DOCSLIB.ORG

Degel Nissan 5769

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Degel Nissan 5769 DEGEL: TORAH AND JEWISH StUDIES FROM ALEI TZION | 3 CONTENTS Notes from the Editor Editor 3 Notes from the Editor Ben Elton BEN ELTON Designer 7 The Journey of Reb Nachman to Erets Yisrael Tammy Youngerwood RAV AVI SCHARF elcome to the second issue of Degel. The Orthodox and Religious Zionist, because they objected to 16 Chief Rabbi Yitshak HaLevi Herzog on Shimon HaTsaddik labelling or pigeon-holing the kehilla its members. Many Proofreading inaugural edition, published last Rosh TRANSLATED AND EDITED BY RAV WARREN KAYE Hashana displayed just some of the talent argue that Jewish religious labels are simplistic, unhelpful Sandy Tapnack Wpresent in our community and was well received. I hope and divisive. It is this sentiment that has led to the growth Jemma Jacobs 22 Yona’s Three Day Journey: Greek Tragedy and the Gaon of Vilna this edition will confirm first impressions, not only by of trans-denominational or post-denominational Judaism. TIKVA BLAUKOPF maintaining the standard of the Rosh Hashana issue, but This is a major intellectual challenge to a community that Fundraising does define itself in denominational terms, as Modern 28 Understanding the Obligation to remember the Exodus from Egypt by doing so with a completely new set of authors. My Ben Vos thanks go to them, Tammy Youngerwood for her design Orthodox and Religious Zionist. YAIR BLUMENFELD Joel Stempel and setting, Sandy Tapnack and Jemma Jacobs for proof- The debate is not a new one. As long ago as 1915 Oswald Anthony Bodenstein 35 The Amida: What do we stand for? reading the articles, Ben Vos, Joel Stempel and Anthony Bodenstein for their fundraising activities and everyone John Simon attacked what he called ‘the folly of religious YONNI COHEN 1 who placed a greeting. l a b e l s’. He derided terms such as ‘conservative’ or 41 Modern Orthodoxy - Religious Zionism: One Hashkafa or Two? ‘liberal’ as ‘obscure, unreal, stereotyped and emptied of all philosophical and spiritual value’. ‘Why’, he appealed SIMON LEVY ‘cannot a Jew be content with just saying humbly and 53 Tevya’s Milk is still Fresh: One hundred and fifty years of Sholem Aleichem Many argue that Jewish religious reverently “I belong to the holy faith and people of Israel by conviction as well as by blood. God help me to be NATHAN WOODWARD labels are simplistic, unhelpful worthy of this tremendous trust which has come to me”.’ 58 Radical outsiders? Jews in pre-War British business and divisive. When we look at how Jews have used religious labels OJ BEN VOS Simon seems to have a point. Different people have used 70 Letter to the Editor One element of my last Notes that attracted attention the same term in different and often contradictory ways, was the attempt to explore what it meant to be a Modern and used different terms to describe the same ideas. In Orthodox Religious Zionist kehilla. You can read Bobby 1934 the Vice-President of the United Synagogue, Robert Hill’s letter on this subject in this issue. I tried to do this Waley Cohen described Rabbi Yehiel Yaakov Weinberg, 2 without attempting a comprehensive definition, but by the Seridei Eish, as ‘ultra-orthodox’. Yet today, in light of describing some of the ways in which this hashkafa might his commitment to modern scholarship and his teshuvot manifest itself in practice: Hallel on Yom Ha’atsmaut, on mixed singing and the celebration of Benot Mitsva, holding a Simhat Bat, and so forth. Amongst other he is considered one of the spiritual fathers of Modern feedback, I heard two opposing objections; some felt I had Orthodoxy. not gone far enough, while others felt I had gone too far! The same Robert Waley Cohen protested at around the A number of people argued that I should have tried to same time that his brand of orthodoxy in Anglo-Jewry was define Modern Orthodox and Religious