We stand divided : the rift between American Jews and Israel / Daniel Gordis.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Gordis, Daniel, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Jews--United States--Attitudes toward Israel.

Jews.

United States.

Jews--United States--Identity.

Identity (Philosophical concept).

Jews--History.

History.

Jews--Attitudes toward Israel.

Jews--Identity.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

293 pages ; 22 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York, NY : ECCO, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, [2019]

Summary:

"From National Jewish Book Award Winner and author of Israel, a bold reevaluation of the tensions between American and Israeli Jews that reimagines the past, present, and future of Jewish life. Relations between the American Jewish community and Israel are at an all-time nadir. Since Israel's founding seventy years ago, particularly as memory of the Holocaust and of Israel's early vulnerability has receded, the divide has grown only wider. Most explanations pin the blame on Israel's handling of its conflict with the Palestinians, Israel's attitude toward non-Orthodox Judaism, and Israel's dismissive attitude toward American Jews in general. In short, the cause for the rupture is not what Israel is; it's what Israel does. These explanations tell only half the story. We Stand Divided examines the history of the troubled relationship, showing that from the outset, the founders of what are now the world's two largest Jewish communities were responding to different threats and opportunities, and had very different ideas of how to guarantee a Jewish future. With an even hand, Daniel Gordis takes us beyond the headlines and explains how Israel and America have fundamentally different ideas about issues ranging from democracy and history to religion and identity. He argues that as a first step to healing the breach, the two communities must acknowledge and discuss their profound differences and moral commitments. Only then can they forge a path forward, together." -- Amazon.com

Contents:

The Rift

Introduction: "Why Can't We All Just Get Along?" p. 3

1 A Mistaken Conventional Wisdom p. 11

2 A Rift Older Than the State Itself p. 39

The Causes

3 A Particularist Project in a Universalist World p. 73

4 Idealized Zion Meets the Messiness of History p. 103

5 People or Religion: Who and What Are the Jews? p. 135

6 How Naked a Public Square: A Liberal or Ethnic Democracy? p. 167

7 Charting a Shared Future-and Why That Matters p. 199.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 255-279) and index.

ISBN:

9780062873699

0062873695

OCLC:

1080428443