Throughout history, very few people have been able to preserve their national identity in exile; however, this is not the case with the Jews. The Jewish nation not only preserved their national identity in exile, but they strengthened it. Whether it was their will to survive, or God’s guiding hand, the Jews were able to come out of the Babylonian Diaspora as a greater nation. Facing extinction, the Jewish nation in the Babylonian Diaspora chose to unite in order to stay alive and because of this, thrived economically and religiously.
The Jewish nation in the period of the Divided Monarchy was weak as there was turmoil in the land. Many Jews lost their faith in God and even began fighting amongst themselves. From 931 to 586 BCE, the Jewish nation was ruled under a Divided Monarchy. Jeroboam ruled Israel while Rehoboam ruled Judah and there was great conflict between these two kingdoms (Class Notes). Specifically, the Southern Kingdom of Judah wanted the Jewish people to re-unite, and as a result tried to conquer the Kingdom of Israel. In addition, during this period of time much larger empires surrounded the Jewish nation. One of which, the Assyrian empire was particularly interested in the land of Israel. They saw it as a crucial piece of land as it was the center of all trade in the ancient Middle East. Consequently, in 722 BCE the Assyrian Empire conquered the Northern Kingdom of Israel causing many of the tribes to disperse all about the land (Class Notes). Many of the remaining Jews from the kingdom of Israel were deported only leaving the last tribes of Judah. Because of this, the Jewish nation was split. Prophets came to tell the message that the Jews were not following in God’s path, and thus would be punished for it. Cl...
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...temple, only 1500 families went. The Jewish nation built a life for themselves in Babylon. They chose union over extinction and thrived as a result. Judaism as a religion wouldn’t exist today if it weren’t for the Babylonian Diaspora. This is evident because during the period of the Divided Monarchy Jews were beginning to lose faith in God, there was civil war, and chaos in the land. If this were to continue then the Jewish nation would have been wiped off the map. Instead, the Jews were conquered and found a new sense of urgency living in Babylon. In this time, the Jews gathered together to keep their religion alive, which essentially describes the history of Jews in a nutshell. Instead of conforming to other’s ways when it seems easiest to, the Jews decided to make the most of a difficult situation, using the Diaspora as a springboard to revitalize their religion.
The first search for a messiah started in the sixth century BC when the Jews of Babylonia were exiled, they called for an anointed one that would bring them back to their home. The second time was when Alexander the Great brought down the Achaemenid Empire and left it to his Macedonian generals. The Jews were peaceful and tried to fit in more with the Greeks to avoid confrontation through this time. Ultimately when the Greeks pushed it too far and destroyed the temple the Hasmonean family led a revolt that bought independence back to the Jews. This period is referred to as the Hasmonean Dynasty. In response to this change of priesthood, the Jewish people reorganized themselves into three major philosophies; the Sadducees, the Pharisees, and the Essenes. When the shift went to Roman, the Jews lost their sense of freedom. They were then ruled by King Herod the Great which didn’t improve. Herod the great was a powerful, brutal and ruthless leader, who accomplished a large amount, however under his rule Jewish people were extremely poor and highly taxe...
The Jewish State was a book written by Herzl in 1895, which gave reasons for the Jewish population to move from Europe to either Argentina or Israel and make a new Jewish state of their own. Herzl thought the Jewish people had obtained a solid national identity but lacked a nation with a political system of their own. With their own Jewish State, the Jews could be free to practice their religion and culture without the fear of anti-Semitism. In The Jewish State he wrote. Herzl suggested a plan for political action in which they would acquire the Jewish State. He believed Jews trying to assimilate into European society were wasting their time, because the majority would always decide their role in society. As the anti-Semitism in Europe grew, it became clear that the only way to solve the Jewish problem would be to create their own Jewish sta...
Brandeis’s depiction of Jewish qualities is, more than anything, a call to understand Jewish identity. As a proponent of Zionism, Brandeis recognized the importance of unity, and tried to bring Jews together in identifying their characteristics: “…qualities with which every one of us is familiar…” (Glatzer 707). In the United States, a country whose Jewish population was composed of Jews from other nations around the globe, a sense of strong identity was of singular importance. These treasured qualities of mind, body and character “…may properly be called Jewish qualities.” (Glatzer 707). Brandeis redefines the meaning of “Jew” for those who had lost themselves in immigration and overwhelming anti-Semitism.
The Israelite cult is set apart from other cults in that the people were bound together to worship one God. “The distinctiveness of the Israelite cult is nothing other than the limitation of cultic activity to one particular patron deity” (Anderson, 1987;3). The cult’s foundation of worship centered on those sacrificial gifts and offerings that were given to Yahweh. In addition, the Israelite cults were village centered. In the beginning of the 12th century BC, settlements on the hill country of Judea and Ephraim began to increase in number and density. The farming that took place on these hills allowed Israelites to gain an independent economy from surrounding cult economies (Anderson, 1987;23).
...f society. The second point of view held that Jews were inherently bad and can never be salvaged despite any and all efforts made by Christians to assimilate them. These Christians felt that there was absolutely no possibility of Jews having and holding productive positions in society. All the aforementioned occurrences lead to the transformation of traditional Jewish communities, and paved the way for Jewish existence, as it is known today. It is apparent, even through the examination of recent history that there are reoccurring themes in Jewish history. The most profound and obvious theme is the question of whether Jews can be productive members of their country and at the same time remain loyal to their religion. This question was an issue that once again emerged in Nazi Germany, undoubtedly, and unfortunately, it is not the last time that question will be asked.