Zionism fully being overtaken by ultra-orthodoxy. He cited as evidence and rigorously. An equal and opposite reaction came the pressure to close shops at the time when Shabbat Degel is a publication of the Alei Tzion Community | aleitzion.co.uk from those who disliked any attempt to define Modern began on a Friday afternoon, however early, rather than LSJS Schaller House | 44a Albert Road | London | NW4 2SJ | [email protected] close them at six o’clock.3 It is unlikely that anyone today 4 DEGEL: TORAH AND JEWISH StUDIES FROM ALEI TZION | 5 would claim that orthodoxy was compatible with keeping coterminous. A Jew is first of all a Jew, sans phrase. author’s one hundred and fiftieth birthday. Tevye is at heart businesses open until well into the hours of darkness on a If, further, he styles himself ‘Orthodox’ or ‘Liberal’, a mystic forced to work for a living. The same could not be Friday. he should regard the adjective as referring to that said of the masters of commerce Ben Vos discusses in his aspect of Judaism which he and his friends desire analysis of the Jewish impact on British business. If we turn to our own labels of choice, we can find to emphasise, not as separating him and his friends examples of their use far removed from our religious from other Jews. The adjective is domestic: its Many of the articles in this edition are concerned in one philosophy. In 1897 Chief Rabbi Hermann Adler preached purpose is to keep his special duty before his eyes, way or another with rescue and redemption: Shimon 4 a sermon entitled Religious versus political Zionism. It not to endow him with a mark of superiority.’ Hatsaddik’s salvation of traditional Judaism in the face was by no means an appeal for a Mizrahi as opposed of the Greek challenge. The deliverance of Nineveh form to a secular Zionist approach. The ‘religious Zionism’ destruction by an unwilling Yona. The longing for Erets Adler advocated was no more than an adherence to the In that spirit, Degel presents its second edition comprised Yisrael of R. Nahman and the Religious Zionists. Tevye’s traditional belief in the Messiah and continued prayer of articles dedicated to the study of the Torah and Jewish escapist day dreams and our hopes expressed in prayer. for his coming and the rebuilding of Jerusalem. Adler life. The Jewish people’s condition as an exiled nation of ruled out any practical measures associated with Herzl’s outsiders, enabling some of its members to shake up the programme. By this definition Neturei Karta qualify as In the fiftieth year since the death of the State of Israel’s commercial status quo. The memory of our Redemption religious Zionists. first Chief Rabbi, R. Warren Kaye presents an annotated from Egypt, which we trust will soon be overshadowed by translation of a short essay by Chief Rabbi Yitshak HaLevi one that is even greater. A fitting theme for what I hope Herzog on Shimon Hatsaddik. R. Herzog discusses the will be for all a hag kasher vesameah. A Jew is first of all a Jew, sans complex relationship between Torah and Greek wisdom. In that spirit Tikva Blaukopf fuses insights of the Vilna — BEN ElTON phrase. Gaon and parallels in Athenian Tragedy to come to a better understanding of Sefer Yona. As for ‘Modern Orthodox’, Rabbi Oscar Fasman, former R. Herzog was both Modern Orthodox and a Religious Endnotes Rosh Yeshiva of the Hebrew Theological College in Zionist. Simon Levy explores the complex relationship 1. Jewish Chronicle 3 September 1915, 26 Chicago, reports that in the 1940s the term was used between these hashkafot through their historical 2. M Shapiro, Between the Yeshiva world and Modern in America to describe synagogues that were basically development and in their current form. Religious Zionism Orthodoxy (1999), 134 traditional but where there was mixed seating. To confuse is just one expression of the love for the Land of Israel that 3. B Homa, A fortress in Anglo-Jewry (1953), 14-15 matters further, synagogues which retained the mehitsa has burned in the heart of the Jewish people for millennia. 