Brief History of Israel and the Jewish People by Sheikh Jamal, Quote from Charles Krauthammer - The Weekly Standard, May 11, 1998 Israel is the very embodiment of Jewish continuity: It is the only nation on earth that inhabits the same land, bears the same name, speaks the same language, and worships the same God that it did 3,000 years ago. You dig the soil and you find pottery from Davidic times, coins from Bar Kokhba, and 2,000-year-old scrolls written in a script remarkably like the one that today advertises ice cream at the corner candy store. The people of Israel (also called the Jewish People) trace their origin to Abraham, who established the belief that there is only one God, the creator of the universe (see Torah). Abraham, his son Yitshak (Isaac), and grandson Jacob (Israel), are referred to as the patriarchs of the Israelites. All three patriarchs lived in the Land of Canaan, that later came to be known as the Land of Israel. They and their wives are buried in the Maarat HaMachpela, the Tomb of the Patriarchs, in Hebron (Genesis Chapter 23). The name Israel derives from the name given to Jacob (Genesis 32:29). His 12 sons were the kernels of 12 tribes that later developed into the Jewish nation. The name Jew derives from Yehuda (Judah) one of the 12 sons of Jacob (Reuben, Shimon, Levi, Yehuda, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Yisachar, Zevulun, Yosef, Binyamin)(Exodus 1:1). So, the names Israel, Israeli or Jewish refer to people of the same origin. The descendants of Abraham crystallized into a nation at about 1300 BCE after their Exodus from Egypt under the leadership of Moses (Moshe in Hebrew). Soon after the Exodus, Moses transmitted to the people of this new emerging nation, the Torah, and the Ten Commandments (Exodus Chapter 20). After 40 years in the Sinai desert, Moses led them to the Land of Israel, that is cited in The Bible as the land promised by G-d to the descendants of the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Genesis 17:8). The people of modern day Israel share the same language and culture shaped by the Jewish heritage and religion passed through generations starting with the founding father Abraham (ca. 1800 BCE). Thus, Jews have had continuous presence in the land of Israel for the past 3,300 years. The rule of Israelites in the land of Israel starts with the conquests of Joshua (ca. 1250 BCE). The period from 1000-587 BCE is known as the Period of the Kings. The most noteworthy kings were King David (1010-970 BCE), who made Jerusalem the Capital of Israel, and his son Solomon (Shlomo, 970-931 BCE), who built the first Temple in Jerusalem as prescribed in the Tanach (Old Testament). In 587 BCE, Babylonian Nebuchadnezzars army captured Jerusalem, destroyed the Temple, and exiled the Jews to Babylon (modern day Iraq). The year 587 BCE marks a turning point in the history of the region. From this year onwards, the region was ruled or controlled by a succession of superpower empires of the time in the following order: Babylonian, Persian, Greek Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine Empires, Islamic and Christian crusaders, Ottoman Empire, and the British Empire. After the exile by the Romans at 70 CE, the Jewish people migrated to Europe and North Africa. In the Diaspora (scattered outside of the Land of Israel), they established rich cultural and economic lives, and contributed greatly to the societies where they lived. Yet, they continued their national culture and prayed to return to Israel through centuries. In the first half of the 20th century there were major waves of immigration of Jews back to Israel from Arab countries and from Europe. During the British rule in Palestine, the Jewish people were subject to great violence and massacres directed by Arab civilians or forces of the neighboring Arab states. During World War II, the Nazi regime in Germany decimated about 6 million Jews creating the great tragedy of The Holocaust. In 1948, Jewish Community in Israel under the leadership of David Ben-Gurion reestablished sovereignty over their ancient homeland. Declaration of independence of the modern State of Israel was announced on the day that the last British forces left Israel (May 14, 1948). The history of the Jews and Judaism in the Land of Israel: refers to the history of the Jewish people and the history of Israelites inEretz Yisrael, the Land of Israel. The first appearance of the name Israel in the historic record is the Merneptah Stele (circa 1200 BCE) which mentions an ethnic group located in the northern part of the central highlands between the Mediterranean and the Jordan valley and south of Mount Carmel. During the biblical period, two kingdoms occupied the highland zone, the Kingdom of Israel in the north and the Kingdom of Judah in the south. The Kingdom of Israel was conquered by the Neo-Assyrian Empire (circa 722 BCE) and the Kingdom of Judah by the Neo-Babylonian Empire (586 BCE). Upon the defeat of the Babylonian Empire by the Achaemenid Empire under Cyrus the Great, the Jewish elite returned to Jerusalem and the Second Temple was built. In 165 BCE, the independent Hasmonean Kingdom was established. It lasted 99 years and was destroyed after the Romans captured Jerusalem in 66 BCE. Since then, the Jewish people have maintained both physical and religious ties with the land of Israel The term Jews in its original meaning refers to the people of the tribe of Judah or the people of the kingdom of Judah. The name of both the tribe and kingdom derive from Judah, the fourth son of Jacob.