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Drawing Israel's Map: Eitam Farm
What determines the future borders of a country — diplomats in conference rooms, or shepherds on a hilltop?
On a ridge overlooking Bethlehem and the hills of Gush Etzion sits Eitam Farm, founded five years ago by Mordechai during the COVID period — though the idea, he says, had been with him for years.
“There have been attempts to inhabit the Aetam successfully for more than a decade,” he explains in the video. “This is the first attempt that lasted as long as it did and it's been growing consistently since we've moved in.”
When he arrived, he says, “there was nothing here. When I came here there was not one structure.” His purpose, as he describes it, is clear: “The purpose of me being here… is to keep this land from falling into hands of our enemies.”
He calls the project “not a profitable farm,” adding, “It's something we do for the main purpose of keeping Israel.”
At the heart of the farm is a Beit Knesset built with what he describes as “100% Jewish labor.” The site functions as both an agricultural outpost and a pre-army mechina program. “There's a morning Seder every morning,” he says, where boys study Talmud, Tanakh, and Halachah before heading out in the afternoon to work the fields. There is also a daily minyan.
Mordechai connects the location to biblical and Second Temple history, referencing Shimshon and ancient aqueducts that once carried water to Jerusalem. For him, the hilltop is both strategic and historic.
Looking out over nearby construction, he says, “The fact that we're here prevents them from encroaching and taking over all this valuable, strategically important and historically significant land.” He describes settling hilltops as “the Zionism of today.”
Originally raised in Brooklyn and educated in Haredi yeshivot before studying at Mercaz HaRav, Mordechai says his Zionism came from the texts themselves. “It was the Torah itself.” During COVID, “that's when it clicked that I can actually do this. It's not just a dream.”
His message to American Jews is direct: “The time for Jews in America is running out… I could only bless you that you should merit to come to Eretz Israel… with honor and dignity.”
Eitam Farm, he says, is “barely sustainable,” but for him the equation is simple: “We graze our sheep to a certain point, we plant vineyards. That's where Israel’s map is going to end.”
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By J.P. Katz from TRIBE JournalWhat determines the future borders of a country — diplomats in conference rooms, or shepherds on a hilltop?
On a ridge overlooking Bethlehem and the hills of Gush Etzion sits Eitam Farm, founded five years ago by Mordechai during the COVID period — though the idea, he says, had been with him for years.
“There have been attempts to inhabit the Aetam successfully for more than a decade,” he explains in the video. “This is the first attempt that lasted as long as it did and it's been growing consistently since we've moved in.”
When he arrived, he says, “there was nothing here. When I came here there was not one structure.” His purpose, as he describes it, is clear: “The purpose of me being here… is to keep this land from falling into hands of our enemies.”
He calls the project “not a profitable farm,” adding, “It's something we do for the main purpose of keeping Israel.”
At the heart of the farm is a Beit Knesset built with what he describes as “100% Jewish labor.” The site functions as both an agricultural outpost and a pre-army mechina program. “There's a morning Seder every morning,” he says, where boys study Talmud, Tanakh, and Halachah before heading out in the afternoon to work the fields. There is also a daily minyan.
Mordechai connects the location to biblical and Second Temple history, referencing Shimshon and ancient aqueducts that once carried water to Jerusalem. For him, the hilltop is both strategic and historic.
Looking out over nearby construction, he says, “The fact that we're here prevents them from encroaching and taking over all this valuable, strategically important and historically significant land.” He describes settling hilltops as “the Zionism of today.”
Originally raised in Brooklyn and educated in Haredi yeshivot before studying at Mercaz HaRav, Mordechai says his Zionism came from the texts themselves. “It was the Torah itself.” During COVID, “that's when it clicked that I can actually do this. It's not just a dream.”
His message to American Jews is direct: “The time for Jews in America is running out… I could only bless you that you should merit to come to Eretz Israel… with honor and dignity.”
Eitam Farm, he says, is “barely sustainable,” but for him the equation is simple: “We graze our sheep to a certain point, we plant vineyards. That's where Israel’s map is going to end.”