Next week we will celebrate Tu B'Shvat, the New Year of Trees.
This is a day that marks the love of the land and the sweetness of its fruits. Throughout the generations, Jews have longed to obtain fruit from the Land of Israel on Tu B'Shvat, in order to feel even more love for the land. The great men of Israel used to speak on this day about the praise of the Land of Israel and to arouse longing for it.
Because in essence, Tu B'Shvat is a decisive date for the mitzvot that depend on the land. Fruits that were preserved before and after Tu B'Shvat belong to other years of the 'Tithe Years', and this has many halachic meanings.
These are mitzvot unique to the fruits of the land, and therefore Tu B'Shvat expresses the loveliness of the land and its special holiness.
Nothing to do with politics
To what extent does the education system today engage in cultivating love of country? The impression one gets is that something fundamental has gone wrong.
The education system will talk highly of 'love for others,' 'respect for others,' and other values that express the prevailing spirit of political correctness today. But will it proudly exalt love of the land, the deep connection of Jews to this land, to its landscapes and sites, to its treasures and fruits?
In our time, it is especially important to cultivate love of the land. We live in a global world that has become a small village. Children and youth are exposed to countless universal messages, and everything is blended into one. They also go on trips around the world, and visit spectacular and magical sites. Against all this, we must set the value of our land – the beloved land of the Creator of the world, which He gave to the people of Israel.
Tu B'Shvat, since time immemorial, has served as a lever for instilling the values of love for the land. Eating fruits that glorify the Land of Israel, discussing the mitzvot that depend on the land, stories and longing for the Land of Israel and its surroundings – this has always been the essence of this day.
These values have nothing to do with politics. Love of the land should unite us all, from the right and the left, religious and non-religious. We are all connected at our navel to this land, and we have carried our love for it throughout two thousand years of difficult and bitter exile.
Deep belonging
Love of the land is first and foremost a feeling of love, a deep spiritual connection, a strong sense of belonging to this land. Love of the Land of Israel is linked to the divine promise given to our forefather Abraham in the covenant between the two halves. It is connected to the Exodus from Egypt and the giving of the Torah, the beginning of the birth of the Jewish people, when God, blessed be He, promised the children of Israel, "And I will bring you into the land that I lifted up my hand to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.".
The law that it is forbidden to leave the Land of Israel (except for specific and clear reasons) clearly illustrates how the natural place of a Jew is in the Land of Israel. Throughout all generations, Jews have lived in the Land of Israel, in difficult conditions, poverty and deprivation, and it never occurred to them to leave it and seek a more comfortable life abroad.
On Tu B'Shvat, the Festival of Palms, we must instill love for the land in the hearts of our children, youth, and adults. Plant the joy of being privileged to live in the Holy Land, to eat of its fruits, and to walk on its soil. And here too, "our eyes will behold your return to Zion with mercy" - very soon.
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