[1] Originally, the Hebrew term Jews Yehudi referred only to members of the tribe of Judah. Later, after the destruction of the northern kingdom of Israel, the term Jews was applied for the tribes of Judah, Benjamin and Levi, as well as scattered settlements from other tribes.[2] The Land of Israel, which is considered by Jews to be the promised land, was the place where Jewish identity was formed,[3] although this identity was formed gradually reaching many of its current form in the Exilic and post-Exilic period.[4] By the Hellenistic period (after 332 BCE) the Jews had become a self-consciously separate community based inJerusalem. The name Israel first appears in the stele of the Egyptian pharaoh Merneptah c. 1209 BC, Israel is laid waste and his seed is not.[5] This Israel was a cultural and probably political entity of the central highlands, well enough established to be perceived by the Egyptians as a possible challenge to their hegemony, but an ethnic group rather than an organized state.[6] Ancestors of the Israelites may have included Semites who occupied Canaan and the Sea Peoples.[7] According to modern archaeologists, sometime during Iron Age I a population began to identify itself as Israelite, differentiating itself from the Canaanites through such markers as the prohibition of intermarriage, an emphasis on family history and genealogy, and religion.[8] The archaeological record indicates that the Kingdoms of Israel and Judah emerged in the Early Iron Age (Iron Age I, 1200–1000 BCE) from the Canaanite city-state culture of the Late Bronze Age, at the same time and in the same circumstances as the neighbouring states of Edom, Moab, Aram, and the Philistinian and Phoenician city-states.[9] The oldest Hebrew text ever found was discovered at the ancient Israelite settlement, Elah Fortress,[10] which dates to between 1050 and 970 BCE.[11] Israel had clearly emerged by the middle of the 9th century BCE, when the Assyrian king Shalmaneser III names Ahab the Israelite among his enemies at the battle of Qarqar (Kurkh Monolith, 853), and the Mesha stele (c. 830) left by a king of Moab celebrating his success in throwing off the oppression of the House of Omri (i.e. Israel).[12] The Tel Dan stele tells of the death of a king of Israel, probably Jehoram, at the hands of an Aramean king (c. 841).[12] From the middle of the 8th century BCE Israel came into increasing conflict with the expanding neo-Assyrian empire, which first split its territory into several smaller units and then destroyed its capital, Samaria (722). Both the biblical and Assyrian sources speak of a massive deportation of the people of Israel and their replacement with an equally large number of forced settlers from other parts of the empire – such population exchanges were an established part of Assyrian imperial policy, a means of breaking the old power structure - and the former Israel never again became an independent political entity.[13] This deportation gave rise to the notion of the Lost Tribes of Israel. Judah emerged somewhat later than Israel, probably no earlier than the 9th century BCE, but the subject is one of considerable controversy and there is no definite answer to the question.[14] The recovered seal of the Hebrew King Ahaz (c. 732 to 716 BCE) identifies him as King of Judah.[15] During the reign of Hezekiah (c. 715 and 686 BCE) a notable increase in the power of the Judeanstate is reflected by archaeological sites and findings such as the Broad Wall and Hezekiahs Tunnel in Jerusalem.[16] Judah prospered in the 7th century BCE, probably in a cooperative arrangement with the Assyrians to establish Judah as an Assyrian vassal (despite a disastrous rebellion against the Assyrian kingSennacherib). However, in the last half of the 7th century Assyria suddenly collapsed, and the ensuing competition between the Egyptian and Neo-Babylonian empires for control of Palestine led to the destruction of Judah in a series of campaigns between 597 and 582. Jews probably constituted the majority of the population of Palestine until the 4th-century, when Constantine converted to Christianity.[51] Jews lived in at least forty-three Jewish communities in Palestine: twelve towns on the coast, in the Negev, and east of the Jordan, and thirty-one villages in Galilee and in the Jordan valley. The persecuted Jews of Palestine revolted twice against their Christian rulers. In the 5th century, the Western Roman Empire collapsed leading to Christian migration into Palestine and development of a Christian majority. Jews numbered 10–15% of the population. Judaism was the only non-Christian religion tolerated, but there were bans on Jews building new places of worship, holding public office or owning slaves. There were also two Samaritan revolts in this period.