Shivah – Paying Homage to The Living, Not the Dead

 

Special thanks go to Roger Froikin for his assistance and advice.

Many of us have heard the Hebrew term “Shivah” (seven) which is the first stage of mourning in Jewish tradition. The others include, the first thirty (“Shloshim”) days counting from the burial and the one-year period from the day of death.

 Shivah is the course of the seven days (or less if interrupted by a Holy Day or Shabbat) following the burial of a family member. This custom had existed even before the giving of Torah and can be traced to Bresheet 50:10 where Yoseph declared seven days of mourning following the death of Ya’akov, his father.  The Jerusalem Talmud states that it is an enactment of Moshe, “just as Moshe enacted seven days of rejoicing after marriage, so, too, he enacted seven days of mourning (shivah).” (Jerusalem Talmud, Ketubot 1:1)

Unfortunately, some, especially some of our fellow Jews, as I found out, merely a few days ago, are vaguely familiar with or understand, the depth of the concept and its purpose.

A dear friend shared with me that when her late father passed away, it was her mother’s wish that they refrain from sitting Shivah following his burial. Naturally, I raised my eyebrows and before I was able to utter a word, she added, “It is ok, we, immensely, respected him, anyway.”

As a staunch believer in practicing liberties, especially Freedom of choice, I elected to remain silent. I was, however, deeply disturbed by her lack of knowledge and comprehension of the intent of such a practice.

It is important to note that once the Shivah begins, it is the mourners who become the focus of attention. Naturally, these are not easy days. The grief of the loss of a dear one is heart wrenching, emotionally and physically draining and takes a toll on the ones close to the deceased. It is during such times that the community is there to support them, help them and comfort them.

In Judaism, it is a Mitzvah to visit friends and relatives who are sitting Shivah. A Mitzvah is not merely a “good deed.” It is not something one is supposed to do just because Torah tells us to do. It is an act that is intended to do good to its performer. Supporting a relative, a friend or an acquaintance who is in need is a sign of true friendship.

Comforting the mourner, however, does not mean distracting them from the misfortune that they had been through. Being surrounded with visitors who through talking and speaking about the loved one they lost provides the mourners with soothing help and assistance in the healing process and the reconciliation with reality.

Most importantly, The practice of Shivah is aimed at aiding to restore and support a healthy psychological response to mourning and loss. This period serves as a distraction from the negative emotions of the mourning stage that the remaining family members must endure. It removes them from the regular daily duties and responsibilities of life.

Judaism is not the only faith that adheres to such a practice. Other peoples and other cultures have evolved similar effective means of dealing with the loss of loved ones.

There is plenty of research conducted in the last seventy years which links such a practice with good post-loss mental health, social adjustment, and job effectiveness.

So, we should continue to respect the dead, honour them, pay them homage, and continue to act in accordance with the lessons they have taught us in love.

But we need to remember that the custom of “Shivah” is for us, The Living, more than it is for them, the dead.

Shavua tov to all. May we all be blessed with abundant health and a long life.

A Son of Zion

He was born in a small town in Belarus in the latter part of the 19^th century. His father, Yitzchok, was a distinguished rabbi. His mother, Tscherna, was a hard-working woman who raised him and his eleven sisters and brothers in the finest way .

As the years went by, one by one, several of his siblings left the nest to roam in greener pastures, overseas. Unlike them, he elected to stay and get certified as a Jewish ritual slaughterer.

These were not easy times for Jews in the Russian Empire. Many were exposed to the Haskalah ( Jewish Enlightenment Movement) which promoted the use of Hebrew, in Literature, instead of Yiddish, exposed many to the noble ideas of the French Revolution which ignited their political and social involvement and pushed a great number of them  to follow the Marxist doctrine and even attempt to set up a Marxist party in Minsk in 1898. He was one of them.

As someone who is opposed to any form of such doctrines, I try to rationalize this young man’s political and social choices. These were times when the Marxist ideology seemed like the ultimate panacea for injustice, inequality, and illiteracy. No one, including our young hero, had expected that it would fail and fade into the realm of utopia and in such a short period.

His strong desire to make the world a better place also drove this inquisitive young man to travel to Warsaw in order to meet and befriend Dr. Zamenhof, the Jewish linguist who invented Esperanto. The idea of a world without wars, without religious or linguistic barriers which could be materialized by the use of an international, easy to learn language which would be accessible to all, pushed him to master it almost to perfection. He became one of its most avid advocates and supporters.

In the early part of the twentieth century, this ambitious young man decided to join his sister, Hilda, who had moved to London several years earlier and try his luck there. He started his way as an encyclopedia salesman, albeit not with much success. There were days, I was told, when he suffered hunger and cold. During those times, he would deliberately break a window merely to be arrested, spend the night in a warmer jail cell where he would also get to eat a free hot meal.

Sales, obviously, were not his strong suit. He left London and moved to Oxford. There, our brilliant hero earned a PhD in English Literature.

At the onset of world war I, he was deployed by the British army. During the war, he travelled with the navy all the way to southeast Asia. He did not like what he witnessed there. In his outspoken manner, he criticized the colonial endeavour and protested the way the British treated the locals.

For me, he was an early version of George Orwell.

His words, protests and harsh condemnation of British imperialism did not go unnoticed. He was dismissed from the army and forced out of the kingdom.

Left with no choices, our young man moved back to Russia where the early buds of the Bolshevik revolution were beginning to sprout. Being a firm believer in the Marxist ideology, he joined the effort.

A short while after the onset of the Revolution, disorder settled in. Our intelligent perceptive hero realized that it was a dream which would never come to fruition. He was a living witness to its collapse and the unavoidable conclusion that as attractive as the solution  that it offered to end world maladies, it was doomed to failure.

Shattered by what he observed, he decided to move to Poland.

One day, during a train ride to Vilna, he noticed Sarah, that was her name as he learned later, sitting  across the aisle from him and instantly fell in love with her. Her green, lovely eyes and her red wavy hair mesmerized him. Sarah was on her way to get betrothed to a young man that she had never met. When their glimpses met, they both knew that she would never reach her destination.

Sarah was the daughter of a very wealthy wholesale merchant. Our young man joined him, soon after he married Sarah, learned the art of trade, and eventually ran the whole business together with his fiery wife Sarah.

Yesterday’s Marxist became a capitalist and he loved it. He raised two brilliant talented children. They had everything money could buy, maids, nannies, trips and a summer home.  They even had a radio where they would listen to the finest operas while our man would describe to his children in, as vivid a manner as possible, the various scenes as he experienced them at Covent Garden or other concert halls. Poland, Polania (in Hebrew translates as “here G-d slept”) for him, was just that, the land of milk and honey.

Unfortunately, history had other plans in store for our protagonist. Twenty years later, the world was thrown into chaos when World War II started.

The infamous Riventrop-Molotov agreement of September 1, 1939, put him and his family at harm’s way. Luckily for some, not for our man and his family, though, they were situated in that part of Poland which fell into the hands of the Russians. As a business owner, a rich bourgeois, our man suddenly became the enemy of the state. “Criminals,” like him deserved only one fate. They should be sent to the Gulag where they would be placed in forced labour camps. On September 3^rd, the “culprit” was already on a howling train which made its way eastward to the unknown. He never came back.

This great man was my maternal grandfather, Ben – Zion (son of Zion, in Hebrew). I, Bat-Zion, am named after him and I pledge here and now that I will never desert his legacy and will continue to share his story with the world.

Shanah Tova, Am Yisrael <3

Judaism and Compassion

“Christianity is more compassionate and loving than Judaism,” said to me one of my students who was indoctrinated by missionaries to parrot their words. “Judaism is vindictive, harsh and inflexible,” he went on to give me the reasons why he chose to adopt the Christian faith. As an example, he cited the verse from Mathew that states: “You have heard it was said, ‘An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say unto you, ‘Do not resist one who is evil. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” His example caught me somewhat flabbergasted as all it did was merely mislead him to believe that compassion is synonymous with abuse since, in the views of some, “turning the other cheek” is what it boils down to. I also found his observation and conclusion about Judaism not only unfounded but also surprising since that student came from a non-practicing home and had very minimal, if any, knowledge about Judaism and our Tanach in order to be able to form an objective view and disprove or refute such allegations.

