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Rabbi Chananya Weissman
Rabbi Chananya Weissman is the founder of EndTheMadness and the author of seven books, including "Ride Like a Wall" and "How Not to Get Married: Breaking Those Rules and You Have a luck". Many of his writings are available at www.chananyaweissman.com. He is also the director and producer of a documentary on the world shidduch, Single Jewish Male.
There is very little that we know for sure, but one thing we do know is that in the future – probably in the near future – the Jewish nation will return to Israel in its entirety. It is our destiny, a divine guarantee that has allowed our people to continue in the darkness of time and that unfolds quickly.
It is time for individuals and entire communities to plan their exit from exile. As a company that is being dissolved, the time has come to wind up the galus to close shop and enter a new era. This will happen anyway, so it's better to be proactive.
Which of the following is your exit plan ?
I only want to be buried in Israel
This may not sound like much, but it still means something. On the one hand, there are cemeteries all over the world, and choosing one in Israel demonstrates an attachment to the land in the most literal sense. There is often an ulterior motive involved here. Tradition teaches that in the Messianic era, when the dead will come to life, those who are buried outside of Israel will have to roll through underground tunnels. This will surely be an unpleasant experience, especially if Israel detonates them, mistakenly thinking that these tunnels were made by Hamas. To avoid this problem, many Jews choose to be buried in Israel. They only want to reside here as dead, but it's something.
I'm waiting for Mashiach to come
This is the exit plan for the vast majority of religious Jews living in the diaspora. It is similar to the plan of the dead, who are also waiting for Mashiach to come and live here. This last group would probably be more exuberant on arrival; the former, for all their prayers, would find, to a great extent, a terribly inconvenient upheaval of their utopian religious life in exile, free from the responsibility of doing more than simply surviving.
Elements of the religious population have come to believe that it is forbidden to live in Israel … until Mashiach comes. We hope that Machia & # 39; h do not share this belief, as this would create an enigma; if he decides to come today, should he dissociate himself from the medina, seek to shoot him, then rebuild him from scratch?
Some marginal elements of the religious population even come to believe that it is forbidden to live in Israel, or support it in any way, until Mashiach comes. We hope that Machia & # 39; h itself does not share this belief, as this would create an enigma; if he decides to come today, should he dissociate himself from the medina seek to slaughter him, then rebuild him from scratch? Let's hope that he will simply become the head of the present medina and that he will bring what currently exists in the Messianic period. Those who have adopted this exit plan must ask themselves if Mashiach is waiting for them to come, and not the other way around. Given the way in which the story unfolded, it seems rather likely that this is the case
I am waiting for retirement
This exit plan is superior to precedents, since it includes residence in Israel for part of his present life. This group chooses to spend his first years, his years of work, his youth abroad. It's dismal. But at least Israel is more than a graveyard for this group; it's a retired community. It's an even more Jewish version of Florida. There is what is needed for that which is above the ground, not just below. This includes the health care system, tours around the country, conferences and more.
Unfortunately, most of the time, this does not include building and creating for the next generation as part of the process. Most of these people's contributions will be appreciated by foreign countries. They work all their lives for other countries and come to Israel in the twilight of their days. It's something. But that's all.
Waiting for me to earn enough money to support my descendants
This exit plan will surely take a long time to come to fruition because it is difficult to decide exactly how many offspring we will have, and it is appropriate to be both optimistic and erring on the side of caution. In addition, once we consider the expected increases in the cost of living, tuition, tuition, inflation and putting enough money aside for rainy days we are talking about a considerable sum here. Considering how hard it will be to earn enough even in the Golden Diaspora, moving to Israel means completely embracing that little dream goodbye.
However, once the job becomes physically impossible, you can try the retirement option mentioned above. Overseas at this time is also physically impossible, you can opt for the burial option. At the very least, your life of toil will allow all your descendants to move to Israel for you, which they will surely do … unless you reach your financial goals, and that They continue your mission of earning enough money to last forever.
I wait until I have to go with only the shirt on my back
This is usually the B plan of those with the previous exit plan, well that they prefer not to express it in these terms. Israel is the safe haven if all else fails. There exists mainly for the Jews to have a place to run if and when they have to run. Hopefully, they'll never have to run for their lives, because they do not really want to live in Israel, and people should not be forced to live where they do not want to be.
Historically, these Jews are the ones who recognize that they are no longer particularly welcome in their favorite country, but wish to liquidate their property and leave as mensch
. Unfortunately, they tend to miscalculate the window to be able to leave as a mensch and at some point they will have the chance to leave.
There are millions of Jews in the world who are uncomfortable. Jew in their favorite foreign country, just as they like to live there. This discomfort may involve subtle expressions of hatred for the Jew or clear and present physical dangers to which they are accustomed. (The Jew's ability to get used to this is unmatched.) Even Jews who do not perceive open threats to their existence generally perceive a latent threat that can be activated at any time. We have always been everyone's favorite bad, nothing has changed, and we know if we like to admit it or not.