The seventeenth century not only marks an important era in Jewish history, the arrival of Jews in the New World, but it marks a shift in Jewish ideology as well. Traditionally, in the Old World prior to the Inquisition, Jews did not live as individuals but rather as a part of a social network or community that worshipped together, studied together, at times lived together, and had the same set of beliefs. During, and for sometime after the Inquisition, some secret Jews were part of an underground community but other secret Jews chose not to be part of any Jewish community, secret or not, out of fear. It was not until the seventeenth century that there was a conscious break in the tradition of being part of a community and some Jews chose the path of individualism, because they were dissatisfied with the confines of their current Jewish community or they were forced to abandon their community and worship individually. When Jews began to move from the Old World to the New World they were forced with the challenge of figuring out how they were supposed to practice Judaism when there was no current Jewish framework in place. When Portuguese Jews arrived in the New World they were forced to live outside of the traditional community because there was no Jewish community to greet them in New Amsterdam. In the seventeenth century, it was not the norm for a Jew to live outside of the Jewish community, but it was possible; one’s willingness or necessity to live outside of the community depended upon one’s geographical location, fear, or personal convictions.
...thousands of years from times of nomadic tribes to kings that ruled over millions. While the land covered has been vast and the people many, one thing has been a constant in the history of the Jewish people, conflict. The conflict the people of Israel has faced has caused much destruction and horror in the lives of many, however, Israel has turned the history of conflict into a positive light in order to create a nation unified behind it. Israel has created a fast military force that gives thousands jobs both in factories and within the military itself. They have also created an economic system that creates vast productions of quality goods in order to compete with other countries in the Middle East and around the world. Israel has turned the devastation of war and the worries of continual conflict into a constructive action that has kept Israel alive and powerful.
For a Jew arriving in America from Europe starting anew marked a defining point. After losing six million Jews in the Holocaust, the United States of America served as one of the most secure havens for reestablishing a strong Jewish presence ...
As the Diaspora experience is presented as a distinct identity trait of the Jewish people, there is ...
“Many Jews were fleeing Europe from Hitler so that they can reclaim the land they believed was their Biblical birthright, (Document 4 Excepts from the Israeli Declaration of Independence). Leaders were petitioning Great Britain to allow Jewish people to begin migrating into Palestine, then in 194 8the formal state of Israel was formed. “The Balfour Declaration Britain promised a national home for the Jewish people as seen in” (document 2). However, people were already living there so the natives felt like they were getting there home taken away from
The United Monarchy took place between 1020 and 921 B.C.E. It was the transition between a tribal society and an actual form of government. In this monarchy, Samuel appointed Saul to be the first King. Saul was replaced by King David and eventually was followed by Solomon. This era was the most documented era throughout Biblical history. During this time period, David was God’s right hand man. Jewish people believed that the Messiah was once a living King somewhere in the Davidic bloodline. They believe the Messiah in the Bible was a human King. The word Messiah means “anointed one”. David is the one who brings together loose tribes into a government. He institutes many new things like scribe culture and census records. This becomes known as the prototype for the ideal Jewish monarch. He establishes the city of Jerusalem or the “City of David”. His legacy becomes a major theme in Jewish history. Through him, the First temple was built for worship and for sacrifice in 950 B.C.E. This temple was extremely important to the Jewish people. It was the center for worship and politics for the kingdom of Judah. The Babylonians e...
However, even though the exiles were allowed to return to their ancestral homeland of Judah, many of the people chose not to return but to remain in the recently conquered city of Babylon. There are many contributing factors concerning why these Hebrew exiles chose to remain. Even so, it is difficult to understand why a people, who were located in Palestine for over a millennium and who had such strong religious beliefs and practices, would choose to abandon the location of their now destroyed sacred Temple and ancestral home after being exiled for only fifty years.
Overall, the significance of the Exile left upon the Jews were astounding with the changes through their identity, life and religion. The experiences made from the Babylonian invasion to the destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem taught the Jews the importance of the covenant made with God. During the exile, the Jews never lost hope in YHWH with the continuous faith and practices through their everyday life. The reestablishment of the Temple and Jerusalem were steps that were taken to renew the commitment of the covenant made with YHWH. The experience of the exile has transformed the laws, practices and faith in which remains and influences the religion from that point on.
The advocacy of war is due to the war with religion and the human’s inability to consciously be capable of tolerating other 's opinions on which religion suits the world the best since “The protracted greatly increased the hostility of the soldiers and the authorities toward the Jews, undermining their position and bringing religious persecutions in its wake.”(Safrai) therefore many people thought of it more of regional disputes but brought upon religion as well. Due to the belief in their religion they validated the war they created to do so and countless lives were lost in the making and overall period of the four years the war lasted. It demonstrates how far the people will go for what they believe in for instance “The destruction of the country, the capture of Jerusalem, the burning of the Temple, and in their wake the abolition of the leading institutions – the high priesthood and the Sanhedrin – brought stupefaction and confusion in spiritual and communal life.”(Safrai) which shows their inability to comprehend the destruction they caused until the war was over and nothing could be taken aback. This indicates the thought process of the average person looking back at what they had accomplished and for what? Nothing but destroying the livelihood of a different country and possessing it as their
... will of others and in harmony with the spirit prevailing in the worlds of others (The Core of the Matter: 54). Gordon argues that the Jewish people’s natural growth and self-realization has been hampered by alien and extraneous influences (Some Observations: 377). As the Jews has been pushed away from the primary creative processes, and forced to live under constant pressure and influence of foreign cultures, they have eventually lost the distinctive, external signs of identity, social structure, language and lifestyle, and become dependent on others materially and spiritually, leading them to have an inanimate existence, lacking in national creativity (Our Tasks Ahead: 381). This life has made the Jews passive and submissive; they no longer act upon or influence others, but are merely acted upon and influenced by others (The Work of Revival in the Diaspora: 78).