Posted on 11/19/2002 10:02:49 AM PST by Destro
Is Israel becoming less Jewish?
By Shalom Freedman November 19, 2002
The threat to the Jewish character of the Jewish state is growing more and more severe. This is first and above all because of the much higher (two and one half times higher) birth rate of the Arab population. But it is also because of three other factors which have only come into play in recent years. One is the large number of guest workers who are choosing to make Israel their permanent home. A second reason is the large number of non-Jews who have been part of the wave of immigration from the Soviet Union. A third factor is the illegal residence in Israel of a large number of Arabs from across the Green Line, including many who have moved from the Hebron area into Jerusalem.
If in 1960 Jews constituted eighty-nine percent of the state, today they constitute only seventy-eight percent. And this official number does not include the large number of unregistered foreign workers or Arabs residing illegally in Israel.
A considerable part of Israel's Muslim population has rejected its own minority status and refuses to consider itself part of the Jewish state. A great share of Israeli Arabs are, in their own eyes, Palestinians who believe the demographic factor will lead to the day when the state becomes not a Jewish state, but a "state of all its citizens." This is for them a stage toward the eventual transformation of the country into a part of the larger Arab world, i.e. making it into yet another Arab state.
As for the large group of non-Jews, estimated at between three hundred and five hundred thousand, who came with the wave of aliyah from the former Soviet Union, it is clear that the great majority of them will make no serious effort at Halachic conversion. A certain number of these non-Jewish immigrants are actually believing Christians who are crowding Israel's Orthodox Christian churches on Sundays more than ever before.
As for the guest workers, the same reality applies here as has been seen in most countries of Western Europe. The workers first come temporarily, but tempted by the higher standard of living, they extend their stay and eventually begin bringing their families over. There is a growing population of young people among this group who will in time have Israeli citizenship, but will not be Jewish.
At present there is no sign of the non-Jewish populations cooperating politically. But should they do so, it is likely that the first item in their platform will be to detach Israel from the Jewish people, and make it the 'state of all its citizens' that the Arab minority so desperately wants.
There is another alarming sense in which Israel is becoming less Jewish. The extreme polarization between the religious and the secular has resulted in secular Jews moving farther and farther away from Jewish tradition. The unfortunate efforts at religious coercion on the part of the ultra-Orthodox have led to a backlash in the larger secular society. The grandchildren of many of those secular Jews who were founding fathers of Israel are often simply ignorant of Judaism.
It appears that the broad, moderate, Masorti, or traditional center of the Jewish people is being reduced from both sides. Therefore, a broad consensus around a few basic principles of Jewish and Israeli identity is becoming less and less likely. This is reflected in the increasing numbers of young people who, for one reason or another, do not serve in the army. Already forty-five percent of those of enlistment age, including religious youths who opt for yeshiva studies as well as others, find their way out of it.
Countering this process of diminishing Jewishness is likely to be more difficult than it has been in the past. Aliyah, the traditional answer, is more and more problematic as assimilation increases in the Diaspora. Aliyah from the former Soviet Union is a good example of this. Perhaps a large infusion of religious Jewish immigrants might help, but it may well be that the numbers are not large enough to make a vital difference.
Certainly efforts to facilitate conversion of Israel's non-Jewish immigrant population, without sacrificing authenticity, should be increased. Until now, the numbers of converted immigrants have been small, and most have managed to live without it. The non-Jewish population of Israel is already so large that it can show some contempt for the majority's institutions.
Still another suggested remedy for the problem is the bringing to Israel of large numbers of crypto-Jews from various parts of the world. This idea of mass immigration of communities that identify themselves as being lost members of the Children of Israel makes certain sense but may too be Utopian, as there are no signs that those masses are on their way here.
One additional possible answer is through peace negotiations, in which the Arab party to the conflict is ceded certain heavily populated areas within Israel. An agreement, in which the Arabs become part of an Arab political entity, leaving Jews as the outright majority of a Jewish one, is a diplomatic possibility. But it is one which may have insurmountable security difficulties.
A more fundamental improvement of the situation would come from a massive overhaul of the school systems within Israel. This would involve an emphasis on more serious teaching of Judaism and Jewish history in the secular school system, and a wholly revamped program in various Haredi institutions which would connect them to the historical life of their own people. The goal of this fundamental change would be an increased involvement of larger segments of the Jewish population in the activities of the Jewish state in order to strengthen its Jewish character.
Most importantly, Israeli political leaders must become more aware of the increasing threat to the Jewish character of Israel. They must begin seeking ways to ensure that an enterprise created through the sacrifice and effort of generations will not be carelessly dissipated through an apathetic resignation to the extension of present trends. Views expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect those of israelinsider.