These millions of Jews are all waiting to book the last siege on the last flight of El-Al. from the country before all hell is unleashed, and does not wish to leave a minute earlier. We can only hope that they are not incorrect in their prediction of when all hell will break loose, and that this last flight will not be overbooked. Jews do not have a good history of synchronizing these things.
I'm waiting to get married
This is the exit plan of choice for young Jews. If they marry young, their exit plan will change to "wait until it saves money". Once they have children, the exit plan will change to "wait for us to save even more money". Once they have saved even more money, the exit plan will change to "wait until this is the perfect time to move with our children."
This will never happen, since the burden of acclimation will always be a sufficient excuse to delay it. The exit plan will therefore change to "wait for the children to become adults and independent". Once this happens, the exit plan will change to "wait for retirement or burial, because how can we leave our children?"
And so the cycle goes on, and exile drags on indefinitely.
Until it is safe to live in Israel
The definition of "safe" for those who have this exit plan is that it does not exist. There is absolutely no possibility of terrorist attack, missile, war or the neighboring countries of Israel even threatened Israel in a speech. It is simply unreasonable to ask a Jew to go to Israel in such circumstances. Of course, we would be horrified if all the Jews already in Israel decided to pack up and left for exactly the same reason (although we surely understand).
Essentially, anyone who already lives in Israel We should be courageous and stay to support this crazy Jewish experience that we want to be proud of from afar, but those who do not live there would be mad to join him and jeopardize their life. It is unfair to expect everyone to be a daredevil.
What is interesting about this calculation is that it is always reasonable to break an agreement when it comes to Israel, but that never seems to bother. Jews are moving from communities with lower crime levels to higher levels of crime all the time without blinking. Jews are moving to cities with large anti-Semitic populations, countries in Europe that are becoming more and more Muslim and anti-Israel, places where everything that grows from the ground has Jewish blood mixed in, and even dangerous places. Jewish. No problem. Jews will even go to Germany without thinking. After all, they said that they were sorry.
But Israel? No way. Too Dangerous
I do not know if, statistically speaking, Israel is the safest place in the world for a Jew. It would be a great service for the Jewish people if anybody can understand this and provide continuous updates, so that Jews can choose where to live accordingly. Everything is a numbers game, and giving you the best chance of succeeding tomorrow is all that matters in life.
I wait for Israel to be a more religious country
This is the exit plan of choice for religious Jews who do not want to admit that they are waiting for that Machia & # 39; h forces them to drag them to Israel. It always seems more pleasant to pretend that you would live here willingly, at least under certain circumstances, as far away as they are.
How religiously should Israel be to make this exit plan active? What exactly does it mean, and how does it have to be measured? The more nebulous and improbable the definition, the better. This is because the exit plan is never supposed to be activated.
The fact is that, despite all its flaws and flaws, Israel is currently the most religiously Jewish country in the world. So what, retorts the Jew in exile. The community in which I live is a Jewish religious utopia, and I just can not leave it to live in a country with so much secularism (even if I live there). I can only live in Israel if he is perfectly observant of the Torah, otherwise I have to live in a country even less observant of the Torah. It does not matter if I can find a community in Israel that is even more observant of the Torah than the one I am currently living in (absolute certainty). I must live in exile until Israel is fully observant of the Torah.
Of course, this conundrum would be even greater if all Jewish observers of the Torah felt so. This would mean that all Jewish observers of the Torah must stand apart from Israel until all lay Jews – the only ones who populate the earth – become observers of the Torah entirely. alone. Once this happens, the most experienced Torah Jews will be invited to come to power.
Only a brilliant Jewish spirit can come to this exit plan, but we all know that Jews are intelligent
I wait for my community to die
C & # 39; is the exit plan of most rabbis, as well as other community leaders. From time to time, the chief rabbi of a country of Europe or a prominent rabbi in America urges Jews to consider settling in Israel. Presumably, after this brave leader has managed to convince all his flock to move and his vital services are no longer needed, he will turn off the lights, close the door and follow his flock. His sacrifice in volunteering to be the last absolute Jew to leave his community is most admirable. How could he leave sooner? He does a good job and the community needs him.
Of course, everyone who hears the rabbi's message will understand that this does not apply to them for the same reason. They are also important members of the community, their contributions are vital and everything would collapse without them. So, the only people who should listen to the call to go to Israel are those who do not contribute anything to the community and whose presence will not fail anyone.
Perhaps, just maybe, rabbis care less about the future of their community than their own future. After all, in exile, they serve as great spiritual leaders who keep their community alive, perpetuating the dream of one day triumphantly returning to Israel. But the day that this triumphant return occurs is precisely when these services become obsolete, and they may not find a comparable flock to lead in Israel. These rabbis who are considered indispensable community leaders in exile might be just another type in Israel.
It is better to stay in exile as long as possible, which, hopefully, will be forever. After all, leaders are expected to follow
I wait for Israel to solve its problems (you name it)
These problems may include government, bureaucracy , the cost of living, the culture, its resemblance or lack of what a Jewish state should look like, and so much more. This exit plan states that you would like to live in Israel, and you settle there the minute Israel changes to welcome you. Kol HaKavod!
