Introduction

 

ewish statesmanship does not exist in Israel.а Jews do become prime ministers, as did Benjamin Disraeli and Pierre Mendes France.а But no sober person expected Jewish statesmanship from these English and French Jews.а No one expected them to incorporate Jewish laws and principles into the legislation of their respective countries, or to pursue foreign policies inspired by distinctively Jewish goals.а These Jews did not think like Jews but like Gentiles.а Much the same may be said of the prime ministers of Israel.

ааааааааааа

At this point let us define what is meant by statesmanship in general, and Jewish statesmanship in particular.

 

ааааааааааа If statesmanship is defined as the application of philosophic wisdom to action, then Jewish statesmanship is the application of Jewish wisdom to action.а Architectonic statesmen such as James Madison and Alexander Hamilton studied the great philosophers, those who addressed themselves to such questions as УHow should man live?Ф and УWhat kind of government is most conducive to human excellence?Фа They employed ancient and modern wisdom in the process of designing a constitution appropriate to the character and circumstances of the American people.[1] Although Jewish statesmen will study the great philosophers, they will delve primarily into the wisdom of Judaism and ask, УHow should Jews as Jews live?Ф and УWhat kind of government is appropriate to contemporary Israel and conducive to Jewish excellence?Фа

ааааааааааа When we consider, however, the conflicting doctrines of philosophers and the diverse life experiences of hundreds of Jewish communities during the last two thousand years, it will beа obviousа thatа Jewishа statesmanshipа isа far

 

 

 

beyond the capacity of ordinary politicians.а Still, Jews can ill-affordа toа leaveа theirа destinyа inа the hands of political amateurs.а This certainly applies to minuscule Israel whose neighbors consist of Arab-Islamic dictatorships.а

ааааааааааа

Part I.а Prerequisites of Jewish Statesmanship

 

Jewish statesmanship has three basic prerequisites:а (1) statesmen possessing Jewish and secular wisdom; (2) political institutions that enable statesmen to exercise leadership yet render them accountable to their people; and (3) a people whose love of freedom is embedded in a tradition that honors moral excellence, wisdom, and truth.

 

A.а The Jewish Statesman

 

The Jewish statesman is first and foremost an educator whose power is less political than intellectual and moral. Hence the Jewish statesman must be well educated in the heritage and history of the Jewish People.а This is a formidable task, since the knowledge Jews have accumulated during the past four millennia is vast and unsurpassed.а

ааааааааааа Jews have excelled in virtually every discipline, especially in the domain of law.а Consider Jewish law (Halakha), but only so far as concerns the relations between man and man (in contradistinction to the relation between man and God).а That we should begin with a consideration of Jewish law in discussing Jewish statesmanship is appropriate if only because Jewish law is the one thing that has preserved the Jewish people and their national identity.

ааааааааааа Like other legal systems, Jewish law has various branches, for example, civil and criminal law, public and administrative law.а Extant Jewish legal knowledge includes 7,000 volumes or 300,000 instances of case law dealing primarily with the social and economic problems of Jewish communities dispersed throughout Europe and North Africa.а This enormous body of case law is being organized at two Israeli universities, and not merely for its historical interest, but for its potential relevance to contemporary problems.а (Because case law arises out of factual conditions and resolves existential controversies, it is by no means subordinate to codified law.)а This repository of legal knowledge will be available to statesmen.а It will teach him important principles of Jewish governance.а

ааааааааааа First, Jewish law will teach him that no one is above the law; indeed, that God Himself is bound to observe the laws of the Torah (Jerusalem Talmud, Rosh Hashana 1:3a).а Hence our Jewish statesman will reject the Latin maxim Princeps legibus solutus estЧThe ruler is not bound by the law.а A relic of this maxim will be found in modern Israel: УNo act of legislation shall diminish the rights of the State, or impose upon it any obligation, unless explicitly stated.Ф[2]

Second, Jewish law will teach our statesman that the individual must never be sacrificed for the sake of the state.а Third, Jewish law will teach him how to secure individual equity while promoting the common good.а

ааааааааааа Fourth, since our statesman will be learned in Jewish history, he will know that Jewish law is not static but dynamic, that Judaism reconciles permanence and change.а He will know that Jews survived the vicissitudes of the past because, thanks to their great Rabbis, they learned how to adapt to changing circumstances and still adhere to the Torah, mankindТs first written Constitution.аа

ааааааааааа Fifth, our Jewish statesman will know that only this Constitution can unite the Jewish People, and not simply because of the TorahТs world-inspiring wisdom and models of human excellence.а For the TorahТs comprehensive and many-faceted system of law can harmonize the social and economic relations of Jews of diverse ethnic backgrounds by providing them with proven and venerable methods of resolving their differences.а As Professor Menachem Alon, former Vice- President of IsraelТs Supreme Court, has written:а Уit is precisely in all the branches of Jewish law other than marriage and divorce that it is possible ... to arrive at a common language and understanding among various elements of the people who differ in their religious and social outlook.Ф[3]а Since a vital objective of Jewish statesmanship is to promote Jewish national unity, our statesman must be sensitive to the potentially unifying influence of Jewish law.

