Akiva Gersh, at The Blogs

Jul 26, 2023, 6:39 PM

Still Trying to Learn How to Make Space for One Another

With the strong focus of Tisha B'Av being on the destruction of the First and Second Temples, it's easy to forget the spiritual source and original calamity that occured on Tisha B'Av: the Children of Israel's loss of faith...

Mar 25, 2023, 10:01 PM

In Israel, happiness is our secret weapon

A few days ago the results of the annual World Happiness index were published and Israel found itself recognized as the fourth happiest country in the entire world, its highest ranking since the index began in 2012. To be clear,...

Mar 6, 2023, 12:26 AM

Featured Post

Don’t eat cheesecake this Shavuot

You surely don’t want to hear the details of the cruelty to the cows that produce the milk that makes our dairy products, but I’m going to tell you anyway.

May 17, 2022, 1:59 PM

Celebrating 5 Years of “Becoming Israeli”

It happened five years ago, today. The first time I held an actual physical copy of my book, "Becoming Israeli". It felt like I was holding one of my own children immediately after birth. The hundreds and hundreds of hours that went...

May 4, 2022, 1:21 PM

In Israel, Memorial Day is a Day On

I'm proud that I live in a country where Memorial Day is not synonymous with shopping sprees and mega-sales. I'm proud that I live in a country where Memorial Day isn't characterized by a 3-day weekend. I'm proud to live in...

Apr 11, 2022, 3:10 PM

5 Vegan Teachings for Seder Night

In many ways, Pesach is the quintessential Jewish holiday for at the very foundation of the Jewish tradition and the Jewish people is the fact that, thousands of years ago, we were slaves in Egypt and were subsequently freed...

Mar 13, 2022, 6:00 AM

5 Reasons to Make this Purim a Plant-Based Purim

Purim is one of the most unique holidays in the entire Jewish calendar. And while we Jews say this about every holiday, we learn in the midrash (oral Torah) that “In the future, all the holidays will be nullified,...

Mar 9, 2022, 2:33 PM

A Unique Kind of Aid for Ukraine from Israel

These are not easy days. Reading about the Russian invasion of Ukraine and seeing pictures from bombarded cities and communities have been hard for the heart and soul. Trying to understand a situation that is difficult to understand and wanting to...

Aug 10, 2021, 7:13 PM

After 17 years of living in Israel, here are the reasons I would leave

(I'm still trying to think.)

About Me

Akiva Gersh has been working in the field of Jewish and Israel Education for over 20 years. In 2020 he founded @Israel to share his love and passion for Israel with students, schools and communities around the world through his online classes, courses and virtual tours of Israel. Akiva is also the editor of the book "Becoming Israeli" (at-israel.com/book), a compilation of essays that gives an inside look at the unique experience of making aliyah and the journey of acclimating to life in Israel. Akiva himself made aliyah in 2004 with his wife Tamar and they live in Pardes Hanna with their four kids. You can learn more about his work at www.at-israel.com as well as about his work teaching about Judaism and veganism at www.akivagersh.com/veganrabbi.

Contact Me