A Pilgrimage to Israel Taught Me About the World By RACHEL CHARLOP-POWERS
There are two elements that made the trip so magical. There was, of course, the actual country of Israel. Nowhere in the world is there such a mixture of familiar antiquity and gleaming modernity. Within this small country, there are all the places we've only read of in the Bible, alongside brand new malls and housing. The country is flourishing on top of the heartiest soil that can be found in the three major modern religions. The second element, of primary importance, was the people. Our Israeli hosts were very generous and accommodating people, with whom I developed some very close relationships. But the thing which I will never forget is the dynamic of the American students. Ours was a racially and religiously diverse group. Of the 80 ambassadors, maybe a total of ten were Jewish, and every race under the sun seemed to be represented. The effort made towards harmonious co-existence was immense, and quite successful. Never before was I a part of a large group of people, (especially teenagers) who got along without cliques, gossip or divisions. Everyone was friends with everyone else, or at least mature enough to avoid what I would have thought was inevitable conflict. The main lesson of the trip, in my opinion, was acceptance and tolerance. When we went to a church, the Jews bowed their heads in prayerful respect. When we went to the Wailing Wall, the holiest site in all of Judaism, everyone, Jew and Christian alike, slipped a note into the cracks of the wall, as is customary, to send a direct line to God. We discussed politics and learned from each others' dissenting opinions, and we educated each other concerning our cultures and religions. On our second to last night in Israel, the American group came together, and each person had the chance to say something about the trip. What I said that night seemed to be a general observation. Before the trip, I wouldn't have thought that there could be worldwide tolerance and peace. I would have said, "What sort of wide-eyed optimist believes such a thing?" Now I know it can happen, because I've seen it with my own wide eyes. On a small scale true, but present all the same. If we all put a little bit of energy into it, we can be our brother's keeper without burdening ourselves. We can learn to see that conflicts based on race, religion, or culture are pointless, because if you boil all of us down to the simple ingredients, you will see that we all want the same things. We all aspire to a dream, though it may be different. The religious person of one religion is more similar to the observer of another faith than either one has ever admitted. Harmony, tolerance, peace, love, and unity are what I learned in Israel. Rachel Charlop-Powers, a Norwood resident, is a junior at the Bronx High School of Science.
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In
March, I was privileged to participate in a program which
changed the way I view my life. I went on a
three-and-a-half-week trip to Israel with the America
Israel Friendship League. Our group of 23 New York City
high school students was joined by delegates from 11
other cities, for a total of 80 American kids. Together
we went to Israel as youth ambassadors with a purpose of
cultural exchange. Our objective was to combat
stereotypes that Americans have about Israel and Israelis
have about America. We were prepared to live with two
Israeli families for two weeks and go to school with our
host sibling to communicate our lives to the students
there.
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