4. JC 15 October 1897, 13 5 were called ‘traditional’. The Rav discusses the attitude of one of the great Jewish 5. OZ Fasman, ‘Historical reminiscence: After fifty thinkers of recent centuries, R. Nahman of Breslov, to years, an optimist’ American Jewish History 69:2 (De- So much for the pitfalls involved in using religious labels, Erets Yisrael, and finds themes that the great thinkers of cember 1979), 162 but should they be discarded as completely without Religious Zionism, notably Rav Kook, would later develop. 6. H Loewe, ‘Introduction’ to A Rabbinic Anthology ed. merit? In 1938 Herbert Loewe, the Reader in Rabbinics at CG Montefiore and H Loewe, (London, 1939) lix-lx Cambridge stated his view, which, more than seventy years Chief Rabbi JH Hertz told the congregation at the 7. JH Hertz, Affirmations of Judaism (Oxford 1927), 35 later, stands up extremely well:6 Bayswater Synagogue on shevi’i shel Pesah 1926: ‘Judaism embraces the whole of life...Judaism is far more than a ‘Labels are a great convenience: they prevent creed or a theology...Judaism is a religious civilization – a luggage from going astray. But labels and luggage spiritual culture aglow with a passion for righteousness. It are not synonymous: if the luggage gets lost has its own language, literature, history, customs and social and the labels, sans luggage, are delivered, the institutions.’7 Guided by that broad vision we present here passenger is not unreasonably discontented. Jewish studies in their fullness. One the one hand, Yair Labels, therefore, are admittedly of the highest Blumenfeld traces the mitsva of zekher yetsiat mitsrayrim importance, but the sphere of their importance and its understanding from the Mishna to the Aharonim.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • THE APOCALYPTIC WAR AGAINST GOG of MAGOG. MARTIN BUBER VERSUS MEIR KAHANE Por: Rico Sneller
    EL CONFLICTO PALESTINO-ISRAELI: SOLUCIONES Y DERIVAS Profesor David Noel Ramírez Padilla Rector del Tecnológico de Monterrey Lic. Héctor Núñez de Cáceres Rector de la Zona Occidente Ing. Salvador Coutiño Audiffred Dr. Ricardo Romero Gerbaud Director General del Campus Querétaro Dirección Dr. Ricardo Romero Gerbaud Mtro. José Manuel Velázquez Hurtado Director de Profesional y Graduados en María José Juárez Becerra Administración y Ciencias Sociales Edición Mtra. Angélica Camacho Aranda Natalia Fernández, Alicia Hernández, Rodrigo Directora del Departamento de Relaciones Pesce Internacionales y Formación Humanística Asistentes de Edición Mtro. Kacper Przyborowski Director de la Licenciatura en Relaciones Internacionales Dr. Tomás Pérez Vejo Dra. Marisol Reyes Soto Escuela Nacional de Antropología e Historia INAH University of Queens, Ireland Dra. Avital Bloch Dr. Tamir Bar-On Universidad de Colima Tecnológico de Monterrey Dra. Marie-Joelle Zahar Université de Montréal Dra. Claudia Barona Castañeda Universidad de Las Américas Puebla Dr. Thomas Wolfe University of Minnesota, Twin-Cities Dr. Janusz Mucha AGH, Cracovia GRUPO FORUM Retos Internacionales, ISSN: 2007-8390. Año 5, No. 11, Agosto-Diciembre 2014, publicación semestral. Editada por el Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey, Campus Querétaro, a través de la División de Administración y Ciencias Sociales, bajo la dirección del Departamento deRelaciones Internacionales y Humanidades, domicilio Av. Eugenio Garza Sada No. 2501, Col. Tecnológico, C.P. 64849, Monterrey, N.L. Editor responsable: Dr. Ricardo Romero Gerbaud. Datos de contacto: [email protected], http://retosinternacionales.com, teléfono y fax: 52 (442) 238 32 34. Impresa por FORUM arte y comunicación S.A. de C.V., domicilio Av. del 57, número 12, Colonia Centro, C.P.
    [Show full text]
  • Zionism - a Successor to Rabbinical Judaism?