So lest other innocent souls fall prey to such disinformation and deceitful messages, I have decided to take the opportunity and educate some of our fellow Jews about our own beautiful culture and hopefully rectify the damage that has been inflicted upon us through similar antics by those who will do all they can to “steal our souls.”

Firstly, not only is Judaism not vindictive or encourages to carry grudges, it teaches compassion and sympathy to the suffering of others. What then is a better way to arm the uneducated among us with knowledge than through revisiting our Tanach and other sources for pointing out the truth?

Towards that end, I decided to focus this article on this week’s Parasha, Ki Tetse.

Ki Tetse addresses several issues. They all share a common denominator, Compassion. According to the Cambridge Dictionary Compassion is: ”A strong feeling of sympathy and sadness for the suffering or bad luck of others and a wish to help them.” And these are the sentiments that are echoed in many of the commandments that are discussed in this Parasha. Let us look at a few.

The first issue in this Parasha discusses the treatment of non-Jewish women who are captured in war. The text stresses that the captive women need to be treated well. According to it, they have rights and privileges. And that, dear readers, was decreed thousands of years before the Geneva Convention was initiated.

Another important issue that is mentioned in this Parasha refers to the kind treatment of lost or hurt animals. “Thou shalt not see thy brother’s ox or his sheep driven away and hide thyself from them; thou shalt surely bring them back unto thy brother.” The text further expands to say:” Thou shalt not see thy brother’s ass or his ox fallen down by the way and hide thyself from them; thou shalt surely help him to lift them up again. ” Neither should one tie a donkey and an ox to the same plough when cultivating a field as they are not equal in capabilities and the weaker one might suffer as a result.

I can almost hear those who are familiar with the Parasha calling me out and claiming that some of the commandments that are listed here display women as disadvantaged to men. That, unfortunately, is correct. Though I do not condone such attitudes of inequality, I would ask the readers to look at this part of the Parasha from the perspective of the ancient world, mainly Mesopotamia, in which the Hebrew culture of the Tanach was reared. There, women were not regarded as autonomous individuals and did not practice much personal sovereignty.  

However, as I pointed out above, overall, these commandments do present a compassionate society. Honest compassion encompasses empathy and is perceptive to the needs of others. Compassion, therefore, can, eventually, inspire and encourage greater equality for everyone. All one needs to do, nowadays, is look at the modern-day Jewish society and see how our compassionate essence has produced a better and happier Jewish world.

Shabbat Shalom

Na'aseh V'Nishma

This week’s Parasha is Mishpatim. Am Yisrael is at the foot of Mount Sinai and is receiving G-d’s Laws.

I have been to Mount Sinai. I stood on top of it where Moshe received the Torah and where G-d revealed Himself to Am Yisrael. G-d did not appear to them in any shape or form, merely in a spectacular scene in the configuration of sounds, lights, torches and the reverberation of the Shofar. "וְכָל הָעָם רֹאִים אֶת הַקּוֹלֹת וְאֶת הַלַּפִּידִם וְאֵת קוֹל הַשֹּׁפָר וְאֶת הָהָר עָשֵׁן וַיַּרְא הָעָם וַיָּנֻעוּ וַיַּעַמְדוּ מֵרָחֹק" (Exodus, 20; 14).  This dazzling audio visual spectacle must have had a profound effect on those witnessing it for according to the Hebrew quote above, they “saw” the sounds. The root Re’eh, Reish Alef, Hey  ר,א,ה  also appears in the Tanach in the context  of “understand.” They internalized the divine message and acknowledged it by pledging, “Na’aseh Ve’nishma.” We shall do and we shall hear.

What a sight, what an emotional upheaval it must have been for those present. When I stood on top of that mountain and looked down at the valley underneath where all of Am Yisrael was gathered, I closed my eyes for a brief moment. I was one of them. I could feel the surge of their emotions, the quivering of the foundations of their being, their joy, their ecstasy and the reflection of awe in their eyes. I could feel the words and the sounds that they witnessed as they were being etched on the walls of their essence, an imprint that has been passed on to us, their descendants.

Standing there, I felt proud, very proud, for yet another reason.

The exact number of those that came out of Egypt is not clear. We do know, however, that there were at least 600,000 men among them. So one can safely surmise that there were at least 600,000 witnesses to what I described above, witnesses to their covenant with the G-d of Avraham, Yaakov and Yitzchak.

 Now, what other religion, especially among the monotheistic ones, can claim such a widespread testament to validate that experience? And we all know that there is credibility and authority in numbers. 

With all due respect to other religions where Divine revelation rendered itself to one individual, I am very glad that to our covenant there were so many witnesses! It certainly sends a strong message out.

And, as a Jew I am honoured to be one of its carriers.

Shabbat Shalom

Judaism and Slavery

As some of you know, I have recently returned from a trip to some parts of Africa.

Each time I visit that continent, I cannot help but recall that dark chapter of its history, the one relating to the slave trade. An estimate of 12 million slaves entered the Atlantic Trade between the 16^th and 19^th centuries, according to the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade database. Many died on board the ships that carried them and those that survived were subject to horrendous treatment upon arriving in the New World.

Slavery is an old practice that was prevalent in the ancient world. It is first mentioned in the Hamurabi Code of Laws. Even the Tanach addresses the issue, though overall, it opposes such a practice as reflected in Leviticus 25:55 “for the Israelites belong to me as servants. They are my servants, whom I brought out of Egypt. I am the LORD your God.” Personal freedom is considered a prime value in Jewish Scriptures and is even given a special recognition in the first of the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20:2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.”

Moreover, Torah laws forbid the theft of people for the purpose of selling them as slaves (Deuteronomy, 24:7). Whoever engages in such antics is sentenced to death (Exodus 21:16). The law mentioned in Deuteronomy 23:16 which forbids the surrendering of an escaped slave, back to his or her owner, is an exception in the ancient near east and is unique to Judaism.

The Hebrew word for “slave” is eved and is derived from the word La’avod (to work). It means “a non-paid worker.” Slaves, according to the Torah, are the property of their owners until the time of their release.

Unlike modern day slavery (which unfortunately we still witness in some parts around the world), in both the Hamurabi Code and the Tanach, it is a form of paying debts. A person who was unable to pay off his or her debt would give one of their family members to the lender as a payoff. Both sources believe that it is a way to restore the debtors to their previous status in a “more dignified” manner and can be done by court order only.

One of the differences between the two sources is that the “slavery” period is only three years, according to Hamurabi, whereas the Tanach ( Exodus and Deuteronomy) doubled the period to six years probably in an effort to synchronize it with the six working days of the week or the six years before Shmita. That, perhaps, is the reason why, according to the Torah, the master is required to bestow gifts on the slave upon his release.

It is also noteworthy to mention, at this stage, the essential difference between the verses addressing the slave in Exodus and Deuteronomy. Unlike the former, the latter equates male and female slaves which, for ancient times and patriarchal societies was rather unique.

Another difference between the Hamurabi Code and the Torah concerns disobediant slaves. While both discuss branding their ear for following their insubordination and rebellion against their master, the Hamurabi Code is a form of punishment involving the removal of the ear while in the Torah, it merely involves piercing and comes to symbolize “eternal slavery.”

The aforementioned difference is an excellent example of how the Biblical law maker takes an ancient law and bends it to suit the needs, values of the Yisraelite culture of the First Temple era.

Though the above discussion applies only to Hebrew slaves, Maimonides (1138-1205) was the first to address the duty towards the humane treatment of gentile slaves. In his Mishneh Torah (Laws of Slaves 1: 6), he expresses uneasiness with the treatment of gentile slaves which the Torah sanctions to work with “harsh labour” (b'farekh).

It is not in vain that Maimonides is considered the first ever abolitionist.

