Religious Education and Political Activism in Mandate Palestine Suzanne Schneider Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY 2014 © 2014 Suzanne Schneider All rights reserved ABSTRACT Religious Education and Political Activism in Mandate Palestine Suzanne Schneider This dissertation offers a conceptual analysis of Jewish and Islamic religious education in Palestine during the years of British military, civil and Mandatory control (1917-1948). It examines the policies toward religious education pursued by the Government of Palestine, as well as practices developed by Jewish and Muslim educators for use within Zionist and private Arab schools. Based on a combination of archival sources, school curricula, textbooks, memoirs and newspapers, this dissertation elucidates the tensions that characterized attempts on the part of colonial and “native” reformers to transform the structure, content and purpose of religious education in pursuit of their respective political goals. In order to situate the Department of Education’s policies within Palestine’s sectarian context, I chart how an understanding of religion as an apolitical source of individual ethics found reflection in a legal structure that tied educational freedom to the religious community. I further argue that the Department of Education promoted a novel version of religious education within both Jewish and Muslim communities as, somewhat paradoxically, a means of preserving the “traditional” order in which religious knowledge was separated from national politics. Therefore while secular studies were encouraged on an instrumental basis, administrators vigorously opposed the development of secularism as an ideological framework associated with moral discord and political upheaval. The second half of this project discusses educational initiatives among Zionist and Palestinian Muslim leaders in order to highlight the points of overlap and rupture with policies pursued by the Mandatory state. Notwithstanding a strong impetus within both groups to vilify customary forms of communal schooling, neither acquiesced to the colonial view of religious education as the source of “universal” values that transcended the realm of mass politics. In contrast, Jewish and Muslim leaders in Palestine offered alternative educational models in which control over religious knowledge was innately linked to the goals of their respective political movements. Rather than viewing religious education as a source of social continuity, modernists placed the reform of religious education at the center of a program that aimed at revolutionary change. Finally, by adapting a theoretical model borrowed from Bruno Latour, this project argues that the apparent differences between the Government of Palestine on one hand, and Jewish and Muslim educators on the other, were more discursive than material. Education functioned as a political tool within the schools maintained by each group; however, the link between pedagogy and politics was one that the Mandatory government refused to recognize. On the contrary, the Department of Education accused Jewish and Muslim leaders of transgressing the boundary meant to separate education as an exercise in character formation from education as a site of social conditioning and political mobilization. Battles over the content and purpose of religious education therefore constituted part of a larger conflict regarding the relationship between mass schooling and political engagement in modern Palestine. Table of Contents Introduction 1 Chapter 1: Educational Secularization and the Colonial Project 31 Chapter 2: The Foundations of British Education Policy in Palestine 83 Chapter 3: Education and Community under Sectarian Rule 133 Chapter 4: Politics, Education and the Boundaries of 178 Religious Knowledge Chapter 5: Border Clashes 232 Conclusion: The Invisible Cross 289 Bibliography 295 i Acknowledgements Having spent the better part of my adult life at Columbia, leaving Morningside Heights is inevitably a bittersweet moment. I would like to extend my gratitude to both Columbia College and the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, without whose support I could have never pursued this path. Along the way, I have received additional aid from the Institute for Israel and Jewish Studies and the Middle East Institute, both at Columbia University, as well as the Palestinian American Research Center. These organizations have been instrumental in facilitating my research trips and conference travel, and I owe their respective staffs my heartfelt thanks. Universities are only as good as the people that compose them, and here I have been particularly fortunate in learning from the best and the brightest. In the spring of 2003, I took a class on the history of Iran through the Safavid period. With no offense to the subject, the single most valuable thing I got out of the experience was Richard Bulliet as an advisor and mentor. For more than a decade, he has been at the heart of my intellectual development, pushing me to study