The Jews are one of the most mysterious, fascinating and one of the most significant ethnoreligious groups in the world. They were one of the most persecuted throughout history, yet the most successful and thriving group of people.
The word ‘Jew’ is derived from the Latin Iudaeus and Greek Ioudaios (Ἰουδαῖος), both of which translate as ‘Jew’ or ‘Judean’ or ‘people of the region of Judea’. The word corresponds to the Hebrew word Yehudi (יְהוּדִי) which is a term for a member of the tribe of Judah, or Yehuda (יְהוּדָה). Judah is one of the twelve tribes of Israel, but ‘Jews’ or ‘Jewish people’ includes all of the twelve tribes of Israel.
Early History
The twelve tribes of Israel originate from the twelve sons of Jacob the son of Issac the son of Abraham. Jacob was renamed by God to Israel meaning one who struggles with God, after a mysterious incident where he wrestled with God. Jacob had twelve sons, Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulum, Joseph and Benjamin and they and their generations were called the ‘children of Israel (Jacob)’ or the ‘Israelites’. Whom we call ‘Jews’ in the modern age are the descendants of the twelve sons of Israel.
Israel(Jacob) and his children ended up in Egypt because of a famine and were eventually enslaved by the Pharaoh. Through Moses, they were brought out of Egypt and after forty years a new generation of Israelites entered the land of Canaan, which geographically relates to the modern day Israel. The twelve tribes of Israel settled there and formed the nation of Israel and later on built their first temple in Israel. The nation eventually split into two, the kingdom of Judah in the south comprising of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin and the kingdom of Israel in the north comprising of the rest of the ten tribes. The kingdom of Judah with the temple in Jerusalem remained stronger compared to the kingdom of Israel, and in course of time the Kingdom of Israel was carried away into captivity.
Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon invaded Judah and defeated the king Zedekiah and destroyed the temple in 587 B.C. The Israelites lost their nation, their temple and were held in captivity in Babylon. After the fall of the Babylonian empire, Cyrus the king of Persia issued a decree ordering the children of Israel who were captives in Babylon to go back to Jerusalem and build a temple there. Thus the Israelites returned to their land and rebuilt their temple.
This temple and the city of Jerusalem was destroyed again, this time by Titus in 70 A.D and the Israelites once again lost their nation and their holy city. The spoils from the temple were taken away by the Romans as depicted in the Arch of Titus in Rome.
Recent History
Since Titus’ victory in Judea and his destruction of Jerusalem the Israelites were without a nation and the holy city and the temple and were scattered among different nations. Many were persecuted, but still many survived, thrived and many preserved their Jewish identity even while living for generations among many nations.
For around 2,000 years the Jewish people were dispersed throughout the world, driven from nation to nation and they settled down wherever they were allowed to live freely. They were expelled from many European nations including England, France, Austria, Poland, Italy and Portugal and many settled down in the United States, Southern Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. Prior to World War II the Jewish population worldwide reached about 16.7 million. During World War II the world witnessed the Holocaust in which about 6 million Jews were slaughtered by Hitler’s Nazi Germany. This is one of the deadliest genocides in history and culminated in what the Nazis called ‘The Final Solution to the Jewish Question’.
After World War II, many Jewish refugees started settling in what was then Mandatory Palestine under the British administration. The United Nations adopted Resolution 181(II) recommending partitioning Palestine into an Arab state, a Jewish state and the city of Jerusalem. After the 1967 Six-Day war, Jerusalem was annexed to Israel. The Arab world rejected the partition and hence the continued struggled between Israel and the Arab world.
Israel declared independence on 14th May 1948 and it was recognized on 11th May 1949. Since the formation of the nation of Israel, the Jewish population in Israel grew steadily with many refugees and war survivors returning to the land of their forefathers. Since independence Israel has been constantly under battle with its neighbors and the Arab world but the nation not only survived all the attacks but thrived.
Their Great Success
By their hard work, diligence and innovation the Jews transformed Israel into a strong nation, leading in human development, economy and military might. In spite of its dry, arid climate the Israelites managed to transform the desert into farmlands growing different kinds of fruits and vegetables using water saving technologies like drip irrigation. Israel has some of the largest desalination plants in the world and a huge portion of water used for household and industrial consumption is artificially produced. Today Israel is helping several nations in water management and agriculture.
It is pretty much a common knowledge that a big percentage of Nobel recipients are Jews. Of all of Nobel prizes awarded, Jews have won about 20 percent of them despite making up just 0.2 percent of the world’s population. The impact the Jews have made in the world is undeniable. From Einstein to Freud to Wittgenstein to Marx to several of the greatest economists, scientists and philosophers, it would not be an overstatement to claim that the Jews significantly contributed to shape our modern society. Even the modern concepts of advertising and marketing and the commercial mindset that was formed in the minds of the people can be attributed to Freud’s works and its practical applications by his nephew Edward Bernays who is now called “the father of public relations”.
Several have attempted to explain the mystery of the Jewish success in spite of the oppression and persecution they constantly faced. The explanations range from religion to culture to social capital, etc., but even though those might have contributed in some ways, their power and success and influence they have on the world’s powers is still very mysterious. The influence and control they have over several powerful governments and organizations cannot be easily explained away by a few theories. How they even got to the point of being such a powerful influencer from being a race that was driven from land to land and persecuted, nation-less and eventually slaughtered in millions is just very mysterious and mind-blowing.
The Future
At least for now it seems like Israel will continue to move in its current trajectory, in spite of its many enemies. A tiny nation about the size of New Jersey, the fourth smallest state in the US is today a major world power boldly standing against many nations much larger and more powerful. There are still many uncertainties with Israel and Palestine, and especially Jerusalem with regular attacks between them and multiple failures in attempts to broker peace. It is hard to predict in which direction things will move in the future.
There are Jews who truly want peace with the Palestinians and there are also Jews who feel very strong about the Jewish nation and even want to build the Third Temple in the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. It still remains to see in which direction the Jewish state will head to. Historically though, every time the Israelites returned to their land they built their temple. Today the Dome of the Rock is located on the Temple Mount, built by Umayyad Caliph Adb al-Malik in 691 A.D. The Temple Mount is one of the hottest flash points in the world, and one of the most important religious sites in the world.
Today the Temple Mount is within the area controlled by Israel, but the administration of the site is in the hands of the Jerusalem Islamic Waqf. This is due to the Preservation of Holy Places Law passed by the Knesset ensuring protection of the holy places after the 1967 Israeli take over of Jerusalem during the Six-Day war. Thus, Muslims have access to enter the area and pray on the site, while non-Muslims including Jews are banned from offering prayers on the site. Jews may enter to visit the site at limited times but are forbidden from offering Jewish prayers on the site. The Jews instead offer prayers at the Western Wall, which is a segment of the retaining wall from the second temple. Many Jews still continue to try to get access to the main Temple Mount and even build the Third Temple there. The Temple Institute, an organization in Israel which is endeavoring to build the temple has even prepared many of the ritual items, priestly garments and is attempting to identify a Red Heifer that is pure and consistent with the religious requirements.
In the next few years to come, this holy Temple Mount and the building of the Third Temple may cause a great struggle between Israel and its Arab neighbors. With either sides unrelenting and with the Jewish side continuing to make progress in preparing the articles and priests for the temple, both the sides have to meet at some point in time and decide what needs to remain in the Temple Mount. By looking at the current progression of events, including a recent crowd-sourcing campaign to build the Third Temple, it seems like the Jews and Arabs are headed towards a contention. It remains to be seen when and how.