Let me finish with some of his quotes on slavery which are laced with Tanach quotes, all reflecting his wisdom and compassion in accordance with Jewish Scriptures and moral code:

“It is permissible to have a Canaanite slave perform excruciating labour (farekh). Although this is the law, piety and of wisdom require a person to be compassionate, pursue justice and not to overburden his slaves, or inflict distress upon them.

He should feed them and give them drinks from all his available food and drink. This was the practice of the ancient Sages who would feed their slaves the same dishes that they themselves partook and feed their animals and slaves before they did themselves.

As is written in Psalms 123:2 “As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master,
as the eyes of a female slave look to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the Lord our God, till he shows us his mercy.”

Similarly, a master should not abuse a slave verbally or physically. Torah only intended work for them, not humiliation. One should speak kindly to them and pay attention to their grievances as Job 31:13-15 states:  

“If I have denied justice to any of my servants, whether male or female, when they had grievance against me, what will I do when G-d confronts me? What will I answer when called to account? Did not He who made me in the womb make them? Did not the same One form us both within our mothers?”  

May we all follow in the footsteps of Maimonides’s prudent and sensible legacy and protect and defend the dignity of Man.

Shabbat Shalom

Atta Farhat – A Druze hero

I trust that by now, many have heard about the New “Basic Law,” recently passed by the Yisraeli Knesset. The law which is based on the essence of Medinat Yisrael, as stated in our Declaration of Independence, changes nothing on the ground. It merely anchors and reaffirms the essence of the Jewish state.

Members of some minorities are up in arms protesting it. Thankfully, not all. Some, like my dear friend, Atta Farhat, head of the Druze Zionist Council, a proud and loyal Yisraeli Druz, supports and endorses it.

I spoke to him yesterday afternoon. The following are his words.

“Yisrael is the National Home of the Jewish People. This basic principle appears in all basic national and international documents pertaining to the State of Yisrael, starting with the Balfour Declaration, through the British Mandate, UN Resolution 181 and culminating in our Declaration of Independence.

Up until now, this  principle was not anchored in the Law. At the same time, Yisrael has always been committed to provide, equal rights to all its citizens, regardless of race, religious creed, race or  gender.

The State of Yisrael is a Jewish and Democratic state. Its Democratic nature is expressed in a variety of laws and rulings of its Supreme Court. The basic laws including the basic law honouring the dignity of Man and his freedom, stressed it. This law merely focuses on the Jewish identity aspect of the Jewish state and defines the need for self determination of the Jewish People in Eretz Yisrael.

The new law, completes the basic law calling to honour Man and his freedom and does not contradict it. It is nothing but another effort to cement those laws of the State of Yisrael . It adds and will also include an identity clause.

The law also anchors existing values and symbols which determine the nature of Medinat Yisrael, its Holy Days as has been the practice from its inception. It reaffirms the Law of Return, which reflects Yisrael as the National Homeland of the Jewish People and which was recognized by the Supreme Court as an important basic law. It gave these laws a constitutional status.

This Law also states that Yisrael will open and strengthen Jewish settlements. This springs out of the understanding that this is a National value towards fulfilling the Zionist dream, a principle that has guided previous Yisraeli governments. Similarly, and parallel to this, present and previous governments have worked towards providing solutions in the non-Jewish sectors of the Yisraeli population. The law does not aim at creating separate communities in Yisrael based on religion and nationality.

Additionally, the law sets practical objectives which express the core of Yisrael as the National Home of the Jewish People: its emblem, its flag, its language and the right of return, among others. It provides a guarantee by the state of Yisrael to work and strengthen the connection between the Jewish People in Yisrael and the Diaspora.

According to this law, the Arabic language will receive a special status. Its inclusion in state institutions will be stated in law. There is a clause in this new law that ensures that the status of the Arabic language will not be hurt.

This law is necessary, especially these days, when many try to shake the foundations of the rights of the Jewish People to Medinat Yisrael to settle and live in its ancestral and historical Homeland yet toil ceaselessly to recognize a Palestinian state. This is hypocrisy and double standard and double moral.

Finally, many of the clauses that appear in this Law appear in many other Western Democracies.

Those I represent, myself included, oppose turning Yisrael into a “state of all of its citizens,” its infiltrators as it poses a threat to the continued existence of the Jewish state in Eretz Yisrael.

Finally, the Left and the NIF have joined hands to create a rift between the Jewish People and our Fellow Druze.”

Friends, it is people like Fatta that Yisrael needs more of. Let us all join hands and support him and the uphill battle that he is currently facing.

Am Yisrael Chai

The Magic of Hebrew

“The Hebrew language... is the only glue which holds together our scattered bones. It also holds together the rings in the chain of time.... It binds us to those who built pyramids, to those who shed their blood on the ramparts of Jerusalem, and to those who, at the burning stakes, cried Shema Yisrael!”

Y. L. Peretz

I love languages. I speak six and teach three.  These factors, I believe, have provided me with a rather fair and objective way to study and evaluate the wisdom of languages. 

Furthermore, it has given me a tool to better understand and more greatly appreciate my own as the wise words of Johann Wolfgang van Goethe lucidly articulated it: “He who knows no foreign language does not know his own.”

Of course, everyone should love their own language first. I do. I love Hebrew, the few millennia old language of the Jewish People. I love it not merely because it is my language and the language of my People that connects our Jewish past, present and future as Y.L. Peretz suggested in the quote above. I love it because, I found that of all the languages that I know and teach, Hebrew is, by far, one of the most cogent and sensible.

And before anyone accuses me of being “an elitist” or being “biased,” please allow me to explain.

Hebrew, one of the most ancient languages in the history of mankind, is based on the root structure. What this means is that every word consists of basic three letters (sometimes four). These three letters are called Shoresh (root).

Just like the root of a tree that spawns a stem and branches, so does the root of a Hebrew word produce and create words (I understand that Latin is another language, albeit classical, that utilizes root etymology). Similarly, just as a root of a tree forms branches that are linked to it and resemble each other, so does the root of  Hebrew words help form words that, in most cases, share a similar meaning and are hence related.

Let me expound on this unique attribute of Hebrew with a few examples.

Zachor  זכור, which means remember, is a word almost every Jewish person is familiar with. Remember is not only a word, it is a central tenet in our Jewish culture, one that is an integral part of the DNA of the Jewish People, past and present

The three-letter root of  the word זכור is:   ז כ ר

A brief look at the list below will reveal that these three letters appear in all of them. Hence it is their root. Ensuing the logic that I tried to render above will help us see how these words are related.

זכרון,  zikaron: memory

 מזכרת, mazkeret: souvenir

 זכר zachar: remember

 זכר zecher: remnant

זכר  zacahar: male

מזכירה mazkira: secretary

To any non-Hebrew speaker, in this case, English speakers, some of these words would seem unrelated. And this is where the magic of Hebrew comes into play. Ensuing the logic that I tried to render above will help us see how these words are related. The simple fact that they all share the same Shoresh implies that they are related in their meaning, as I suggested above.

We can all agree that the English words: memory, remember, souvenir (which is supposed to remind us of places and people) remnant (which refers to that leftover that is supposed to remind us of something or someone) are related.

However, what do “male” and “secretary” have to do with memory, or remember, you may ask.

Let us start with the easy part. A secretary shares the same root of זכר  because he/she are expected to remember and remind their bosses of their schedule and other important issues.

There are, though, two possible explanations as to why the word “male” shares the same shoresh with “memory.” The first is found in the Reuveni essay which compiles a collection of Midrashim (the sages’ interpretation of Jewish Holy Scriptures). There, we are told that G-d names man “male” so that he can remember His Creator and his Commandments, for that is what man was created for.

The second explanation can be discerned through comparing semitic cultures.

In those cultures, the male was the provider, the one who inherited the family assets, whose name was passed on to posterity. That is how he was going to be remembered
 

No wonder then that Hebrew is also called לשון הקודש” (Leshon Hakodesh, the Holy language). קודש (Kodesh) is derived from the shoresh  ק ד ש which means to dedicate, to sanctify. It is the language of Am Yisrael and the Jewish People, עם קדוש (Am Kadosh, Holy nation) the ones who G-d sanctified and dedicated to Himself.

