Israel at Sixty: The Persistence of Vision

Herzl Got Lost in the Shuffle

by David Breakstone

Herzl seems to have gotten lost in the shuffle. In the excitement of celebrating our 60th birthday, the man who more than any other was responsible for bringing Israel into being was all but ignored. Back in 2004, on the 100th anniversary of his death, the Knesset adopted legislation incorporating Herzl Day into the Israeli calendar. It was decided to designate his birthday, the 10th of Iyar, as the official date on which a variety of events and activities would take place celebrating his life’s work. That’s only five days after Israel Independence Day and with all of the hullabaloo surrounding the festivities this year, almost no attention was paid to the visionary of the Jewish state.

It’s a shame, not only because of the honor due to this modern-day prophet who quite literally sacrificed his life by dedicating it to the good of the Jewish people, but also because of the legacy of dreams he left us which are every bit as inspiring today as they were more than a century ago.

The Word from Sderot: Zionism is Alive and Well

by David Breakstone

The verdict is in. I am pleased to be able to report that as we prepare to celebrate 60 years of Israeli independence, Zionism is alive and well and – surprisingly, perhaps -  living in Sderot.

Last week, the Zionist Executive met in special session in the beleaguered town during a day on which we also toured the region bordering Gaza. We met with residents of the area, with officials responsible for settlement efforts, and with representatives of a wide range of institutions and service organizations in the district, including the Jewish Agency and the World Zionist Organization. We heard about the severe difficulties of living for seven years under the constant barrage of rocket fire. We heard about what it was like to be injured in such an attack, and about the protracted process of recovery. We heard about the long-term effects of trauma and stress on children growing up under such circumstances. We heard about the efforts being made to counsel and assist individuals and families in need of support. The narrative was compelling.

What we didn't hear, however, was every bit as fascinating, perhaps even more so.

No Monopoly on Antisemitism

David Breakstone

Or perhaps it would be more appropriate to state that there is no antisemitism in Monopoly. For those who are not au courant, Hasbro, the toy company that produces this board game, just conducted an on-line survey to determine which cities to include in its soon-to-be released World Edition. Each metropolis in the running appeared on the list together with the country in which it is located, including Jerusalem – until an Arab protest succeeded in wiping Israel off the site. We Jews, of course, were outraged, and not to be outdone, managed to eliminate all the countries of the world from the internet ballot. It was a Solomonic act of revenge that left every urban sprawl stateless, allowing Hasbro to deny any antisemitic tendencies, thereby averting a call for a boycott that would have left Jewish players everywhere buying up Boardwalk and Park Place at the risk of being accused of self-hatred. 

What I want to know, however, is whether this affront to Israel has already been included in the various tallies of antisemitic incidents around the world of which we are regularly apprised here in Israel.

More Lights in the Windows

by David Breakstone

An unprecedented number of Diaspora Jews have been purchasing apartments in Israel over the past few years – but are leaving them empty. Entire complexes of unoccupied “second homes” are now a common blight on our urban landscape. My problem is not that these dwellings are being bought, but that there aren’t more lights being left on in the windows.

As preparations for the celebration of 60 years of Israel’s independence are beginning in earnest, we have just been informed that only 19,639 new immigrants made their way to the Jewish state in 2007, the lowest number in 20 years and a 6% decrease in comparison to 2006. Back in 1990 we welcomed more than 10 times that number, during a decade in which there was an average of more than 95,000 olim per year. These figures are particularly disturbing when we take into consideration that 2007 could arguably be described as one of the least violent that Israel has experienced in more than a decade, and one in which our economy continued to demonstrate stability, growth, and strength.

All of this is especially discouraging when we consider that just five years ago, the Jewish Agency proudly proclaimed the beginning of a new campaign to bring 1,000,000 new immigrants to Israel from western countries over a ten year period, which now means that to make good on that pledge we are faced with the challenge of enticing a mere 900,000 more Jews to move here in the next five years.

Shema, Yes -- Hatikvah, No ?

by David Breakstone

Young Jews in the United States today feel far more detached from Israel than their elders, and this mindset is not likely to change as they grow older.

This is one of the major conclusions of a recently released study on the attitudes of American Jews towards the Jewish state, which also establishes – in keeping with conventional wisdom – that this phenomenon is not a mere blip on the screen, but rather the manifestation of a trend of increasing alienation that has been going on for several decades. Furthermore, and for me this is the clincher, the report also makes clear that this distancing from Israel cannot simply be attributed to a general distancing from things Jewish. To the contrary, note the survey’s authors Cohen and Kelman, those questioned are in many ways deeply committed to being Jewish. Israel is simply becoming less and less a part of the expression of contemporary Judaism. "We're seeing this growing phenomenon of Jews who have no problem saying the Shema,” says Cohen, “but who won't sing Hatikvah."

So what does all of this have to do with Zionism? Absolutely nothing. And that is the problem.

Exactly what do we have to celebrate?

by David Breakstone

From where I sit, the entire Jewish world seems preoccupied with celebrating 60 years of Israel's independence. A plethora of websites, educational kits, Israel trips, conferences, festivals, logos - this blog, for that matter – have suddenly sprouted across the Diaspora like the beautiful green carpet of underbrush that covers the hills of the Judean desert after winter’s first rain. Everyone wants to come to the party. But what, exactly, do we have to celebrate?