A quick administrative note: these emails are now available at: http://www.habodror.org.uk/chinuch/chinuchweekly.html
or go to www.habodror.org.uk and click on the chinuch weekly tab on the left (thanks for sorting it Gary)
Parashat Lech Lecha
"Learning, Learning, Learning: That is the secret of Jewish survival."
-Ahad Ha'am 'On Nationalism and Religion' 1910
IN BLUE: SOME TEXT FROM THE PARASHA WHICH YOU ARE PROBABLY FAMILIAR WITH
IN RED: MY THOUGHTS, IN BLACK, THE TEXTS THAT LEAD ME THROUGH THE DISCUSSION
I'd like to have a little preamble:
Basically, due to a lack of time, knowledge and effort this weeks stuff doesn't deal with the Palestinian people. I want to acknowledge that when describing the biblical standpoint, and modern Zionist thinker's standpoints, I don't know their visions of how 'the other' would fit into the state. If anyone wants to do the research I'll send it out in my next e-mail. I am very interested in it. I just wouldn't know where to look right now.
So on with a very specific and narrow vision of Israel, prompted by the parasha...
The Lord said to Abram, "Go forth from your native land and from your father's house to the land that I will show you.
I will make of you a great nation, And I will bless you; I will make your name great, And you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you And curse him that curses you; And all the families of the the earth Shall bless themselves by you."
Abram went forth as the Lord had commanded him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran...and they set out for the land of Canaan. When they arrived in the land of Canaan...The Lord appeared to Abram and said, "I will assign this land to your offspring."
I will say it for the millionth time: I am a proud and active Jew, but I don't believe in god... According to the Torah the land of Israel was promised to the Jewish people by god. That was quite a few years ago. Believe it or not, that is still causing problems today. Some people claim that we can't give up land in Israel because it all belongs to us by divine right. - I would like to take this controversial passage, and use it as an opportunity to introduce (or reintroduce) you to a few key Zionist thinkers. The people who should give us inspiring reflections about how the State of Israel should look, without the need for the supernatural.
Why not stay in the diaspora? Lets consult Ahad Ha'am, the cultural Jewish guru:
"Judaism is, therefore, in a quandary: It can no longer tolerate the Galut form which it had to take on, in obedience to its will-to-live, when it was exiled from its own country; but, without that form, its life is in danger. So it seeks to return to its historic center, where it will be able to live a life developing in a natural way, to bring its powers into play in every department of human culture, to broaden and perfect those national possessions which it has acquired up to now, and thus to contribute to the common stock of humanity, in the future as it has in the past, a great national culture, the fruit of the unhampered activity of a people living by the light of its own spirit.Then, from this center, the spirit of Judaism will radiate to the great circumference, to all the communities of the diaspora, to inspire them with new life and to preserve the over-all unity of our people. When our national culture in Palestine has attained that level, we may be confident that it will produce men in the Land of Israel itself who will be able, at a favorable moment, to establish a State there - one which will be not merely a State of Jews but a really Jewish State."
-Ahad Ha'am 'The Jewish State and the Jewish Problem' 1897
www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/ahad_haam.html
Amazing.
I think what this passage addresses for me is especially pertinent for HD these days. A lot of people see Israel as a sanctuary for persecuted Jews. I think it should be that too, but not only that. Coming from Melbourne which has a massive holocaust survivor population I see people's Jewish identity defined by the other.
"I am Jewish because I don't want to let the Nazi's win"
"I am proud to be Jewish so I can stand up against anti-semitism"
What Ahad Ha'am is speaking about is meaning in Judaism. A rich cultural legacy, and an opportunity for a thriving and externally contributing Jewish community. And that can only really occur in Israel.
I am going to assume as a basis for this journey that Israel has the right to exist. Therefore I continue with the character of the nation:
"It is the aim of conscious social action to transmute the status quo along rational lines and to elevate it morally. A republic born out of an act of will, which would have no rational plan for society and would merely tread the old path of free competition and class distinctions - this would be social and psychological folly...For a Jewish state to come to be, it must, from the very beginning, avoid all the ills of modern life. To evoke the sympathetic interest of modern man, its guidelines must be justice, rational planning, and social solidarity."
-Nahman Syrkin 'The Jewish Problem and the Socialist-Jewish State' 1898
www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/nsyrkin.html
Basically, if Israel was like every other nation existing in the world, what's the point? He is talking about the opportunity to start something new and good. To treat people as equals, to have a place that really cares. Where is Israel at at the moment? If you want to hear someone talking about old ideas in a new way I recommend you read up about Peretz on Ha'aretz. I'm not exactly sure about the kind of person he is (apparently quite corrupt), but he was the head of the Histadrut and talks about closing the gaps between rich and poor....and just beat Peres to be the head of the Labour party.
Habo has a socialist vision for Israel. Heavily influenced by people like Syrkin.
And from a Jewish point of view:
"There are many who think of our revolution in a much too simple and primitive manner. Let us destroy the old world entirely, let us burn all the treasures that it accumulated throughout the ages, and let us start anew - like newborn babes! There is daring and force of protest in this approach.But it is doubtful whether this conception, which proceeds in utter innocence to renounce the heritage of the ages and proposes to start building the world from the ground up, really is revolutionary and progressive.If a people possesses something old and profound, which can educate man and train him for his future tasks, is it truly revolutionary to despise it and become estranged from it?.The Jewish year is studded with days which, in depth of meaning, are unparalleled among other peoples. Is it advantageous - is it a goal - for the Jewish labor movement to waste the potential value stored within them?"
-Berl Katznelson 'Revolution and Tradition' 1934 Berl actually looks a bit like Steeno, which I find hysterical. When I alerted him to that fact Steeno said I should stop messing around and do some work.
www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/katznelson.html
More cultural Judaism from one the great Labour Zionists. I just thought it put some of the things I try and get across in really good words.
Anyway, as I have openly stated before: The point of these e-mails is not just to get information across to you. It's for you to be excited by what I'm writing, and for you to want to learn these things without me. Why not take this to Shabbat dinner and have an interesting Jewish chat with your family, hear their thoughts and opinions - Why not click on the links and learn about who the guys were who said those things. Why not e-mail me back and tell me what you think.
A very Zionist shabbat shalom
Benji
This email is dedicated to the muchanim who are excited for shnat and want to learn more about Israel
This email is also dedicated to the shnatties who I am extremely jealous of. It may be cold, but at least you are in Israel |
