Search

Originally published in 1896 as Der Judenstaat, The Jewish State has taken its place among the likes of The Communist Manifesto and Common Sense as polemic writings which have changed modern history. Theodor Herzl's advocacy for a separate, independent Jewish state as a remedy for centuries of hostility and persecution served as the basis for modern Zionism. And though his vision would not be realized in his lifetime, it did set the course for the creation of the Israel we know today.This edition, based on the original translation to English by Sylvie D'Avigdor, includes a foreword by Alan Dershowitz, who is among Israel's most prominent and most vocal scholars defenders. The Harvard law professor, who has been calledIsrael's lead lawyer in the court of public opinion, discusses The Jewish State's place in history and its impact today.

This exploration of the Jewish political tradition elucidates a long, rich, and diverse experience of both sovereignty and dispersed statelessness. It holds insights, as Zvi Gitelman points out in his introductory chapter, for anyone interested comparative and ethnic politics, Jewish history, and the prehistory of contemporary Israeli politics. Stuart Cohen analyzes the'covenant idea'and the constitutional character of ancient Israel, which had a profound influence on Western political thought through the medium of the Bible. Gerald Blidstein examines rabbinic strategies for accommodation to the realities of Jewish dispersion in the middle Ages, while Robert Chazan focuses on communal authority and self-governance in the same period. Jonathan Frankel and Paula Hyman move the study into modern times with attempts to characterize the diverse patterns of Jewish political culture and activity in different parts of Europe, in the process revealing the dynamics of political cultural influence. Finally, Peter Medding looks at the'new politics'of contemporary American Jews - as voters, as public officials, and as organizational actors.

Language: Hebrew.

Part of Palgrave's Modernism and... series, Modernism and Zionism explores the relationship between modernism and the Jewish national ideology, the Zionist movement, which was operative in all areas of Jewish art and culture.

This book launches a landmark four-volume collaborative work exploring the political thought of the Jewish people from biblical times to the present. Each volume includes a selection of texts—from the Bible and Talmud, midrashic literature, legal responsa, treatises, and pamphlets—annotated for modern readers and accompanied by new commentaries written by eminent philosophers, lawyers, political theorists, and other scholars working in different fields of Jewish studies. These contributors join the arguments of the texts, agreeing or disagreeing, elaborating, refining, qualifying, and sometimes repudiating the political views of the original authors. The series brings the little-known and unexplored Jewish tradition of political thinking and writing into the light, showing where and how it resonates in the state of Israel, the chief diaspora settlements, and, more broadly, modern political experience.This first volume, Authority, addresses the basic question of who ought to rule the community: What claims to rule have been put forward from the time of the exodus from Egypt to the establishment of the state of Israel? How are such claims disputed and defended? What constitutes legitimate authority? The authors discuss the authority of God, then the claims of kings, priests, prophets, rabbis, lay leaders, gentile rulers (during the years of the exile), and the Israeli state. The volume concludes with several perspectives on the issue of whether a modern state can be both Jewish and democratic. Forthcoming volumes will address the themes of membership, community, and political vision.Among the contributors to this volume:Amy GutmannMoshe HalbertalDavid HartmanMoshe IdelSanford LevinsonSusan NeimanHilary PutnamJoseph RazMichael SandelAllan SilverYael Tamir