A Realist Stands in Israel
A poem
By MATTHEW GOLDBERG
Contributing Writer
26 October 2024
“You once told me,
that in Israel,
in order to be a realist,
one must believe in miracles.
But I never saw the sea part.
I never tasted manna.
I did not watch the walls of Jericho
come tumbling to the ground.
And yet,
I'm standing in Israel—
And I am a realist—
So I must have seen a miracle
somewhere along the way.
And then it hits me:
I'm standing in Israel.”
Editor’s Note
A Realist Stands in Israel was inspired by the famous quote from David Ben-Gurion: ‘In Israel, in order to be a realist, you must believe in miracles.’
Matthew has found that Jews around the world are gravitating towards this idea, and the blurred line between realism and miraculousness in Israel. He brings in imagery from the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) to illuminate the timelessness of Israel’s miracle. Matthew’s storytelling shows us that Israel has survived attacks since the beginning of time — not only since 1948 — and that Jews have learned to draw their strength and resilience from our Holy Land. The Jews and the Land of Israel have grown together and continue to survive against all odds, and this poem reminds us of the unbelievable nature of this fact. A Realist Stands in Israel is the product of Matthew’s inclination to explore this inherently contradictory, yet striking message.
— Jamie Kaplan