[52] In 438, The Empress Eudocia removed the ban on Jews praying at the Temple site and the heads of the Community in Galilee issued a call to the great and mighty people of the Jews: Know that the end of the exile of our people has come! In about 450, the Jerusalem Talmud was completed. According to Procopius, in 533 Byzantine general Belisarius took the treasures of the Jewish temple from Vandals who had taken them from Rome. In 611, Sassanid Persiainvaded the Byzantine Empire. In 613, a Jewish revolt against the Byzantine Empire joined forces with the Persian invaders to capture Jerusalem in 614. The Jews gained autonomy in Jerusalem, until in 617 when the Persians betrayed agreements and withdrew their forces from the region. With return of the Byzantines in 628, the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius promised to restore Jewish rights and received Jewish help in ousting the Persians with the aid of Jewish leader Benjamin of Tiberias. Heraclius later reneged on the agreement after reconquering Palestine by issuing an edict banning Judaism from the Byzantine Empire and thousands of Jewish refugees fled to Egypt, following Byzantine and Ghassanid perpetrated massacres across the Galilee and Jerusalem. (Egyptian) Coptic Christians took responsibility for this broken pledge and still fast in penance. Israel Under Islamic rule (638–1099): In 638 CE, the Byzantine Empire lost the Levant to the Arab Islamic Empire. According to Moshe Gil, at the time of the Arab conquest in 7th century, the majority of the population was Jewish or Samaritan.[54] According to one estimate, the Jews of Palestine numbered between 300,000 and 400,000 at the time.[55] After the conquest, the majority of the population (probably including many Jews) became Arabized in culture and language, many also adopting the new faith of Islam.[56] The Muslims continued to ban the building of new synagogues.[57] Until the Crusades took Palestine in 1099, various Muslim dynasties controlled Palestine. It was first ruled by the Medinah-based Rashidun Caliphs, then by theDamascus-based Umayyad Caliphate and after by the Baghdad-based Abbasid Caliphs. After the conquest, Jewish communities began to grow and flourish. Umar allowed and encouraged Jews to settle in Jerusalem. It was first time, after almost 500 years of oppressive Christian rule, that Jews were allowed to enter and worship freely in their holy city.[58] Seventy Jewish families from Tiberias moved to Jerusalem in order to help strengthen the Jewish community there.[59] But with the construction of the Dome of the Rock in 691 and the Al-Aqsa Mosque in 705, the Muslims established the Temple Mount as an Islamic holy site. The dome enshrined the Foundation Stone, the holiest site for Jews. Before Omar Abd al-Aziz died in 720, he banned the Jews from worshipping on the Temple Mount,[60] a policy which remained in place for over the next 1,000 years of Islamic rule.[61] In around 875, Karaite leader Daniel al-Kumisi arrived in Jerusalem and established an ascetic community of Mourners of Zion.[62] Michael the Syrian notes thirty synagogues which were destroyed in Tiberias by theearthquake of 749.[63] In the mid-8th-century, taking advantage of the warring Islamic factions in Palestine, a false messiah named Abu Isa Obadiah of Isfahan inspired and organised a group of 10,000 armed Jews who hoped to restore the Holy Land to the Jewish nation. Soon after, when Al-Mansur came to power, Abu Isa joined forces with a Persian chieftain who was also conducting a rebellion against the caliph. The rebellion was subdued by the caliph and Abu Isa fell in battle in 755.[64] In 1039, part of the synagogue in Ramla was still in ruins, probably resulting from the earthquake of 1033.[65] Jews also returned to Rafah and documents from 1015 and 1080 attest to a significant community there.[66] A large Jewish community existed in Ramle and smaller communities inhabited Hebron and the coastal cities of Acre, Caesarea, Jaffa, Ashkelonand Gaza.[citation needed] Al-Muqaddasi (985) wrote that for the most part the assayers of corn, dyers, bankers, and tanners are Jews.[67] Under the Islamic rule, the rights of Jews and Christians were curtailed and residence was permitted upon payment of the special tax. Between the 7th and 11th centuries, Masoretes (Jewish scribes) in the Galilee and Jerusalem were active in compiling a system of pronunciation and grammatical guides of the Hebrew language. They authorised the division of the Jewish Tanakh, known as the Masoretic Text, which is regarded as authoritative till today.[68] Under Crusader rule (1099–1291)[edit] See also: History of the Jews and the Crusades Capture of Jerusalem, 1099 According to Gilbert, from 1099 to 1291 the Christian Crusaders mercilessly persecuted and slaughtered the Jews of Palestine.