🎶 Longing for Zion - Through the Song “The Land is in My Dreams”

🎯 Objective

Students will explore how Jerusalem functioned as a symbol of hope and identity for Soviet Jews – and how their struggle inspired Jews around the world.

📖 The Story Behind the Song (5–7 minutes)

Share with students:

• In 1967, after reading The Jews of Silence, Toby Klein Greenwald learned about Soviet Jews who kept their identity alive despite repression.

• In 1984, while teaching in Toronto, she heard Avital Sharansky speak about her husband, Natan Sharansky, who was imprisoned for wanting to leave the USSR for Israel.

• Inspired by their story, she wrote the song “The Land is in My Dreams.”

• After Sharansky was released, he heard the song and signed the lyrics: “Next year in Jerusalem.”

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👉 Emphasize: This song was not written in the USSR – but it was inspired by Soviet Jews and their struggle.

🎶 Core Activity (15–20 minutes)

Song: The Land is in My Dreams

1. Listen to the song or read the lyrics

2. Ask students to identify:

   • Words expressing dream, hope, distance

   • References to land, Zion, Jerusalem

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUwjITUj3K8

💬 Discussion (15 minutes)

• Why is the land described as a dream?

• Why was this dream so powerful for Soviet Jews?

• Why did Jews in the free world feel connected to this struggle?

• How can someone else’s struggle shape your identity?

  
  

🔗 Connection to Jerusalem Day (5–10 minutes)

Make it sharp:

Jerusalem Day is not only about a city.It is about a dream that Jews held onto – even when they were far away.

Key idea: Jerusalem connected Jews across borders – even between those who were free and those who were not.

🧠 Wrap-up (2–3 minutes)

Complete:

“Jerusalem is not only a place, it is ______.”