Love is in the air. But no ice or buckets.
Pikesville’s Beth El Congregation recently launched a “Why I love Israel” video campaign based loosely on the famed ALS Ice Bucket Challenge that first went viral on social media in the summer of 2014. The campaign calls on Jews near and far to express their personal connections to the Jewish state and why they love and care about Israel.
Beth El’s Rabbi Dana Saroken kicked off the challenge last Tuesday, Apr. 29, with a YouTube video in which she told viewers that she loves Israel because “it’s the place where I fell in love with my Judaism, the place I return to whenever I need a little bit of a soul boost, because I love the passion of Jerusalem, I love the tranquility of the Kinneret [Sea of Galilee] and I love the streets of [the Jerusalem neighborhood of] Emek Refa’im, the place where I feel most at home.”
She then “tagged” Amanda Beitman, Beth El’s development director, Rabbi Chai Posner of Pikesville’s Beth Tfiloh Congregation and Rabbi Erez Sherman of Sinai Temple in Beverly Hills, California, challenging them to make their own “Why I Love Israel” videos.
Rabbi Saroken said the idea for the campaign came at this particular time because “our hearts have been focused on Israel since Oct. 7th, but especially this week because of Yom Hazikaron [the Israeli memorial day on Apr. 29] and Yom Ha’atzmaut, Israel’s independence day celebration [which began on Apr. 30].”
She also noted that many people in the community are concerned about the wildfires currently spreading through the Jerusalem Hills area. “The Jewish people are doing a lot of really hard things right now,” she said.
In addition, Rabbi Saroken said the challenge was conceived in anticipation of the national membership gathering of the Jewish Voice for Peace anti-Zionist organization to be held in Baltimore from May 1-4.
“We’re also thinking about next week and knowing there’s an outside organization that’s coming to Baltimore for a few days to run a conference,” she said. “We were concerned about the level of disruption and the impact of that organization. Rather than amplifying their voices or putting a spotlight on [that group], we decided to respond to all of these current events by proudly sharing our love, devotion and commitment to Israel with the world.”
While the challenge is brand new, Rabbi Saroken said people have already started sharing posts about being tagged or said they look forward to being selected.
Others have taken selfies with Israeli flags as part of the challenge. “The campaign is already gaining momentum,” said Jeremy Silbert, Beth El’s director of marketing and communications.
The challenge, said Rabbi Saroken, offers supporters and admirers of Israel “the opportunity to think about the homeland that we love, to tap into happy memories, to share with our networks why Israel is so beloved and cherished among the Jewish people, and then to enable others to do the same.”
For information about the “Why I Love Israel” challenge, email jeremy@bethelbalto.com.
To view the videos, visit facebook.com/bethelbalto.
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