Nefesh B’Nefesh co-founder and executive director, Rabbi Yehoshua Fass, says the way he thinks about aliyah has changed.
When Fass and Tony Gelbart founded the organization in 2002, the mission was straightforward: help Jews overcome the practical obstacles standing between them and their decision to move to Israel, then support them as they built their lives in the country.
Rabbi Yehoshua Fass on the changing face of aliyah
(Video: Alex Gamburg)
Over the years, however, Fass says he began to see aliyah as something larger than an individual's journey.
"Everyone wants to build," Fass says, describing a growing desire among Jews around the world not simply to move from one country to another, but to come to Israel with a sense of purpose.
That shift, he says, has changed the conversation around aliyah. The question is no longer only how to make the move possible, but what an oleh wants to contribute once they arrive.
Beyond checking a box
Fass describes his early perspective on aliyah as highly focused on the individual. The goal was to help a person or family fulfill a dream, identify the obstacles in their way and find solutions that would allow them to make the move.
Today, he sees a broader motivation among many prospective olim.
For some, aliyah means bringing their profession to Israel and continuing their careers. For others, it means accepting personal or financial sacrifices because they believe their presence in the country has a greater purpose.
Israel's war and the events that followed have prompted some Jews abroad to reconsider what their relationship with Israel means and whether they can contribute by being there themselves.
"I need to come here. I need to build. I need to be part of something," Fass describes as the sentiment he hears.
For him, this represents a form of "value-based aliyah" — immigration motivated not only by personal fulfillment, but by a desire to take part in the country's future.
Finding opportunity beyond Israel's center
That approach can also influence where new immigrants choose to live.
Fass says that as people consider communities farther from Israel's center, they can discover a different quality of life — including larger homes and outdoor space that may be out of reach in the country's most expensive areas.
Rabbi Yehoshua Fass
(Photo: Screenshot)
But he argues that the real attraction is not necessarily a higher standard of living.
It can instead be the quality of life that comes from building a home and community in a place where residents feel they are needed.
For new olim, that can mean looking beyond the familiar destinations and considering how their skills, families and ambitions could contribute to communities throughout Israel.
Aliyah in a changing Jewish world
The future of aliyah is difficult to predict, Fass acknowledges, particularly as Jewish communal life around the world continues to change.
Rather than attempting to forecast precisely what the next wave of aliyah will look like, he hopes it will increasingly be driven by inspiration, desire and a sense of purpose — rather than by necessity alone.
That distinction is central to his broader understanding of aliyah.
Moving to Israel inevitably involves sacrifices and difficult periods, as does any major decision that carries lasting value. But Fass believes that having a clear understanding of why the move matters can help families navigate those challenges.
For him, aliyah is ultimately not simply a change of address. It is an opportunity for an individual and a family to become part of something larger than themselves — and, in the process, to give their decision to move to Israel meaning that extends well beyond the day they arrive.
More than 20 years after Nefesh B’Nefesh was founded, that idea has become an increasingly important part of Fass's vision: aliyah not simply as the fulfillment of a personal dream, but as an opportunity to build, contribute and take part in Israel's future.
First published: 16:50, 09.08.26