[69] In 1099, the Jews were among the rest of the population who tried in vain to defend Jerusalem against the Crusaders. When the city fell, a massacre of 6,000 Jews occurred when the synagogue they were seeking refuge in was set alight. Almost all perished.[70] In Haifa, the Jews and Muslims held out for a whole month, (June–July 1099).[71] Under Crusader rule, Jews were not allowed to hold land and involved themselves in commerce in the coastal towns during times of quiescence. Most of them were artisans: glassblowers in Sidon, furriers and dyers in Jerusalem.[citation needed] At this time there were Jewish communities scattered all over the country, including Jerusalem, Tiberias, Ramleh, Ashkelon, Caesarea, and Gaza. In line with trail of bloodshed the Crusaders left in Europe on their way to liberate the Holyland, in Palestine, both Muslims and Jews were indiscriminately massacred or sold into slavery.[72] A large volume of piyutim and midrashim originated in Palestine at this time.[citation needed] In 1165 Maimonides visited Jerusalem and prayed on the Temple Mount, in the great, holy house.[73] In 1141 Spanish poet, Yehuda Halevi, issued a call to the Jews to emigrate to the Land of Israel, a journey he undertook himself. In the crusading era, there were significant Jewish communities in several cities and Jews are known to have fought alongside Arabs against the Christian invaders Quotes from the Quran and Hadith about Jews, Jerusalem and Israel: Quran 17:104 : And We said unto the Children of Israel after him: Dwell in the land; but when the promise of the Hereafter (wa3’dul akhirati) cometh to pass We shall bring you as a crowd gathered out of various nations. Quran 59:2 : He it is Who caused those who disbelieved of the followers of the Book (Jews) to go forth from their homes (leave their exile) till the first gathering (Li awalil hashr) you did not think that they would go forth, while they were certain that their fortresses would defend them against Allah; but Allah came to them whence they did not expect, and cast terror into their hearts; they demolished their houses with their own hands and the hands of the believers; therefore take a lesson, O you who have eyes! Quran 17:4 : And We decreed for the Children of Israel in the Scripture: Ye verily will experience corruption (exile) in the earth twice, but Ye will then after (thumma) ascend (ta’lunna) to a great height (or station). Also according to the Quran, Allah chose the Children of Israel above all the nations O Children of Israel! call to mind the (special) favour which I bestowed upon you, and fulfil your covenant with Me as I fulfil My Covenant with you, and fear none but Me. [Quran, sura 2:40] Children of Israel! call to mind the (special) favour which I bestowed upon you, and that I preferred you to all other nations (for My Message). [Quran, sura 2:47] And remember We took your covenant and We raised above you Mount (Sinai) : (Saying): Hold firmly to what We have given you and bring (ever) to remembrance what is therein: Perchance ye may fear Allah. [Quran, sura 2:63] We [Allah] made a covenant with you [Children of Israel] and raised the Mount [Sinai] above you, saying: Grasp fervently [the Torah] what We [Allah] have given you, and bear in minds its precepts, that you may guard yourselves against evil. [Quran, sura 2:65] And remember We [Allah] made a covenant with the Children of Israel (to this effect): Worship none but Allah; treat with kindness your parents and kindred, and orphans and those in need; speak fair to the people; be steadfast in prayer; and practise regular charity. Then did ye turn back, except a few among you, and ye backslide (even now). [Quran, sura 2:83] Those to whom We [Allah] have sent the Book [Torah] study it as it should be studied: They are the ones that believe therein: [Quran, sura 2:121] O Children of Israel! call to mind the special favour which I bestowed upon you, and that I preferred you to all others nations (for My Message).[Quran, sura 2:122] When God made a covenant with those [the Children of Israel] to whom the Scriptures were given He said: Proclaim these to mankind and do not suppress them. [Quran, sura 3:187, The Imrans] God made a covenant with the Israelites and raised among them twelve chieftains [the princes of the twelve tribes of the twelve sons of Jacob/Israel]. [Quran, sura 5:12, The Table] Bear in mind the words of Moses to his people [the Children of Israel]. He said: Remember, my people, the favour which God has bestowed upon you. He [Allah] has raised up prophets among you, made you kings, and given you that [the Torah and the Land of Israel] which He has given to no other nation. Enter, my people, the holy land [of Israel] which God has assigned for you. Do not turn back, and thus lose all. [Quran, sura 5:20, The Table] We [Allah] made a covenant with the Israelites and sent forth apostles among them. [Quran, sura 5:70, The Table] We [Allah] divided them [the Children