Although many of their peers spent their winter breaks recovering from the end of the previous semester, a group of Jewish Jumbos chose to spend 10 days abroad in Israel last month as part of Taglit−Birthright Israel, a program that provides free trips to Israel for Jewish youth as a way to discover their cultural heritage.
In conjunction with the Birthright organization, Tufts Hillel sponsored two ten−day trips for Tufts students over break. According to Andrew Cohen, the program associate for Taglit−Birthright Engagement at Tufts Hillel, the 78 students traveled "everywhere from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv to Haifa to the desert to everywhere in between."
"I think Birthright is so important because people hear about this far−off land … but to see it with your eyes, to eat the food, to meet the people, to experience, it's the only way you can truly know about the country, going there yourself and forming your own opinions," Cohen said of the importance of Birthright for young Jews.
Students who made the trip were quick to point out some of their favorite moments, which included seeing the Golan Heights, swimming in the Dead Sea, staying overnight in makeshift tents set up by the nomadic Bedouin people and visiting many of the major cities of Israel.
Despite being sponsored by a Jewish charity, many students felt that a cultural connection was easily accessible no matter their religious background.
"In terms of the religious aspect, I think it was a really great opportunity to reconnect with your cultural identity … regardless of how religious you are," sophomore Emma Wise said.
Senior Andrew Rohrberger explained that he viewed his Birthright trip primarily as a way to rediscover his heritage, entirely separate from his religious beliefs.
"Being at the Western Wall, I wasn't thinking about the religious impacts, but I was thinking about how important it was as something to me and my ancestors," Rohrberger said.
Junior Ben Gertner said that he felt more comfortable with his Judaism in Israel, in both a religious and cultural sense.
"In Israel you don't have to try to be Jewish, because it's there for you," Gertner said, noting that Jewish culture is ubiquitous in Israel.
Regardless of each student's personal experiences on Birthright, all agreed that the trip was an exciting and transformative experience.
"From a historical standpoint, it was just such an amazing opportunity to be able to be in the places that you learned about, heard about, and to learn the history from the perspectives of people who are living in Israel was really interesting," Wise said.
She added that Birthright students also gained a unique perspective on Israel by viewing the country through the eyes of a group of young Israeli soldiers traveling with them, who were there to help the students connect with their Jewish heritage.
"Being on a trip with seven Israelis who are our age was totally an eye−opening experience and put everything in so much perspective," Wise said.
The soldiers proved to be an invaluable part of the experience for the Tufts groups, as the students got to know the soldiers very well by the end of the trip, according to senior Joel Greenberg.
"They were part of our trip. They weren't sitting there at the front of the bus communicating with themselves while we're just hanging out," he said. "We got to know them, and there's not really any separating our experience from their experience."
Greenberg went on to say that befriending the soldiers allowed students the chance to experience Israel as more than just an abstract idea an ocean away.
"It's very different to read in the New York Times that Israelis that are our age are serving than to actually be there and to get to know seven of them, and to actually listen to what they have gone through," Greenberg said. "They reflect on these places in a very different way … and we don't really have any concept of that without interacting with the Israelis."
Greenberg and Wise agreed that the feeling of connection with the soldiers really hit home when they visited a military cemetery.
"Watching a 19−year−old guy crying because he's at the grave of someone he knew who has died, watching him cry was incredibly powerful," Greenberg said.
Students agreed that because the trip consisted exclusively of Tufts students, the sense of community and overall experience were enhanced.
"It's going to stick with me that much more because you have this special touch to the trip altogether," Gertner said. "You have these two communities now back at Tufts, all the people you were with for 10 days, 24/7, and then you have this other community in Israel," Gertner said.
Although Birthright was established for Jewish youth to explore and discover their heritage, some students also found that the trip provided insight into Israel's contemporary political issues.
"I think there's a level of reality that we don't really have about that region until we're there," Greenberg said. "I don't think Birthright really exposed us to all the conflict — I don't think that is the purpose of Birthright — but nonetheless it was eye−opening to listen to Israelis our age reflect on that conflict."
The trip also provided an opportunity for students to challenge their preconceived notions of Israel.
"One of the soldiers pointed out to me, he goes, ‘You can see at the left the nicer parts of it, which are Israeli, and you can see at the right, the Arab parts, which they don't put any money into, because they're probably going to have to get that land back eventually,'" Rohrberger said. "Then he flat out called it discrimination like three times. He was like, ‘How do you feel about discrimination,' and I was surprised that, you know, that was the word he chose. There were a lot of little moments like that."
According to Greenberg, the trip gave the student travelers a brief window into the rich tapestry of religion, heritage, geography, modern culture and history that defines Israel.
"We value this place so highly, and so many different religions in so many different cultures do, that it is breathtaking to actually be there and to understand … how many things actually happened there, and to actually go," he said.