ааааааааааа Sixth, and as will shown later, Jewish law provides a rational and ethical foundation for representative government.а However, to avoid the mischievous tendency of apologists to assimilate Judaism to democracy, the Jewish statesman will assimilate democracy to Judaism.а Accordingly, he will derive freedom and equality, democracyТs two cardinal principles, from the TorahТs conception of manТs creation in the image of God.а This will provide these two ethically neutral and indiscriminate principles of democracy with the ethical and rational constraints.

ааааааааааа Finally, although our statesman will be educated in Jewish wisdom, he will have learned from such masters of Jewish law as Maimonides and the Vilna Gaon that thorough knowledge of the Torah requires veridical secular knowledge.а It follows that УJewish identityФ is not a sufficient condition for Jewish statesmanship.а IsraelТs religious parties have УJewish identity.Фа However, because of their long dependence on secular parties, they lack the breadth of vision and spiritedness required for Jewish statesmanship.а Regrettably, the narrowness and timidity of Israeli politics have infected them.а Without denying the accomplishments of the religious parties, too often they use Torah for politics rather than politics for Torah.а The Jewish People require statesmen who strive for the unity of thought and action prescribed in the Torah.а Exemplary personal character, however, is not a sufficient prerequisite for Jewish statesmanship.а Which leads us to a discussion of political institutions.

 

 

B.а Political Institutions

 

Jewish statesmanship requires for its efficacy well-designed political institutions.а Jews possess the ability to flourish under political institutions far superior to those existing in Israel.а This is why the present writer has drafted a Constitution appropriate to the character and circumstances of IsraelТs Jewish population.[4]а Although this Constitution and its rationale have been published elsewhere, we may nonetheless appreciate the need for constitutional reform simply by examining the inherent flaws of IsraelТs existing political institutions.а This will explain why Jewish statesmanship does not exist in Israel today.

ааааааааааа Political institutions are not morally neutral mechanisms.а They can influence the character and conduct of those who make the laws and policies of a state.а Although even the best-designed political institutions cannot ensure wise and virtuous leadership, how institutions are designed can either restrain or liberate egoism, the bane of good government.

ааааааааааа Egoism is as old as Adam.а In Israel, however, egoism wears not even a fig leaf. Egoism has been institutionalized in this country in two basic ways.а First, IsraelТs parliamentary system of proportional representation with a mere 1.5% electoral threshold fosters what may be termed Уegocentric pluralism.Ф This low threshold encouraged 33 (of 56 registered and mostly single-issue) parties to compete in the May 17, 1999 parliamentary elections! Several established parties fragmented.а In fact, no less than 29 MKs from the 14^th Knesset switched allegiance to rival parties.а The motive of almost all of these politicians is not ideological: their object is to obtain a safe place on the lists of other parties. And so, thanks primarily to IsraelТs low parliamentary electoral threshold, parties have become havens for job seekers.а

Some ten or more parties typically win seats in IsraelТs 120-member Knesset.а Since no party has ever won a majority in that assembly, several parties must join to form a Government, and they do so, said David Ben-Gurion Уnot on the basis of a common program but merely to divide up the positions of influence and the national budget.Ф[5]

ааааааааааа This egocentric pluralism in the Knesset splinters the Government, whose cabinet ministers are normally drawn from the Knesset.а Prime Minister NetanyahuТs initial cabinet, which took office in June 1996, consisted of seven political parties, each with its own agenda.а Given such a cabinet, statesmanship of any kind is virtually impossible.а Indeed, in December 1998, most members of NetanyahuТs cabinetЧfour had previously resigned for diverse reasonsЧsupported the KnessetТs multipartisan bill for early elections.а

Incidentally, lest it be thought that IsraelТs Knesset is, in practice, a powerful institution, it should be noted that no Labor- or Likud-led Government has ever been toppled by a Knesset vote of no confidence.[6]а The Knesset is dominated by the medley of party leaders who head the cabinet ministries.а Because cabinet ministers appoint the directors of some 100 public corporations, each ministry is a veritable fiefdom.а This egocentric pluralism undermines national unity and national purpose.а It enfeebles Jewish national consciousness and leaves no vista for Jewish statesmanship.

ааааааааааа The disintegration of the Netanyahu Government following the Wye Memorandum of October 23, 1998 triggered the eruption of new parties and a welter of prime ministerial aspirants.а Everyone was speaking of a Уcrisis of leadership,Ф but not a single would-be leader manifested any awareness that the basic cause of this crisis was the egocentric pluralism generated by IsraelТs form of government on the one hand, and its lack of Jewish national purpose on the other.

