Is Visiting Israel a Mitzvah?
Question
I wish I could make aliyah in order to fulfill the mitzvah of living in Israel. I very much love Israel. And I have visited often. But aliyah would mean moving far away from my family and friends and the community I know and everything else that is familiar to me. Is there any mitzvah in visiting Israel every several years if you don’t live there permanently?
Answers
Personally, I think that the best thing that you can do right now is to pray with heartfelt sincerity that the Mashiach will announce his arrival in and that way you and your entire family will be able to come to Israel together to live! Until then, is there a Mitzvah of visiting Israel? There is no Mitzvah, per se. However, there are many Mitzvos that can be performed only in Israel. Perhaps the most significant one for a visitor is walking for amos (cubits) in Israel is a Mitzvah (see Tractate Kesubos 111a). This means that when you come to Israel for a visit and you explore places that you have not been to in the past, approximately every six feet that you walk is a brand new Mitzvah!
Best wishes from the AskTheRabbi.org Team