1 The Ashkenazi Revolution By Kalman Katzenelson Translated and annotated by Reuben Hayat AKA Jewamongyou Translator’s Forward The first thing you should know about The Ashkenazi Revolution is that it was written in the Israel of the early 1960’s, and for the Israel of the 1960's. Therefore, many of the concepts, and people, mentioned within it, will be foreign to English-speaking readers of the 21 st century. For this reason, it might not be an easy read. You might find the glossary of terms and personalities useful. Most unfamiliar terms can be found there. Aside from this, The Ashkenazi Revolution should make for interesting reading, especially for students of Jewish history – and especially Zionist history. There is irony in this book. Katzenelson attacks Modern Hebrew, calling it “a leap backward” (pg. 215), that it’s at a “dead end” (pg. 252), that attempting to revive Hebrew was “infantile” (pg. 129) and that its use crippled the prospects of Ashkenazim in Israel (pg. 229). Yet the book is written in Modern Hebrew. Katzenelson’s mastery of Hebrew is exceptional and the book, whether we agree with its contents or not, is a great literary accomplishment for its beauty. It is ironic that I was the one who ended up translating it into English – since I have always identified strongly with Mizrahi Jewry (I was involved with the Shas movement at its very beginnings in Jerusalem) though I am Ashkenazi myself. With the benefit of hindsight, some of Katzenelson’s ideas may seem silly, such as his rhetorical question: “But who needs outer space? What shall we do with it even if we conquer it?” or his suggestion that Sephardic Jews in 2 Israel might abandon Hebrew in favor of Arabic. Yet there is much truth in what he says, even if the future did not turn out exactly as he had predicted. Katzenelson was courageous; he wrote things that many others would not dare say. According to Hebrew Wikipedia, “The book earned condemnation and disassociation from the entire political, and social, spectrum and it was banned by the government”. Katzenelson exposes many of the shining stars of the State of Israel as unworthy, and unprincipled, people. More disturbing, to the Israeli public, was his attitude toward non-Ashkenazi Jews. Did Katzenelson believe in innate racial differences between the various Jewish ethnic groups? It is hard to say. If he did, he did not dare say so explicitly – and he does seem to contradict himself in this matter. The word that I translated as “hereditary” (torashti) is somewhat ambiguous in Hebrew; it could refer either to a cultural, or genetic, heritage. Katzenelson’s belief, that the adoption of the Yiddish language could close “the gap” between the Mizrahim and the Ashkenazim, implies that environment, and not genes, is responsible for “the gap”. Yet Katzenelson also attaches much importance to “blood”, even to the extent that only those with at least one Ashkenazi parent could gain entry into his Askenazi Political Party, L.A.I. Speaking Yiddish, from an early age, would not be enough to qualify a person as “Ashkenazi”. Many of the accusations that we hear against the Jewish People, by anti- Semites, are echoed within this book – but from a Jewish perspective. Katzenelson is not afraid to admit the flaws of the Jewish People – even specifically his own Jewish people, the Ashkenazim, but he does so out of the desire to right the wrongs. Just as the author wrote things as he saw them, so too did I adhere to the original Hebrew as much as possible. I did not (intentionally) twist, or stretch, any of the author’s words. If there is any inaccuracy in my translation, it is an honest mistake. There are certain inherent difficulties involved with translation from Hebrew to English. At times, I had no choice but to stray from a literal translation in order to make the book readable and understood. My main goal was to convey the ideas as accurately as possible. I also strove to retain the literary beauty of the original work so that its English version is not only easily understood, but also a pleasure to read. I would like to think that I’ve been successful in this endeavor. 