This is not the future that we had imagined.
It’s no secret that Israel today faces severe adversity, on top of the existing difficulties of social and political unrest.
Painful questions are being asked in the aftermath of the October 7th attack. Where was the famous “Israeli ingenuity” on that day? What have we done so extremely wrong, to have failed the promise of “Never Again”? Was it complacency, or even smugness? Is that what has led to the breach in our borders, and to the ensuing slaughter, torture and abduction of so many?
Having reached this painful juncture, with all humility and introspection, we now ask ourselves — how do we rise from these ashes? How can we stand up to the challenge of these unprecedented times?
Here, we try to address these issues internally as an organization, always having you in mind, our dedicated partners.
In this regard we see, on both sides of the ocean, a fine young generation, playing a major role in this crisis. I believe that to live up to our calling at this historic juncture, we must offer responses that are impactful for our young generation both here and in America.
Allow me to me list at least three resources of hope, inspiration, and healing:
The first can be labeled "These flowers come from our garden."
Since this ordeal began, again and again we have seen the graduates of Yemin Orde and our Village Way programs showing up as a committed young generation, capable of overcoming intense challenge to the point of self-sacrifice.
Needless to say, we have all played a role in their transformation from marginalized youths to individuals possessing dignity, determination and leadership traits.
It’s a generation that says “No” to fanaticism and corruption — the rotten roots of our People’s destruction twice before. It’s a generation that says “No” to the death culture of the terrorists that surround us. A generation which, in many ways, serves as a shield to the highest values of Western civilization.
The second source: Am Adam - A Nation of Humanity.
To actually revive the concept of “Am Adam” — Nation of Humanity — coined by the unforgettable thinker and Zionist pioneer A.D. Gordon.
Am Adam is an inspirational platform which brings together young people from all sectors of Israeli society. Through mutual encounters centered around study, volunteering and informal activities, these young men and women construct a strong and healthy self-identity.
Bottom line: moral, self-secure individuals are the building blocks for a healthy civil society. And this sense of self-assuredness comes from being at peace with the diverse components of one’s personal identity.
A healthy integration of one’s faith, ethnic origins, culture, social and work contacts, and one’s role within society at large, is the key. A generation that is self-secure will readily understand that value of respectful dialog between the divergent factions in our civil society: “As within — so without”.
It is a generation that can easily grasp the difference between real democracy and a “winner takes it all” political interpretation of what democracy is all about.
The third source of inspiration and hope.
Today’s youth worldwide, “the Smartphone Generation”, grow up uninterruptedly bombarded by external stimuli.
Another groundbreaking lighthouse is about expanding the “Village” concept, which originates in an authentic Israeli educational heritage, to address the global quest for a philosophy and a methodology relevant and impactful in this era.
Only this week, the Village Way hosted over 100 educational leaders from the Ministry of Education at Yemin Orde, definitely reflecting the State’s acknowledgment of our influence –the impact that one Village has had over our educational system.
Our motto at this historic juncture is therefore "lighthouses for Israel."
For what we stand for and what we live for are the revival of educational lighthouses throughout the country, based on Jewish and universal values — those values that have birthed the ethos of Zionism, constructive of an ideal humanity, a society for whom “Light unto the Nations” is not a catch phrase but a mission statement.
These sources of healing and hope must emanate from dozens of lighthouses spread across the country, the educational communities that comprise the Village Way Educational Movement.
That is what bonds together the Village Way youth villages and schools that serve youth at risk, and I believe their light can shine far, reach and inspire the young generation in America and beyond.