. Photo: Yoav Devir
How would it be possible to get to know the nation-state of the Jewish people without a visit to Jerusalem, its eternal capital? The Australian educators spent the weekend visiting locations that symbolize the connection between the heritage and historical sites of the Jewish people, including the Western Wall, the City of David and the Jewish quarter in Jerusalem, along with experiencing the city’s cultural and urban daily life.
One of the most moving moments was when Yonatan Baruch, a teacher of Judaism from Moriah College, for whom this was his first visit in Israel, came to the Western Wall for the first time in his life. His friends led him to the wall blindfolded, and when he reached the Wall, he took the blindfold off and faced the Wall for the first time. His eyes filled with tears, and he stammered “I am so happy” in Hebrew.
On Saturday night, a festive event took place at Ammunition Hill. Ammunition Hill (Givat Hatachmoshet) was captured during the 1967 Six Day War by IDF paratroopers, in a bloody battle that was waged in bunkers and trenches. Today, this site still stands as a testament to the heroism and determination of the IDF soldiers. KKL-JNF is responsible for the preservation and development of this site, with the support of its friends all over the world, including from Australia. Mission participants walked along the canals and bunkers and also between the remains of the armored vehicles and tanks. The evening concluded with song, dance and a salute, along with raising a toast in honor of Jerusalem and the State of Israel.
The Blue Box that grew a country
The study tour’s second week began with a visit to the National Institutions building in Jerusalem, which is the home of KKL-JNF’s world headquarters. In the historical structure, which was built during the rule of the British Mandate, there is a hall that houses the Books of Honor – impressive, heavy volumes that honor KKL-JNF donors from all over the world.
Inscriptions in Books of Honor began at the Fifth Zionist Congress in 1901 as a way of raising money immediately after the Jewish National Fund was created. The second person inscribed in the book is none other than Theodor Herzl himself. Today, there are 26 Books of Honor, covering different periods in the state of Israel’s history.
Efrat Benbenisti, the books’ long-time curator, explained that each hand-tooled bounding is a work of art that depicts significant events from the history of the people of Israel.
The hall also includes an exhibition of the iconic KKL-JNF Blue Box, which, at the establishment of the Fund, was conceived as a way of raising funds from Jews all over the world to redeem land in Eretz Yisrael. Throughout the 20th century, almost every Jewish home had a blue box in which they would deposit their pennies to help advance the Zionist dream. At the KKL-JNF Headquarters in Jerusalem, glass cases display Blue Boxes from different places and time periods. An especially moving exhibit is the Blue Box that was found in the ruins of the Warsaw Ghetto after the Second World War. Today, Australia is the only country in which the Blue Box still plays a dominant role in JNF activities.
The exhibition is a testament to the support of KKL-JNF’s friends from all over the world since the beginning, which made the purchase of land for the future Jewish state possible, along with the country’s development then and now.
KKL-JNF Director General Amnon Ben Ami greeted the members of the delegation and said to them: “I am certain that you have received a powerful impression of Israel, and when you return home you will know what messages to share about our country.”
Remembering at Yad Vashem
The delegation continued for a visit to the Yad Vashem Holocaust Remembrance Museum. They walked along the Righteous of the Nations Boulevard, where a tree was planted in memory of each and every righteous gentile as a symbol of life. The educators visited the museum and saw movies, exhibits and testimonies describing the annihilation of European Jewry.
After the visit, they participated in a fascinating workshop on teaching students about the Holocaust that was very relevant for educators. “How can we, as teachers, even begin to teach students about the Holocaust?” asked Rabbi Moshe Cohen, Director of the Beit Hatefutzot Jewish World Department. “Historians teach the bare facts, but we, as educators, must give these facts meaning.”
He described the principles developed by Yad Vashem for Holocaust education, including transmitting the complexity of the subject based on the age of the students, refraining from being judgmental, creating empathy and making use of interdisciplinary methods. “Six million as a number has no meaning, we must give names to the victims. We learn nothing from death, it is only possible to learn from life,” he concluded.
At the conclusion of the moving visit to Yad Vashem, the teachers were surprised with letters written to them by members of their families before they left Australia. They opened the envelopes, and with tears in their eyes read the messages their loved ones wanted to convey during their journey to Israel.
Growth despite the shadow of terror
Gaza envelope residents have to deal with the complicated challenges that come from living in the shadow of constant terror. The city of Sderot is an outstanding example of the effort to lead a normal life in spite of the impossible security situation. Local residents believe that the best answer to terror is to continue building, developing and growing. Needless to say, KKL-JNF is committed to this important goal, with the help of its friends from Australia and the rest of the world.
“For over a decade, we have been under attack by missiles, but even so, this is a city that is growing and developing,” said Sderot Mayor
Alon Davidi. “People from different backgrounds live here, and everyone simply wants to lead a normal life. But as long as they teach children to hate Israel in the schools of Gaza, nothing will change here in the future.”
From an observation point located on the roof of a local yeshiva, everyone could see the Gaza border and got a better understanding of just how close everything is to Israel. From this point, it was also possible to see how work was progressing on the Park of Courage. The park, which is being created with the help of
JNF Australia, will include an artificial lake with an island in the middle where there will be an open classroom for learning about nature and the environment.
Joe Krycer, former Director General of JNF Victoria, immigrated to Israel about two years ago and is currently involved in helping with the development of the local yeshiva. “You are visiting the land of miracles, and it’s a privilege to be part of this miracle,” he said to the guests.
Rabbi
David Fendel, the head of the Yeshiva, warmly expressed his gratitude to JNF Australia for helping to develop the city and said: “At the same time that our neighbors are shooting and sewing destruction, we are building and creating, because Israel believes in life.”
The Sha’ar Hanegev High School: Education and Jewish Identity
The day concluded at a meeting with the educational team of the Sha’ar Hanegev High School, which is located near the Gaza border. The school, which is completely fortified against shelling and rockets, was built with the support of JNF Australia.
“It’s important for us to meet you and to exchange ideas about education and identity,” said school Principal Areleh Rothstein to the educators.
The teachers split up into small groups, and together with their Israeli colleagues discussed various issues: What is our identity? What is our relationship to God? How is the Jewish People changing and what is its future? Needless to say, questions regarding daily life at the school also came up during the discussions: How many students are there in each class? What courses are there? How do you create a connection between students from different communities? What does it feel like to study under fire? The conversation between the Israeli and Australian educators provided a wonderful opportunity for a meaningful connection between people who come from different places, but all share a love of education and concern for the future generation.