    Zionism - A Successor to Rabbinical Judaism? By Gol Kalev Outline I) Introduction II) Historical Background -Judaism to Zionism -Zionism as a Successor to Rabbinical Judaism? Why It Has Not Happened So Far: -Israel-Related Hurdles -America-Related Hurdles III) Transformation of Judaism: Why Now Might Be a Ripe Time: -Changing Circumstances in Israel -New Threats (Post-Zionism) -Enablers of Jewish Transformation -Changing Circumstances in America -New Threats (End of Jewish Glues, Israel-Bashing, Dispersal of Jewish Capital) -Enablers of Jewish Transformation IV) Judaism 3.0 2 INTRODUCTION “Palestine for the Jews!” That was the headline of The London Times on November 9, 1917, the week after the British government issued the Balfour Declaration. A mere 30 years later, the headline turned into reality with the establishment of the State of Israel, homeland of the Jewish People. The return of the Jews to their ancestral homeland has driven Rabbinical Judaism, the form of Judaism practiced for the last 1900 years, to a unique challenge. After all, Rabbinical Judaism’s formation coincided with the Jews’ exit to the Diaspora, and to a large extent was developed to accommodate the state of exile. Much of its core is based on the yearning for the return to Israel. The propensity of its rituals, prayers and customs are centered on the Land of Israel, from having synagogues face Jerusalem to reciting a prayer for return three times a day. A question arose: Now that the Jews are allowed to return to the Land of Israel, how will Judaism evolve? During the 20th century, the Jewish people re-domiciled and concentrated in two core centers: Israel and the United States.
    [Show full text]
  • Israel's National Religious and the Israeli- Palestinian Conflict
    Leap of Faith: Israel’s National Religious and the Israeli- Palestinian Conflict Middle East Report N°147 | 21 November 2013 International Crisis Group Headquarters Avenue Louise 149 1050 Brussels, Belgium Tel: +32 2 502 90 38 Fax: +32 2 502 50 38 [email protected] Table of Contents Executive Summary ................................................................................................................... i Recommendations..................................................................................................................... iv I. Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 1 II. Religious Zionism: From Ascendance to Fragmentation ................................................ 5 A. 1973: A Turning Point ................................................................................................ 5 B. 1980s and 1990s: Polarisation ................................................................................... 7 C. The Gaza Disengagement and its Aftermath ............................................................. 11 III. Settling the Land .............................................................................................................. 14 A. Bargaining with the State: The Kookists ................................................................... 15 B. Defying the State: The Hilltop Youth ........................................................................ 17 IV. From the Hills to the State ..............................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Holy War in Modern Judaism? "Mitzvah War" and the Problem of the "Three Vows" Author(S): Reuven Firestone Source: Journal of the American Academy of Religion, Vol
    Holy War in Modern Judaism? "Mitzvah War" and the Problem of the "Three Vows" Author(s): Reuven Firestone Source: Journal of the American Academy of Religion, Vol. 74, No. 4 (Dec., 2006), pp. 954- 982 Published by: Oxford University Press Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/4139958 Accessed: 18-08-2018 15:51 UTC JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at https://about.jstor.org/terms Oxford University Press is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Journal of the American Academy of Religion This content downloaded from 128.95.104.66 on Sat, 18 Aug 2018 15:51:16 UTC All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms Holy War in Modern Judaism? "Mitzvah War" and the Problem of the "Three Vows" Reuven Firestone "Holy war," sanctioned or even commanded by God, is a common and recurring theme in the Hebrew Bible. Rabbinic Judaism largely avoided discussion of holy war for the simple reason that it became dangerous and self-destructive. The failed "holy wars" of the Great Revolt and the Bar Kokhba Rebellion eliminated enthusiasm for it among the survivors engaged in reconstructing Judaism from ancient biblical religion. The rabbis therefore built a fence around the notion through two basic strat- egies: to define and categorize biblical wars so that they became virtually unthinkable in their contemporary world and to construct a divine con- tract between God, the Jews, and the world of the Gentiles that would establish an equilibrium preserving the Jews from overwhelming Gentile wrath by preventing Jewish actions that could result in war.
