“So, is this your first time in Israel? Do you like Israel?”

Perhaps it’s not common to see an Asian girl in Israel, I get asked this question quite often.

“No, it’s my 8th time here. And I love Israel.”

Every time, people react with being shocked and confused, and with another question- “Why?”

My First Visit to Israel

I never thought I would visit the “Holy Land”.  Growing up Christian, Jerusalem is a name I knew since childhood, but I didn’t really know it existed on earth. Just like how familiar I was with Disney characters from watching films, I was quite familiar with the stories of Abraham, Moses, and David in the Bible. (I love David!)

Back in 2011, Israel just began granting visa-waiver program to Taiwanese, I “accidentally” made a short trip to Israel from Amman as a 21-year-old.

And strangely, when I saw the walls of Jerusalem, somehow everything felt so familiar, and I felt like I came “home”.  My heart melted when I saw Jews praying at the Western Wall. I think it might be the first time I saw Jews, or I finally made the connection from the haircut, the tzitzit, or just the congregation that the children of Israel from the Bible thousands of years ago are alive! In front of my eyes!

A Girl who Blogs About Israel

I knew back then I would go back to Israel one day, but I didn’t think it would happen anytime soon since Israel is really expensive! In Taiwan, people are spoiled with cheap, clean and convenient food options. (For 10 shekels you can get a business lunch that comes with a drink. Taiwan is a wonderful place). Plus the world is so big, I wanted to see South America or other new places first.

But my entire family is Christian. It was mind-blowing for them that a young girl like me could travel to Israel independently. Most Asian tourists visit Israel in a group as pilgrims, they’d spend around USD$3000-$4000 for a 10-day “once in your lifetime” trip to the Holy Land. And here I was, telling my relatives about my Couchsurfing experience staying at Jewish homes. Many questions were asked, especially on the “how”.

To make the story very short, I went to Israel again, and I took my parents and my younger brother. For a 19-day trip, we spent only around USD$3000 in total (excluding airfare). I started to write down travel tips in Mandarin (Chinese) and posted them online in 2017. The blog got noticed pretty quickly, and I was met with Taiwanese ambassador in Israel, invited to write for magazines or to speak about Israel. My travel guide book will be published this year, and I plan to start leading smaller groups to Israel. And there are many opportunities opened up that I couldn’t even imagine in the beginning.

In one of the workshops I spoke at in Taipei, a young couple with 3 kids came to see me… “I don’t know if you remember us, we wrote you an email in 2017, it was your blog that made our trip to Israel possible!”  Their daughter was only 7 years old, and she was telling me her trip to Israel! It was an incredible feeling!

Many of my readers have Christian backgrounds, and they love Israel way more than I do. And I’m often encouraged by them. It hasn’t been easy to write a blog about Israel, and it certainly takes a lot of effort, but it has been an honor!

Visit my blog at www.wonderisrael.com (English), www.israelmega.com (Chinese)

-The post was originally written for iKonnect Blog at https://www.ikonnect.co.il/blog/from-taiwan-to-israel-a-surprising-connection

Website: https://www.ikonnect.co.il

After registration, I think it’s nice to start with the food quiz! (Click here)

The prizes!

The idea of the website is to learn more about Israel through playing all these games! So, the questions are tough! Be prepared!

And this is kind of a guest post with iKonnect, you can read my story on their blog (you get 20 points for reading it!)

From Taiwan to Israel – A Surprising Connection 

Now go and play the games!

Today, the Danes can still face the history of the Holocaust 75 years ago without fear or guilt, because collectedly the whole country helped the 7,000 Jews to escape to safe Sweden. 

Israeli President Rivlin visited Denmark on October 9, 2018, to celebrate the friendship between the two countries and look forward to more cooperation in the future. The Israeli Foreign Ministry said:

75 years ago, during World War II, Hitler ordered Danish Jews to be arrested and deported. The Danish resistance movement with the assistance of many ordinary Danish citizens took part in a collective effort to evacuate more than 7000 Jews to Sweden, saving their lives. We will always remember your courage and kindness. Thank you!”

Jews in the Little Mermaid Country

When I visited Copenhagen, I was always looking for reasons that made Denmark “the world’s happiest country”. It is a beautiful country, but apart from beer, the little mermaid, the canal, and the clean road and the blue sky, it didn’t impress me with a good definite reason why the Danes should be happy.

Even when the weather is bad, the Copenhageners who love cycling are still riding bicycles in the rain. I feel that happiness doesn’t come easily for all people, but attitude matters. I guess the Danes don’t mind how others think about them and they enjoy being themselves.

