אוירא דארץ ישראל Avira DEretz Yisroel

Anglo-Chareidim Living in Eretz Yisroel: NO Place Like Home!

Eretz Chemdah: An Inside View

Various Perspectives and Experiences of Anglo-Chareidim Living in Eretz Yisroel

Great and Simple Environment

I grew up in L.A., studied in Waterbury after high school, and then came to learn in the Mir in Eretz Yisroel. I returned to America and learned by Rav Asher Weiss in Monsey, NY. I met my wife that year and we settled there. She was finishing her college degree and I was happy learning in kollel. My wife had told me how she always imagined raising a family in Eretz Yisroel and it was something really important to her. In 2013, after our first son was born, we finally made the move.

I started out learning in kollel and was fortunate to have my parents and in-laws supporting us. However, after about two years of living here, I needed to start thinking about a job.

As it’s generally easier to find a job in America, most people in my neighborhood that reach this stage of life move back to the States, but we wanted to try to make it work here. With a bachelor’s degree in accounting from America, I found an amazing job in Tel Aviv that had friendly people and a warm environment. At this job, I really had the opportunity to learn a lot about the international tax arena. The starting salaries here are usually in-between half to a third of what people are getting paid in the U.S., but after sitting down with my wife and going through it, while debating whether that was a reason to go back to America, we found that half of the salary was very much worth it.

First of all, there is nothing we can compare to this environment in which we are able to raise our kids. I love watching my kids start their lives at a higher level. They literally feel Shabbos and the Yomim Tovim here. Already a month before Yom Tov, the stores change over to the seasonal items, and the whole country is getting ready for Yom Tov. Instead of billboards, they see pictures of gedolim. The streets are flowing with clean Jewish things instead of the things I wouldn’t wish my kids to be exposed to.

Their primary language is Hebrew, and they are able to learn with no language barrier. Whereas I struggled with limudei kodesh, they fly. Also, I was amazed at the curriculum. The kids are taught on a higher level. Even if they don’t fully grasp everything now, the seeds are planted for the future, though I was very surprised to actually see just how much my six-year-old does pick up and how he explains difficult parsha topics with a clear understanding.

Secondly, as the expenses and standards of living are astronomically higher in the U.S., even with a higher salary it would still be difficult to make ends meet there. Tuition, health insurance, and expected gifts and vacations add up to much more than anything else here. I love that my kids love life and the simplicity of it—without all the latest gadgets and without comparing with their friends about which one of them got a more expensive gift for Chanuka or birthdays. We don’t have iPads for all the kids like we know some families in America do (and no we’re not blaming or shaming anyone here). I just find it so nice that the mentality of life here isn’t to be hooked on these things. It is just to be responsible, help out, play outside, ride bikes, and be creative. It’s nice to see how many games the boys can create with a pile of sticks that they find behind the buildings.

So, we decided that we need to get adjusted to living a somewhat simpler life and we are determined to make it a happier one. It’s not just the kids that live more simply; we don’t want to be hypocrites! Though—yes—it was an adjustment!

We sometimes joke that very wealthy people are willing to spend tens of thousands of dollars to come here just for one holiday when we are able to do it for every holiday. We get to live in the center of the world where Hashem Himself is the One Who watches over us, which I think is another reason why I love living here.

We recently had a miracle where we were expecting a child. The doctors told us there was no hope and that an abortion was our best option. We went to Rav Chaim who told us that everything was going to be fine. We grabbed onto his words and davened and cried out to Hashem, and we really saw one miracle after another. B”H, we have a beautiful healthy boy. (The details and struggle about it are in the Mishpacha magazine, Shavuos edition.) There is a connection that I feel towards Hashem here—He is the One watching over Klal Yisroel here and He feels so close to us. I know that there are many gedolim in America, but there’s just something so special about being able to talk to Rav Chaim, go to the Kosel and pour my heart out, go to Kever Rochel, or walk the streets that I know our Avos walked on.

We try to go visit the United States every summer so our children can spend time with their cousins and so that we can reconnect with our siblings. We love going and enjoying a little bit of the American things that we reminisce about, even though the truth is that slowly but surely, increasingly, American products are showing up over here. But after a few weeks in America, we’re always so grateful that we get to leave that all behind us and come back to our real home—here in Eretz Yisroel.