    [Show full text]
  • Return of Private Foundation
    l efile GRAPHIC p rint - DO NOT PROCESS As Filed Data - DLN: 93491015004014 Return of Private Foundation OMB No 1545-0052 Form 990 -PF or Section 4947( a)(1) Nonexempt Charitable Trust Treated as a Private Foundation Department of the Treasury 2012 Note . The foundation may be able to use a copy of this return to satisfy state reporting requirements Internal Revenue Service • . For calendar year 2012 , or tax year beginning 06 - 01-2012 , and ending 05-31-2013 Name of foundation A Employer identification number CENTURY 21 ASSOCIATES FOUNDATION INC 22-2412138 O/o RAYMOND GINDI ieiepnone number (see instructions) Number and street (or P 0 box number if mail is not delivered to street address) Room/suite U 22 CORTLANDT STREET Suite City or town, state, and ZIP code C If exemption application is pending, check here F NEW YORK, NY 10007 G Check all that apply r'Initial return r'Initial return of a former public charity D 1. Foreign organizations, check here (- r-Final return r'Amended return 2. Foreign organizations meeting the 85% test, r Address change r'Name change check here and attach computation H Check type of organization FSection 501(c)(3) exempt private foundation r'Section 4947(a)(1) nonexempt charitable trust r'Other taxable private foundation J Accounting method F Cash F Accrual E If private foundation status was terminated I Fair market value of all assets at end und er section 507 ( b )( 1 )( A ), c hec k here F of y e a r (from Part 77, col. (c), Other (specify) _ F If the foundation is in a 60-month termination line 16)x$ 4,783,143
    [Show full text]
  • Rav Kook and Dr. Revel: a Shared Vision for a Central Universal Yeshiva?
    NATAN OPHIR Rav Kook and Dr. Revel: A Shared Vision for a Central Universal Yeshiva? his article examines a little known episode in the history of two famous schools, Yeshivat Mercaz HaRav-Central Universal TYeshiva (CUY) 1 and the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS). Specifically, it examines several exchanges between R. Abraham Isaac Kook and R. Dr. Bernard Revel. Their discussion began in 1918, continued when R. Kook visited New York in 1924, and culminated in a written proposal by Dr. Revel on May 17, 1927. The proposal would have meant uniting what we now call the Torah u- Madda 2 ideology developed in New York with Torat Ere z. Yisrael of Jerusalem. There are lacunae in this story that leave room for speculation. Nevertheless, the main plot will, I believe, be of special interest to read - ers of this journal, and may give rise to interesting observations about the protagonists. Besides adding a chapter to the history of Torah u- Madda in the twentieth century, this story provides a glimpse into a rel - atively unknown phase in the early development of both Yeshiva College and CUY. NATAN OPHIR (O FFENBACHER ) directs Meorot, a center in Jerusalem for Jewish Meditation and Neuro-Psychology. An alumnus of Yeshiva College, he received ordination from Yeshivat Mercaz HaRav and a Ph.D in Jewish Philosophy at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he served as rabbi of the campus for sixteen years. He has published articles in Daat , Tehumin , and other scholarly journals. 188 The Torah u-Madda Journal (15/2008-09) Natan Ophir 189 R.
    [Show full text]
  • AFTER 80 YEARS in CANADA a GRAND REUNION 200 Descendants of Czech Jewish Immigrants Celebrate Their Families’ Monumental Achievements
    P5 P15 Jonathan Riaboy joins JHamilton staff • 5 Frank Junger’s lessons in survival • 12 Desert adventures on the Machtesh • 15 INSIDE KISLEV 5779 Hamilton Jewish NThe voice ofe Jewishw Hamilton Oct.s 2018 AFTER 80 YEARS IN CANADA A GRAND REUNION 200 descendants of Czech Jewish immigrants celebrate their families’ monumental achievements STORY BY STEVEN BROCK, THE HAMILTON JEWISH NEWS ONE FAMILY’S RESILIENCE was on full display in late September as the descendants of 39 Czech Jews who fled the horrors of the Holocaust met in Hamilton to celebrate the 80th anniversary of their arrival in Canada. More than 200 members of the Popper/Abeles/Ekstein/Brok family gathered at Temple Anshe Sholom for a grand celebration of the family’s escape and how they flourished in their adopted homeland. For Annette Richardson and Dave Loewith, who spearheaded the event, this reunion was the culmination of a year-and-a- half of planning. REUNION CONTINUES ON P4 ARCHIVES JEWISH ONTARIO The original group of 39 Czech Jewish refugees admitted into Canada as farmers on the eve of the Second World War. The above photo taken in Mount Hope, Ontario in 1938. A BARRAGE OF LIES What I’ve tried Col. Richard Kemp gives keynote to maintain is the address at Community Campaign continuity of Jewish launch, saying the lie that Israel is an tradition. ” aggressor state is repeated so often that even some Jews have come to ‘Rabbi‘ Mordecai Green left believe it. an indelible mark on this community. STEVE ARNOLD REPORTS: P6 OBIT BY PHYLLIS SHRAGGE: P10 PHOTO COURTESYOF COL.
