A triumph of life and hope

[Snowden]

A triumph of life and hope
By Jeff Jacoby


The birth of the state of Israel 60 years ago this week was an astonishment. It is not unheard of for a nation to vanish from the map and later reappear. Poland, for example, was partitioned out of existence in 1795 and regained its independence in 1918. But the restoration of Israel was unlike anything the world had ever seen.

Jews had been deprived of their homeland for nearly 2,000 years, ever since the Roman devastation of Judea. That upheaval had been cataclysmic. By the time the fighting ended in 135, half of Judea's population was dead. Of those who survived, hundreds of thousands were sold into slavery or expelled. Not until the Holocaust 18 centuries later would the Jewish people experience a more shattering catastrophe.

Yet through all the generations of dispersion that followed, the Jews never lost their self-awareness as a nation or their connection to the land of Israel. They expressed their longing for it in daily prayer and turned toward it when they worshiped. They collected charity to support the minority of Jews who had never left the land; and over the years others made their way back as well, often in response to Christian or Muslim persecution. By the 1860s, a majority of Jerusalem's population was Jewish once more. Zionism - an organized movement to renew Jewish independence in the Jewish homeland - was formally launched in 1897. Five decades later, against steep odds and every historical precedent, Israel was reborn.

It was an incredible achievement, made even more incredible by the fact that it occurred in the wake of a genocide that had wiped out one-third of the Jewish people.

Within hours of declaring its independence, the newborn state of Israel, with a population of just 600,000, was invaded by five Arab armies. They were intent, in the words of Azzam Pasha, secretary-general of the Arab League, on waging a "a war of extermination and a momentous massacre." The ovens of Treblinka and Auschwitz had barely cooled, and Jews were again being threatened with annihilation. Yet the fledgling state survived and thrived, a triumph of life and hope over the forces of hatred and death.

It was more than an astonishment; it was a miracle. For many, the rebirth of Jewish sovereignty after the blackness of the Holocaust thrillingly evoked Ezekiel's vision in the valley of dry bones. "These bones are the whole house of Israel," God had told the prophet. "They say, 'Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are cut off.' " But before Ezekiel's eyes, the bones reassembled and the skeletons came back to life - and so, God said, will the vanquished and exiled Jews: "Behold, I will . . . raise you up from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you into the land of Israel." To millions of Christians and Jews, the creation of modern Israel was nothing less than the fulfillment of Biblical prophecy. That is part of the reason that a country so tiny - Israel is smaller than Lake Michigan - seems to loom so large.

Under siege since the day it was born, Israel has never known a day of true peace. It is the only nation in the world whose legitimacy is routinely called into question. It still has enemies who want it wiped off the map. Uniquely, the Jewish state came into being with the imprimatur of both the League of Nations and the United Nations. Yet time and again it is told it has no right to exist. Of course that is fatuous; few nations can present a birth certificate as storied as Israel's. Nonetheless, Israel's fundamental right to exist doesn't derive from UN votes, or promises in the Bible, or its own Declaration of Independence.

For the right of statehood ultimately accrues only to those who can fashion and sustain a nation. "The land of Israel belongs to Israelis," Yale's David Gelernter wrote in 2002, "for the same reason America belongs to Americans: Because Israelis conceived and built it - and what you create is yours. If you want a homeland, you must create one. You drain swamps, lay out farms, build houses, schools, roads, hospitals . . .

"That's how America got its homeland. And that is why Israel belongs to the Israelis."


Jeff Jacoby

[Leo2man]

"The land of Israel belongs to Israelis," Yale's David Gelernter wrote in 2002, "for the same reason America belongs to Americans: Because Israelis conceived and built it - and what you create is yours. If you want a homeland, you must create one. You drain swamps, lay out farms, build houses, schools, roads, hospitals . . .

"That's how America got its homeland. And that is why Israel belongs to the Israelis."

This conveniently ignores the reality of the situation prior to the creation of the Jewish state. The Arab Muslims which lived in the area and predated the migration of Jewish settlers had established a large yet scattered community in what has become Israel. To claim that the Jews created a homeland from nothing is incorrect.

The other issue is one of how far back do you go in terms of history to claim legitimacy to an area? The Bible is quite clear that the Jewish people moved into what is the current state of Israel by attacking and defeating the previous inhabitants. Obviously if we go back far enough, the Jewish people become illigitimate conquerors by our current standards.

[Snowden]

An Arab Muslim once told me that the Jews deserve the land. "We did nothing with it," he said, "Look what they have done. The desert is a garden." He went on from there; but he was an educated man, one who had traveled.

The Jews were sent from the land into the world for a purpose, but the land has always been theirs. Their heart was never sent away; that also was for a purpose.

Yes, they took the land by warfare; we took this land the same way, with the difference of taking it after living here for a foreign government. There has always been a Jewish presence in what is today Israel. The government we took this country from never was established here.

Tell us how the holocaust was not a war; I believe it was and that that particular war is still going on. It's based on anti-Semitism; hatred of Jews. And it will never end so long as there is one Jew on earth.