Grounded to Yiddishkeit

As someone who works, I sometimes feel myself slipping into the working life. I love my job. I love the conferences, fancy work environment, and the expensive lunch or dinner meetings—the executive world. But instead of drowning in it, I get to walk outside after work and see Yerushalayim’s streets with Jews all over and my own beautiful apartment. I feel so much more connected and grounded to my Yiddishkeit and my life because of it. I recently joined a Friday kollel where we learn all the halachos one should know about in the working field, and again I find that it’s not two separate worlds as one of working and one of Torah. Here I find that it’s easier for me to stay connected to my growth in Yiddishkeit through my job, while I believe I would have a harder time staying as connected had we been living in America.

– Shaul Klein, Yerushalayim

This article is part of Matzav.com’s Eretz Chemdah series featuring Anglo-Chareidim living in, settling, and building up Eretz Yisroel. A joint project of Avira D’Eretz Yisroel, Kedushas Tzion and Naava Kodesh, coordinated by Yoel Berman – yoel@naavakodesh.org.

Reprinted from Matzav.com.

From Lakewood to Beit Shemesh: An INSIDE VIEW

Eretz Chemdah: An Inside View

Various Perspectives and Experiences of Anglo-Chareidim Living in Eretz Yisroel

From Lakewood to Beit Shemesh

We came to Eretz Yisroel in the summer of 2014 after living in Lakewood for almost seven years. Being “in-towners” originally from Monsey and Flatbush, moving to Eretz Yisroel wasn’t really the “in” thing to do, so why did we?

We always had a soft spot for Eretz Yisroel, but, like most people, we didn’t think it was realistic for us to live here long-term, so we settled in Lakewood, New Jersey like everyone else. After being inspired by a friend, I started to research the significance of living in Eretz Yisroel and how it has recently become exponentially more practical. At some point it dawned on me that Eretz Yisroel today is actually a most-amazing opportunity presented by Hashem, and I wanted to be a part of this project that was bringing us to Klal Yisroel’s ultimate destiny.

Like in the U.S., we have our very own “upstate”—except that it’s Tzfas and Meron. The actual mountains seem to always be singing. Looking for Miami? No need to fly. Within a car ride of just an hour or so you can be taking in the sun-washed shores of Netanya. Of course, the greatest of them all is being able to type “The Kotel” or “Kever Rachel” into Waze and it tells me “you are forty-five minutes away.”

Before we immigrated to Eretz Yisroel, we went to get a bracha from Rav Shmuel Kamenetsky, shlit”a. He clearly stressed the importance of making sure that my wife would be happy there. It also seemed very important to him that we had a plan for parnassah, which we were indeed confident about. At that time, I was working for a tech company that would let me take my job with me, so we didn’t have any excuse not to go. Working American hours in Eretz Yisroel meant that the mornings would be utilized for learning (what a better way to start a day), shopping and other errands, and this is something that many others are doing in our community in Eretz Yisroel.

Although my family would miss us, they respected the idea and were very supportive. My wife had two brothers already living in Eretz Yisroel, which made it much easier. WhatsApp and Skype can’t replace the real thing, so our parents now come visit about once a year, and we go once every few years for the summer.

We settled in Ramat Beit Shemesh, which has many nice American Yeshiva-style communities like where we came from. There are tens of shuls which range from yeshivish to balebatish to heimish. Some are into integrating with Israelis, while others work to create an entirely American environment. We have found American immigrants who have been successful coming with children of all ages, but they generally live in the more American neighborhoods that seem more appropriate for such a move. It is of course easier to integrate when the kids are younger.

Most people in my community are those who have stayed on for long-term after coming to Eretz Yisroel for yeshiva, and mostly originated in out-of-town communities; though I do know other people, besides myself, who have come here directly from in-town places like Lakewood and Monsey.

As our oldest child was turning six when we came here, chinuch was already at the forefront of our minds. People had warned us that things are different in Eretz Yisroel and there aren’t any schools that have the variety and balance that you’ll find in the U.S. When doing our research, a very different picture emerged, and when we arrived, we were glad to see that our fears about chinuch were unfounded. B”H, there are many schools that cater to Americans like us, some geared to kollel families, others with a working parent body, and then some more that are in between. In general, the schools with higher percentages of Americans seem to be more balebatish, and the ones more kollel-oriented seem to have a higher percentage of Israelis, though there are exceptions.

