Autumn Years Fall 2023

Rabbi Ziona and her family, 2022.

It is hard to explain what happened, but tears poured from my eyes, my heart was beating fast, and then Reb Zalman talked about how eyes are the window to our soul, and that we can see each other as ones who are made in the image of God.” Then he followed up with a teaching that reflects her approach to spiritual life now. She shares his words: “There is a mountain and we are all climbing it, and we all want to get to the one top. And we all call that mountain and the path leading to it by different names. When we get to the top, we get to see what we are and always were. We all share the same peak. The same goes for the many different traditions and faiths. Each might look different, but they all reach out to the same source of divinity.” The third spiritual awakening was when “I had a complicated birth of my third child. My baby was in danger, but he was born perfect! It was a miracle, in my point of view. And I asked ‘What is this mystery all about?’” Rabbi Ziona says.

Hinduism. I stayed in ashrams in India and Japan. I had gurus who taught me meditations,” Rabbi Ziona said. She recalls three significant spiritual awakenings. One occurred on a cold, snowy night when Chief Bear Heart of the Muskogee Nation Creek Tribe said during a teepee ceremony, “Look outside. You will see your footsteps on the deep snow as you walk in to this teepee. Just remember, that when you leave the teepee in the morning, the footsteps will

desert, which started in 1967 and lasted to 1970. “When you’re a soldier, you get educated in patriotism, and you could lose your life. It is scary to run to a bunker or hear bombs around you. Conditions were challenging but when you are 18 or 19 years of age, you just know you have a job to do,” she says. She went from being a soldier to working at the Ministry of Defense office, where she met Ron, who is American, during a meeting with her

be covered with fresh snow. You will make new footsteps that will not be the same as before.” This helped her develop her own self awareness. The second spiritual awakening occurred in Milwaukee, when she attended a workshop led by the

boss. It was love at first sight 48 years ago. After their marriage, Rabbi Ziona became a student at Tel Aviv University, where she studied Biblical archaeology and ancient languages. When she immigrated to the United States in 1977, she continued her

late Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, who founded the Jewish Renewal movement. “In one of his exercises, he asked us to pair up, face each other and with a complete stillness, look in the eyes of the partner. A niggun (Jewish soul music) was played in the background.

education in cultural anthropology at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. “During my studies of cultural anthropology, I was fascinated with the richness of spirituality of other cultures. I was especially drawn to spirituality of the Native American nations and

FALL 2023 I AUTUMN YEARS 31