LONDON–We are witnessing the most remarkable events across the Arab World, but the direction of travel, and the end game, are impossible to foretell.
The situation does have many similarities with the Eevolutions that swept the Jewish World in the late 1880’s and early 1900’s. The Jewish revolution was a Youth Revolution. Half of the Jewish population of the Pale of Settlement, were under 29 years old. They were educated, but few opportunities were open to them. Economic hardship was unbearable. The Jewish Establishment was despised.
The Youth took over synagogue services on Shabbat, and hectored the congregation with talk of Revolution and Modernisation. They joined Revolutionary movements in huge numbers, these movements being across the whole political spectrum. The Jewish Youth joined the Communists and others on the Left, in the Messianic hope of a World with all nations united. On the other hand, many joined the Zionists, realising that the Jews had to help themselves, and could not rely on others.
Both the Communist movement and the Zionist movement revolutionised the Jewish Youth. The stories of Shalom Aleichem eg Fiddler on the Roof, illustrate the breaking away of the youngsters from family control. Many of the early Zionist Pioneers, and indeed Left Revolutionaries, were only in their teens.
In the end however, the “hard men” took over the Revolution in Russia, which headed into directions unimagined in horror and suffering.
The similarities between the Jewish Revolutionary youth of 200 years ago, and today’s Arab youth, is thus quite noticeable. Nobody knows how these revolutions will play out in the Middle East. It could take many years, even a hundred years, to discern the end game. The “hard men” will no doubt take over, eg Muslim Brotherhood, but the genie of modernisation is surely now out of the bottle, not to be returned.
It is doubtful whether the Arab Revolution will in the short term impact positively on Jews in general, and Israel in particular. The Arab countries will no doubt remain hostile to Jews and Israel. However in the long run, and we are talking about a significant length of time, the advent of democracy may open up the outside world to future Arab generations, and they may become more tolerant of other peoples. Maybe.
All we can do is to witness the events at arms length, and realise that cataclysmic events are unfolding that will, in the distant future, probably beyond our life span, change the Arab World.
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Levy is a businessman who divides his time between homes in the United Kingdom and Israel. He may be contacted at lloyd.levy@sdjewishworld.com