    [Show full text]
  • YESHIVAT HAKOTEL Bergman Family Leadership Program
    "ואמר רבי לוי כל היוצא מבית הכנסת לבית המדרש ומבית המדרש לבית הכנסת זוכה ומקבל פני שכינה שנאמר 'ילכו מחיל אל חיל יראה אל אלוקים בציון.' " )מסכת מועד קטן דף כט עמוד א( YESHIVAT HAKOTEL Bergman Family Leadership Program "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." - Margaret Mead GENERAL LEADERSHIP PROGRAM Students of Jerusalem Paving our Path ללמוד וללמד KEEP THE KOTEL SPECIAL IN YOUR EYES Come down to the Kotel with us and learn how to Students are given the opportunity to deliver Divrei communicate with all types of Jews and non Jews. Torah to peers and chanichim around the world. At the We explain the sanctity of Jerusalem from a student's same time, one is able to learn how to edit film. Students perspective & make a Kiddush Hashem. are encouraged to share the Torah they learn in the beit medrash to the world. Yemin Moshe - Communal Leadership Incredible Shabbatonim Friday Morning Beit Medrash Program Join us on our three General Leadership Shabbatonim. Our talmidim connect to the community with Torah. The Enjoy Shabbatonim in the communities of Even Shmuel, talmidim are given the opportunity to provide a shiur in Modiin and Efrat. There are themes that range from the warm environment and receive positive feedback "Stepping Up For What is Right", "Vision", & "Clarity". and critique. Each Shabbaton is full of training with the yeshiva feel of chevra, Divrei torah and zemirot with Guest Speakers Minyonaire program and our Leadership staff. Helping make the Yemin Moshe Ashkenaz Minyan thrive by delivering the Torah we learn in the Beis Medrash to the Beis Knessset.
    [Show full text]
  • Doing Talmud: an Ethnographic Study in a Religious High School in Israel
    Doing Talmud: An Ethnographic Study in a Religious High School in Israel Thesis submitted for the degree of “Doctor of Philosophy” by Aliza Segal Submitted to the Senate of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem May 2011 Iyyar 5771 This work was carried out under the supervision of: Prof. Marc Hirshman Dr. Zvi Bekerman Acknowledgements If an apt metaphor for the completion of a dissertation is the birthing of a child, then indeed it takes a village to write a dissertation. I am fortunate that my village is populated with insightful, supportive and sometimes even heroic people, who have made the experience not only possible but also enriching and enjoyable. My debt of gratitude to these villagers looms large, and I would like to offer a few small words of thanks. To my advisors, Dr. Zvi Bekerman and Professor Menachem (Marc) Hirshman, for their generosity with time, insight, expertise, and caring. I have been working with Zvi since my MA thesis, and he has shaped my world view not only as a researcher but also as an individual. His astute and lightening-speed comments on everything I have ever sent him to read have pushed me forwards at every stage of my work, and it is with great joy that I note that I have never left his office without something new to read. Menachem has brought his keen eye and sharp wit to the project, and from the beginning has been able to see the end. His attention to the relationship between structure and content has informed my work as both a writer and a reader.