I think that we frum Yidden coming from America have what to contribute to society in Eretz Yisroel. For one, many of us bring a can-do attitude—we won’t just take situations as a given but will try to improve them. Another is the fact that we are proud and content to be hard-working and self-supporting ehrlicher Yidden. For us, after five or ten years of learning, this is just a new and different phase of our avodas Hashem—not a failure. Of course, there is much for us Americans to learn as well from the surrounding Israeli Chareidi society, including a much-less focus on materialism.

Living here has brought our lives to a different plane of existence, which has manifested in several different aspects. One thing that really stands out is the diversity. Even though in any specific neighborhood there might be just one kind of group, it takes only a three-minute drive to reach any public area—shopping, leisure, etc.—and all the walls fall apart and all types of Jews are interacting and getting along. It’s beautiful to see so many different colors and flavors of Yidden living side by side in harmony.

Our Very Own “Mountains”

Like in the U.S., we have our very own “upstate”—except that it’s Tzfas and Meron. The actual mountains seem to always be singing. Looking for Miami? No need to fly. Within a car ride of just an hour or so you can be taking in the sun-washed shores of Netanya. Of course, the greatest of them all is being able to type “The Kotel” or “Kever Rachel” into Waze and it tells me “you are forty-five minutes away.”

– Tzvi Moshe Arnstein, Ramat Beit Shemesh Gimmel

This article is part of the Eretz Chemdah series featuring Anglo-Chareidim living in, settling, and building up Eretz Yisroel. A joint project of Avira D’Eretz Yisroel, Kedushas Tzion and Naava Kodesh, coordinated by Yoel Berman – yoel@naavakodesh.org.

Reprinted from Matzav.com.

Naava Kodesh: Make Eretz Yisroel Your Home Too!

Giv’at HaMoreh, Afula

The Torah community of Giv’at HaMoreh was established six years ago, and from a core group of 10 families of avreichim, has grown to over 200 families that live in the Giv’ah, in homes that, for the most part, were bought by them.

The Kehilla has the following educational institutions: a well-established and renowned cheider (which preceded the Kehilla), a Beis Yakov elementary school for girls, preschools, several kollelim, a new yeshiva ketana, and a respectable yeshiva gedolah with about 200 bochurim. There are also several shuls, a low-cost sale of basic goods, a branch of the “Mishnat Yosef” weekly sale, several chain stores, and all community needs.

There are various job opportunities in the city, as well as public transportation to the Chareidi population centers with increased service on Erev Shabbos & Yom Tov. The Kehilla was established for the purpose of having more-affordable housing available for young couples and has successfully maintained affordability by having all homes purchased exclusively through the Kehilla’s housing committee to avoid competition and keep the demand to the level of supply.

Natzrat Illit / Har Yona Gimmel

Here we have a mix of out of town feel and style, with all the advantages of being a city.

In the heart of the older neighborhoods exists a small, but steadily growing, close-knit Chareidi community of about 20 young families of B’nei Torah. Although almost exclusively Israeli, most of the community understands English, and being with an “out the box” atmosphere, are very accepting of anyone looking to join. The community is based around a kollel, though those working are no less a part.

The women meet once a month for a get together, and being far from family, are all there for each other, helping with meals, babysitting, Shabbos and more as needed.

Come add the special touch that only chutzniks can. You’ll be more than welcome!

The kehillah is located 10 minutes away from more- established Chareidi communities, with a variety of chinuch options from Mamlachti Chareidi to Yiddish- speaking – with options in between!

Also located in Natzerat Illit, Har Yona Gimmel is one of the only neighborhoods in the northern periphery cities populated exclusively by Chareidim. Rent is very affordable. There are kollellim, education institutions, and work opportunities. It is home to families from a range of backgrounds, including Litvish, Sephardic, Belz and general Chassidish.

Tzefas

The Kehilla of B’nei Torah in Tzefas is a quality Kehilla numbering hundreds of families that have moved in over the past few years. There are several quality educational institutions serving about 600 students of all ages.

The city of Tzefas, in general, is of Jewish character, undergoing a rapid “Charedization” with a variety of Chareidi Kehillos numbering altogether about 3,000 families.

The city possesses all necessary infrastructure such as a Beis Horo’oh, banks, government services, medical clinics, etc. Transportation from Tzefas to the center of the country is readily available and comfortable with about 100 trips a day.

There are also a wide variety of work options available.

