Roots
My father planted an ancient tree In foreign soil which starved its roots The tree developed, gnarled and twisted Displaying its resilience with every…
Aryeh Leib Shapiro made aliyah from America in 2018 after finishing a degree in International Relations and History, and since finishing his army service, he learns at Machon Meir in Jerusalem while organizing and writing for Vision.
By ignoring our national aspirations & questions about the next stages of Jewish history, pro-Israel Diaspora Jews have directed their energies to merely defending the State of Israel’s policies & image.
The essence of the story is the total devotion each martyr had to spreading and protecting the Torah and for being lions in the struggle to free their country from Roman rule.
The association of Edom with Rome & the ensuing Roman destruction of Judea has marked Edom-Rome in our people’s national consciousness as the central antagonist in Israel’s collective story.
Amalek persists as an enemy that threatens Israel in times of great doubt regarding our historic mission.
As Jewish historiography features a primordialist view of national identities, Biblical nations such as Mitzrayim are generally seen as representing timeless forces in history.
Jewish historiography presents a cyclical approach that sees primordial forces shining into our world. In this view, that which exists now is simply a filtered manifestation of that which came before.
Israel’s historiographic tradition of cyclical rather than linear interpretations of historical events, reveals how these events echo our national history.
The idea of history as a cyclical – rather than linear – progression is deeply embedded in the Jewish people’s national consciousness & worldview.