Zionist Miracle is Incomplete without the Ethiopians

Bezalel son of Uri son of Hur of the tribe of Judah did all that God commanded Moses.  With him was Oholiav ben Ahisamakh of the tribe of Dan, a carver, weaver, and embroiderer using sky-blue, purple and crimson wool, and fine linen. (Exodus 38:22, 23)

Most of the Jews in Israel are from the tribe of Judea.  The Ethiopians are the tribe of Dan.

The Zionist miracle is that like Bezalel and Oholiav, we have the miraculous opportunity today of renewing the sacred partnership of Judea and Dan after millennia of separation. Just as the Mishkan (Tabernacle) required the collaborative work of representatives of the two tribes, without the tribe of Dan, the Ethiopians, the State of Israel cannot be built. As the Head of Emunah College School of the Arts in Jerusalem, I had the amazing privilege of seeing the descendants of the tribes of Judea and Dan creating artworks together.

My wife, Miriam, created the “Zionist Miracle” post text below that can be accessed with all the photographs at our blog, Creating a Spiritual Blog of Your Life. We created the blog to celebrate our 52nd year of marriage by collaborating on the Torah Tweets blogart project. During each of the 52 weeks of our 52nd year, we posted six photographs reflecting our life together with a text of tweets that relates the weekly Torah reading to our lives.

Zionist Miracle

Pekudei/Reckonings (Exodus 38:21-40:38)

The book of Exodus began with the miracle of freeing the Israelites from slavery and draws to an end with the completion of the Tabernacle.

The Tabernacle was a major collaborative art project under the aesthetic direction of 2 master artists from the tribes of Judah and Dan.

This great biblical miracle pales in comparison to the Zionist miracle in our time that we too often fail to see.

The Exodus story tells of liberating one nation of thousands from enslavement in the one country of Egypt after hundreds of years of exile.

We are living the liberation of millions of Jews from scores of countries after thousands of years of exile, bringing them home to Israel.

Being an integral part of this Zionist miracle, unprecedented in world history, offers enthralling creative opportunities for an artist.

Mel has the amazing privilege as Head of Emunah College School of the Arts in Jerusalem to teach descendants of both Bezalel and Oholiav.

Creative young women from the tribes of Judah and Dan work together there in degree programs in art, graphic design and theater.

His students from the tribe of Dan were flown out of Ethiopia to join their brethren from the tribe of Judah as fellow artists.

In the 16th century, David Zimra, Chief Rabbi of Egypt, declared that “those who come from Ethiopia are without a doubt the tribe of Dan.”

In 1973, Ovadia Yosef, Israel’s Chief Rabbi, confirmed the Jewish identity of the Beta Israel Ethiopian community as being the tribe of Dan.