Jewish Condition: Challenges and Responses-1938-2008
This brilliant set of essays poses the paradigmatic question: are Jews in grave danger today or not? Concern is rooted in the storm clouds of 1938, when the same question arose just prior to the outbreak of the Second World War and the Holocaust. The contributors do not presume that the events of seventy years ago are identical with those today, or that they emanate from the same sources. However, the shared feeling is that Jewish communities worldwide are very much, once again at risk.\ In...
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This brilliant set of essays poses the paradigmatic question: are Jews in grave danger today or not? Concern is rooted in the storm clouds of 1938, when the same question arose just prior to the outbreak of the Second World War and the Holocaust. The contributors do not presume that the events of seventy years ago are identical with those today, or that they emanate from the same sources. However, the shared feeling is that Jewish communities worldwide are very much, once again at risk.In post-1938 Germany, the Nazi state began its march toward world conquest, with the destruction of European Jewry as its centerpiece. In an act of willful blindness, Western democratic leaders chose to negotiate and appease the Hitler regime. Many Jewish leaders also chose to minimize the risks. Seven years later, over 50 million people, including six million Jews had been killed. In 2008, extremist Islamic forces have spawned a global Jihad. State-sponsored terrorism, a war against the West as well as against moderate Islamic states, once again holds the destruction of the Jewish people, and in particular the State of Israel, as a critical goal. The Iranian leadership proclaims that "a world without America and Israel is both possible and feasible."Against such a diplomatic and historical background a conference was organized resulting in these essays written by Alan Dershowitz, Norman Podhoretz, Michael Walzer, Leonard Fein, and David Pryce-Jones among others. The results are varied at the policy level, but unified in apprehending a disturbing revival of inherited hatred and anti-Semitic outbreaks against Jews both within and outside of Europe. The is a compelling effort that merits the attention of social scientists, policy makers, and those interested in international relations.
Introduction William B. Helnireich Helnireich, William B.Preface Mark Rosenblum Rosenblum, MarkCognitive Dissonance or Denial? - Perhaps Both David Schimel Schimel, David1 Back to the Future: Is it 1938 Again? Malcolm Hoenlein Hoenlein, Malcolm 12 Lessons from the Past: Hopes for the Future Leonard Fein Fein, Leonard 133 What is Living and What is Dead in Jewish Twentieth-Century History? Irving Louis Horowitz Horowitz, Irving Louis 214 Can We Choose Politically between Right and Left? Michael Walzer Walzer, Michael 335 Echoes of 1938 Alan Dershowitz Dershowitz, Alan 396 The Case for Bombing Iran Norman Podhoretz Podhoretz, Norman 457 The Right of World Jewry to Criticize Israel Moshe Halbertal Halbertal, Moshe 578 The Ethical Limits and Ways of Criticizing Israel Blu Greenberg Greenberg, Blu 619 Diaspora Criticism and Advocacy Jeff Helmreich Helmreich, Jeff 6710 Saving American Jewry: Demography, Politics, and Destiny Jack Wertheimer Wertheimer, Jack 7511 1938 as a Paradigm Lawrence Grossman Grossman, Lawrence 9112 From Hatred to Love: Is it Good - or Bad - for the Jews? Samuel Heilman Heilman, Samuel 9913 Facing Armageddon - Evangelicals and the Jews Yechiel Eckstein Eckstein, Yechiel 10314 Social Justice and Jewish Survival David Saperstein Saperstein, David 11115 Europe's "Terrible Transformation?" David Pryce-Jones Pryce-Jones, David 11916 If Israel Ceased to Exist Hillel Halkin Halkin, Hillel 12717 Challenges and Dangers Facing American Jewry David Harris Harris, David 13918 Dilemmas of Jewish Survival as Seen through the Prism of Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice Susannah Heschel Heschel, Susannah145Contributors 153Index 159
\ From the Publisher"The essays are well edited and easy to read for the scholar or layman. Included at the end of the book is a short biography of each speaker as well as an index. This timely and important book is recommended for all libraries."\ — Ilka Gordon, Association of Jewish Libraries Newsletter\ \