There's a reason for that too, I believe.

[Leo2man]

Yes, they took the land by warfare; we took this land the same way, with the difference of taking it after living here for a foreign government. There has always been a Jewish presence in what is today Israel. The government we took this country from never was established here.

By the same token, there has always been an Arab presence in the country, which of course is why the country needs a government that represents both Arab and Israeli. This is not the current situation.

Defining a country or a legitimate 'right' to a particular piece of ground by virtue of establishing a government is difficult when the government established does not fall into what we would consider normal. The Arabs in the region had a very hierarchical yet diversified government, and one that did not fit the traditional model. That does not exclude their right to the same patch of ground.

In the end, the current government of Israel must find a middle ground that recognizes Arab/Palestinian rights. The current arrangements and practices are immoral IMO.

Tell us how the holocaust was not a war; I believe it was and that that particular war is still going on. It's based on anti-Semitism; hatred of Jews. And it will never end so long as there is one Jew on earth.

Who is us? And the Holocaust has nothing to do with the argument concerning the rights of Israel or the Palestinians. Anti-Semitism is often confused with anti-Zionism, which is more relevent to the discussion. Anti-Zionism is the Arab/Palestinian stance, although radical elements often transcend this and move into anti-Semetic views.

Opposition to the right of the Government of Israel to exist is anti-Zionist, not necessarily anti-Semitic.

In the end, hostorically both groups have a legitimate claim to the land and both need to be recognized/represented in any legitimate government in the region.

[Snowden]

By the same token, there has always been an Arab presence in the country, which of course is why the country needs a government that represents both Arab and Israeli. This is not the current situation.

True, but neither did the Arab government (Jordanian) ever represent or do anything to help the Jews. I agree the government should represent all who live within the country; it has never done so in Israel/Palestine that I know of. There even was a wholesale slaughter of Jews in 1927. (I know the slaughter took place, I'm not certain of the year.)

Defining a country or a legitimate 'right' to a particular piece of ground by virtue of establishing a government is difficult when the government established does not fall into what we would consider normal. The Arabs in the region had a very hierarchical yet diversified government, and one that did not fit the traditional model. That does not exclude their right to the same patch of ground.

Actually, they never had a "right" to it any more than anyone else. The Muslims took the land because of a ridiculous dream Mohammad had of flying on his horse into heaven. It had nothing to do with reality or history; Mohammad was never in Jerusalem, yet he wanted it taken for Islam.

In the end, the current government of Israel must find a middle ground that recognizes Arab/Palestinian rights. The current arrangements and practices are immoral IMO.

This should have been done in 1948, of course. I've talked to Arab friends there though, and neither the Christians nor the Muslims wanted any part of "Israel." They suddenly became Palestinians, when previously only the Jews there called themselves by that name.

Sadly, the truth is that the hatred between those two peoples makes it very unlikely that they could ever live in the same country in peace. Islam teaches hatred of Jews and of Christians -- but especially Jews. They are referred to in very derrogatory terms, as sons of pigs and monkeys. They are told to kill all Jews who will not convert to Islam -- and that's in their holy book, the Qur'an.

Who is us? And the Holocaust has nothing to do with the argument concerning the rights of Israel or the Palestinians. Anti-Semitism is often confused with anti-Zionism, which is more relevent to the discussion. Anti-Zionism is the Arab/Palestinian stance, although radical elements often transcend this and move into anti-Semetic views.

The Holocaust has nothing to do with the argument, perhaps; it has everything to do with the nation of Israel. Of course, the Zionists were already trying to get that land back, but without the Holocaust it would never have been accomplished. Because of that, the U.N. backed the return of the Jews to their native land and helped them survive there. We have helped them, really; not the U.N.

Opposition to the right of the Government of Israel to exist is anti-Zionist, not necessarily anti-Semitic.

With the Christians there, I believe you're correct in that. However, for the Muslims, they will say anything, but their holy book tells them what to do and they are striving to do it. They intend to kill every Jew who does not convert and to take all that land for themselves.

In the end, hostorically both groups have a legitimate claim to the land and both need to be recognized/represented in any legitimate government in the region.

I believe when Israel was formed in 1948, they should have made it law that any baby born there from that day was an Israeli, with the benefits and responsibilities that went with that status. It wasn't done, it wasn't even attempted, so we will never know if that could have worked. With the teachings of the Qur'an being what they are, it may even have made matters worse.

We have the situation as it exists today; our government is bumbling into it making demands that the Israelis give up what little land they have. This could weaken them enough to encourage the Muslim nations and those within the borders of Israel to once again declare war on that tiny nation. And it will. The leader of the PA said if all their demands are met they will live there in peace for 10 years and then once again begin the hostilities. This is very typical and is taught, again, in the Qur'an. When they are strong enough to believe they can win, they will fight again.

This is how they have taken over so much of the territory in their hands right now; in Europe, Russia and so on. They move in peacefully, then when there are enough of them, they start making demands and working their way into govenrment. They fight when they feel strong enough to win.