The problem is that Mashiach will come before that happens. Normally, it's a figure of speech that means it will not happen anytime soon, but in this case, it's literally true. Machia & # 39; h will come before Israel resolves all its problems, not to mention all your earthly and spiritual desires.
It boils down to the simple question:
How much do you enjoy living in Israel regardless of your anticipated quality? of life – but you define that? Ideally, the answer should be "more than anything in the world if only I can get by", and historically this has been the case for our larger models. If we are not at their level and can not make the most extreme sacrifices that they were willing to make, we should at least recognize that it is ideal, and we should be ready to make at least some significant sacrifices.
go on to suggest that this is part of the reason why acclimatization to Israel can be very difficult, at least in the beginning. If Israel were the easiest, safest and most prosperous place in the world, it would mean nothing for a Jew to get up and move here. Indeed, today Israel is a much better place to live at a purely physical level than many other countries, and for this reason many kind people wish to convert and move here strictly to improve their quality of life.
live here one way or the other. If the only way that can happen is that life in exile becomes infernal to the point of despair, so that the calculation of the quality of life becomes obvious, it can surely be arranged, but it would be a tragic shame for The truth is that we do not choose where to live strictly based on quality of life considerations. It is usually due more to inertia than anything else. Even moving to another house in the same city is a chore, an expense and full of uncertainty. Usually, we do not move unless we have to (we are expelled, from a family crisis, for medical reasons) or we are strongly encouraged to do so (an excellent job opportunity) , the wedding). Unless there is a negative reason that requires us to relocate or a positive reason to move us, most people will simply stay put.
It really has nothing to do with the government; you probably do not like your local government more than you like the Israeli government, but you will not move because of it. You also will not move anywhere else where you admire the government for it, and you will not either refuse your dream job offer in a different country because you do not like the government. over there. Unless you are dealing with a tyrannical government that threatens your security – and we are not – it's just not a factor. So, this is really only an excuse.
The fact that Israel is not yet a country without flaws and shortcomings is actually just the way it is supposed to be right now. This means that you have a role to play to make it more similar to what it is supposed to be. For example, if you want Israel to be more religious, coming here as a religious person will make Israel more religious. If you want Israel to become safer, more prosperous and more prosperous in the most important areas for you, choosing to live here and build your family here is the best way to achieve this
Si you want Israel to be more religious, coming here as a religious person will make Israel more religious. If you want Israel to become safer, more prosperous and more prosperous in the most important areas for you, choosing to live here and build your family here is the best way to get there.
Of course, on the way, you could be frustrated many times and even suffer from the "system". The same thing can happen if you stay where you are. Given that Israel is not a tyrannical country (although injustice certainly rages), there is plenty of room for good people who dream of a better future to help in the future. create it.
Even if you are not an influential person makes the country stronger. Every time you buy something, you help another Jew make a living in Israel. Your presence here makes the presence of others a little safer, and strengthens the next Jew in exile that he can get there too.
When Mashiach finally comes, you will be able to say with pride that you were here first and helped pave the way. You came to Israel before it was perfect and made it a little better. You have not moved into a finished product that other people have created; you helped create it. Those who will come only after the arrival of Machia will have the shame of being spectators instead of actively participating in the construction of our land, having chosen to live elsewhere until the end of the day. and that elsewhere is no longer an option.
Absolutely the cheapest / safest / easiest / most convenient way for you to live today. It may not be a "better deal" than what you are right now. I understand that it matters. I'm also willing to bet that when you add it all up, it's a much better deal than you think. The chances are that wherever you are, you have trouble getting by, the bank owns your house and your car, the cost of living as a Jew is overwhelming, and a few rainy days drowning you. Still, you insist on the fact that it's great there, and in Israel, you'd starve in the street.
Wake up.
Exile ends, whether you know it or not. Your days there are numbered, and it's not a huge number. It is time to go on your terms, so that whole communities plan together the best way to liquidate the business and relocate to your only real home, and that the rulers really bring their flock back to Israel, even though Is their last act of leadership
Israel is still a country small enough that even a few thousand newcomers can make a serious demographic and political change. It's time to come in a group and make a difference. If you sacrifice luxuries and comforts along the way, it will mean a lot more.
It is not too late to come as a mensch and be part of the ultimate chapter of Jewish history. Soon, it will be. Stop making excuses, internalize that even a difficult life in Israel is better than an easy life in exile (which you do not have anyway), and make a real exit plan.
The land, your people and Mashiach are all
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Rabbi Chananya Weissman is the founder of EndTheMadness and author of seven books, including "Ride Like a Wall" and " How not to get married: Break these rules and you have a chance. Many of his writings are available at www.chananyaweissman.com. He is also the director and producer of a documentary on the shidduch world, Single Jewish Male, available on https://vimeo.com/ondemand/singlejewishmale, and The Shidduch Chronicles, available on YouTube. He can be contacted at [email protected].
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