Am Yisrael Chai

"And You Should Tell Your Son....

Last night Jews around the world celebrated the Pesach meal, called Seder.

“Seder” is the Hebrew word for “order.” Anyone who has ever attended one, would understand why it is called “Seder.” There is a certain order in this ceremony, a logical sequence to each part of this observance. It is lined out for us in the Haggadah, the booklet we use to guide us through it.

It is also apparent to anyone who has ever partaken in a Seder that, during this special meal, unlike any other night, the table is laid out and set with unusual food items and symbols. They are all intended to raise our curiosity and intrigue our inquisitive minds.

Likewise, a bird’s eye view of the Haggadah will reveal that its text is written in a manner that is aimed at prompting us to ask questions. We have the Four Questions which answer the basic query of why this night is different than any other night. We have the segment listing Four Sons, each with their own questions as well as other ones.  

Questions are an important tool along the journey of growth and development of any human being. Questions are also important along the ontogenetic path of a nation. It is curiosity that has triggered human growth and progress throughout the ages.

Our Jewish sages must have known that. And that is where the directive “And you should tell your son” comes into play.

“Those who forget their past,” a wise person once said, “have no future.” This important principle was also known to our wise sages. Teaching and educating about one’s national, cultural and spiritual past is a very important tenet in our Jewish tradition.

There are different ways of teaching, as many would know. The Haggadah, as we saw, uses a common didactic method to achieve that goal, “Questions and Answers.” There is great value in asking questions, as any teacher would tell us. More importantly is the manner in which the questions are formulated. Our sages who wrote the Hagadah were great pedagogues. They framed the questions in a way that helps the readers master core concepts about our Jewish/Zionist past. The method in which the questions in the Haggadah are articulated, the way the facts and ideas are communicated help the listeners and readers develop their critical thinking skills.

Moreover, as one might notice, the Haggadah never asks more than one question at a time. It lets them sink in, one by one. Asking questions throughout the reading of the Haggadah, as during any lesson, not only makes the experience of learning more interesting, it also makes it more interactive.

Questions by themselves, though, are not enough. They need answers in order to complete the cycle of learning, growing, advancing and progressing. Above all, the answers need to provide the links that connect our past learning to our present and future lessons.

The Haggadah writers knew that well. And when the answers come, it is often in the form of a song or a symbolic act. Everyone partakes in them. They engage every participant in this beautiful and heartwarming celebration of Freedom and Jewish Nationhood culminating with the song “L’Shana Ha’Ba’ah Birushalayim,” Next Year in Jerusalem which seals the meal. 

This morning, I am still singing this song as I continue to bask in the greatest lesson of them all, the greatest lesson of our Jewish history - to be a Free Nation in Our Homeland, the Land of Tziyon and Yerushalayim. May we all enjoy this Pesach season of Freedom and live to experience it designed and intended lessons.

Chag Sameach

The Torah, a Contract, a Covenant of a Different Kind

In this week’s Torah portion,  Parshat Ekev, D’varim (Deuteronomy) 7:12-8:10, Moshe continues to remind Am Yisrael of the terms of the Covenant that they had entered with G-d at Mount Sinai when receiving the Torah.

Like any contract, written or oral that is entered into between the parties ,  the Mosaic Covenant specifies obligation, the mitzvot, as well as the rewards that result from fulfillment of all obligations and includes  the adverse results of violating its terms and how to deal with such consequences.

There are other Covenants that G-d has entered with Am Yisrael as as the Abrahamic Covenant and the Davidic Covenant. Unlike the Mosaic Covenant though, those are unconditional. This one is not only conditional, it is one that is not easy to follow. Yet, as we all know, Am Yisrael accepted it verbally and out-rightly when they said,     נעשה ונשמע“Naaseh Venishma.” (We shall do and listen).  It is one that is not easy to follow,

A law school professor might tell his students that the Mosaic Covenant is a “CONTRACT OF ADHESION”

A type of Contract, a legally binding agreement between two parties to do a certain thing, in which one side has all the bargaining power and uses it to write the contract primarily to his or her advantage.

That law professor would also possibly ask his students about its validity.  After all, what choice did the people feel they had about accepting such a contract from an all-powerful G-d who had just freed them from slavery in Egypt?   Moreover, they were asked to accept this deal without having really studied it and without benefit of legal counsel to help them understand its implications. 

In retrospect, would they agree that it was a good deal?  Some, like those who erected he Golden Calf or Korach and his congregation, did not and proceeded to violate the contract’s provisions with disastrous effect.

Now, why have we written about this?  

This story teaches something unique about Judaism and Jewish culture and why Torah should have been studied and seen only in the original Hebrew language.

It, also, illustrates something vastly different between traditional Jewish interpretations of Torah and those of others who have adopted Jewish literature and interpreted it to fit their own theologies.

One example where translations of the Torah from Hebrew has erred, innocently or deliberately, is when one refers to the information that was written on the Two Tablets that Moshe brought down from Mount Sinai as “commandments.” What was inscribed on them is described in the Torah asדברות   (Diberot) literally meaning  “pronouncements,” NOT “commandments” as the translation reads. There is a different word in Hebrew for commandments, מצוות (Mitzvot).

Our Torah, literally “instruction” (not law), in Hebrew, describes what happened at Mount Sinai  as ‘giving’ the Torah as a ‘gift’ (giving and gift in Hebrew  are derived from the same root, נ,ת,נ), implying that the giver is benevolent and loving,  like a caring parent,  caring for the welfare and best interests of its children. Therefore, though it may still be a contract of adhesion, it is one provided in love and concern.  It’s the parent who tells his child “look both ways before crossing the street, because the consequences of not doing so could be horrible”, not to set up the child to be fearful and not to be mean to the child, but out of love and care.   That, too, is a ‘contract of adhesion’, but one based on love and concern.

We are troubled by those who teach that all Abrahamic religions are essentially the same, just versions of the same themes and beliefs with little differences here and there.  Some Jews want to believe that as it makes them feel safer to be like everyone else in what they fear as a hostile world.  Christian Missionaries have for a long time preached that line to Jews to encourage them to convert, to just accept a small change, they claim, for salvation.   The problem is that between Judaism and the other “Abrahamic religions,” there is a theologically wide gulf that makes them almost polar opposites.

Christianity sees the establishment of the contract between G-d and Am Yisrael precisely as that definition above of the Contract of Adhesion.  A cruel and demanding G-d imposing harsh rules on the people with a deal they cannot dare refuse without an opportunity to study it.  They combine that with the Hellenistic belief that mankind is helpless and at the whim of the fates and gods, needing a hero to save them.  (according to Christian theologian Fr. Hans Kung). 

In great contrast, Judaism sees that contract more as directions and lessons (Torah, as we mentioned above, means instruction) from a benevolent kind father, who wants the best for his children and from a Benevolent G-d who wants the best for His People, ones who share the desire to set the standards and warn against what will naturally happen if those standards are not kept.  It’s the parent who warns his children to look both ways before crossing the street because he cares for their safety and welfare. 

Thus, for Am Yisrael and Jews, the Covenant is not the kind of one sided deal imposed by the powerful G-d.  It is lessons given as a gift to those who might benefit. In this case, it is Am Yisrael ONLY.


This article was written jointly by Roger Froikin and Bat-Zion Susskind

Keeping Friends Closer and Drawn Lines Redder

This article was written jointly by Roger Froikin and Bat-Zion Susskind-Sacks

Picture this, it is Passover. You invite Christian friends, guests, to you family Seder. You start to read the Haggadah, and just when you get to the part where Jews say how we are to see ourselves, not just our ancestors, as being brought out of slavery to freedom, our Christian friends say, “hey that’s not what your Seder means, it is an allegory for the coming of Christ and the resurrection.”

What do you do?

