First taste of Beer Sheva

Today, I got my first taste of what it will be like to be one of the few religious Jews in Beer Sheva. I ordered a ticket on the group flight to Israel and mine came in the mail today. Apparently my flight to the Jewish State was set to take off at 9:50 PM on August 1st: a Saturday night. Even without the additional 3 hours needed for El Al security, there is simply no way I could get to the airport after Shabbat ends at 8:59 PM.

After a call and a few emails, I figure out what happened: the tickets were booked in Israel, and they didn't take into account that the flight was leaving on Motzei Shabbat. Apparently it's ok to have people wait in line on Shabbat, as long as the plane isn't actually in the air. That being said, once I pointed out the problem, I was immediately switched to a flight the following day and they are making sure that I will have transportation from Tel Aviv to Beer Sheva and will cover any additional costs that may come with the change.

I have been to Israel before and I am well aware that most Israelis are "secular," but I must say that this still took me by surprise. The Zionist dream was built by mostly "secular" Jews, but their dream was built on Jewish history, tradition and culture, if not on religious law. I wonder how it is that in a state built for the preservation of Judaism could foster such ignorance of the most basic of Jewish concepts: the Sabbath.

Throughout history religious groups would define themselves not only by their own traditions, but by their interactions with other peoples and religions. It was through these interactions that religious groups would learn new, sometimes unorthodox ideas, that would force them to adapt and redefine themselves based on their experiences among the "other." I wonder, by removing ourselves from the world, have the Jews created a situation in which religious tradition and Jewish thought will stagnate?

After I thanked Susan Stern for her quick fix of my Shabbat problem, I asked her if I would be joined on the Sunday flight by any other students.

No.

Maybe the ghettoization of the Jews in Israel isn't what has caused this decline in understanding of traditional Jewish culture. American Jews are often just as secular as Israelis, if not more so. Perhaps it is the general sway towards secularism throughout the Western World that is to blame.

But still, to where exactly are these other "secular" students taking their plane?

Pre-Departure

Before I head off to the Middle East for my year of studies at Ben-Gurion University, I have decided to create this blog. So, why am I writing this blog? For a number of reasons:

• It's late and it sounded like a good idea.
• I want to have a place to write about my experiences and everything I learn.
• This will let me update everyone back home on what I'm up to without any long and annoying mass emails.

So be sure to check back for all future posts.