They appreciate ordinary lives, and they find beauty and inspiration. They are innovative but they keep their values. I actually liked Denmark.

Different from Eastern European countries, the Jewish Danes came to Denmark after the 17th century.

In the 17th century, the Danish king, Christian IV, who was trade-minded, wanted to build the foundation of the city of Glückstadt, which is now called Schleswig-Holstein in Germany. So in 1619, the king issued a “royal dispensation” to a Portuguese Jew who lived in Amsterdam, named Albert Dionis.

This Jew was a successful businessman, and because of him, more Jewish businessmen also came to live in Glückstadt. So more Jews with political and business influence started living in Denmark.

The Danish Jews in Model Protectorate

On April 9, 1940, Denmark did not resist and surrendered to the German Nazis. However, Germany allowed the Danish royal family as well as the police and the judicial system to remain, so Denmark would be a model. Other European countries would see what it would be like under Nazi rule.  Denmark was so cooperative that it was called “model protectorate” by Germany and nicknamed “Sahnefront”. (Cream Front)

Denmark and Germany continue to maintain good trade relations, so when Danish officials insisted that there was “No Jewish problem” in Denmark, Germany did not want to undermine the good relations between the two countries and did not attack the Danish Jews.

But in the spring of 1943, the Danish resistance movement became severe, even 90% of the Danish people in the national vote did not continue to cooperate with the Nazis, so the Nazis imposed curfews and martial law, changed the policy, took over this country. What this meant was Danish Jews were no longer protected. No more special treatment. Nazi Germany planned to deport Danish Jews during the Jewish Rosh Hashanah in September, knowing that Jews will celebrate the holiday at home on this day.

Saving Jews with Collective Effort

However, unexpectedly, the Danish Jews were all gone? What happened?

It turned out a German diplomat in Denmark named Georg Duckwitz, leaked the news about Nazi’s plan to send Jews to death camps to the Danes. The Danish Jews were immediately hidden by Danes in Denmark, and with help from the Danes, they fled to Sweden, a neutral country.

It was rare that the bishop of the Danish National Church got involved in politics. But he used his authority to send letters (hyrdebrev) to priests of local churches, which the letter was read on the pulpit to members of the church. The message was about helping and rescuing the Jews. So we could see what Denmark was like. First, the royal family protected Danish Jews with political power until the Nazi took over. And then the Danish church responded quickly, using its influence to call all ordinary citizens to do this extraordinary act.

Within three weeks, more than 7,220 Danish Jews (and 686 family members) left Denmark to Sweden by fishing boats!

The Germans patrolled the strait. The Danish fisherman’s trick was to pretend to be drunk, whistled and sang songs. Then he would speak in German, “Would you like some beer?” Then Jews hiding under the deck would know this was a signal to stay quiet.

There is a legend that even King Christian X said if Danish Jews were to wear the yellow star, then he too would wear it. He would not isolate anyone as everyone is equal. The royal family did not admit this legend, but they were proud for the history for resisting Nazi and rescuing Danish Jews.

Remembering the Courage of Denmark

What is even more remarkable was their humbleness. There is a garden called  “Righteous Among Nations” in Yad Vashem Jerusalem, for individuals helping Jews in the Holocaust. But Denmark said, “Don’t commemorate us as individuals, but remember us  collectively.”

Denmark did not take this award. Even though they helped 7000+ Jews. Israel laid a plague with simple words “The Danish Resistance” on the way to the “Righteous Among Nations”.  These ordinary people included doctors, blue-collar workers, clergymen, intellectuals, and other citizens. These were people who stood up for their values and took part in rescue operations.

Lovely Denmark, your courage and kindness will be remembered!

References：

Rescue of the Danish Jews – Wikipedia

Yad Vashem-The Rescue of Denmark’s Jews

Attitude towards Jews in Early Ages

Jews migrated with the Roman army in the 1st century to this region, where Czech, Slovakia, and Hungary are. After the expulsion of Jews from Western Europe in 1098, a large number of Jews migrated to Hungary. The earliest record of Jews in Bratislava dates back to 1270.

In the 14th century, the Jews built a synagogue in Bratislava, but Benedictine bishop ordered them to destroy it. Then, after a few years, the Jews rebuilt the synagogue again. In 1421, the Jews of Vienna expelled and they escaped here. As the number increased, the anti-Semitic increased. So all of them were expelled again, and the property was confiscated. The history repeated until decades later, a synagogue was once again allowed to be rebuilt. In 1477, the new ruler established a Jewish Chief as a bridge for communication between Christians and Jews.