 Some Jews would sit there quietly, smile, and start to discuss what these Christians inserted in the celebration. To their children, this would appear as acceptance of the Christian interpretation.

Well, that is not what Jews should be doing.  Jews need to say, “yes, we want friends, but friends respect one another and these Christians were not acting like friends. The Jews who chose to ignore their lack of manners and aggressive should be ashamed of themselves.”

Yet, In the State of Israel today,  Medinat Yisrael, in Eretz Yisrael the Jewish Homeland, there are places where this scenario is being played out in reality. No one is responsible nor seems to want to draw the line between acceptable and not acceptable. In some places missionaries are telling Jews what Jews should believe, while some Jews look down and say nothing.

They claim to be our friends. They declare that they love us. Moreover, they claim that they are here in Eretz Yisrael to help us, serve us and to fulfill the calling of the prophecy   ו וּבְנֵי הַנֵּכָר, הַנִּלְוִים עַל-יְהוָה לְשָׁרְתוֹ, וּלְאַהֲבָה אֶת-שֵׁם יְהוָה, לִהְיוֹת לוֹ לַעֲבָדִים (And foreigners who bind themselves to the LORD to minister to him, to love the name of the LORD, and to be his servants,) (Isaiah 56:6).

Some of us ask, and justifiably so, is that the real reason? Rather, is this the only reason?

As a people who has been deprived of love by others for so long, such an offer is, of course, very tempting. For who does not want to be loved. Who does not want to have free servants and volunteers to do the dirty work for them? 

So, they were given a place to set up their camp. They are adorned and adulated by those they help. They invite their friends to come and stay with them. They organize Shabbat events where Jews and Christians meet and mingle. They conduct Christian weddings with Jewish rituals to which they invite local observant Jews and which the latter attend thus condoning such practices.

Frankly, we have no problem inviting strangers as guests to our private home and our National Home, especially those who claim to be our friends. Our issue, however, is when these guests, these friends feel that they have a right to teach us, to expose us to that which is as foreign to us, that which is poisonous to us, spiritually, and nationally. They feel it is their duty, as our friends, to teach us that which we have never asked for, nor ever wanted.

Their upbringing and their belief pave their way toward one and one goal only, to make everyone, especially those that they consider their friends, that which is what they are, embrace and adopt that which they believe in. For them there is one way and one way only, their way.

And their way is to share with and educate Jews about “this Jesus that” they “know.” Their vision is to share with us “this passion, this soon coming jubilee [Yovel in Hebrew] in Yeshua HaMessiah.”

AND, THAT IS WHERE WE MUST DRAW THE LINE

Interestingly, during the Crusades, when Christians, directed by their leaders, were busy murdering Jews on the way to fight the Muslims for Jerusalem, one Roman Catholic Bishop   warned that some Jews should be spared because the Second Coming of Christ would be from among the Jews.  He drew a line. And one might ask Christians, were they successful in converting all the Jews so that Judaism would disappear, how would their Jesus come back?

So, that is our question.  Where will we draw the line?   Where and when will we demand respect for us and our traditions and our Torah?  When will our people understand that friendship does not mean having to beg for it, to ingratiate oneself for it or to compromise one’s own standards for it.

DRAW THE LINE.  RESPECT OTHERS WHO RESPECT US.

And that means no missionary activity directed toward Jews.  No telling Jews what Jewish literature that was written for Jews in the Hebrew language “really” means as interpreted by outsiders.

Moreover, Jews wake up.  See things as they are, not just how you want them to be, desperate for approval and friendship. What do you imagine will happen when Christians who so desperately want us Jews to join them are thwarted?  

Look at history.  Learn from it  

On the Essence of Zionism by Michal Dar-El

"Zionism is the Return to Judaism even before the Return to the Land of the Jews," Theodore Herzl, Opening address to the First Zionist Congress 1897.



Dear friends,

The essay you are about to read was written by my dear friend Michal Dar-El. It is one of the most comprehensive ones on the subject of Zionism. This academic and well researched paper explains why Zionism is a Jewish concept only and why no one other than Jews can or should call themselves "Zionists." 

Hopefully, it will, once and for all, put the issue to rest and unite Jews behind the need to stop giving pieces of our heritage in return for love and support by those who have no right to claim as their own what only Jews have practiced for the last few millennia.

We take this opportunity to thank all Pro-Zionists for their love and support of Judaism and its inseparable essence of Zionism.

Without much further ado, let me introduce to you, my dear friend Michal Dar-El and her excellent article. Please share and educate the world.

ON THE ESSENCE OF ZIONISM – Michal Dar-El

The belief that “History is written by victors” is shared by many.

This paper would argue that Zionism also falls under this jurisdiction, as Zionism has thus far turned out the ultimate victor with the reunification of The People of Israel and The Land of Israel - by the reestablishment of Jewish Sovereignty over its Land. Therefore, it is essential for “Zionism”, the victor, which is still writing and creating its own history, to be correctly defined and conceptualized.

The narrow definition of Zionism only as a political movement, rather than an ETERNAL element and a pillar of Judaism, has become predominant in the last 120 years, as an outcome of the emergence of the modern “Zionist Movement” and as a consequence of its success in achieving its national goal. The movement emerged when most of The Nation of Israel reached a peak of being sick and tired of life in exile and was at a breaking point. Modern Zionism was established to solve the root and the cause of the problem – the exile of most of The Nation. In order to achieve its goal, The Zionist Movement had to renew the use of dormant and almost forgotten Jewish political tools and to adopt mid-19th century universally accepted political terminology. By doing so, the Zionist Movement mitigated the clear, historic and well defined origins of Zionism that had always existed within the realm of Judaism.

At the time, it was necessary for the promoters of the Zionist national movement to emphasize Zionism mainly as a tool for attaining Jewish national rights rather than a historical and inherent component of The Nation. Since then however, this narrow definition of Zionism, which overlooks the core Jewish roots of the term, has not only become a cause of ignorance – but has also led to some current absurdities that I will elaborate on below. I believe therefore, that a genuine debate about the core and the essence of Zionism needs to be conducted in and by Israel. We need to reach an inclusive and broad definition of the term based on its meaning and natural evolution from ancient times and until today.

This need is clear and evident today, more than ever, as this misunderstanding and ignorance has led to the absurd phenomena taking place nowadays, where some Jews are propagating the term of “post-Zionism” (and thus, in fact, are negating their very own existence) while others are trying to redefine Israel from being The Jewish State, as was determined in Israel’s Declaration of Independence – to being “a land of all its inhabitants”. The lack of knowledge of the roots of Zionism has also led some Gentiles to define themselves as “Zionists” (instead of “pro-Zionists”) or to some Jewish observant streams – who fail to connect between modern Political Zionism and its Tanakhic roots - to outright reject Zionism.

Before the trickle of absurdities becomes a flood, an educational effort and intellectual process needs to be conducted to define what Zionism truly is and means. This endeavor will necessarily expose the trends mentioned above for what they really are: an attempt to nullify the Jews as an inimitable Nation, and a willful campaign to narrowly define us as just another religion – with no specific and inherent connection to The Land.

As an attempt to contribute to the definition and understanding what Zionism truly is - this paper will, in a nutshell, provide the historic evidence and background that illustrates why Zionism is an inseparable part of Judaism and that it is one of its essential pillars.

INTRODUCTION TO ZIONISM

“Zionism” is a Tanakhic concept which expresses the bond between The Nation of Israel (aka Children of Israel / Hebrews / Israelite / Jews) and The Land of Israel.

Zionism is as old as the history of the Nation itself – starting 4000 years ago with God’s commandment to Abraham, and Zionism has never ceased to exist nor been diminished in importance since then and until present.

