Many countries and corners of the Earth entice tourists with their beauty and captivating stories. The endless wealth of the world cannot be fully known or seen even in a lifetime. But there are places that one must visit. Where spirituality intertwines with history, where comfort borders on the pristine nature, where not only the soul but also the body is healed, where a person, finding themselves, discovers a whole world. This is the Promised Land — Israel.
The kingdom of the ancient Jews lasted nearly a thousand years, but at the dawn of the new era, Jesus was born on this land, the messenger of God, whose mission was to help people walk the righteous path, the path of happiness and prosperity, goodness and justice. However, the Great King Herod, having heard that a boy was born who was destined by God to become the King of Judea, ordered the extermination of all male infants.
Jesus managed to escape death; he became a preacher and gained recognition among the common people. However, he was betrayed and slandered by those close to him. The messenger of God was condemned and brutally crucified by the Romans, who ruled the Promised Land at that time. Jesus was executed.
Having a divine nature, on the next day He ascended to heaven. Before His death, Jesus predicted the imminent destruction of the holy city of Jerusalem. Soon it happened: in 70 AD, as a result of a Jewish uprising, the city was completely destroyed, and the Jews were forever expelled from the Promised Land.
Despite the fact that Israel is quite small (its area is only 27.8 thousand square kilometers), it is rich in history, and real history at that, which can be seen and experienced. Its historical heritage is perhaps only comparable to that of the vast and equally ancient China. Every city, every village, and even every stone are witnesses to well-known historical events.
The main point I want to emphasize to the reader is the amazing fate of the Jews, who have gone through long trials of time to statehood and prosperity.
Before talking about modern Israel, I would like to offer a brief excursion into recent history. The year is 1917. World War I. British troops enter Palestine to fight the Turks. And, as has happened many times in history, Jerusalem surrendered to the English. Remembering that Jesus came to Jerusalem on foot, General Edmund Allenby humbly dismounted at the Jaffa Gate. In 1947, the UN voted to end the British mandate and to partition Palestine into Jewish and Arab states.
On May 14, 1948, David Ben-Gurion announced the realization of the long-awaited dream of generations of the Jewish people. He made a statement that Jews all over the world had been eagerly awaiting: The State of Israel was born. This was Israel's second birth after nearly two thousand years of oblivion. However, the very next day, troops from five Arab countries invaded. As a result, the eastern part of Jerusalem remained under Jordanian control for almost two more decades. Only in 1967, after the Six-Day War, did Israel manage to reclaim Jerusalem and part of the eastern territories. The holy city was liberated, and Defense Minister Moshe Dayan arrived at the Western Wall. For the first time in two thousand years, the ancient wall, a Jewish shrine, was again in the hands of the Jews. According to an ancient custom, General Dayan wrote a prayer on a piece of paper and placed it in the wall: "May there be peace with the Jewish people."
From this time, the revival of Israel began. Jews of various origins migrated to the Promised Land. Mostly, this was the cultural branch of Ashkenazim from Europe and America. Sephardim — Eastern Jews from North Africa and the Middle East — also came and now live here. In 1949, a Jewish commune from Yemen joined the influx. Later, this flow brought a wave of immigrants from the Soviet Union to the Promised Land.
Merged in the Promised Land, this diverse and multicultural people found a unifying beginning here, absorbing the energy and spirit of the revived ancient shrines and writings.