Shalom Freedman is an American-born writer on Jewish subjects who has lived and worked in Israel for many years.
sfreedman@bezeqint.net
They make the point that they feel the Orthodox who inhabit the settlements look down on them for being so secular, yet when the settlements are attacked they are willing to put their lives on the line to defend the same settlers who refuse to serve in the army and who scorn them for their secularity.
It's apparently a significant morale problem. One of his friends said "I'd give my life defending Tel Aviv, but why should I bother fighting for people in Hebron who call my wife a whore for wearing a tanktop?"
It seems like Israelis are splitting into two camps of the resolutely secular and the resolutely observant. Such disunity is not good for the future.
Its all well and good that you coexist with all the other folks on your campus. However you seem to have a bit of difficulty dealing with arguments on FR. Namecalling and shouting might suffice there when you're "offended" but here I see little objective defense of orthodox behavior. All I keep seeing from you is flaming.
My points are simple. Some orthodox Jews in Israel and here in the US do not wish to assimilate. Fine. But they've shown repeadtly that they wish to control and force their religious views on others with unpleasent end results. See the Israeli "marriage" situation. Before the recent intifada there were daily articles countering secular - orthodox spats. Neither side is blameless but one constant emerged: the Orthodox's main point of contention was control while the secular folks WANTED TO BE LEFT ALONE. As for your contention that my views originate from ancedotal sources or from some biased left wing Israeli papers nice try. Have you ever been to Israel? I have as well as a number of my relatives who left their recently. Have you ever lived in a mixed Jewish community? ect ect. One constant was the disgusting attempts at control that were fostered upon secular folks. Pointing that out really pisses Aloutte and his foul mouthed friends off which is quite sad. Think of the good they could do if instead of blasting me and others, they learned to control THEMSELVES. Alienating conservative secular Jews certainly doesn't help. attacks.
Well, uh, actually Israel is a Jewish state, and has been since its founding. You might find it informative to read Israel's Declaration of Independence. Israel has been struggling, in the midst of fifty years of continuous war and threat, to be a Jewish state, with a constitutive commitment to the physical and cultural survival of the Jewish people, and a simultaneous commitment to ensure "complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex" and guarantee "freedom of religion, conscience, language, education and culture." It is a very difficult thing to do, and if Israel hasn't done it perfectly, I'd say it's made a pretty impressive attempt under the circumstances.
Exactly where in the article does the author advocate discrimination against non-Jews in immigration and citizenship? So far as I can see, all his suggestions have to do with increasing the number of Jews in Israel, especially those with a strong sense of Jewish identity.
He deplores "unfortunate efforts at religious coercion on the part of the ultra-Orthodox" as part of the problem. He sees the most promise in a "massive overhaul of the school systems in Israel" so that the secular schools actually teach Israeli kids about the Jewish tradition and religious schools give their students a wider sense of Jewish identity. (What is unstated is in the article that this is necessary in the wake of the Israeli Left's introduction of multiculturalism and promotion of Jewish amnesia in the schools over the past twenty years or so.)
Are we to understand that you would find it odious to expect immigrant children in the United States to learn about Magna Carta and the history of western Christian culture? Why would it be wrong for a Jewish state to present the Jewish tradition in its schools?
Hola Aren't we seeing the same thing here in America amigo?
of Israel includes being a Jewish state. I don't think they're obligated to become secular.
Israel is pretty open on immigration, not doing much to discriminate between types of self-identifying "Jews."----That's how all those Russian "non-Jews" arrived in Israel. In some fashion they ARE Jews, most being descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and at some level identifying with that heritage, and many having been harrassed and persecuted in Russia for their connection to Israel and Judaism, however "tenuous."
Your friend is in error. Some Orthodox are exempt from military service but there are also many who do serve. The relgious settlers generally do not avoid military service and in fact the majority of the "settlers" have been and are currently serving in combat units.
Orthodox soldier's Jenin war diary
In addition, there are Orthodox who give their national service by serving in Magen David Adom as paramedics and in ZAKA (these are the guys who go around after every terrorist attack and collect the pieces of people).
And we all know how assiduous the Orthodox are to recover every Jewish body after an attack.
My point is: the fact that he and his friends feel this way suggests that there is a tension between the two communities: that many secular Israelis don't care about the area they call the West Bank, while Orthodox Jews cherish places like Hebron and would never dream of conceding it to the Arabs.
My fear is that the two groups are/will be seeing their interests and goals diverge. The Arabs are unified in their hatred - while some Jews have their hearts set on the political entity known as the State of Israel and others have their hearts set on Eretz Yisrael, the Jewish birthright.
And my friend even argues: "Yes, perhaps the charedim are right and perhaps we are entitled to the borders described in the Torah. That doesn't mean that we are entitled to them right now. Maybe we have to give them up for the time being until we get stronger or the Arabs calm down." That is, when does pragmatism (and a misguided pragmatism) collide with faith (a faith that is paradoxically, perhaps more pragmatic)?
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