of Israel] into twelve tribes, each a whole community. [Quran, sura 7:159, The Heights] We [Allah] sent forth Moses with Our signs, saying: Lead your people [the Children of Israel] out of the darkness into the light, and remind them of Gods favours. Surely in this there are signs for every steadfast, thankful man. Moses said to his people [the Children of Israel]: Remember Gods goodness to you when He delivered you from Pharoahs nation, who had oppressed you cruelly, slaughtering your sons and sparing only your daughters. Surely that was a grevious trial by your Lord. For He had declared: If you give thanks, I will bestow abundance upon you: but if you deny My favours, My punishment is terrible indeed. [Quran, sura 14:6-7, Abraham] But it was Our [Allahs] will to favour those [the Children of Israel] who were oppressed in the land [of Egypt] and to make them leaders among men, to bestow on them a noble heritage and to give them power in the land [of Egypt]; and to inflict on Pharoah, Haman and their warriors the very scourge they [the Egyptians] dreaded.[Quran, sura 28:3, The Story] We [Allah] gave the Book [Torah] to Moses (never doubt that you will meet him) and made it a guide for the Israelites. And when they grew steadfast and firmly believed in Our revelations, We appointed leaders from among them who gave guidance at Our bidding. On the Day of Resurrection your Lord will resolve their differences for them. [Quran, sura 32:22, Adoration] We [Allah] gave the Book [Torah] to the Israelites and bestowed on them wisdom and prophethood. We provided them with wholesome things and exalted them above the nations.[Quran, sura 45:17, Kneeling] We sent forth Noah and Abraham and bestowed on their offspring [the Children of Israel] prophethood and the Scriptures [Torah]. [Quran, sura 57:26, Iron] The Quran gives reproof and condemnation to the Yahudis, meaning the Jews (or the more accurate term Judeans), and specifically the miltiant inhabitants of Medina. Ignominy shall be their portion [the Jews] wheresoever they are found... They have incurred anger from their Lord, and wretchedness is laid upon them... because they disbelieve the revelations of Allah and slew the Prophets wrongfully... because they were rebellious and used to transgress. [Surah 111, v. 112] And thou wilt find them [the Jews] the greediest of mankind....[Surah 11, v. 96] Evil is that for which they sell their souls... For disbelievers is a terrible doom.[Surah II, v. 90] Taste ye [Jews] the punishment of burning.[Surah III, v. 18 1] Proclaim a woeful punishment to those that hoard up gold and silver.... Their treasures shall be heated in the dres of Hell, and their foreheads, sides and backs branded with them. . . . Taste then the punishment which is your due. [Surah IX, v. 35] They [the Jews] are the heirs of Hell.... They will spare no pains to corrupt you. They desire nothing but your ruin. Their hatred is clear from what they say ... When evil befalls you they rejoice. Ibid. [Surah 111, v. 117-120] Those who disbelieve Our revelations, We shall expose them to the fire. As often as their skins are consumed We shall exchange them for fresh skins that they may taste the torment.[Surah IV, v. 56] Because of the wrongdoing of the Jews.... And of their taking usury ... and of their devouring peoples wealth by false pretenses. We have prepared for those of them who disbelieve a painful doom.[Surah IV, v. 160, 161] Allah hath cursed them [the Jews] for their disbelief.[Surah IV, v. 46] They [the Jews] will spare no pains to corrupt you. They desire nothing but your ruin. Their hatred is clear from what they say, but more violent is the hatred which their breasts conceal.[Surah III, v. 117-120] In truth the disbelievers are an open enemy to you.[Surah IV, v. 101] And thou seest [Jews and Christians] vying one with another in sin and transgression and their devouring of illicit gain. Verily evil is what they do. Why do not the rabbis and the priests forbid their evilspeaking and their devouring of illicit gain? .... evil is their handiwork.[Surah V, v. 62, 63] O ye who believe! Take not the Jews and Christians for friends. [Surah V, v. 51] The most vehement of mankind in hostility [are] the Jews and the idolators.[Surah V, v. 82] Fight against such of those [Jews and Christians] ... until they pay for the tribute readily, being brought low.[Surah IX, v. 29] Allah fighteth against them [the Jews]. How perverse they are![Surah IX, v. 30] Believers, many are the rabbis and the monks who defraud men of their possessions... Proclaim a woeful punishment to those that hoard up gold and silver and do not spend it in Allahs cause.... their treasures shall be heated in the fire of Hell.... [Surah IX, v. 26-34] They [the Jews] spread evil in the land .... [Surah V, v. 62-66] [The Jews] knowingly perverted [the word of Allah], know of nothing except lies ... commit evil and become engrossed in sin. [Surah II, v. 71-85]
Posted on: Sat, 02 Aug 2014 16:28:11 +0000
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