Israel: a home or a vacation destination? |
In Parshat Shlach, before the scouts went to check out the Land, Moshe
gave them some questions to keep in mind (Bamidbar 13:17-19): ...Go up there into the Negev and on into the hill country, and see what
country it is. Are the people who dwell in it strong or weak, few or many? Is
the country in which they dwell good or bad? Are the towns they live in open or
fortified? Is the soil rich or poor? Are there trees in it or not? And then Moshe told them what souvenirs to bring back (verse 20): You shall strengthen yourselves and take from the fruit of the Land.
This was during the season of the first ripe grapes. In Bamidbar 13:23, we see which fruits they brought back: They reached Nachal Eshkol and there they cut down a branch with a
single cluster of grapes- it has to be borne on a carrying frame by two of
them- and some pomegranates and figs. They may have also brought dates as they said (verse 27): We arrived at the land to which you sent us and indeed it flows with
milk and honey and this is its fruit. Honey in the Torah usually refers to date honey. Out of the seven species of the Land of Israel, the only ones that they
did not mention or bring back were wheat, barley or olives. Rabbi Moshe Lichtman in his book, Ertez Yisrael in the Parashah, quotes
Rabbi Zev Leff: The scouts brought back the fruits that people usually eat for dessert,
not the ones used for the main part of the meal. In effect they were saying, “Eretz Yisrael is a nice place to visit- a beautiful vacation
spot…but it is not a practical, viable place to live.” In order to keep Covid out of
Israel, most non-residents have not been able to enter the country. This is the
first time since the establishment of the State of Israel that tourists
couldn’t just pop in for a quick vacation. Even those who have a “valid” reason
for entering such as visiting close relatives or attending a wedding, bar/bat
mitzvah or birth of a grandchild are faced with endless paperwork and there is
no guarantee that their visit will be approved. When this is all over, I wonder if
aliya will be on the rise or if things will go back to how they were before. |