Ascending to the Land

And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and its top reached heaven; and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.                    Genesis 28:12

            Rabbi Shimshon Raphael Hirsch comments that the top of the ladder reaching heaven symbolizes that its primary purpose is to go up from earth to heaven. Further, “the whole life on earth, including human life, has its goal not in the plains but in the heights and set from the heights; everything earthly is invited from above to work itself upwards to a heavenly high goal.” The role of mankind, indeed its destiny, is to ascend spiritually and morally and in so doing to raise the level of all of God’s creation.

            Thus, it is not at all surprising that the ladder whose top reached heaven is moored within the Holy Land, where the gate of heaven is located (specifically within Jerusalem). Man’s ability to raise himself and all creation is maximized within the Land, which is the most suitable site on earth for spiritual advancement.

            It is also possible to understand the reason the Bible refers to coming to Israel as ascent (“aliya”), since the Land constitutes the peak of sanctity within the earth, and this sanctity facilitates of the earth’s inhabitants.

            Rabbi Hirsch also notes that the force of gravity pulls everything down to the earth, and therefore only living beings have the power to overcome gravity and ascend. This adds an extra dimension to the use of the term “aliya” in connection with the Land of Israel; within her, and only within her, does a Jew have the power to achieve true vitality. Thus a Jew ascends to the Land.

          We may suggest that only a Jew who understands the spiritual dimension of the Land of Israel can truly ascend to her.