The Jews of Bratislava were locked in the ghetto from the 15th century, and Pope Innocent III ordered that Jews must wear red cloaks for identification. The Jews in Pezinok were expelled and were only allowed to stay on the land of Palffy family in 1609. The Jews of Vienna also stayed in Schlossgrund, a land owned by the same family.

Joseph II and Temporary Progress

It was not until the end of the 18th century that the Jewish community grew stronger, mainly because of changes in the policy of the law. In 1783, Joseph II issued the Edict of Tolerance, relaxing previous restrictions on occupations. In 1788, the Jews were enrolled in the Austrian army for the first time. And the prohibition of Jews living in the city was lifted in 1843, and changed to  “tolerance tax”.

In this relatively free atmosphere, Bratislava has become the base of the orthodox Jewish religion in the Austro-Hungarian region because of the powerful Rabbi- Chatam Sofer (1762-1839). Neolog sect boomed in Budapest, but Orthodox Judaism was still the mainstream here.

After Spring of Nations or the Revolution of 1848, the existing aristocrats and kings were overthrown. And as nationalism rose, antisemitism rose again.

After WWI, Czechoslovakia became an independent country from previous Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Jewish situation changed, the political party was formed, 2 seats were won in the parliament in 1929. In 1919, the Jewish found the newspaper called Jewish People’s Paper.

In the 1921 census, 130,000 Jews in Czechoslovakia regarded themselves to be observant Jews, and another 70,000 considered themselves to be Jewish by blood. At that time, there were 165 orthodox synagogues and 52 reformist synagogues. This region was the center of Zionism and Jewish activities.

Neo-log synagogues in Slovakia:

Orthodox synagogues in Slovakia:

This synagogue on Heydukova street was built in 1926 because of the increased numbers of Jews.

Between the two world wars, Bratislava had about 15,000 Jews, accounting for 12% of the city. At this point in time, Slovak Jews did not seem to have economic conflicts with locals, like it is in Budapest. And Slovakia did not lose territory from war and did not need help from Germany, so all these anti-Semitic actions could attribute only to Christian’s rejection to Jews.

And we will continue …

And actually, this Israeli guy spoke to me in Chinese

“Are you from China?”

I replied, “Umm. Taiwan.” And then I was waiting for his reply. Was he going to ask me about one-China policy? Taiwan’s independence? China’s one-child policy?

But hold on, his next question was…

“How do you say Jacob in Chinese?”

He asked the oddest question in Chinese. Was I supposed to know who Jacob was? I never expected to come across such question. But gladly, as a Bible-reading Christian, I do know how to say Jacob in Mandarin, both in Taiwanese version and Chinese version.

Then he said..

“How is my Chinese?”

All the conversation above was done in Chinese, so I actually thought he did a good job. And it reminds me that I used to think of ways to start conversations in MRT with foreigners in Taiwan. I didn’t mind that he wanted to practice Chinese with me, even though I had to watch how I pronounce certain words. (Taiwanese’ mandarin accent is softer than Chinese accent)

The big China dream. I knew that.

But what’s interesting to me was that he learned Chinese through some app on his phone!! And I think he didn’t learn more lessons so our conversation switched to English.

And yup! That was pretty much the story! No juice! 

I have no idea why he had to ask those questions though. Was it even that important？

But I did learn something. The IDF soldier’s heavy bags. Every time I see them traveling, they carry big bags. I mean why? Isn’t it just a weekend home? Do they really need that much stuff for one weekend?

And noooooo.

“It’s their dirty clothes inside”

“Why do they need to take their dirty clothes home? Why can’t they do laundry in the army?”

“Because there’s no laundry facility in the army….”

And I was shocked because in Taiwan boys serve military for 1 year (now it’s reduced to 4 months). And you aren’t allowed to take army clothes out of a post, or to carry a weapon. I knew this was the difference, but it never came to my mind that while these IDF soldiers carry honor with them all the time, they have to carry dirty clothes back home too.

Well, let’s just say it isn’t easy to be an Israeli soldier!

Bonus：How to Start a Conversation with an Asian?

Well well… the chances are, people who travel all know some English. Just try! You never know unless you talk to them personally. Don’t judge.

Start with a question that seems unobtrusive. For example, ask us for directions, or things involve with numbers. Asians love to help.

