Two words in Hebrew come to the mind of a native Israeli like me when looking at Basel, that magical Swiss city where Herzl founded the Jewish state: "What's the connection?"
What connects two seemingly unrelated things?
Why, of all the places in the world, did Herzl have to come to Basel so that we, the Jewish people, could return to Zion?
What is the connection between the elegant cafes and churches of Basel and the market alleys and synagogues in the Middle East?
What is the thread between the cool waters of the Rhine River and the hot heat of the Levant's shores?
If the distance is so noticeable today, when Israel is developed and flourishing, imagine the sharp contrast at that time, 125 years ago, when the piece of desert territory was under the rule of the Ottoman Empire.
But the contrast seems to be the point.
Herzl performed a miracle in Basel, and miracles in their essence are contrary to reality, because they defy and change what has been and is.
Herzl himself was a tractate of contrasts: a secular and modern Jew with the appearance of an ancient prophet with a long beard;
A playwright occupying the front of the stage in an epic drama without a pre-written script;
a statesman for a country not yet formed;
And a stray soul that stands as a solid rock and penetrates a purpose;
Delusional - and a pragmatist!
This mosaic of qualities helped Herzl win the hearts of world leaders, as well as the Jewish philanthropists and rabbis who opposed his Zionist vision.
The conference in Basel, 2022, photo: Yossi Zeliger
This is also the mosaic of qualities that makes the modern state of Israel a miracle every day: optimistic against all odds;
fighting for peace;
Its people came from all over the world but are united by one destiny;
and is proud of its self-criticism, long-standing tradition, and innovation.
Vision and drive, dream and execution
I live in Herzliya, the place named after the man who world Jewry gathered in Basel last week to pay his respects.
But I feel that I also owe him my life, my whole being.
In the 1930s my parents made their way to Israel from Poland.
They were only ten years old, and arrived in Israel each alone, and separately.
They came because, like Herzl, they sensed that the sky was darkening over European Jewry, and did so despite the fact that some Polish rabbis were imploring the Jews to stay.
My parents got to live while their loved ones in Poland perished.
They raised my brother and me as they helped establish the State of Israel: happily, proudly and fearlessly.
When I was 16 years old, Israel captured the Nazi master murderer Adolf Eichmann and put him on trial in front of the world's cameras.
It was a turning point for me, a kind of enlightenment: I suddenly understood what Herzl experienced when he himself was a witness to the Dreyfus Affair.
For the first time I learned about the dark side of the Jewish destiny, the eternal threat of murderous anti-Semitism.
Dr. Miriam Adelson in Basel, 2022, photo: Yossi Zeliger
Inspired by Herzl, in my future life I would combine these two vectors, between the positive and the negative, between openness and defensiveness, in my adult life. I served as an officer in the IDF, and in my role I was responsible for secret security research.
I went on to a career in healing, as a doctor and addiction specialist.
When I met Sheldon, the man who would become my partner for 32 years, and the love of my life, I was attracted to him by the qualities that reminded me of Herzl: the combination of vision and drive, the ability to both dream and execute.
Consider only what is important
As a couple, Sheldon and I were ourselves a tapestry of contrasts.
As a patient with the American side in all its limbs, we have harnessed our differences for a common goal: Israel and the Jewish future. We have enshrined on our banner projects that others treated with disdain, such as persuading the US to move its embassy to Jerusalem, or bringing every young Jew in the world to visit Israel for the first time From immediately and there to "discovery" - we planned the past for the present and for the future.
We made it successful because we considered only what was important, ignored everything else, and stopped and took care of the well-being of every Jew wherever he was - even if not every one of them always agreed with us.
We succeeded because in the way we walked, in the footsteps of the great Herzl, we were ready to stand alone for our unique and worthy people.
At the end of the gathering that marked the 125th anniversary of the First Zionist Congress in Basel, I wish for all of us in Israel and in the Diaspora to know how to preserve and perpetuate those contrasts.
Let us remember that it is precisely the differences between us that make us adaptable, strong and interesting.
This is the Judaism that Herzl knew and loved so much, and in this quality he saw - and rightly so - the key to our salvation.
were we wrong
We will fix it!
If you found an error in the article, we would appreciate it if you shared it with us