By Donald H. Harrison
SAN DIEGO–There are times I believe we Jews should begin a Society for New Israel. The objectives for this society would be to find some place on Earth where we Jews can begin a nation anew, a place where our traditions, customs, inventiveness, drive and values would be welcomed, not rejected.
Our past history tells us that there is no such place, that when Jews are in need, doors are shut in our faces. Even our beloved United States of America abandoned our people, sending the poor refugees who wandered the seas aboard the St. Louis back to Hitler’s Europe.
But maybe the world has learned something in the wake of the Holocaust. Maybe the world will see that ceding to members of a distinct ethno-religious group their own land in which they may flourish without warfare, without being denounced as imperialistic, without being hated by the neighbors, is not only to that people’s benefit, but to the world’s as well.
Our history in Diaspora has proven that Judaism can flourish wherever Jewish learning takes root. Sitting here, far away from Israel in a giant land of meritocracy, I lament the plight of my fellow Jews in that tiny land, ever living under the threat of annihilation from Iran, or piecemeal destruction from their Arab neighbors. Yes, Israel is militarily strong and can defeat the forces currently arrayed against it, but this situation can change. And even if it does not, at what cost do we determinedly keep a foothold in a land that two millennia ago was ours, but where we are now resented and reviled? Will all of Israel someday become another Masada? I definitely prefer the alternative spirit of Yavne.
Wouldn’t it be nice if the message of Isaiah calling on us to beat our swords into plowshares could be fulfilled in some other place which the nations of the world–and especially the local inhabitants–would encourage us to build a new nation, a new Israel.
Now, I know that in the ears of some of my fellow Jews this proposal will sound like heresy. Some will argue that I am giving comfort to our enemies, which certainly is not my intent. Rather, I am challenging the world to devise an alternative to the perennial conflict between Arabs and Jews. And, if it cannot, then I am requesting that the world acknowledge that there is no better option for the world than leaving Israel as it is.
To the world’s nations I say, if you really don’t want us in the land where our peoplehood was forged, then find us another land to make our home. Let new distance between us and the Arabs bring peace and eventual forgiveness. In a new land, we Jews would do our best to utilize our ingenuity to develop new products and techniques to help the rest of the world deal with such issues as hunger, desertification, global warming, and the depletion of natural resources. In the old Israel, which undoubtedly they will rename, Arabs could further develop their culture, having neither oppressor nor scapegoat to accuse.
My proposal won’t be taken seriously because the regimes of the world are afraid not only of Jews having their own uncontested homeland; they are also afraid of similar aspirations on the part of every other people who are scattered across present-day national borders. Think of the Kurds and the Druze, each of whom can be found in several countries of the Middle East. Think of tribal groupings in Africa and Asia. Think of Hispanics in the Americas. And think of religious groups — Muslims, Christians, Hindus, Buddhists–who are minorities in those lands where other religions predominate. Think of the necessity of separating Sunnis and Shiites from one another, even though both are Muslims.
Finding distinct homelands for all these peoples — transferring all these populations — trying to establish some new sense of order and justice in the world — would in all probability trigger more hatred and violence than the world already suffers. Tremulous advocates of the status quo will counsel “Better the devil we know than the one we don’t know.”
So, worry not, there will be no New Israel, no Kurdistan, no Druzeland, no major changes in the international maps. Ethnic rivalries will continue, bloodshed will remain inevitable, and opportunities for a reign of peace undoubtedly will be scorned.
But, just suppose, as space travel moves from the realm of fiction to practical reality, it will become possible for various distinct groups on Earth to colonize currently unpopulated planets. Under such circumstances, could we learn–could we have the wisdom—to designate a planet for each of them, and live in universal peace?
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Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World. He may be contacted at donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com