The Jewish phenomenon is absolutely unique in many ways. In this entry I am touching upon just one area of the Jewish uniqueness: history.
Every nation whose roots go deep into ancient, or simply pre-literal, times has a history shrouded in legend, and everybody knows what a legend is, and can easily distinguish it from historical and archaeological fact. (Note: It can’t be said that America is too young to have such a tradition. In fact, it is richer in tradition than any other country in the world, being comprised of carriers of numerous diverse cultures, emigrants from all those other places, whose individual traditions never die from crossing either the Atlantic or the Pacific.)
Historical mythology is a time-honored tradition, yes, a beloved tradition, but never a scientific fact! There can never be an argument about the historicity of a nation-founder. He is either a purely legendary figure, or in some cases a well-known historical figure. In neither case an argument should arise.
It is only the early history of the Jews which does not fit the general pattern. Neither legend, nor fact, it can only be described by another word: religion. Because its basic source, we may even call it the only source, are the Holy Books of the Jews and the Christians.
This is not to say that Jewish history in the Bible has not been subjected to critical treatment. Efforts have been made to approach the Bible scientifically, both by believers and unbelievers. While the believers have not been successful to support Bible history by archaeological or independently documented fact, very few “objective researchers” have dared to dismiss it as fantasy, and have preferred some nicer ways of putting it.
Ironically, most Jewish scholars have come to an implicit agreement not to treat the Bible as a document of historical authenticity. Only among the Christian fundamentalist scholars has its absolute ‘scientific’ truth in effect become the starting point of any investigation, and its first criterion of whether to conditionally accept or to categorically reject its findings. But then, I can understand the Christians: they are not Jews, and they have histories of their own. Jewish history is not their history. They are culturally detached from it, thus for them it is not even history, but pure and simple religion.
There is nothing wrong in this general Christian attitude, to which all Russian Orthodox believers obviously subscribe as well. It is only when an effort is made, predominantly in the Evangelical Churches of America, to represent religion as science (along the lines of the long-going creation over evolution offensive), when a serious predicament is sure to arise, as religion is being seen as a truce-breaker, an invader into the secular domain, where, on foreign territory, it suddenly becomes vulnerable and eventually discredited.
The so-called “Christian Zionists” are treading on dangerous ground. Their ‘Biblical’ support of the state of Israel ought not to influence, by the number of voters at the polling booth, U.S. foreign policy toward Israel and the Arab world, as this is not religion at its best, but religion at its worst. American foreign policy must be determined by a combination of entirely secular interests, and religious bigotry must not be one of them, lest it becomes totally counterproductive, and, as we have by now witnessed, destructive. In fact, “Christian Zionism” is a clear case of prostitution of religion, and thus an unforgivable sin against the Holy Spirit. I am sure that every Orthodox Jew will tacitly agree with this characterization, as Christian Zionism is not even a religious movement, but an attempt to create a cocktail of religious incompatibles, passing it off as religion and politics blissfully sleeping with each other.
As for the properly Jewish Zionists, both religious and non-religious, who despise the religious demagoguery of the “Christian Zionists” (“Hitler was God’s hunter, who hunted the Jews” per their “signature” Pastor John Hagee), yet welcome them, their religious antagonists, with open arms in Israel, for a number of substantial reasons having nothing to do with religion per se, when they are so anxious to put a religious slogan on their banner, how can they feel free to pick and choose? After all, God’s great promise of the land of Israel to the Jews comes together with a solemn warning. Aside from thou shalt have, there is always thou shalt not do:
“But if you and your children turn away from following Me, and you will not adhere to My commandments and My statutes, which I have placed before you, but go and worship other gods and bow before them, then I will cut Israel off, from the land which I have given to them, and this house which I have made sacrosanct for My Name will I dismiss from My presence, and Israel shall be for a proverb and a byword among all nations.” (Melachim [Kings] I-9:6-7)
Every nation whose roots go deep into ancient, or simply pre-literal, times has a history shrouded in legend, and everybody knows what a legend is, and can easily distinguish it from historical and archaeological fact. (Note: It can’t be said that America is too young to have such a tradition. In fact, it is richer in tradition than any other country in the world, being comprised of carriers of numerous diverse cultures, emigrants from all those other places, whose individual traditions never die from crossing either the Atlantic or the Pacific.)
Historical mythology is a time-honored tradition, yes, a beloved tradition, but never a scientific fact! There can never be an argument about the historicity of a nation-founder. He is either a purely legendary figure, or in some cases a well-known historical figure. In neither case an argument should arise.
It is only the early history of the Jews which does not fit the general pattern. Neither legend, nor fact, it can only be described by another word: religion. Because its basic source, we may even call it the only source, are the Holy Books of the Jews and the Christians.
This is not to say that Jewish history in the Bible has not been subjected to critical treatment. Efforts have been made to approach the Bible scientifically, both by believers and unbelievers. While the believers have not been successful to support Bible history by archaeological or independently documented fact, very few “objective researchers” have dared to dismiss it as fantasy, and have preferred some nicer ways of putting it.
Ironically, most Jewish scholars have come to an implicit agreement not to treat the Bible as a document of historical authenticity. Only among the Christian fundamentalist scholars has its absolute ‘scientific’ truth in effect become the starting point of any investigation, and its first criterion of whether to conditionally accept or to categorically reject its findings. But then, I can understand the Christians: they are not Jews, and they have histories of their own. Jewish history is not their history. They are culturally detached from it, thus for them it is not even history, but pure and simple religion.
There is nothing wrong in this general Christian attitude, to which all Russian Orthodox believers obviously subscribe as well. It is only when an effort is made, predominantly in the Evangelical Churches of America, to represent religion as science (along the lines of the long-going creation over evolution offensive), when a serious predicament is sure to arise, as religion is being seen as a truce-breaker, an invader into the secular domain, where, on foreign territory, it suddenly becomes vulnerable and eventually discredited.
The so-called “Christian Zionists” are treading on dangerous ground. Their ‘Biblical’ support of the state of Israel ought not to influence, by the number of voters at the polling booth, U.S. foreign policy toward Israel and the Arab world, as this is not religion at its best, but religion at its worst. American foreign policy must be determined by a combination of entirely secular interests, and religious bigotry must not be one of them, lest it becomes totally counterproductive, and, as we have by now witnessed, destructive. In fact, “Christian Zionism” is a clear case of prostitution of religion, and thus an unforgivable sin against the Holy Spirit. I am sure that every Orthodox Jew will tacitly agree with this characterization, as Christian Zionism is not even a religious movement, but an attempt to create a cocktail of religious incompatibles, passing it off as religion and politics blissfully sleeping with each other.
As for the properly Jewish Zionists, both religious and non-religious, who despise the religious demagoguery of the “Christian Zionists” (“Hitler was God’s hunter, who hunted the Jews” per their “signature” Pastor John Hagee), yet welcome them, their religious antagonists, with open arms in Israel, for a number of substantial reasons having nothing to do with religion per se, when they are so anxious to put a religious slogan on their banner, how can they feel free to pick and choose? After all, God’s great promise of the land of Israel to the Jews comes together with a solemn warning. Aside from thou shalt have, there is always thou shalt not do:
“But if you and your children turn away from following Me, and you will not adhere to My commandments and My statutes, which I have placed before you, but go and worship other gods and bow before them, then I will cut Israel off, from the land which I have given to them, and this house which I have made sacrosanct for My Name will I dismiss from My presence, and Israel shall be for a proverb and a byword among all nations.” (Melachim [Kings] I-9:6-7)
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