Rechasim

Located at the foot of the beautiful Carmel Mountain Range, Rechasim is a gorgeous makom Torah. It offers the advantages of small town living with a large city nearby (Haifa). Life is much quieter than in the city, children can walk alone on the streets (day or night), people know one another.

The city is approximately 90% Chareidi, the mayor and city council are Chareidi.

A warm, down-to-earth community which is a great place to raise young children, to make friends, to live a frum and calm life, with more and more young Anglo couples moving in.

T’veria Illit

While being a new community where everyone who moves in is a valuable member of the tzibur, T’veria Illit is also part of an ancient city, with a rich history and Kivrei Tzadikim.

Aside from the wonderful Torah and Ruchnius infusing life in T’veria, there is also the gashmius. The heimishe infrastructure is well developed and getting better all the time. There are bakeries, large grocery stores, and medical clinics catering to Chareidim.

The positive impact of being able to have a close and personal relationship with tzaddikim and gedolim, who are among the many people coming from all parts of the country to spend Shabbos in T’veria, cannot be overstated.

There is also the wonderful, pleasant feeling of the city. Quiet and relaxed, with views of the Kinneret, the Golan, and Tzefas. Drivers stop for pedestrians with a smile. Warm and inviting, T’veria is a city of achdus.

Ma’aleh Amos

Half an hour south of Yerushalayim is the entirely Chareidi yishuv of Ma’aleh Amos, which is currently home to 50 veteran families who have been recently joined by another about 30 who moved into newly constructed apartments. An additional 20 families are on their way.

There is a local Cheider, elementary Bais Yaakov, pre-schools, a library, shiurim, learning programs for boys, workshops for boys, girls, and women.

The American-born Mara D’Asra is accessible to all.

The very diverse, but exclusively Chareidi, population includes Israelis, Russians, Americans, American- Israelis, Ashkenazim, Sephardim and Chassidim, avreichim, part-time avreichim, baalei batim, FFBs, ba’alei teshuva, and geirim. There is more development planned. About 1200 units will be built, BE”H, in the long term, on a neighboring hill.

And we haven’t even mentioned Ofakim, Yerucham, Meitzad, Karmiel…

Affordable Housing

2nd-hand – 3-rooms (2 bedrooms) from about 350,000 NIS.
New construction – 3-rooms (2 bedrooms) from about 660,000 NIS.

Community (including English-speakers)

Heimish, warm, inviting. Connect with English-speakers who have already made, or are planning to make, these Kehillos their home.

Quality of Life

Serene and relaxed, scenic, clean.

Avira D’Eretz Yisroel

Advanced Limud HaTorah of quality and quantity, Mitzvos, Avodas
HaShem, Pashtus, Chinuch, Yishuv Eretz Yisroel…

Contact Us

Interested in a more thorough presentation of one of the relevant communities? Call Yoel Berman, our Avira project coordinator, at 053-3191618. You can also leave a message at 072-298-6213.

Interested in other aspects of long-term settling in Eretz Yisroel, such as home financing, Chinuch, Parnossah or family finances? Let us know as well.

Download (PDF, 307KB)

Made Aliyah? Yoel Berman Has 4 Requests (From Kedushas Tzion Convention Speech)

For the past few years, I have been working on various aspects of Yishuv Eretz Yisroel. Those projects are now under the name “Naava Kodesh”, you can see them online at naavakodesh.org.

There are four projects I would like to share with you –

First, the housing crisis. While it affects also Israeli Chareidim, they are here in Eretz Yisroel to stay, regardless. There are many chutznikim, though, who would be interested in settling here permanently and might consider staying only if they found suitable and more-affordable communities. While Kiryat Sefer, Beitar, Bet Shemesh and the like were an option, rising prices have made those irrelevant for many. I am currently working to promote the more-affordable communities as an option, including in what the Israelis call “Peripheria”, the peripheral communities of the north and south of Eretz Yisroel, where there are beautiful kehillos with several Anglo-Chareidim already integrated. (When I say “Anglo”, I mean coming from any English-speaking country, such as the U.S., Canada, England, etc.).

Second project is a database of Anglo-Chareidi volunteers who are willing to offer information and advice to others of similar mentality that are interested in settling here in Eretz Yisroel. If you have availability to be contacted by phone or email by pre-screened families from your hometown abroad, or from a similar profession, or by others, that have questions about your community, schools, shuls, or parnassah opportunities, please join this effort by filling out the form, available at naavakodesh.org. Even a few minutes of your time can be critical in giving an Anglo-Chareidi family the advice, support, and guidance they need to make Eretz Yisroel their permanent home.

