Educating about Israel’s history, geography, culture and people Moments in History
Vol.4 | Issue 2
Recommended Reading
Ben-Gurion Forms First Elected Government March 8, 1949 - 75 Years Ago
David Ben-Gurion’s Knesset-leading Mapai party joins the United Religious Front, the Progressive Party, the Sephardi and Mizrahi Communities, and the Arab-led Democratic List of Nazareth to form a government after Israel’s first parliamentary election Jan. 25, in which nearly 87% of eligible voters are estimated to have participated. As he did for the provisional government Israel formed after declaring independence May 14, 1948, Ben-Gurion serves as the prime minister. Israel’s Declaration of Independence called for elections by Oct. 1, 1948, but the War of Independence forced a postponement several times. The provisional government had established rules and guidelines for free and fair democratic elections and named Israel’s legislative body the Knesset (the Assembly). The 120-seat size of the Knesset is inspired by the ancient Knesset HaGadola, an assembly of 120 Jewish scribes and sages in the first two centuries of the Common Era. Mapai, the forerunner of Israel’s Labor Party, holds 46 seats in the first Knesset and forms a coalition with several smaller parties
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What do you think the main idea of the cartoonist is? Do you agree or disagree with the cartoonist’s point of view ?
Ethics of Our Fighters: A Jewish View on War and Morality By: Shlomo M. Brody
What does it mean to fight an ethical war? This has become an essential question as Israel defends itself on the battlefield and in the court of public opinion. After centuries of military powerlessness, Jews in the 20th century began to ask themselves fundamental questions of military ethics. Wars – including current conflicts in Israel – are inherently brutal. How, then, should Jews respond to the great Arab revolt? What does Judaism say about the bombing of Dresden, the Warsaw Ghetto uprising, or how to push the British out of the land of Israel? Is “land for peace” a moral option? What about preemptive attacks “This is a fascinating book on in 1967 or after 9/11? Can numerous topics, including milwe fight terrorists in urban itary history, ethics, halacha, settings while protecting our and more. Brody accomplished soldiers, avoiding non-com- his goal by writing a work that batants, and preserving our gives the reader a complete public image? Ethics of Our perspective on Jewish military ethics. War is hell and quite Fighters tells the story of bloody. But Brody has shown these political dilemmas and that for the IDF, it too can be moral debates. It draws from a Kiddush HaShem. May God the pivotal historical mo- bless all of the soldiers of the ments of the last one hun- IDF success and that they redred years to weave together turn safely.” —Ben Rothke, Times of Israel the most important ideas of contemporary ethicists with Book Review the insights of the greatest rabbinic scholars.This book systemically presents, for the first time, a holistic Jewish perspective on military ethics. Jews and non-Jews alike, from the halls of Congress and West Point to batei midrash and IDF bases, can draw from Jewish wisdom on these life-and-death matters. This worldview that is at once distinctly Jewish and more broadly insightful can help all civilized nations fight wisely and act nobly.