Recalling his own immigration to Israel as a young man, Yosef Teoah, who is shortly departing as Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, said that aliya was the greatest fulfillment for any Jew. Tekoah, who immigrated to Israel in 1948 when he was 38 years old, addressed approximately a thousand people who filled Congregation Talmud Torah in Brooklyn Sunday.
He noted that with the search of young people for importance in their lives,” aliya can be the fulfillment of a challenge for every young Jew.” As for “those who are not so young,” Tekoah said that “aliya is the culmination of all our hopes, our dreams, our plans since youth. Anyone who appreciates the splendor and grandeur of our Jewish culture, heritage, and destiny finds aliya the climax, the ultimate goal of their lives.”
Agreeing that there were difficulties in immigrating to Israel, Tekoah noted that the difficulties faced by American Jews were small in comparison with other Jews throughout the world or the Jews who struggle to escape from the Soviet Union. He said the rewards of living in Israel far outweigh the sacrifices. “Aliya is for those who value more than just material comforts but who wish to be able to say to themselves, ‘I have lived a full and satisfying life.”
Tekoah urged those who wish to go on aliya to make the step as soon as possible. “Those who believe in our own rebuilt Jewish State realize that now is the time to take the steps of living in Israel,” The rally was organized by the Israel Aliyah Center in cooperation with the Mizrachi-Poel Hamizrachi Organization (Religious Zionists of America).
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