3 As for transliterations, my main concern was that readers recognize as many names as possible. I made no effort at consistency; if I felt that a certain spelling would be more recognizable to readers than another, then that was the one I used. In general, I used the spellings found in Wikipedia. As for the glossary at the end, unless otherwise noted (as links at the end in parenthesis), they are mostly taken from Wikipedia – and edited. I did leave the Wikipedia links intact so that readers can use them for further study. There are a handful of personalities that are not found in the glossary; this is either because I considered them so well known that it was not necessary, or because I was not able to identify the individual. Please feel free to email me with missing information if you have it. While it is a great honor to bring The Ashkenazi Revolution to English speakers, I also wanted to point out that it was no small expense for me to complete this task. Furthermore, it took a tremendous amount of work, and countless hours, to reach this goal. I did not have a team of experts to consult, nor were there any professors at my disposal. So if you benefit from this book, please remember to send me a donation according to your ability. You can use paypal ([email protected]). About the Author and his Book Kalman Katzenelson was born on October 18, 1907 in Bubroisk, White Russia. His father, Shmuel, was a businessman and Torah scholar. His mother, Rotzah Berkovitch, taught in a girl’s school. In 1923, the family migrated to Palestine. In 1927, Kalman joined the Revisionist movement (Tzahar). In 1931, he was sentenced to one month in jail for activities against the British Mandate. In 1932 he was given a suspended sentence, on the condition of good behavior, for his participation in a demonstration. In 1933 he was sentenced to one month in jail for participating in an illegal demonstration. For his anti-British underground activities, he spent a year in prison at Latrun (1944-1945). After the bombing of the King David Hotel, Katzenelson was imprisoned for a month. He was counted among the “50 most important men” who were imprisoned in 1947, and released in 1948, with Israeli independence. ( Encyclopedia of the builders and founders of Israel ). Katzenelson’s aunt was Rachel Katzenelson, the future Rachel Shazar, wife of the president of the State (from Zeev Galili’s website). The following is also from Zeev Galili’s website: 4 The Establishment is Horrified The book aroused a great storm at the time. Menahem Begin rushed to disassociate himself from the book, and from its author, who had been a friend of the Revisionist movement in the past. The book also aroused, apparently, a vigorous response from the Establishment. At the time, there was a rumor that government agents had acquired all copies of the book from the stores in order to prevent its dissemination (end quote). And so, dear reader, without further ado, I present to you “The Ashkenazi Revolution”. Reuben Hayat AKA “Jewamongyou” September, 2011 Katzenelson: Not a Zionist; but an Ashkenazi nationalist. 5 K. Katzenelson The Ashkenazi Revolution Anakh Publishing Tel Aviv 1964 Abraham fell upon his face and God spoke to him saying, “Behold I have created you, and you shall become a multitude of nations. Your name shall no longer be called Abram, but Abraham, for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations. (Genesis 17:4) Isaac called to Jacob and blessed him, commanding him and saying to him, “Do not take a wife from the women of Canaan; arise and go to Padan Aram, to the house of Bethuel, your mother’s father, and take a wife from there, from the daughters of Laban, the brother of your mother. May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you so that you become a multitude of nations.” (Genesis 28:1) Jacob said to Joseph, God Almighty appeared to me in Luz, in the Land of Canaan, and He blessed me. He told me, “behold I shall make you fruitful and multiply you so that you shall become a multitude of nations, and I shall grant you this land for your seed after you, an eternal holding.” (Genesis 48:3-4) Table of Contents Chapter 1. The Jewish Concept of Time and Space Chapter 2. The Congregation of Peoples in the Land of Canaan Chapter 3. Birth and Exile 6 Chapter 4. A Congregation of Peoples in the Diaspora Chapter 5. The Collapse of the Roman World and the Ashkenazi Question Chapter 6. The New Hebrew Literature Chapter 7. Herzl and the New Hebrew Literature Chapter 8. A Model Diaspora Chapter 9. The Tyrannical Reign of the Literary Mandarins Chapter 10. Ashkenaz and Sepharad in the State of Israel Chapter 11. Two Peoples Chapter 12. The Goal and Tactics of the Sephardic Leaders Chapter 13. The False World and the Victory of the Pioneer-workers Chapter 14. The Ashkenazi Revolution Chapter 1 The Jewish Concept of Time and Space 1 The topic of this book is the Ashkenazi People, first and foremost that portion of the Ashkenazi People that dwells in the State of Israel.