eir

Experiencing History

SHAHAR HERMELIN AND JEFF KAYE SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
PHOTOS BY DAVID JOSEPH SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

s Detroit's Teen Mission participants enter their
third week in Israel, they are discovering that
around every corner there are more surprises.
Besides touring the country and being ex-
posed to some of the complex problems with
which most Israelis deal on a daily basis, the
American teens are thrilled with the oppor-
tunity to meet Israeli youths.
Standing shoulder to shoulder at Yitzhak
Rabin's grave, Detroit and Israeli teens com-
pared Israel's recent trauma with the assas-
sinations of American Presidents John F. Kennedy
and Abraham Lincoln; Sen. Robert Kennedy; and Mar-
tin Luther King Jr.
One of the most dramatic evenings of the trip was
the first Saturday. After a beautifully peaceful Shab-
bat in Jerusalem, 90 Mission participants gathered on
the balcony in Rabbi Paul Freedman's home for Hav-
dalah.
Background to the sweet-smelling spices and the
bright flame of the Havdalah candle was the view of
Jerusalem at night. Barely half an hour later, the teens
found themselves in the Voodoo Disco with sounds of
Israeli rock. The contrast between the two experiences
is the essence of what these young people are learning.
The encounter between the Detroit participants and 100 young people from Central Galilee be-
gan at the Crusader fortress of Belvoir. The group, suddenly 50 percent larger, required coordi-
nation, patience and goodwill.
On July 4, the Americans taught their Israeli counterparts about their independence, while
the Israelis commemorated 20 years to the day since the Entebbe rescue. A few days later in Tel
Aviv, a tour guide pointed out that the Israeli rescue of Jewish hostages was proof of the inter-
dependence between Israel and the Jews of the world.
The Israeli hosts then showed their new friends a small piece of Israeli society and their own
lives — participants were taken into Israeli homes for the weekend.
The separation scenes on Sunday morning at the pickup points were repeated hugs and ex-
changes of addresses. And then south to Tel Aviv, the Museum of the Diaspora, Peace Seminar,
Rabin Square and lots of swimming at the beautiful Mediterranean beaches.
The participants are truly becoming one with Israel, its problems and its history. ❑

Left:
Keeping up with the Joneses, the Indiana
Joneses. Teen Missionaires work on
Guvrin, a Second Temple excavation.

Below right:
Sifting through a screen to find hints of
ancient civilization.

Below left:
Break time — The "archaeologists" take
five. But they seem to be "digging" their
time in Israel.

Detroit teens interact with
Israelis their age for several days
of touring and friendship.

15