02 Aug
Latest

The New Religious Zionism?

As the Hebrew year 5773 comes to a close, I want to explore the background of the most dramatic event in the Jewish world in the past 12 months: the landmark Israeli election. The January 2013 vote has the potential to radically transform the Jewish State’s political landscape—and usher in a new era for Religious Zionism. This transformation is not just the story of the exclusion of ultra-Orthodox Jews from the ruling coalition. That is a watershed event in Israel’s history. Even more remarkable is the rise of a Religious Zionist party that promises to be the heir of the defunct National Religious Party. HaBayit HaYehudi—the “Jewish Home”—led by Naftali Bennett, scored a major victory and vindicated the resurgence of Religious Zionism as an important factor in Israel political, religious and social life. Will it...

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11 Jul
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The Ninth of Av in the Shadow of the Shoah

by Eli Kavon The ninth day of the Hebrew month of Av--which begins this year on the evening of July 15--is an annual day of mourning for the destruction of the two Temples in Jerusalem by the enemies of the Jews in ancient times. Today, the focus of Jewish mourning on the Ninth of Av has broadened to include the Holocaust. The destruction of the Shoah, unique and unprecedented in Jewish history, should transform the Jewish understanding of the Ninth of Av--but it has not done so. Should the terrible events of 70 years ago be included in the traditional rubric of martyrdom of the Ninth of Av? I dare to propose that the Holocaust remembrance of Yom Hashoah must be elevated to the status of a religious commemoration separate from that of the Ninth of...

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