To the Holy Land and Back: Hillsdale College Students Travel to Israel
“The Israel that you read about here and the Israel we encountered there are two entirely different places,” junior Larissa Clark says.
Over Christmas break, 85 Hillsdale College students, accompanied by a few members of the faculty and staff, took an 11-day trip to Israel. The Philos Project, a Christian organization that promotes Christian engagement in the Middle East by educating students and providing them the opportunity to see Israel, organized the trip.
The process began last November when Professor of History Paul Rahe received a call from Provost David Whalen about the opportunity. Rahe e-mailed students with the qualifications for the trip—a 3.0 grade-point average and interest in Christianity, politics, and leadership. Around 250 students applied, far more than expected.
A committee, including Rahe, selected which applicants would attend the trip—mainly seniors and juniors, since underclassmen will likely have the opportunity to take part in a later trip.
“The impression I had from the Philos Project is that they thought the students were terrific,” Rahe says, “which is what we were looking for.”
The trip took place from January 2-13. Students only had to pay a registration fee and travel to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City, where the group boarded a plane to Israel.
Clark, who is studying political economy and business administration, said that her love for America and for traveling prompted her to apply. “I love to expand my world, see new places, and meet new people,” Clark says. “Israel is so important to me because our Christian roots are there. And Israel has such an important role in history and current events.”
Students learned about the country from both a religious and a political perspective. They attended lectures from Jews and Palestinians, including journalists, a peace negotiator, members of the Israel Defense Force, and various religious leaders.
Students experienced a mix of awe, excitement, and risk during their travels in the holy land.
“It turned the cold, sterile article that you read online into something you can actually touch,” sophomore Nathan Lehman told the Collegian after the trip. “You could see the grief on the mothers’ faces; you can see Gaza; you can see the fence; you can see al-Qaeda driving around in Syria.”
Students visited Christian and Jewish sites, including Jerusalem, the Golan Heights, Nazareth, the Gaza Strip, and Tel Aviv. For safety reasons, the group avoided the West Bank.
Clark says that she was deeply moved by visiting the various holy sites and experiencing the everyday life of people there. She recalls that when the group visited the southern wall of the Old City of Jerusalem, they were walking a road that Jesus traveled.
“I’m physically walking where Jesus walked, but I really hope to be doing that for the rest of my life, walking in his footsteps,” she says.
Clark says she was also moved by her visit to the Kfar Aza Kibbutz, a settlement less than one mile from the Gaza Strip where inhabitants have ten seconds to run to cover if a rocket is going to hit. Clark said that their tour guide showed the group a piece of shrapnel that had hit her house.
“It was real.” Clark says. “There is a difference between hearing about it and then actually being there. It hits you differently. I think that will forever stick with me.”
Professor of Speech Kirstin Kiledal was the only faculty member on the trip, and was impressed with experiences such as the visit to Masada, the ancient fortification on the edge of the Judean desert.
“The past, present, and future were all brought together,” she says.
The trip prompted students to think anew. Senior Naomi Virnelson told the Collegian, “I was hoping for a lot more answers, but now I have a lot more questions,” she says.
Clark said that going with other Hillsdale students was especially valuable because of the discussions that were provoked. “The bus was our classroom,” she says.
“It really was an experience you couldn’t repeat,” Kiledal concludes.
Printed in the Spring 2016 Alumni Magazine