Arabic, advising my undergraduate thesis, and finally serving as a committee member for this project. I have had the opportunity to pass many pleasant afternoons in his company discussing everything from wheeled vehicles to the particular stresses that accompany writing a dissertation in the company of newborn twins. His confidence in my abilities and interest in my pursuits have served as a constant source of strength. i Though no longer on this side of the Atlantic, Uri Cohen continues to be my intellectual sounding board, chief motivator and sharpest critic. Uri is not just a brilliant mind, but a dedicated teacher and devoted mentor who has been both unyielding in his expectations and patient as I chart my path toward them. To Rashid Khalidi, who was instrumental in developing this project, I am indeed indebted for his keen insights, encyclopedic knowledge of Palestinian history and continual support. Rashid’s dedication to his students amidst the countless demands on his time has served as a model I hope to one day emulate. It was to Columbia’s collective fortune that Timothy Mitchell made the journey uptown in 2008. Since that time, I have benefited immensely from his patient guidance and brilliant critiques. Along with Gil Anidjar, whose theoretical direction has proved indispensible, I am thankful to all of these individuals for their help in developing this project. The Department of Middle East, South African and Asian Studies has served as my academic home for eleven years, and to its faculty and administrative staff I extend my heartfelt gratitude. Taoufik ben-Amor patiently nurtured me through countless linguistic battles in order to facilitate the work I do today, and I am forever grateful for his kindness and genuine interest in his students’ success. Also deserving of special thanks are Dan Miron, George Saliba, Hamid Dabashi, Muhsin al- Musawi and Sudipta Kaviraj, all of whom have shaped my intellectual development. To Jessica Rechtschaffer, who keeps the ship afloat, I cannot thank you enough for all you have done and continue to do in support of my endeavors. ii I have been fortunate enough to both learn from my fellow graduate students and enjoy their friendship. To Elik Elhanan, Maheen Zaman, Valentine Edgar, Tyler Williams, Nathanael Shelley, Yitzhak Lewis, Seth Anziska, Erica Borghard, Yuval Kremnitzer and Roni Henig, I extend my thanks for your guidance and community. I am sure I will continue to learn from your insights. There are still other individuals who have provided needed direction and constructive criticism about this project. Hilary Falb and Liora Halperin created a MESA panel on education in Mandate Palestine that force me to first consider religious education as a dissertation topic. In the years since, I have benefited from their collegiality and insights, and thank them for their assistance at many points along the way. Yotam Hotam has been a patient reader of many chapter drafts and a continual source of encouragement. Adam Zachary Newton and Miriam Udel have repeatedly assured me that I would, in fact, reach this day. And Laura Schor has served both as an intellectual companion and personal mentor over the last several years. Additionally, a number of individuals have aided in my research, and I would like to especially thank Ela Greenberg, Khader Salameh, Ellen Fleischmann, Qais Malhas and Amiel Shefer for their help. This project has certainly been an intellectual journey, but it would never have reached fruition without the emotional and logistical support of my family and friends. Having twins in the midst of one’s dissertation research generates unique challenges, and I assuredly would not be here without the love and assistance of so many. My parents have long exhibited selfless love for their children, and now, extend the same sense of unconditional devotion to their grandchildren. The iii distance between South Dakota and New York has never deterred them from being here when we have needed them most. To my siblings, Joseph, Kara and Andrea, and their spouses, Joe and Ann, thank you for your years of love and patient support. You have each served as role models in your own ways. To my wonderful in-laws, Lisa and Yaron Reich, thank you for your endless support in various forms. From babysitting to dropping off groceries and offering translation help, I could not have done it without you. My brothers and sisters-in- law have handled seven years of graduate school talk with gracious cheer. In particular, Yehuda and Arielle Reich have looked after me during my research trips to Israel. Leora and Aharon Bejell and their children, especially Chananel, Oriel, Shmuel and Yedidya, have gone out of their way to facilitate my research in Jerusalem. Last but certainly not least, to our grandparents, Drs. Leon and Rosalie Reich, who have spent countless hours with their great-grandchildren while I snuck away to work, I owe my deepest gratitude and affection. Beyond merely offering words of support, my friends have been instrumental in helping me maintain my sanity.