Bar Mitzvah at the Wall

I got to attend a Bar Mitzvah today... at the Western Wall. I've visited the Western Wall a number of times but today was the first time I went there not as a tourist. I went there today to watch a 13 year-old boy read from the Torah.

This is a long-standing Jewish tradition, the Bar Mitzvah. At 13 a boy becomes a man and he does this by reading from the Torah in front of family and friends. At 13 he becomes responsible for his relationship with God and for his religious life.

This is the first Bar Mitzvah that I've attended. At least two other boys were having their Bar Mitzvah during the same time, reading from the Torah on the men's side of the Western Wall while the women stood on chairs peeking over the fence to watch.

I'm not one for pageantry and tradition for tradition's sake (and a lot of things seem like tradition for tradition's sake) but I'll admit to being moved by the ceremony. It isn't just a ceremony though. Hours and hours of practice goes into a Bar Mitzvah. The young boy is given more responsibility leading up to it. He must study. He must practice singing a portion of the Torah. He must have maturity and boldness to sing and continue singing when his voice cracks. It isn't the ceremony itself, it is all the hours of preparation, it is the focus and understanding that this 13 year-old boy demonstrates. I was surprised to realize that I truly felt like I watched a boy step across an invisible line and become a man.

And Now...

I just finished an intensive 3-week-long crash-course in written Arabic. The course was amazing. The teacher covered more information in 3 weeks than I ever could have hoped for. I can now read and write in Arabic, I can speak in the past tense, a little in the present and future, but my vocabulary is limited to about 200 words.

On top of the course itself the program planned multiple outings for us so that we could get a feel for some of the Palestinian culture. We had an evening of Dabke dancing (traditional Palestinian dancing) and another evening of Oud music.

We were also taken on a day trip to Akko, a city a bit north of Haifa. We ate delicious hummus, visited a beautiful and old mosque, toured some Crusader ruins, and generally wondered around the ancient city.

So, what now? My master's courses don't start until the middle of October. What better way to work on Arabic than to go and live in an Arabic town - Abu Ghosh. I am volunteering at a guest house in exchange for room and board. I'm surrounded by Arabic speakers!!!

I picked up a book that teaches Arabic to keep me focused and motivated. It's a double challenge. It teaches Arabic from Hebrew.

So, here's to getting better at both Arabic and Hebrew in the coming months!

To Offend or to Take Offense

This is something that I've been thinking about for years but especially recently. It seems to me that in many diverse circumstances we are given a choice: to risk offending someone or to risk taking an offense. I use the phrase 'take an offense' in a very broad way. An offense is any annoyance or resentment due to another person's action.

In Tanzania I sometimes would be offended (mildly annoyed) when I was called 'Mzungu' by every other stranger.
This past year I often found myself offended (deeply annoyed and resentful) by US politics.

In the first circumstance: do I tell every person who calls me 'Mzungu' to stop using that word for me, possibly causing offense to them because I've just embarrassed them by reprimanding them? Or, do I decide to allow people to call me 'Mzungu' and take the risk of being offended myself? In this circumstance, I generally chose the latter.

Regarding the second circumstance: do I speak out against what offended me in US politics, risking offending people on both sides of the line? Or, do I just sit back and feel disturbed by the whole thing but never voice my opinion lest I offend someone? Honestly, I did both of these, it depended on the environment.

Most of the time I think it is better to risk taking offense rather than risk offending another. Other times, it seems necessary to offend in order to bring truth and light to a situation. I feel faced with this choice on a  very daily basis right now. I am living in a more secular, worldly, and PC environment than I ever have before. It is so easy to offend and it is so easy to be offended.

Being led by God and through his wisdom is the only way to really know when to offend and when to take offense.

***When I use the phrase 'take offense' I hope you know that I intend that offense to be followed up with forgiving the offending party.

All About Languages

I've completed my first week of Arabic studies and I now know the alphabet. That might not sound like much for a whole week's worth of work (6-8 hours of work a day), but it is. The Arabic alphabet is complex! I've thoroughly enjoyed learning it and my brain is still recovering from the amount of stretching that it has been through thus far.

It hasn't been all Arabic though. I've also been working on improving my Hebrew. There is a group in Tel Aviv that gets together on a weekly basis providing opportunities for language learners to speak with native speakers. I signed up as an "ambassador" for English. I spent the first half of the night improving my Hebrew with native speakers. Then I spent the second half of the night speaking English to help others. What fun!!!

Polyglot-hood here I come!

Welcome to Tel Aviv, Let's Go To Haifa

I moved to Tel Aviv on Wednesday last week. That was followed by immediately being swept off to visit the city of Haifa a bit north up the Mediterranean.

It was my first time in Haifa and first time seeing the famous Ba'hai gardens.

I got to meet several of the people from my Arabic course. We come from all over; Switzerland, America, Australia, Colombia, The Netherlands, and Norway. It's quite a diverse group!

Whilst touring near Haifa we visited a Druze village and had a delicious Druze meal.

It was a lovely welcome to Tel Aviv...you know, in Haifa.