It’s a good idea to avoid saying things like “Are you from Korea?” Because it doesn’t matter that much unless you speak Korean right? And the following statement could be, “Oh you are from Taiwan? I’ve been to Thailand.”

Even though you might think it is the same region, but for us….  umm we don’t know how to respond to this type of ‘statement’. So yes, be direct if you want to ask something.  Be as straightforward as you can!

Anyways, if you don’t know what to talk about, always talk about food. These things fascinate all Asians, even though we do look skinny. Seriously!

“You can’t go there by foot, Bethlehem is 2 hours away from here!”

As soon as we passed the wall, taxi drivers surrounded us and gave us ‘good offers’. When we declined the offers, it became sarcasm. Anyways we ignored what they said and followed GPS to reach Manger Square in Bethlehem.

But today’s atmosphere is strange. Usually, there are long queues at checkpoints, but there was no one here today. No vendors, no passers-by, no fruit sellers… where was everyone?

After a few minutes following Google Maps, I found myself in a dead lane.  Did Google Maps expect me to jump over this wall? Or was I missing some secret passage? Suddenly a passerby wearing a blue suit approached us.

“Where do you want to go?”, he said.

I said “manger square”. And then he pointed the direction we came,

“You have to go from there.”

I was a little angry why GPS brought us to this wall.

“There’s no way from here?”

But he gently said,

“There is no road here. The wall has blocked all the roads. You need to go back to the checkpoint. You can catch a taxi or mini-van from there.”

And I protested:

“But there is no mini-van at the checkpoint! Only taxi!”

And then as if he remembered something, he agreed that there was no mini-van today. So finally I brought up my confusion on this unexpected “ghost town” Bethlehem. And he said with a smile,

“It’s Easter Saturday today. There will be activities in the afternoon. Everyone is preparing, so that’s why you don’t see people on the road and shops are not open.” Then he pointed to the building behind him: “I saw you from my house, so I came down to see if you need any help. “

I had never heard about such thing as “Easter Saturday”. Plus Easter was a month ago…..   Did I hear him wrong? Though I knew that 2016 was a strange year because Easter was in March and Passover was in April! Then he said,

“Today is the Easter for Eastern Christians. It is different from the Easter of Gregorian calendar.  I’m going to the event in the afternoon too.”

“Oh! Are you….an Orthodox Christian?”

I studied this man. Greenish-blue eyes. I don’t know if it is polite to ask about someone’s faith. But he frankly shared with us,

“I am a Greek Orthodox Christian because my mother is a Greek, but my wife is a Catholic.”

“Oh! Orthodox Christian and Catholic! So which Easter does your wife celebrate?”

“Actually, we celebrate both. There is Coptic Orthodox, Syrian Orthodox, and Greek Orthodox here and we are all called Christians. We are only 1% and we cannot be divided.”

I keep thinking about his words from his heart.  As an outsider, we see a division of so many sects in Israel, but the locals actually tell us this “we cannot be divided”. That’s powerful! Then he shared his family story, but in short, the wall had been here since 2003. I had no idea why Google Maps took me to a dead end if this wall had been here for more than 10 years…..

Then, Johnny, the man told us that he had never been to Jerusalem since. He just couldn’t get a permit from the Israeli government. But his tone, there was no hatred in his tone.  I was surprised by this because here I was, in front of a real “Palestinian” whose freedom was completely restricted, but as a Christian, he had no complaints against Israel.  Only a tad of sadness with a ton of understanding.  His previous wealthy life is tremendously affected and tourism business isn’t easy, and he could have many reasons to turn cynical, but he didn’t.

And he was the person who told me “We are only 1% and we cannot be divided.”

That is a priceless lesson learned.

Just as Jewish quarter changed after the Israeli army went in this gate in 1967, my life changed after coming here…… (just kidding)

Then my skinny brother found a fat cat by Zion Gate. We were simply looking at this cat for 10 seconds, then… an Orthodox Jew came to us!

From what I heard from locals and from the internet, Orthodox Jews don’t go to normal schools, they don’t work and don’t serve in IDF. But this Orthodox Jew came to us! I was surprised and thrilled. Nervous too.

He opened his mouth, and spoke to us in English!

In Israel…

I thought he was going to introduce his country to us. But how interesting that he said,

Cat no eat.

Hmmmm. So Israeli cats don’t eat? But this cat is pretty chubby. Or did he mean that we shouldn’t feed stray cats? I asked him, still in a friendly and innocent tone.

But his face was serious, and he left us with these words,

No eat!