Third – It is not a secret that living in, and building up, Eretz Yisroel – neither the mitzvah aspect nor the personal or technical aspects – are much a matter of discussion in Yeshiva and Chareidi circles, neither here in Eretz Yisroel nor abroad. This runs counter to the fact that Eretz Yisroel has always been of immense value to many of our great Torah personalities, including many who have had the zechus to come and settle here themselves.

In order to convey the message that Yishuv Eretz Yisroel really is of current value to the Chareidi and Yeshiva worlds – and is also something that can feasibly be done today – we are putting together a weekly sheet showcasing efforts of individual Chareidi immigrants from English-speaking countries to live in, settle and build up Eretz Yisroel. To this end, we ask that you agree to also include your efforts, whether large or small, in this publication.

The exposure to fellow Chareidim and Yeshivaleit, like you and me, who, living in Eretz Yisroel, have made a positive impact on themselves or also others, including in the fields of learning and teaching Torah, chinuch, parnossah, self-growth, kiruv and community-building, can have the effect of putting Eretz Yisroel back into our focus, as it has been throughout almost all of the history of the chareidim l’dvar HaShem.

By taking a few moments to share your story with us, we can together make a positive impact on the chutznik Chareidi and Yeshiva world.

Fourth project – As there are many who would be interested to help in these and other endeavors of Yishuv Eretz Yisroel, we thought of creating a forum for those interested in working together to advance all of these issues, and to exchange relevant ideas. If you hold Eretz Yisroel dear, please sign up to join the forum.

How to reach us:

053-319-1618

yberman613@gmail.com

072 298 6213 (voicemail)

AviraDEretzYisroel.org

Made Aliyah? Tell Your Story, so Others May Follow!

I am reaching out to you as a fellow immigrant and Anglo Chareidi resident of Eretz Yisroel. This is a solicitation, but not for money, rather for stories.

By taking a few moments to share with us, we can together make a positive impact on the chutznik Chareidi and Yeshiva world.

It is not a secret that living and building in Eretz Yisroel, neither the mitzvah aspect nor the personal or technical aspects, are much a matter of discussion in Yeshivish and Chareidi circles, both in Eretz Yisroel and abroad. This runs contrary to the fact that Eretz Yisroel has always been of immense value to many of our great Torah personalities, including some who have had the zechus to come settle here themselves.

In order to convey the message that Yishuv Eretz Yisroel really is of current value to the Chareidi and Yeshiva worlds – and is also something that can be feasibly done – we are putting together a weekly paper showcasing efforts of individual Chareidi immigrants from English-speaking countries to live, settle and build in Eretz Yisroel. To this end, we are requesting that you agree to have your efforts, whether large or small, be included in this publication.

The exposure to fellow Chareidim and Yeshivaleit, like you and me, who, living in Eretz Yisroel, have made a positive impact on themselves and/or others, including in the fields of learning and teaching Torah, chinuch, parnossah and community-building, can have the effect of putting Eretz Yisroel back into our focus, as it has been throughout almost all the history of the Chareidim L’Dvar HaShem.

Kindly take the time to fill out the following questionnaire – (If you’d rather just answer questions over the phone than write it all out, call me at 053-3191618 for an interview)

  1. Name, age and other background information (family, original and current places of residence, etc.):
  2. Aspect(s) of Yishuv Eretz Yisroel you associate yourself with (e.g. Limud HaTorah, Chinuch, Parnossah, Community-building, etc.). Please detail:
  3. What Eretz Yisroel means to you; what you feel about being part of the endeavor of living, settling and building in Eretz Yisroel:
  4. Some distinctively “Eretz Yisroel” experiences you would like to share (may include how & why you came):

After editing, we will, of course, contact you for approval before publishing. Please note that it might take a while, though. Please leave your contact information (phone#, email):

Please send to Y. Berman, Shaul HaMelech 27 apt. 2, Yerushalayim (or just drop it off in the mailbox), or to yberman613@gmail.com, or call me at 053-3191618 to schedule a pick-up.

Thank you very much & Tizku LeMitzvos,

Yoel Berman @ Avira D’Eretz Yisroel