    [Show full text]
  • The Role of Ultra-Orthodox Political Parties in Israeli Democracy
    Luke Howson University of Liverpool The Role of Ultra-Orthodox Political Parties in Israeli Democracy Thesis submitted in accordance with the requirements of the University of Liverpool for the degree of Doctor in Philosophy By Luke Howson July 2014 Committee: Clive Jones, BA (Hons) MA, PhD Prof Jon Tonge, PhD 1 Luke Howson University of Liverpool © 2014 Luke Howson All Rights Reserved 2 Luke Howson University of Liverpool Abstract This thesis focuses on the role of ultra-orthodox party Shas within the Israeli state as a means to explore wider themes and divisions in Israeli society. Without underestimating the significance of security and conflict within the structure of the Israeli state, in this thesis the Arab–Jewish relationship is viewed as just one important cleavage within the Israeli state. Instead of focusing on this single cleavage, this thesis explores the complex structure of cleavages at the heart of the Israeli political system. It introduces the concept of a ‘cleavage pyramid’, whereby divisions are of different saliency to different groups. At the top of the pyramid is division between Arabs and Jews, but one rung down from this are the intra-Jewish divisions, be they religious, ethnic or political in nature. In the case of Shas, the religious and ethnic elements are the most salient. The secular–religious divide is a key fault line in Israel and one in which ultra-orthodox parties like Shas are at the forefront. They and their politically secular counterparts form a key division in Israel, and an exploration of Shas is an insightful means of exploring this division further, its history and causes, and how these groups interact politically.
    [Show full text]
  • Rav Soloveitchik on the Jewish Family
    MORE CHOICES F A L L 5 7 7 9 / 2 0 1 8 - 1 9 CONTENTS HOW TO REGISTER .................................................................................................................................... 2 EMUNAH: • Section I: Modern Jewish Thought .............................................................................. 4 • Section II: Classical Jewish Thought ............................................................................. 7 • Section III: Personal Growth ...................................................................................... 11 HISTORY AND SOCIETY ............................................................................................................................ 21 SHANA BET LEADERSHIP PROGRAM .......................................................................................................... 24 TANACH: • Section I: Topics in Tanach ......................................................................................... 25 • Section II: Parshat Ha-Shavu’a ................................................................................... 29 • Section III: Chumash ................................................................................................... 35 • Section IV: Sefarim in Nach ........................................................................................ 37 HALACHAH: • Section I: Contemporary Halachah ............................................................................ 41 • Section II: Classic Topics in Halachah ........................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Religious Zionism: Tzvi Yehuda Kook on Redemption and the State Raina Weinstein Wednesday, Aug
    Religious Zionism: Tzvi Yehuda Kook on Redemption and the State Raina Weinstein Wednesday, Aug. 18 at 11:00 AM EDT Course Description: In May 1967, Rabbi Tzvi Yehuda Kook delivered a fiery address criticizing the modern state of Israel for what he viewed as its founding sin: accepting the Partition Plan and dividing the Land of Israel. “Where is our Hebron?” he cried out. “Where is our Shechem, our Jericho… Have we the right to give up even one grain of the Land of God?” Just three weeks later, the Six Day War broke out, and the Israeli army conquered the biblical heartlands that Rabbi Tzvi Yehuda had mourned—in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Sinai Peninsula, and Golan Heights. Hebron, Shechem, and Jericho were returned to Jewish sovereignty. In the aftermath of the war, Rabbi Tzvi Yehuda’s words seemed almost prophetic. His spiritual vision laid the foundation for a new generation of religious Zionism and the modern settler movement, and his ideology continues to have profound implications for contemporary Israeli politics. In this session, we will explore Rabbi Tzvi Yehuda Kook’s 1967 speech, his teachings, and his critics— particularly Rabbi Yehuda Amital. Guiding Questions: 1. How does Rabbi Tzvi Yehuda Kook interpret the quotation from Psalm 107: "They have seen the works of the Lord and His wonders in the deep"? Why do you think he begins this speech with this scripture? 2. In the section, "They Have Divided My Land," Rav Tzvi Yehuda Kook tells two stories about responses to partition. Based on these stories, what do you think is his attitude toward diplomacy and politics is? 1 of 13 tikvahonlineacademy.org/ 3.
    [Show full text]