And….. 10 seconds later…..

Whaaaaat?

Did he seriously think that my brother and I were going to eat this cat? Is it because we are Chinese (by blood)? Oh well! Whatever!

I get that Israel is an expensive place to live. I get that people know Chinese eat dogs and all sorts of weird animals. But we are nice tourists in Israel, we aren’t here to eat any cat! Did he have bad experience spotting Asians eating cats, I wonder? 

I told my Israeli friend (secular Jew) about this experience. His first experience was…

He could speak English? 

I guess we all have stereotypes on people!

Let me share this video that I found! (Original video at the end the post) This is a real story!

Let’s get started! The first stranger

Todd White with cool hair and his team was in Israel. They wanted to visit the Dome of the Rock but they only had 24 hours to see if God could do the impossible for them. On their way to the Old City, they met a man who had trouble walking. So Todd stopped, prayed for him in the name of Jesus. After a simple prayer, this stranger even asked Todd to pray for his knee too.

Then Todd said, ‘hey you are healed’.  The man was like ‘I must be dreaming’~ Because he was walking without pain!

Todd explained to him, “That’s because Jesus’ life is within me, Jesus healed you.” And Todd said, “Are you Muslim? I’m Christian. I love you.”

Then this man in yellow shirt left, he was walking fine!

In the Old City….

Todd happily entered the Muslim quarter in the Old city of Jerusalem (See “Free Palestine”?) He prayed for the sick, and words quickly spread. People started to come for prayers.

A Mysterious Twist?

An hour later, someone called him, “You have the gift of healing?”

Todd said, “Yes. Is it lungs? “。

“Are you doing pictures? ” The man didn’t answer the question and asked this. Todd said yes.

Interestingly the man didn’t mind, and he signaled Tod to follow him….?

Near the way of sorrow, Todd was brought to this man’s house. And there was a sick man, his father-in-law. He has pains at his chest. Todd prayed. They were all happy. 

Then Todd brought up his desire of visiting the Dome of the Rock. The man said, “It’s impossible for Christians to go inside…” Todd said, “That’s what everyone says. But how can I go inside?”

The man studied Todd and sicne he was blessed by Todd (that means his father-in-law experienced healing), so he wanted to bless Todd too,

So he would try connecting to the one man who might be able to get Todd and his team inside the Dome of the Rock. So they walked about 20 minutes to see if this other man would be willing to help.

And here they were at a courtyard, the man greeted his friend, and just when he was about to introduce Todd…..

Wow! It’s You???

……!!! You??!!!! So this man’s powerful friend was this man in yellow shirt, whom Todd met even before he entered the Old City! The first man that Todd prayed for!  They were both so excited! It’s you!!! 
 

So these two Muslims who knew each other before experienced God’s healing through a Christian, started to plan on how to get Todd into the Dome of the Rock. They decided to meet at 10am the next day!

Entering the Dome of the Rock

The next day, these two men (in the same clothes) kept their promise and showed up. They took the risk in taking them into the Dome of the Rock, and stayed with them the whole time!

Inside the mosque, Todd felt the love of God the creator. We are all broken, and dirty, yet He accepts us and is willing to restore relationship with us. He truly felt God’s love is for everyone of us!

Unexpectedly, the guide at the Dome of the Rock offered to show them the Well of souls under the foundation stone. This totally satisfied the desire of Todd! He prayed here and worshipped God! 
 

And then he prayed in the name of Jesus, right here and out loud! Wow! And nobody seemed to pray! This is impossible!  It’s God who made this seemed easy! 

An Experience No Money Can Buy

These two men were so happy for the success. Joy is clearly seen on their face. “It was easy!” “God opened the doors easily for us!”

And the man in yellow shirt made a good point, “There were so many people out there who wanted to go in. Even if they pay thousands of dollars, they cannot have this experience!”

Pastor Philip Mantofa

Then the scene switched to Pastor Philip Mantofa. He shared a powerful message. Don’t boast your faith. Jesus is the only way, truth and life, and I’m not trying to be politically correct, this is simple, and I’m willing to die for this statement. But don’t judge other faiths. You can only convey this message through love.

Why did they Help Todd?

These two men, hopefully their lives are protected as this video is circulating. The man just felt there was a voice inside that told him to help Todd. As simple as that!

Things to Think About

1. Every prayer Todd made was simple. It wasn’t a formaility, but the authority that Jesus gives him. So when he prayed, the sick was healed. When he released, the sickness left.