The word “Zion” is mentioned in The Tanakh as a synonym to Jerusalem and to The Land of Israel, as well as being a synonym for The Nation of Israel. The Tanakhic expression “B’ney Zion” [1] (Children of Zion) refers to The Nation of Israel, or “The Zionists”, in the same manner that the term “B’ney Israel” (Children of Israel) means “Israelite” and the term “Yehudi” (a member of the tribe of Yehudah/Judea living in The Kingdom of Judea) is translated as “Jew”. That, in spite of the fact that the common translated use of “Jew” refers to all the descendants of the tribes of Israel – and not just to the Judean ones. *

Zionism’s many expressions are revealed in The Torah, The Tanakh, The Rabbinic Literature (The Oral Torah, The Talmud, etc.), The Prayers, The Rabbinic Poetry (aka Piyyut), in Jewish fine literature, in Jewish philosophy, etc.

_____________________________________________________________

* At this stage it is important to note that though the terms and the Tanakhic sources in this summary are in English, the ONLY accurate language for the discussed issue can be Hebrew – despite efforts to clarify mistranslations.

Therefore, for similar essential reasons, correct definitions and conceptualizations can only be discussed by those who have practical knowledge of all aspects of Tanakhic studies and its interpretations and exegesis throughout the generations, as well as the history of Jews and Judaism.

THE PROMISED NATION AND THE PROMISED LAND

The foundation, the basis and the essence of Zionism is the inseparable bond between The Eternal Promised Nation of Israel (the People through its forefathers) and The Eternal Promised Land of Israel that was established by God. It is a unique and unparalleled case in the history of all nations. No other nation has a written deed, nor a documented Godly promise, for its blessed and sacred ownership of its land. Other nations regard their lands as their historical earthly property - while The People of Israel has a 4000 years old deep spiritual connection to their Sacred Land, and a binding deed sanctified by God Himself.

“Now the LORD said unto Abram: 'Go you from thy land, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto the land that I will show thee. And I will make of thee a great nation and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and be thou a blessing.” (Genesis 12, 1-2)

That’s how Zionism started: in a MOVE-ment established by God’s directive.

Later God makes a promise to Abraham:

“And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Shechem, unto the terebinth of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land. And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said: 'Unto thy seed will I give this land'; and he builded there an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him.” (Genesis 12, 6-7)

The ultimate of God’s many promises to Abraham comes in The Covenant, which is since renewed by EACH individual of The Nation of Israel:

“And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him: 'I am God Almighty; walk before Me, and be thou wholehearted. And I will make My covenant between Me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly.' And Abram fell on his face; and God talked with him, saying: 'As for Me, behold, My covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be the father of a multitude of nations. Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for the father of a multitude of nations have I made thee. And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish My covenant between Me and thee and thy seed after thee throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land of thy sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.' And God said unto Abraham: 'And as for thee, thou shalt keep My covenant, thou, and thy seed after thee throughout their generations. This is My covenant, which ye shall keep, between Me and you and thy seed after thee: every male among you shall be circumcised. And ye shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of a covenant betwixt Me and you. And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every male throughout your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any foreigner, that is not of thy seed. He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised; and My covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. And the uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken My covenant.'“ (Genesis 17, 1-14)

This Covenant is called in Hebrew “Brit Milah” – A Covenant by Word. This is contrary to the common mistranslation of “circumcision” - which only describes the physical procedure and fails to stress its sacred and its binding constitutional aspects.

It is easy to understand from The Covenant why the Brit Milah is crucial for Jewish Life throughout the generations, why it is valid only for The People of Israel who renew The Covenant properly, and also why The People of Israel can never be defined as an ethnic race.

God repeats His oath to Isaac, son of Abraham (but not to his brother Ishmael):

“Dwell in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath which I swore unto Abraham thy father; and I will multiply thy seed as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these lands; and by thy seed shall all the nations of the earth bless themselves; because that Abraham hearkened to My voice, and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.'” (Genesis 26, 3-5)

Later God repeats his oath to Jacob (Israel), son of Isaac and grandson of Abraham (but not to his brother Esau):

“And God said unto him: 'Thy name is Jacob: thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name'; and He called his name Israel. And God said unto him: 'I am God Almighty. Be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins; and the land which I gave unto Abraham and Isaac, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land.'” (Genesis 35, 10-12)

THE SANCTITY OF THE LAND OF ISRAEL FOR THE NATION OF ISRAEL

Most of the Laws of The Torah are strictly connected to The Land of Israel. This fact created the inseparable triple pillar of Judaism: The Nation of Israel -The Land of Israel-The Torah of Israel.

None can exist without the other; one is dependent on the other.

The sanctity of The Land of Israel was determined by God even before The Nation of Israel returned to its Land [2]. During the Exodus from Egypt, The Nation of Israel was given The Torah and its Commandments – after the CONSTITUTIVE EVENT on Mount Sinai. It is where and when God renewed His Covenant with the ENTIRE Nation of Israel, for future generations too [3] and for ETERNITY [4], unconditionally [5].

The sanctity of The Land is also stressed for The Temple in Jerusalem, the holiest site for The Nation of Israel ever:

“And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.” (Exodus 25, 8)

“Then the angel of the LORD commanded Gad to say to David, that David should go up, and rear an altar unto the LORD in the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite.” (Chronicles A 21, 18)

“Then Solomon began to build the house of the LORD at Jerusalem in mount Moriah, where [the LORD] appeared unto David his father; for which provision had been made in the Place of David, in the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite.” (Chronicles B 3, 1)

Other Laws of The Torah which are connected to The Land of Israel only, other than The Laws concerning The Temple, are: Laws concerning the crop of The Land (Sh’mita, e.g.), Laws concerning purity (quarantine of leprous, burial laws, e.g.), Laws concerning law and order (cities of refuge, e.g.), Laws concerning civil and military government, and many more.

THE YEARNING FOR THE LAND OF ISRAEL WHILE IN EXILE

The sacred connection between The Nation of Israel and The Land of Israel and Jerusalem (both known as Zion) doesn’t cease when most the Nation is in exile, during which Laws of The Torah that apply only to The Land of Israel were observed – in order not to be forgotten. Furthermore, during the exile of most of The Nation from its Land, prayers, lamentations and poetry were composed as an expression for the burning desire to return to Zion. Indoors, walls facing in the direction of Jerusalem functioned as a figurative memory of that yearning.

Zion and Jerusalem are mentioned 120 times in routine prayers: “And You shall bring us to Zion with joy, and to Jerusalem, House of Your Temple – with eternal gladness” – is just one example of many. Many know the lamentation of The Exiles in Babylon:

“By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. Upon the willows in the midst thereof we hanged up our harps. For there they that led us captive asked of us words of song, and our tormentors asked of us mirth: 'Sing us one of the songs of Zion.' How shall we sing the LORD'S song in a foreign land? If I forget thee, Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning. Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, if I remember thee not; if I set not Jerusalem above my chiefest joy.” (Psalm 137, 1-6)

Less known to non-Hebrew speakers is the poem of the 11th-12th century Rabbi Yehudah HaLevi, who lived in Spain:

“My heart is in the East, and I am at the ends of the West;

How can I taste what I eat and how could it be pleasing to me?!

How shall I render my vows and my bonds, while yet

Zion lies beneath the fetter of Edom, and I am in the chains of Arabia?

It would be easy for me to leave all the goodness of Spain, as

It is precious for me to behold the dust of a desolated Holy of Holies.”

Rabbi Yehudah HaLevi left Spain for The Land of Israel when he was 75 years old.

Every Israeli child knows the Israeli anthem, “Hatikvah” (The Hope), by heart. “Hatikvah” was composed in exile by Naftali Herz Imber (1878), a non-observant Jew, who was inspired by the prophet Ezekiel’s “Vision of the Dry Bones”:

“Then He said unto me: 'Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel; behold, they say: Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are clean cut off.” (Ezekiel 37, 11)

The Anthem still expresses the eternal yearning for a complete meaningful life of The Nation on its Land, Zion:

“As long as in the heart within – The Jewish Soul yearns

And toward the Eastern edges, onward, - An eye gazes toward Zion

Our Hope is not yet lost – The Hope that is two-thousands years old

To be a free Nation in our Land – The Land of Zion and Jerusalem”

Throughout the exile, when Jewish life in the Diaspora continued to develop, Jewish presence and life in The Land of Israel never ceased to exist. It continued persistently, and grew due to various waves of Jewish immigration. Throughout the centuries those immigrations were strictly an outcome of Jewish faith and devotion aimed at fulfilling the command [6] to dwell in The Land of Israel: Zionism in practice.

