"Paris is Always a Good Idea"
It took me a while to write this blog post, I dragged it.
For more than two years, I made the point of writing an
entry for every country I visited as a Jewish Agency professional. It was easy,
I would just start writing and the ideas would naturally come. It was mostly
about writing in the present tense anecdotes and stories from the field.
For France, my home country, where I was born and raised, it’s
been different and I confess that I procrastinated.
Maybe because it’s too personal, it’s not a random place,
everywhere I go I see myself and my past.
Maybe because I have this love and hate relationship with
France: I love the culture I was raised into, the literature, the art. I hate
the indifference of too many French towards anti-Semitism. I will never forgive
Vichy and the French police who deported Jews to concentrations camps.
I love how French Jews express their Judaism, the mix of
culture, the complexities of our French Jewish identity and the Parisian Kosher
restaurants. I hate that I am afraid to wear a kippah in the streets of Paris
and that I have to make a judgment call about the origins of my name when
being asked.
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| In Le Marais, the touristic Jewish quarter in the heart of Paris |
Gertrude Stein once wrote: “America is my country, Paris is my home town.” As I grow older and soon reach a time where I have lived more time in America than in France, I confess that I miss France and that my French identity is showing sometimes.
Leading the first Jewish Agency mission young leadership to
Paris was special. We heard different narratives, and like mine they are
conflicted.
Most importantly, we met with 12th graders in
Sarcelles, an inner city, where Jews live in projects side by side other
minorities. We listened to their aspirations for the future, where do they see
themselves? How do they feel living in Sarcelles? America? Israel? Staying? The
future is ahead of them.
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| In Sarcelles, amidst projects, a strong Jewish community |
My friend and colleague Ouriel Gottlieb joined us, he knows all the players in Sarcelles. Ouriel is now the head Jewish Agency Shaliach of France. In the school, he is known as the person who brings 12th graders on an Israel trip, the one they go to for gap year programs or for Aliyah.
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| Ouriel Gottlieb with a future Olah |
I sit down with Ouriel, he is the son of a Rabbi, an Ashkenazi Rabbi who married his mom, a Sephardic woman from North Africa. Like me he is the product of a “mix marriage.” One night, we may enjoy Kugel, the other couscous, we joke about our cultures.
Ouriel is a committed Zionist, he made Aliyah when he was
17, served in the IDF and was successful in high tech. He left his successful
life in Israel to serve the Jewish people in 2015. Right after the infamous Hypercacher
terrorist attack he came back to France to become a Jewish Agency shaliach.
“For those who stay here, it is important for the Jewish
Agency to help strengthen Jewish identity. Those making Aliyah- I want to help
them live to fulfill this dream.” Under the leadership of Ouriel, the Jewish
Agency delegation is going beyond its traditional role of Aliyah, engaging and
building identity among Jews who may be apathetic.
The Jewish Agency is deploying shlichim on campuses to build
a meaningful relationship with Israel or with youth movements. Very soon, thanks
to the generosity of the mission, two 18 year old shlichim (otherwise known as shinshinim) will serve for one
full year in France engaging the community and in particular youth.
As we walk through a school, we learn about the security
systems in place, generously funded by the Jewish Federations in North America
through the Jewish Agency. In many ways, it’s coming full circle for me: putting together the organizations I care so much about and making an impact.
I often hear big statements about the future of French
Jewry, mostly from American Jews or Israelis: “French Jews should leave” or
“it’s 1933 again.” Beyond being personal this mission brought more questions
than answers. We may not have all the answers but I feel confident that we have
the right people and programs in place to face the real challenges thanks to
what we have built collectively.
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| Meeting with 12th graders, learning about their aspirations and sharing our dreams |
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