Temple Hillel Birthright members
enjoy some sun at the Dead Sea.

Meor Israel trips include
study periods.

Break
Students Multiply
And it’s hardly the only option.

While, unlike Birthright, it might not be free, Meor off ers nu-
merous trips to Jewish students who have an educational frame
of mind. Not only do they get to experience a diff erent place (and
usually a diff erent country), they learn in the classroom.

“Meor means to illuminate,” said Rabbi Josef Lynn, who runs
Meor from his home in Israel. “Basically, students come together
from all the 22 Meor campuses in the U.S.

“Th e fi rst week in January, 140 of them will be traveling to
Poland, starting in Warsaw and going to many of the death
camps. ... I’ve been involved from the beginning. My brother
[Shmuel] got me involved, and I took over the Meor Poland trip
three years ago. Th ey visit a diff erent town every night and are
busy every day between touring the camps and having class and
discussion groups.

“It’s a trip about life and inspiring people to connect to their
Jewish roots. It’s not supposed to be about sadness. It’s much more
about the future and continuity of the Jewish people than remem-
bering the past.”
If going to Auschwitz, Treblinka and seeing the Warsaw Ghet-
to isn’t for you, Meor probably has something else that might be.

For starters, there are two winter trips to Israel — Meor Israel and
Meor Vision.

Meor Israel combines an introduction to the Holy Land with
Jewish study. Meor Vision, which is open only to those who’ve
completed Meor Israel, Birthright or something equivalent,
goes deeper into Talmudic study and offers classes and other
outdoor activities.

And then there’s Olami, the annual international Jewish Sum-
mit. Some 1,200 delegates representing 100 organizations and 20
countries are expected to participate in the week-long event that
will begin in Spain and end in London. A handful of those dele-
gates will be coming from the Philadelphia area.

“It’s hard to get in,” said Shoshana Kay, executive director
for Meor at both Temple and Drexel universities. “You have
to be a student leader and be Jewish. The Poland trip is more
heavily subsidized.”
But there’s even something for those who don’t want to leave
the country. Meor’s Heritage Retreat in Sedona, Ariz., is a 10-day
Meor Israel travelers
explore rocky terrain.

JEWISHEXPONENT.COM WINTER HOLIDAY MAGAZINE
See OPPORTUNITIES, page 22
A few Temple Hillel members hit the beach.

NOVEMBER 23, 2017
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