By: Anastasiya Gooding

Since 1980, the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem has faithfully helped the Jewish people return to Israel and put down roots in their ancestral homeland by supporting various integration initiatives.

Often, when we meet olim (new immigrants), we see a burning desire in their hearts not only to establish their personal lives in Israel, but also to make a special contribution to the country in which they are now citizens.

In response, the ICEJ actively supports various programs that help new immigrants update their professional credentials or receive training so that they can pursue employment opportunities and fully develop their careers here in Israel.

One such program offers a medical training course for doctors from Russian-speaking countries aimed at helping them pass a recertification exam so they can practice their profession in Israel. This course is a win-win for immigrants and for Israel, where there is a great need for qualified medical professionals. Upon successful completion of their exams, these immigrant doctors undergo an internship supervised by Israeli doctors before they are fully qualified in Israel. Some 99% complete the course and receive assistance to find employment in hospitals around the country.

Ilya and Olga made Aliyah last year and through the sponsorship of the ICEJ joined the medical course to work towards certification in Israel. Ilya always had a dream of making Aliyah and wanted to serve as a doctor here in Israel. He studied to be a family doctor and plans to specialize in Oncology. His wife Olga is an epidemiologist, however after moving to Israel she decided to study a new field of medicine to broaden her horizons.

The program contains many benefits as it provides a place to stay, stipend for food, and the freedom to study without having to find work immediately. This was very helpful to Ilya and Olga because it gave them the opportunity to focus on their studies.

“This is a very high-level course and we have learned a lot of new information that was very useful for our doctor’s career”, said Ilya. Olga also pointed out what a great inspiration it has been for them to learn that there are treatment options in Israel that did not exist in the hospitals where they worked before.

“Thank you for this opportunity and thank you for your interest in these programs. Thank you so much for your help”, said a grateful Ilya.

Now they want to become established here in Israel and be good doctors and good citizens. They dream to be able to offer their children a better future and more opportunities than what they could have before.

Dima, along with his wife (also a doctor), moved to Israel from a small town. Dima studied general medicine and now both he and his wife are successfully completing the medical training course with exams just a little over a month away.

“I am very surprised by the gift that this program has been”, he stated. “Israel has some of the best medicine in the world. I have not seen anything better and feel that this is an opportunity to advance.”

While studying, Dima has made many friends among the other doctors in the program. At the end of July, they will take their exams. After passing the exams they will move to different places to complete their internships and build their new lives and careers in one of the cites in Israel.

“I would like to study cardiology and start first in Haifa”, Dima offered.

Nicole Yoder, the ICEJ’s Vice President for Aid & Aliyah, recently met with some of the medical trainees we are sponsoring and explained that our financial support for them comes from Christians around the world who want to bless the people of Israel in practical ways.

Emil, one of the training program coordinators, responded: “Thank you so much for all of your support and help. I am a historian by profession. I know that there have been many tough times throughout history between Christians and Jews.”

“What you and other Christian organizations do is an opportunity to change the bad history, to bring hearts together. This is very beautiful”, Emil added. “I hope it will continue and that we will be brothers and sisters living in peace. Thank you so much.” In turn, we want to thank you – our supporters – for your generous giving, which is breaking down barriers built up over the centuries and is forging new relationships between the Christian world and the Jewish people.