Liberty student Experiences Life in Jerusalem Amidst the Pandemic

Editor’s Note: Due to security reasons, Jacob Alexander prefers to be attributed using his middle name rather than his last name.

Jacob Alexander never dreamed he would have the opportunity to study at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem—an institution whose founders include Albert Einstein. But with help from LU Send, the doors opened “at the perfect time,” according to Alexander. He found himself in the capital city of Israel, even in the middle of a worldwide pandemic. 

The decision to go to Israel came after he went on a short-term trip with LU Send to Israel in January 2020. After the trip, Alexander, an international relations major with an interest in learning Arabic said the thought of studying abroad at Hebrew University of Jerusalem stayed with him. 

Liberty University started a relationship with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 2018. According to David Welch, the executive director at LU Send, the university formed a formal agreement with the Rothberg International School in 2019 to send  students to Jerusalem each semester. 

“[David Welch] mentioned something about studying at Hebrew University,” Alexander said. “I thought it sounded cool, but it wasn’t something I considered that I could do. It just kind of stayed on my heart from January into the summer, and then I looked at my degree completion plan, [to see] if it was maybe possible. I reached out to David again, and he was very encouraging.”

“It was just a very natural partnership between Rothberg International School and at Hebrew University and LU Send,” Welch said. “They’ve been very generous with us.” 

That generosity included extending financial assistance to Liberty students. 

“They’ve actually developed, with the government of Israel, an exclusive scholarship for Liberty students studying abroad through LU Send, and so that makes it very reasonably-priced in proximity to cost of attendance at Liberty,” Welch said.  

Through LU Send, Alexander was able to apply and get the green light to travel to Israel in the spring semester of 2021. While he was there, he took courses in Arabic, international relations, Israeli-Palestinian conflict and Israeli security. 

Perhaps the most rewarding part of Alexander’s experience, however, was the chance to share the gospel and represent his evangelical beliefs in his everyday life. 

“Going out and about in Jerusalem, I never felt uncomfortable or anything [due to] being a Christian or making it known that I am [a Christian],” Alexander said. 

In fact, Alexander was able to have conversations about spiritual matters and religious beliefs quite often with his Jewish roommates.

“I was able to have great conversations with them, and they were open, and we’d have our Shabbat meal,” Alexander said. “Every Friday night, we’d go to the synagogue with one of the guys. Then, we’d come back, and we’d break bread together… We’d eat and sit and talk, typically about spiritual things, late into the night.” 

For Liberty students, Christian community is something that can be found easily on campus. Finding that same kind of community abroad, however, is not always guaranteed, so students must often intentionally seek out other Christians. Fortunately for Alexander, he encountered a strong community of believers in Jerusalem, finding encouragement in their different backgrounds.

“The Christian community in Israel was very interesting because I had people—literally—from all over the world who were in my weekly Bible study,” Alexander said. “Just the people I had fellowship with, as far as other believers, [were] from South Korea, China, Finland, Germany, the U.S. and people from South Africa.” 

Militant Palestinian islamic extremists launched rockets towards Jerusalem during his time there. Alexander said that he always felt very aware of potential conflict in the Middle East.

“I felt very safe the whole time,” Alexander said. “I didn’t feel in any danger because the people at Hebrew University were very good about letting us know what was happening before it started happening.” 

Though he was advised not to go out after dark, Alexander said he felt comfortable going most places. The university held informative meetings, which helped ease his concerns as well. 

“[Hebrew University] had multiple security meetings where they would let us know the situation [and] what was happening,” Alexander said.

Welch, himself an Israeli citizen, feels that Liberty’s partnership with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem is a very special opportunity that carries great potential for Liberty students. 

“If you were to go to that campus, you would be shocked,” Welch said. “It’s a microcosm of peace in the Middle East because you’ve got Palestinian Arabs and Orthodox Jews and international students studying together, collaborating on projects. And it really is unlike anything you’d find in a lot of places in the world.” 

Smith is the A-section copy editor. Follow her on Twitter at @jssmith_jss.