Ideo‐theology and the Jewish state: from conflict to conciliation?

Abstract

The assassination of Israeli premier Yitzhak Rabin provided the most vivid demonstration to date of religious-nationalist opposition inside Israel to the principle of exchanging land for peace. This article sets out to explore this world view and its intellectual origins, exploring in the process how the use of sacred Judaic texts have become both the monopoly of religiousnationalism and the template for politically inspired violence against those in Israel suspected of condoning territorial compromise. This article concludes that if the ideotheology of religiousnationalists is to be assuaged, a religious discourse supporting territorial retrenchment has to become part of the political fabric of the centre-left in Israel.

Religious-Based Conflicts through the Academic Dialogue

“…), by reinstating religion at the center of public and social life. The most comprehensive study of fundamentalism thus far has been the five volume series edited during 1988-1995 by Martin E. Marty and Scott R. Appleby, entitled The Fundamentalism Project, which offered a theoretical paradigm for the "genus and species" of fundamentalism and its patterns of behavior towards the outside world (Jones, 1999). This was followed by studies of the rise and effects of fundamentalism in specific regions, the rise of fundamentalism within certain religions and studies of particular aspects of this phenomenon (Javadikouchaksaraei.…”

“…According to this model, "when democratic citizens morally disagree about public policy…they should deliberate with one another, seeking moral agreement when they can, and maintaining mutual respect when they cannot. They do it through deliberative democracy that gives moral argument a prominent place in the political process (Jones, 1999).…”

Religion and Politics’ in Israel: the Mythology of Jewish Nationalism (until 1993)

“…The public violence was condemned by the leadership of the movement, but they only criticized the activities vocally. The Zionist authorities and the political leaders explicitly authorized and justified the violence as ex post facto (Jones, 1999;Luz, 1988;Zertal & Eldar, 2004). During 1987 and 1991, the trend changed due to the political aspects.…”

Law and Sedition in Israeli Films: From the Assassination of Itzhak Rabin to the Hilltop Movement

“…who demonstrate that halakha has to be contextualized and applied in historical terms." 33 And second, that the lawful depositary of the law and of the rule of law remains the state and its institutions.…”