Neta Stahl
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199760008
- eISBN:
- 9780199979561
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199760008.003.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Judaism
During the first half of the twentieth century, Zionist writers adopted the figure of Jesus not as part of an external and apologetic discourse or as a mediator between Judaism and Christianity, but ...
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During the first half of the twentieth century, Zionist writers adopted the figure of Jesus not as part of an external and apologetic discourse or as a mediator between Judaism and Christianity, but rather in the context of the new national identity, as a model for the desired New Jew. In the Hebrew literature of the first half of the twentieth century, the figure of Jesus embodies an internal Jewish attempt to redefine Jewish selfhood by reclaiming Jesus for Jewish nationalism and the Zionist project. Zionist writers present Jesus as an ideal type of Jew, one that could serve as a model for the new Jewish national identity, and as an integral and even necessary part of the project of Zionist pioneering and national redemption. This chapter explains why the figure of Jesus was so appealing to these writers, and what literary tools they relied on in their attempts to embrace Jesus as a lost brother, a pioneer, a symbol of a collective suffering and even a real messiah, while still perceiving him as the menacing God of Christianity.Less
During the first half of the twentieth century, Zionist writers adopted the figure of Jesus not as part of an external and apologetic discourse or as a mediator between Judaism and Christianity, but rather in the context of the new national identity, as a model for the desired New Jew. In the Hebrew literature of the first half of the twentieth century, the figure of Jesus embodies an internal Jewish attempt to redefine Jewish selfhood by reclaiming Jesus for Jewish nationalism and the Zionist project. Zionist writers present Jesus as an ideal type of Jew, one that could serve as a model for the new Jewish national identity, and as an integral and even necessary part of the project of Zionist pioneering and national redemption. This chapter explains why the figure of Jesus was so appealing to these writers, and what literary tools they relied on in their attempts to embrace Jesus as a lost brother, a pioneer, a symbol of a collective suffering and even a real messiah, while still perceiving him as the menacing God of Christianity.
Amir Engel
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- September 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780226428635
- eISBN:
- 9780226428772
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226428772.003.0004
- Subject:
- Society and Culture, Jewish Studies
This chapter returns to Scholem’s biography and discusses his immigration to Palestine in 1923 and his reaction to the political reality on the ground. Against what one may assume, Scholem’s ...
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This chapter returns to Scholem’s biography and discusses his immigration to Palestine in 1923 and his reaction to the political reality on the ground. Against what one may assume, Scholem’s immigration to Zion triggered a terrible disappointment. For in fact, the kind of Zionist undertaking pursued by the Zionist establishment in Palestine was nothing like what he imagined it should and would be. First and foremost, it seemed to him that Zionism is heading into a bloody collision with the Arab population in Palestine. As a result, Scholem joined the Brith Shalom organization, which advocated a binational (Jewish Arab) state in Palestine. And he wrote prolifically and poignantly against the shortcomings of Zionist policy. It was in this context that Scholem also wrote against the messianic tendencies within Zionism. The political undertaking of the Jews, he vehemently argued, was essentially different than the religious idea represented by Messianism. Furthermore, he warned against the idea that Zionism may bring about redemption. That approach, he argued, would be disastrous. This chapter furthermore suggests that this was the context in which Scholem started his most well-known study- on the history of the Sabbatean messianic movement.Less
This chapter returns to Scholem’s biography and discusses his immigration to Palestine in 1923 and his reaction to the political reality on the ground. Against what one may assume, Scholem’s immigration to Zion triggered a terrible disappointment. For in fact, the kind of Zionist undertaking pursued by the Zionist establishment in Palestine was nothing like what he imagined it should and would be. First and foremost, it seemed to him that Zionism is heading into a bloody collision with the Arab population in Palestine. As a result, Scholem joined the Brith Shalom organization, which advocated a binational (Jewish Arab) state in Palestine. And he wrote prolifically and poignantly against the shortcomings of Zionist policy. It was in this context that Scholem also wrote against the messianic tendencies within Zionism. The political undertaking of the Jews, he vehemently argued, was essentially different than the religious idea represented by Messianism. Furthermore, he warned against the idea that Zionism may bring about redemption. That approach, he argued, would be disastrous. This chapter furthermore suggests that this was the context in which Scholem started his most well-known study- on the history of the Sabbatean messianic movement.
