So I did not end up in the Old City when I thought I would. The next two days did go over better then I thought they would though.
After some minor nesting issues (i.e. internet, cleanliness, etc) were attended to, I headed over to the University to quickly check up on something only to get roped into another orientation for my specific class. At least this time, I walked the short way. While waiting for the orientation, I was mistaken for a Sephardic (Jew of Spanish or Middle Eastern descent) Orthodox (strictly observant of Jewish law and custom) Jew by a future NYU student who was going to be studying Arabic in my program. He saw my tan (which gets darker every day), my yarmulke (which is apparently the material and color that the Orthodox here where), and my clothes (I was wearing long pants and a button down white collared shirt in case we did go into the Old City), and was then pleasantly surprised to find out a Jew from New York. We talked and I told him of how I came to be what and where I am, and he was impressed. He did say that I looked very misleading and that it might not go over well here. Interesting advice coming from a native Israeli. He did offer to teach me the Jewish practices I didn't know, making him the first non-Orthodox person to do so.
After orientation, I walked around Hebrew University and the Rothberg School taking pictures and what not. They can be found in the link at the bottom of the post. I went with a couple of other students from the orientation to grab food. We saw the glorious victory of the USA in the World Cup over 52 sheckle hamburger dinners. Walking back, we met up with some more Hebrew University students and started talking about Kosher Laws and Shabbat and it led to an interesting conversation with one funny joke:
Orthodox Jew: "Chassids wear clothes from 18th century German ghettos. It's out of respect for their father's traditions!"
Conservative Jew: "Wow. I never thought of Chassidim as being so Ghetto."
Me (in my head): Ba-dum-chick!
There were four of us: me (the semi-Reform Jew by their standards), a egalitarian conservative Jew (he keeps kosher and shabbas, but allows women to do the same duties as men), and two Orthodox Jews. I explained my beliefs, and why I believe them and biggest of all: why I wear my kippah. They began to berate me in a way. They said it wasn't kosher for me to wear my kippah. They worried that I would lead other Jews astray into un-Kosher practices. They took a very condescending tone and explained that Orthodoxy draws from a long tradition that is passed down father to son, mother to daughter, generation to generation, and provides multiple answers for many big questions that you need to follow to stay in the tradition. They continued that I needed that tradition to even understand the things I was doing, and that I was not currently understanding them. One of the Orthodox Jews explained it quite nicely and patiently, but the content stayed the same. The other was much more aggressive with a take-it-or-leave-it style. The Conservative guy just stayed out of it.
The conversation really struck a nerve that actually kept me up all night. I tossed and turned in my tiny, low to the ground bed, wrestling with the labels they placed on me, how Judaism functions, and is this what I really want/need/should think that this is all it is.
-What am I in the grand spectrum of Judaism?
-Is Orthodoxy right to dismiss Reform Judaism?
-Why doesn't Reform Judaism exist here (as it seems you are either practicing Orthodox or non-practicing Orthodox) when the Reform Movement was one of the earliest supporters of a Jewish state?
-Will I ever fit in to Judaism, despite lacking the family, tradition, and up-bringing? If I do, do I want my kids to think like this?
It's odd. I really feel like wearing a yarmulke here alienates me from everyone (both Jewish and Gentile), less then it did back in New York. I don't fit into categories from either side, so I get dirty looks and condescending speeches here. In New York, Jews sought me out as a friend, regardless of faction and flavor. Gentiles recognized me with the yarmulke as a religious person, but because I wasn't in the Orthodox or Hasidic garb, as approachable.
So after another sleepless night (and another adventure with Dexamol PM, Israeli Tylenol PM with an extra-heart-slowing kick), I woke up and went to my first Elementary Biblical Hebrew course. And guess what....
I enjoyed it. All six hours of it! I liked the people, the professor, and the subject! I talked to an older gentleman in the class, who is studying to be a Reform Rabbi, and was facing a similar Kippah Konundrom (ba-dum chick!). He told me he wears it where it is safe and acceptable and explained to me the difference between righteousness and religious, as his justification. The religious man prays loudly and wears his god on his sleeve for everyone to know. The righteous man prays quietly and wears his god on his head, whether it be in his thoughts or literally on his head. This is my elaboration of his explanation; his point was that God demands righteousness most of all. There is nothing wrong with being religious, but there are those who are meant to be and those who aren't not. All people are meant to be righteous though.
He is gonna be a great Rabbi. He helped a lot and I plan on telling him so next time I see him.
After that, a bunch of us grabbed a cab and went into Jerusalem. We went through the poor section of East Jerusalem to the Mount of Olives. We then walked down, past all the tombs of ancient Hebrews waiting to be resurrected by the Messiah, to the Sanctuary Dominus Flevit, and then further down to the Garden of Gethsemane. We then stopped briefly in the Church of All Nations and then walked up into the Old City through the Lion's Gate.
I have pictures posted below of all this, but they do not do it justice. I know I have been complaining a lot, but this by itself has made the trip worth it. I am still homesick, but that does not compare to the awe I felt at these sites. This is where Jesus walked, where he wept, where he fought the devil. This is where David founded a city, where wars were fought ancient and modern, where the holiest of people walk every day.
Everything is impossibly big. You can barely take it in. I plan on going back without a camera just to see each and every sight. It is truly amazing.
We then walked through the Muslim quarter through all the shops and bazaars, out the Damascus Gate, around the walls of the Old city to the Jaffa Gate, and then into the Christian quarter for more interesting sites. We hopped a taxi back, grabbed some falafel, and headed to our dorms.
I cannot stress enough how amazing this all was. I am scared and excited for what this weekend, my first Sabbath/Shabbas in the Holy Land holds for me.
Stay righteous!
Don't forget to check out my pictures here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/americanjewinjerusalem/
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