How do I talk to my husband about making Aliyah

November 26, 2018 at 3:10 AM
Rebekah Ohana asked 5 years ago
Shalom Rabbi, My husband and I went to Israel for the first time on our honeymoon. Immediately upon landing we felt like we were home. We have been thinking about Israel ever since. I watch your lectures every week and I really feel Mashiach is coming any day now. I want to make Aliya so bad but I don’t know how to discuss this with my husband. He also loves Israel and wants to move there “one day”. He was previously married to a non-Jewish woman and has two non-Jewish children with her. Should we wait to move when his kids become adults? We also just had a little girl and I don’t want her to be raised in America. How do I discuss this with him? This is a sensitive subject because he knows he sinned by marrying a non-Jew but he loves his kids. Your help is appreciated! Thank you for all you do! If it is possible I would like this to be anonymous or just not posted publicly. Thank you.
1 Answers
Rabbi Yosef Karpman answered 5 years ago
Shalom ,  The Best way to approach the subject is by focusing on the environment that you would like to have for your children growing up and the unique opportunities that Israel would offer.  Key to your husbands perspective would be access to his children.  Since spiritually the mother is the key to influencing and educating the kids that your husband has fathered they will still have a strong link to him but frequently have preferences  for the mother even if he sees and spends quality time with them daily. In the Torah ,Sarah understanding the differences between yishmael  and yitzhak  led to her advising Avraham  to expel yishmael and Hagar.  The verse relates that Avraham heard Sarah.  This is what should be emphasized to your husband.  Recognize that your superior instincts aren’t always shared by your husband and that his desire is to manage both being available to his kids and to his eventual dreams of living in Israel. Ultimately you shouldn’t make it a question of doing whats right for yourself and your daughter vs doing what is right for his other children but really what is right for everyone as a man is to cleave to his wife and that is you.  In the long run his other children will actually benefit spiritually from him developing spiritually in Israel.     best wishes  —-R.Yosef Karpman