March of the Living Reflections
At the beginning of our tour in Israel we visited a stone monument that was created by Israeli national artist Natan Rapaport. It is perhaps his life’s masterpiece. Connecting the world of the Shoah with the birth of Israel, the “Scrolls of Fire” are inscribed on the inside of the stone monument with the haunting words of the Prophet Ezekial (37:17) “I will put My spirit in you, and you will live, and I will place you in your own land and you will know that I am Hashem, I spoke and I did, thus says Hashem.” A chilling prophecy that describes the dry bones coming back to life and returning to the Land of Israel, clarity for many that the miracle of Israel is part of a greater redemptive process that began with the Shoah.
For me, the symbol of this March of the Living has been stones. The stones that we have placed on the gravestones of our ancestors, the monuments made of stone, and the stones of Jerusalem and the Western Wall. The Hebrew word for stone is “aven” – (אבן) a conjunction of av (father) and ben (son). (אבן = אב + בן) . It is an expression of the enduring strength of the relationship of children and parents from generation to generation.
The relationship between a father and son, mother and daughter, parent to child, is truly the foundation ‘stones’ of our people. The Kotel, the Western Wall, stands as a symbol of that relationship. From generation to generation the Jewish people, have prayed facing Jerusalem, longed to return to Jerusalem and hoped for its rebuilding, declaring with their children at the Passover seder table, “next year in Jerusalem.”
Our experience these past weeks has given all of us clarity that we are bearing witness to the miraculous fulfillment of the prophecy of our Jewish bible and the faithful hope of Jewish mothers and fathers throughout the ages, for a return to our eternal homeland, the Land of Israel.
We began our trip at the Radagast Station train platform, where families were torn apart from each other before they were sent in cattle cars to Aushwitz, Belzec and Treblinka. Juxtaposed to this, we are finishing our trip celebrating Shabbat and Yom Haatzmaot, clinging to our children, dancing and singing with families from around the world.
Last night, we had the privilege to commemorate Yom Hazikaron at an orphanage called Bet Elizarki, in Netanya. The children living in the home are without “mom and dad” but they are parented in a loving and nurturing home throughout their lives. We learned the difference between being a mother or father and being a parent. The Rabbi that cares for the children explained that being a parent is about nurturing and caring for the child financially, emotionally through all of life’s milestones. Some mothers and fathers are unable to parent their children and therefore this home was created to give those children everything needed to end the cycle of abandonment. Anyone can be a mother or father, but being a parent is someone that continually cares and nurtures, creating an enduring relationship that helps the child be the best of themselves.
This March of the Living has given birth to a new pride in Israel and in our Jewish identity. The students are so proud to be in our homeland, grateful for this incredible experience and have learned so many lessons about our people, and our core Jewish values. We will all return with greater enthusiasm but for how long will it last? This is an experience that needs to be nurtured, cared for, and encouraged to continue to grow. This journey which we have embarked on is really just the beginning of a new found appreciation for who we are and where we come from, giving us greater clarity on where we should be going.