THE MODERN ZIONIST MOVEMENT: PROTO-ZIONISM

As described above, Zionism is inseparable from Judaism. Until the late 19th century the Jewish immigration to The Land of Israel by individuals and small groups took place for reasons of faith: small in quantity but meaningful in quality.

The 19th century was characterized in Europe by many socio-economic changes which led to political and nationalistic changes. Those events affected the Jewish communities with the rise of anti-Semitism on the one hand, and attempts of assimilation on the other. The events in Europe seeped to its colonies and spread worldwide.

It is possible that those changes also expedited a reexamination of the Jewish Philosophy concerning the concept of Redemption, and in particular redemption from exile.

Until then, the consensus – with few exceptions – was the idea that Redemption of the return of The People to its land would occur only by God via a messiah. That idea took on a new dimension when a few Rabbis suggested that The Nation of Israel must act in order to achieve Redemption by fulfilling the Torah’s commandment to inhabit The Land of Israel:

“And ye shall drive out the inhabitants of the land, and dwell therein; for unto you have I given the land to possess it.” (Numbers 33, 53)

Among those Rabbis we can count Rabbi Zvi Hirsch Kalischer and Rabbi Eliyahu Guttmacher, Rabbi Yehudah Alkalai and Rabbi Dr. Yehudah Bibas, Rabbi Shmuel Mohilever, and many others. They are all considered as the heralding founding fathers of Modern Zionism, which led to the establishment of organizations promoting the Return of The Nation to The Land of Israel (“Hovevei Zion” est. during the 1870’s, e.g.) and laid the ideological platform for the futuristic Modern Zionist Movement – led by Herzl. The list of proto-Zionists of modern times includes Moshe Hess too. In his book “Rome and Jerusalem” he approached the idea of Returning to Zion as a Jewish national aspect, and part of the general European “Spring of Nations” – a nationalistic awakening that expressed the desire for self-determination. Despite being highly influenced by Socialist ideas (and an outstanding leader of the revolutionary German Socialist Movement) – his vision of the futuristic Jewish State in The Land of Israel stressed the need for conducting the spiritual way of life in accordance with The Torah. Hess, too, insisted on the firm wholeness of The Nation of Israel-The Land of Israel-The Torah of Israel.

MODERN POLITICAL ZIONISM: THE REKINDLING OF TANAKHIC TOOLS

The modern proto-Zionists had an insufficient impact on the masses: the East-European Jewry was mostly an observant conservative society which struggled to accept the idea of Redemption without a clear sign from God (not by a messiah, i.e.), while the West-European Jewry had just started to enjoy its new emancipation, and many identified themselves more with the general formative changes which swept through Europe – rather than the continuous link to The Nation of Israel and its unique aspirations.

But that wasn’t the case in other Jewish communities worldwide, which continued to adhere to principles of Traditional Zionism. Middle Eastern communities sensed as well that the end of the exile was coming. During the 19th century entire villages in Morocco were emptied from their Jewish inhabitants who immigrated to The Land of Israel. Similar scenarios occurred among Yemenite Jewry.

Back in Europe, a few decades had passed until the geo-political conditions enabled the ascent of a movement which would eventually lead to the reestablishment of Jewish Sovereignty in The Land of Israel. It took also an extraordinary person like Herzl, who skillfully synthesized the various ideological trends into a solid movement aiming for the same goal: rebuilding the Jewish State in The Land of Israel.

Prior to establishing the modern Zionist Movement, Herzl, a jurist, journalist and writer by profession, spread his ideas through the press and through books and plays - in order to enforce the issue of the Jews on the public debate. There is no doubt that Herzl was exposed to the writings of the Rabbinical proto-Zionists and that he was greatly influenced by them. Rabbi Alkalai and Herzl’s father and grandfather were acquainted, e.g., and many of Alkalai’s book “Goral L’Adonai” (A Lot for The Lord) ideas - appeared later in Herzl’s book “The Jewish State” (“Der Judenstaat”, “L’État Juif”). Though Herzl’s vision was deeply interwoven in Judaism – it was his political path which contributed most to the success of the modern Zionism’s endeavor and to Herzl’s fame. His conviction in this path, together with Max Nordau, was just one of the many methods towards the goal - and is known as Political (national) Zionism. It stressed the need for political, diplomatic and legal activity and gaining the patronage of a European country which would advocate for a Charter for Jews’ resettlement in The Land of Israel.

By that, consciously or unconsciously, Herzl replicated the Tanakhic and the Jewish historical methods of redeeming The Nation from exile - by gaining the compatible super-powers’ approval. Out of the many examples, Moses’ appeal to Pharaoh - to release The Hebrews from bondage during the time of The Exodus from Egypt - is the most generally known.

In 1897 the “Zionist Movement” was established as the first Zionist Congress took place in Basel, Switzerland.

The other Zionist streams, which Herzl cleverly managed to unite under the common goal, were:

Practical Zionism (“Hovevey Zion” organization) – promoted immigration and re-settling prior to political activity.

Synthetic Zionism (Chaim Weitzman, Martin Buber) – united Political Zionism with Practical Zionism, to a simultaneous activity.

Religious Zionism (“Hamizrachi” movement) – had a vision of combining labor in The Land of Israel according to The Laws of The Torah; while The Torah is the core and the national aspect serves as a mantle.

Spiritual Zionism (Achad HaAm) – stressed the need for cultivation of Jewish Culture and National values prior to immigration.

Socialist Zionism (Nachman Syrkin, Dov Borochov) – desired to establish an agriculturist society based on moral equality.

Revisionist Zionism (Ze’ev Jabotinsky) – demanded a revision of the Zionist Movement activities. It emphasized the historic national heritage of the Jewish people in the Land of Israel as the constituent basis for the Zionist national idea and the reestablishment of the Jewish State. It supported Liberalism (including Economic Liberalism).

Surprisingly, all those conflicting approaches succeeded to reach their prime goal while continuing to express the unique attribute of Jewish life - in the Jewish State - based on the common denominator:

“The Land of Israel was the birthplace of the Jewish people.

Here their spiritual, religious and political identity was shaped.

Here they first attained to statehood, created cultural values of national and universal significance and gave to the world the eternal Book of Books”

(The Declaration of The Establishment of The State of Israel, May 14 1948)

INSIGHT AND CONCLUSIONS:

For 4,000 years, Zionism has been and still is, an integral aspect and a main pillar of Judaism.

The term “Zion” culminates within it both The Land of Israel and The Nation of Israel.

The unbreakable sacred bond between The People of Israel and The Land of Israel by God’s eternal Covenant, IS the true core, the nucleus, of Zionism. Every member of The Nation of Israel is personally committed to The Covenant when renewing it by the Brit Milah.

Moreover, this unique bond was also recognized by the rest of the world throughout the ages. For example, in the “Letter to the Jewish Nation” from 1799 Napoleon Bonaparte proclaims the Israelite “The rightful heirs of Palestine!” – based on this bond. [8]

For eighteen centuries most of The Nation of Israel was in exile. It was during that period when new expressions of prayers, poems, rituals and customs were created, in an attempt to fill with meaningful content the unnatural void created by living away from Zion.

Because of the inseparable sacred connection between The People of Israel and The Land of Israel, a miracle occurred during the 1,800 years of separation and exile – the Jewish People never ceased to exist as a Nation and never stopped yearning for the redemption by the return to Zion.

It is clear that the exile had to come to its end! As the Jewish way of life in the Diaspora was exempt from dealing with mundane tasks of national existence and sovereignty, the national-political aspects of Judaism had become dormant. On the other hand, the evolving traditions of Jewish methodical learning flourished during this period – but couldn’t advance The Nation towards national independence. Therefore, an alternative and fresh approach was needed to temporarily concentrate on other paths and venues in order to reach its goal. Only after reaching its goal, The Nation could reconnect to the historical essence of Zionism, in practice, through the restoration of its sovereignty over The Land of Israel. That temporary Jewish path, which arose in Europe, has become known as the political “Zionist Movement”.

