THE ISRAEL FOUNDATION
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Torah & IsraelThe State of Israel, the only “Jewish state” in the world, encourages Jews who do not live in Israel to make "Aliyah,” that is, to immigrate to Israel. The Israeli law under which such immigration is encouraged is known as the “Law of Return.” The Law of Return recognizes the right of all Jews, regardless of whether the person making Aliyah has ever previously visited or lived in Israel, to immigrate and settle in the Land of Israel. This immigration law is named the law of “Return” because Hashem gave the Land of Israel to the Jewish People — to each and every Jew, regardless of a Jews’ country of birth — as an inheritance, to be passed down through the generations. Thus, as an “inheritance,” every Jew who makes Aliyah is deemed to be “returning” to the Land of his or her ancestors. A person’s “Jewishness” is not defined by race, ethnicity, country of birth, or other similar characteristic. Rather, “Jewishness” is defined by Jewish Law, which provides that one who is born to a Jewish mother, or one who was not born to a Jewish mother, but who converted to Judaism in accordance with Jewish Law, is Jewish. The Torah speaks at great length about the Land of Israel. The Israel Foundation, in turn, endeavors to disseminate the Torah’s message to as many people as possible. |