Many people have been asking for my thoughts on Aliya. Successful Aliya depends on emuna, but to attain complete emuna, a person must make Aliya. This 11-minute vid is very befitting for Erev Shabbat Lech Lecha, when our forefather Abraham, who is also the father of emuna, got his marching orders from Hashem. Here's food for thought, not just about Aliya, but where life is headed:
Aliya and Emuna from lazerbrody on Vimeo.
Reader's Feedback:
YK sent me a beautiful email about the above post; see this:
HaRav Brody, your comment about "kosher tomatoes" in Eretz Yisrael reminded me of an incident many years ago. My mother came for a visit when I was living in Migdal HaEmek, a development town in the Galilee.
One time, she and I went to the outdoor shuk (open market) to buy produce. The tomatoes were exquisite, so Mom selected the best of the best in order to harvest their seeds and plant them in her yard when she returned to Ohio. Mom grew up on a farm and she raised us on a home farm. She was an expert in harvesting seeds, storing them, and planting them in just the right environment for their optimal development. She was so anxious to get the seeds back to the States and eat awesome Israeli tomatoes there!
What happened? Mom planted the seeds in the rich Ohio soil. But instead of big, lucious, juicy tomatoes...she got long, spindly vines with a few very small tomatoes. Such a disappointment! Everything seemed right - strong seeds planted in a rich soil. Optimum environment. Mom was baffled - in her 50 years of farming, this had never happened!
I think the tomatoes "knew" they were no longer in Eretz Yisrael. True, they did take root and produce tomatoes. But since they weren't in the optimal environment (Eretz Yisrael), they couldn't reach their peak development. We're like those tomatoes - we can only reach our peak in Eretz Yisrael.
HaRav, you also mentioned Rav Pinchas Winston as one of the rabbanim encouraging aliyah. He wrote a fantastic book about just how special (and imperative) Eretz Yisrael is to a Jew and to Redemption - Talking About Eretz Yisroel-The Profound and Essential Meaning of Making Aliyah. It's unbelievable how precious and critical it is for a Jew to live in the Land!
Thank you for this important video message. May all Jews desire the Land and come home!