Today we visited the village of Beit Lechem HaGalilit, or Bethlehem of Galilee, a moshav in northern Israel 10 minutes from our home.
The name Bethlehem, or Beit Lechem, is Hebrew for ‘House of Bread.’ (Another town of the same name is located in Judea.)
The area we visited is mentioned in the Tanach as being in the lower-Galilee territory of the Zevulun, one of the 12 tribes of Israel (Yehoshua 19:15).
In this photo, my son and I are enjoying some donkeys on an olive farm in Beit Lechem. I had no idea how cool donkeys are.
They are mentioned in the Torah. And according to our sages, there is something special about the donkey and its significance to the Messianic Era, along with the recent Aliyah phenomenon—Jewish people returning to our homeland.
After so many years of wandering, explusion and persecution, we once again get to return home.
My family and I left Miami Beach and made Aliyah four months ago. It feels like the realization of a generations-long dream.
Moshiach’s (Messiah’s) donkey, as it’s known, has a long and illustrious history, appearing throughout history, including with Avraham and Moshe.
The word chamor (חמור), “donkey,” shares the same root letters as chomer (חומר), “material substance.”
Our sages say that Mashiach’s arrival depends on refining the sparks of G‑dliness hidden in the world’s materialism.
As a result of the light generated by refining the world’s physicality, the soul within a body reaches heights that it could not attain on its own.
That’s what we are here for. Tto elevate the mundane. To turn darkness into light. To connect Heaven and Earth.
Everything we see and experience has the potential for holiness, even a donkey.
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“Yours, Hashem, is the greatness, the strength, the splendor, the triumph, and the glory, everything in heaven and earth. Yours, Hashem, is the kingdom and the sovereignty over every leader.” 1 Chronicles 29:11
Mindy Rubenstein 