Almost a quarter of the residents of the five-million-strong state of Israel came from our country. Not all of them have managed to find their place under the bright Middle Eastern sun. Nevertheless, these people have clung to the land of their ancestors – Eretz Israel – so tightly that neither terrorists blowing up bombs in cozy Jerusalem cafes nor the rosy promises of Russian officials promoting the program for the return of compatriots can drive them away.
However, many things in Israel are unfamiliar to 'Russian' Jews. For example, many cannot come to terms with strict religious laws. As is known, the official religion, Judaism, is not separated from the state here, which leaves a strong imprint on the life of all Israeli society. But many 'Russian' Jews were baptized into the Orthodox faith before moving to Israel. The very relocation to the Holy Land became a kind of miracle for some of them. The fact is that the Israeli Law of Return contains a clause: if a Jew voluntarily adopted any faith other than Judaism, he 'has no right to repatriate to the land of Israel.' It is clear that this creates huge inconveniences for many repatriates who previously became Orthodox.
It is easier for baptized relatives – the law says nothing about the religion of wives, husbands, and children of those who receive the coveted Israeli passport. That is, they can be brought in by the wagonload. For many Orthodox Jews, this became a loophole to reach their historical homeland. But the problems do not end there. The mission of the Russian Orthodox Church, which has several churches in Jerusalem and other cities, does not have the right to marry and baptize Israeli citizens. Yet the parishioners of these churches are predominantly Jewish repatriates from CIS countries. So if a child is born in such a family or a wedding is planned, it is extremely difficult to get baptized or married.
Often Christians – immigrants from the CIS – face threats and attacks from Jewish fanatics. Recently, a story became public about an emigrant from Russia, a music teacher named Vera (the police preferred not to give her surname). She lives with her family in the city of Bat Yam. Someone from the neighbors found out that she attends meetings of 'Messianic Jews' – a missionary Christian organization. Soon, upon leaving the entrance, Vera discovered leaflets scattered everywhere with her photo and an inscription in Hebrew and Russian: 'She teaches children missionary music, beware of her!' The woman and her husband were repeatedly threatened by phone, demanding they stop attending Christian gatherings. Similar attacks for participation in missionary work recently befell a family of Russian origin in the town of Kiryat Sefer.
And yet, even those of our fellow citizens who struggle to adapt to the exotic Israeli realities are not packing their bags. Moreover, Jews keep coming from the republics of the former Soviet Union to Israel, not the other way around. Although citizens of the promised land face serious problems related to the high cost of living and direct threats to life: Palestinian suicide bombers explode, Hezbollah rockets rain down from the sky, and Iran, striving for an atomic bomb, threatens to 'wipe Israel off the map.' But the fact remains – Jews continue to come to Israel. Only a handful return.
Only by arriving in Israel do you begin to understand why this is so. It is not just about the higher standard of living compared to the CIS average, the warm climate, polite shop assistants, the widespread Russian language, and the pleasantly striking respectful attitude of people toward each other. There is some magnetism in the Holy Land, especially in Jerusalem, that draws not only Jews. To find the answer to the question of its origin, you need to climb the Mount of Olives, from which a beautiful panorama of Jerusalem opens up, a holy city for representatives of three world religions: Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. To the left are stone ruins from the time of the First and Second Temples. A little to the right, two gray domes of the Church of the Resurrection, from the Crusader era, are visible. The flat roofs of synagogues neighbor the tents of churches and slender, cypress-like minarets. Among the mass of residential quarters, framed by the trees of the 'sacred garden' of 'Haram al-Sharif' on the Temple Mount, the huge golden sphere of the 'Dome of the Rock' rises. For a religious person, Jerusalem is the homeland of all people. It's just that Jews, as they themselves say, feel this more acutely. And therefore, they will never stop striving to come here.
Sergei Putilov.
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