The modern “Zionist Movement” is a sequel in The Nation of Israel’s History, drawing its raison d’être from Judaism’s essential building blocks – starting from when God established the MOVE-ment by ordering Abraham “Go you from thy land… unto the land that I will show thee”.

Defining Herzl as “The Visionary of The Jewish State”, though true, is unjust - for it lessens his more significant role: being The Redeemer of The Nation of Israel from exile. Herzl recognized and restored the National definition of the Children of Israel. He diagnosed the illness of a nation without its territory and determined it as terminal – unless cured. By that Herzl redeemed The Nation from the distorted definition of being a “religion” – a definition which was imposed on The Children of Israel by the Gentiles, either deliberately or out of ignorance (God’s Covenant with Abraham – a valid constitutional document - was to make out of him a great nation – not a great religion). Lacking a better definition – as a nation without its land is an oxymoron from Jewish perspective – the false definition was, tragically, absorbed into The Nation’s general consciousness.**

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** For this reason and others, the modern “Zionist Movement” was full of contradictions. It reflected an outcome of eighteen centuries when most The Nation, along with its main spiritual centers, was uprooted from its source of Purity and Holiness, and thus enabled infiltration of foreign influences as collateral damage.

Without dismissing the enormous and important role of the modern “Zionist Movement” in paving the way towards national independence in Zion – we, The Nation of Israel, still face the challenge of restoring by refinement the fundamental definition and concept of Zionism, in order to achieve our unique self-determination in The Land of Israel, and in order to fulfill our prophetic universal role as “A Light unto The Nations” [7].

It is clear now that Political Zionism, which was used and defined by the Zionist Movement, is just one aspect of Zionism. Though this aspect naturally evolved as we regained our national sovereignty, Zionism cannot continue to be narrowly defined in our joint consciousness. The term “Political Zionism” is indicative of the fact that Zionism is much broader than that, that there is more to it, another facet of it, than just “politics”. By leaving out and forgetting the essential aspects and the roots of Zionism - we, in fact, agree to degrade a pillar of our existence to no more than a Narrative. Moreover, by this, we endanger both our identity and our universal role.

Reestablishing and restoring a complete and true definition of Zionism to national consciousness requires great endeavor - however, it is an imperative! This is especially clear nowadays in the light of the attempt of some of our Nation to propagate into national consciousness terms such as “post-Zionism”, or to redefine Israel from being The Jewish State – to a land of all its inhabitants. It becomes crucial as the study of Judaism in secular schools nowadays has been reduced to “Biblical Criticism”, while in the past, until few decades ago, The Tanakh, The Oral Torah and The Talmud were compulsory and part of the curriculum of all Israeli-Jewish schools.

Furthermore, in Israeli schools and text books, the study of Zionism is taught as only starting from Herzl and the 19th century, and in a manner that is totally detached from its rich past which is not even mentioned within the context of the concept. As a consequence, this is also the knowledge of Zionism that is predominant today within the general national consciousness.

The few references and historic details which are included in this paper are just a mere drop in an ocean of the wisdom and knowledge which has been passed down to us through 4,000 years of Jewish existence. This history and tradition has to be kept alive, taught and protected from ignorance. Our heritage needs to be incorporated within our national consciousness and to be returned to the definition of Zionism.

It is the moral imperative of each Jew to learn, earn and to safeguard our Nation’s heritage and treasures and to meaningfully celebrate the reunification of The Land of Israel with The Nation of Israel.

This can be achieved by reuniting The Nation with the appreciation and the understanding of what Zionism truly means.

References:

[1] “Let Israel rejoice in his Maker; let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.” (Psalms 149, 2)

[2] “And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying: 'Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them: When ye pass over the Jordan into the land of Canaan, And thou shalt not defile the land which ye inhabit, in the midst of which I dwell; for I the LORD dwell in the midst of the children of Israel.'” (Numbers 36, 9-10, 34)

[3] “Ye are standing this day all of you before the LORD your God: your heads, your tribes, your elders, and your officers, even all the men of Israel, your little ones, your wives, and thy stranger that is in the midst of thy camp, from the hewer of thy wood unto the drawer of thy water; that thou shouldest enter into the covenant of the LORD thy God--and into His oath--which the LORD thy God maketh with thee this day; that He may establish thee this day unto Himself for a nation, and that He may be unto thee a God, as He spoke unto thee, and as He swore unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. Neither with you only do I make this covenant and this oath; but with him that standeth here with us this day before the LORD our God, and also with him that is not here with us this day.” (Deuteronomy 29, 9-14)

[4] “Even all that the LORD hath commanded you by the hand of Moses, from the day that the LORD gave commandment, and onward throughout your generations;” (Numbers 15, 23)

[5] “For the mountains may depart, and the hills be removed; but My kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall My covenant of peace be removed, saith the LORD that hath compassion on thee.” (Isaiah 54, 10)

[6] “And ye shall drive out the inhabitants of the land, and dwell therein; for unto you have I given the land to possess it.” (Numbers 33, 53)

[7] “I the LORD have called thee in righteousness, and have taken hold of thy hand, and kept thee, and set thee for a covenant of the people, for a light unto the nations.” (Isaiah 42, 6)

[8] Letter to the Jewish Nation from the French Commander-in-Chief Buonaparte (translated from the Original, 1799)

General Headquarters, Jerusalem 1st Floreal, April 20th, 1799, in the year of 7 of the French Republic

BUONAPARTE, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE ARMIES OF THE FRENCH REPUBLIC IN AFRICA AND ASIA, TO THE RIGHTFUL HEIRS OF PALESTINE.

Israelites, unique nation, whom, in thousands of years, lust of conquest and tyranny have been able to be deprived of their ancestral lands, but not of name and national existence!

Attentive and impartial observers of the destinies of nations, even though not endowed with the gifts of seers like Isaiah and Joel, have long since also felt what these, with beautiful and uplifting faith, have foretold when they saw the approaching destruction of their kingdom and fatherland: And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads; they shall obtain joy and gladness and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. (Isaiah 35, 10)

Arise then, with gladness, ye exiled! A war unexampled In the annals of history, waged in self-defense by a nation whose hereditary lands were regarded by its enemies as plunder to be divided, arbitrarily and at their convenience, by a stroke of the pen of Cabinets, avenges its own shame and the shame of the remotest nations, long forgotten under the yoke of slavery, and also, the almost two-thousand-year-old ignominy put upon you; and, while time and circumstances would seem to be least favourable to a restatement of your claims or even to their expression, and indeed to be compelling their complete abandonment, it offers to you at this very time, and contrary to all expectations, Israel’s patrimony!

The young army with which Providence has sent me hither, let by justice and accompanied by victory, has made Jerusalem my headquarters and will, within a few days, transfer them to Damascus, a proximity which is no longer terrifying to David's city.

Rightful heirs of Palestine!

The great nation which does not trade in men and countries as did those which sold your ancestors unto all people (Joel 4, 6) herewith calls on you not indeed to conquer your patrimony; nay, only to take over that which has been conquered and, with that nation¹s warranty and support, to remain master of it to maintain it against all comers.

Arise! Show that the former overwhelming might of your oppressors has but repressed the courage of the descendants of those heroes who alliance of brothers would have done honour even to Sparta and Rome (Maccabees 12, 15) but that the two thousand years of treatment as slaves have not succeeded in stifling it.

Hasten! Now is the moment, which may not return for thousands of years, to claim the restoration of civic rights among the population of the universe which had been shamefully withheld from you for thousands of years, your political existence as a nation among the nations, and the unlimited natural right to worship Jehovah in accordance with your faith, publicly and most probably forever (Joel 4, 20).

Source: “The journal of the International Napoleonic Society” Volume 1 # 2