2. To let Muslims experience love, it’s not what you said but the vibe you send. So the point is this person must be filled by the love of God.

3. When the gift of healing is manifested, people with sickness, even with different faiths, will want to be close to the source of healing.

4.All ‘impossibilities’ and ‘unsolvable problems’ are nothing in God’s eyes. We are all in process, trying to learn how to love one another.

5. Be firm in your faith, but interact with others in love instead of arguments. When there’s love in your life, it will shine on your face that others can see.

6.When the Spirit of God takes action, words cannot explain but even people from different faiths can tell this ‘comes from God’. And they will be joyful for the experiencing God.

7. We are all sinners before God, so there’s nothing to boast. But God accepts us as He loves every one of us. So there is really no winner before every soul has restored relationship with God.

Link to the Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bw8k7P0mZ9I

Are you “X”?

In Chinese, we normally address a person with full name, that means first name + last name, like Bruce Lee.  It’s not wrong to say “Bruce”, but it is strange. Calling someone by first name is only between friends in my culture. I was confused.

His accent was pretty good. And how did he know that’s my name? But I think my name is probably the only Chinese name that hasn’t checked in.

“Umm yes.”

I said. Trying to act like it is perfectly normal for a Jew in Jerusalem to speak Chinese.

“Taiwanese?”

He asked in Chinese again. His accent was just like one of us. We skip a syllable  when we say “Taiwanese”. It’s too Taiwanese. I cannot believe he has such accent. So I had to ask him,

“Did you study in Taiwan? XX University?”

Then I found out, he had only studied Chinese for a year. How can someone be so smart that he can speak perfect Chinese in just one year? Or what kind of teachers did he have in Taiwan? It’s unbelievable. His Chinese was so good that made me forget that I was in Jerusalem. This conversation brought me back home, to Taipei. And I couldn’t wait to go to 7-11 or night market for a midnight snack….! Oh wait, no, this was still Jerusalem.

 “Why did you choose Taiwan?”

“I like Taiwan.”

“Oh. What do you like about Taiwan? Food?”

“Everything! I like everything about Taiwan! I like Taiwan more than Israel!”

And here’s a problem… I think he was not joking. He is serious about how he really likes Taiwan. And there I was, confused again. I don’t know how to process this. Why do you like Taiwan so much? What do you mean by everything?

But I think what I felt was what the manager felt, when he told me “I have never seen a Christian who loves Israel.”

Now I understand why he said it was an honor to meet me, because I honored his people first.

“Shabbat Shalom! Is shabbat over yet?”

The reception’s face was lit up. He doesn’t meet a lot of Asians I would say. And he somehow decided that I knew Jerusalem very well, probably better than most Israeli. I’m not too sure how he got that instinct, but I’m happy with a free upgrade!  (He didn’t have to give me an upgrade, you know.)

Then I used another Hebrew word, which I cannot recall now. And  he was surprised!

“? את מדברת עיברית”

“….קצת קצת”

(at medeberet ivrit?) (kezat kezat)

(Do you speak Hebrew?) (Just a little bit)

He gave me friendly smiles. We talked a little bit. Then I told him about what happened to my shabbat morning at the other hotel, just to see if he would agree or disagree. The manager said,

 “I cannot say he is wrong, but if I say that he is right, it will put me in a dangerous position.”  Then he went on, “I can give you many advantages and disadvantages of the Israeli being argumentative, it’s just like Confucianism has advantages and disadvantages for you. This personality may let us win the Nobel Prize, but I will say, before winning the award, many people have wasted a lot of energy with such personality.”

He has good points. A smart person indeed. Finally, after I got my key, he asked us,

“If I may have the liberty to ask, may I know what’s the purpose of your trip to Israel?”

I gave him an honest reply, “We are Christians, we are here because we love Israel. “

His facial expression changed. He paused. He was a smart and sophisticated man to begin with. He could answer everything with a calm and formal voice. But this time, he replied in a somewhat surprised tone:

“Thank you, I have never seen anyone like you.”

The incredible part of this incident was… I have seen this expression in my dream 3 months ago.  I had written my dream down.  When I think about this, it still gives me goose bumps.

I don’t know what others think, but I like Jewish people. They seem to be argumentative, defensive and perhaps even stubborn in appearance, but they have soft hearts and souls. They are not afraid to show their emotions. Once their identities are recognized, comparing to other people, I find Jewish people very open in sharing their hearts…

When I was leaving, he seemed to have more words that he wanted to say. And he said,

It’s an honor to meet you.