а ааааааааа A basic cause of this intellectual bankruptcy, however, is the dogma, really the myth, of Israeli democracy.а IsraelТs political and intellectual elites have foisted this myth on a nation of immigrants, most of whom know very little about the institutional prerequisites of democracy, and even less about how to assimilate democracy to Jewish principles and values.а

ааааааааааа What makes democracy a myth in Israel and what most contributes to egocentric pluralism is that Knesset Members (MKs) are not individually accountable to the people.а Unlike the practice in 74 democracies, Israelis do not vote for individual candidates in multidistrict or constituency elections.а Instead, the entire country constitutes a single district and the voters cast their ballot for a fixed, party-ranked list of candidates, most of whose names, by the way, are unknown to the average voter.[7]а Since the party leaders enjoy safe places on their partyТs list, their political survival (in all but the smallest parties) is independent of the outcome of elections.а Shimon Peres, who has never won an election, has been in the Knesset for more than forty years!

ааааааааааа Because an MK does not have a constituency of his own, he owes his position, power, and perks to his party bosses, more so when they head cabinet ministries.[8]а Which means that an MK cannot block government policies he deems bad without committing political suicide.а The parliamentary system of fixed party lists without constituency elections thus produces top-down leadership.а This system insulates legislators from citizens and vitiates a basic principle of representative government.а No wonder studies indicate that an increasing majority of Israelis feel powerless.[9]а In fact, the higher their level of education the more aware they become of the closed nature of IsraelТs political system, which they nonetheless deem democratic because of periodic multiparty elections!

ааааааааааа Superficial commentators regard Israelis as passive when in truth they are simply powerless between elections.а Remarkably, despite their powerlessness their political activism exceeds that found in most democracies, as the recent formation of 22 new parties testifies.а Moreover, almost 90% of IsraelТs Jewish population vote in national elections. Still, the absence of constituency or district elections renders it extremely difficult for Israelis to obtain a redress of their grievances.а Frustration often results, which can lead to civil disobedience and even violence.а District elections facilitate closer relationships between legislators and constituents.а A legislator may be encouraged (or lobbied) to take up an important but neglected issue, and there are many neglected issues in Israel.а аа This is not to suggest that constituency elections alone will solve, in a trice, IsraelТs economic, demographic, and security problems.а But these problems will certainly not be solved under a parliamentary system that spawns amateurism and apparatchiks, undermines individual responsibility and accountability, and thus contributes to the inefficiency and corruption annually reported in volumes by the State Comptroller.а Needless to say, the reports of the State Comptroller are swept under the rug by a feckless Knesset, which thus fails to fulfill the crucial function of scrutinizing IsraelТs bloated bureaucracy.

ааааааа ааа

ааааааааааа What makes this state of affairs all the more intolerable is IsraelТs perilous situation in the Middle East.а Israeli politicians may be no worse than others, but IsraelТs political institutions, especially its parliamentary electoral rules, magnify their vices.а Given fixed party lists without constituency elections, Israeli parties constitute self-perpetuating oligarchies that can ignore Jewish public opinion with impunity.а To expect Jewish statesmanship (or УJewish leadershipФ) within the framework of IsraelТs grotesque political institutions is to betray abysmal ignorance.а IsraelТs political system is no system at all.а What reigns is anarchy punctuated by oligarchy!

ааааааааааа

This undemocratic state of affairs produces a dangerous lack of mutual respect and confidence between the Jews of Israel and their ruling elites, which this besieged country can ill-afford.а To fully appreciate this appalling fact, we need to examine the religious and political attitudes of IsraelТs Jewish population on the one hand, and those of IsraelТs ruling elites on the other.а Why Jewish statesmanship does not exist in Israel will then become transparent.

 

C.а IsraelТs Jewish Population

 

According to a 1993 survey of Israel Jewish population conducted by the Guttman Institute:[10] (1) 56% always light Shabbat candles, 22% sometimes; (2) 23% always attend synagogue Saturday morning, 22% sometimes; (3) 42% never work (in public) on Sabbath, 19% sometimes; (4) 78% always participate in Passover Seder, 20% sometimes; (5) 70% always fast on Yom Kippur, 11% sometimes; (6) 69% always observe Kashrut at home, 18% sometimes; (7) Brit Milah 92%; Bar Mitzvah 83%; (8) Wedding 87%; (9) Burial/Shiva/Kaddish 88-91%; (10) Mezuhah on front door 98%.

ааааааааааа These Jews divide as follows: Ultra-Orthodox 8%; religious Zionists 17%; traditional 55%; secular 20%.а Because of their high birthrate, the Ultra-Orthodox Jews today probably number close to 10%.аа As for the traditional Jews (by far the largest group), most are Sephardim from the Mediterranean or Islamic world.а They are people who cherish traditional Jewish life, but modify halakhically required practices in those cases they believe to be personally necessary or convenient.

ааааааааааа Most remarkable, however, are the Уsecularists.Фа For the practices, as opposed to the beliefs, of a significant percentage of these Jews are quite similar to those of many traditionalists, except that they claim they maintain those practices for family and national reasons rather than for religious ones.а The Guttman survey shows that 75% of the УsecularФ 20% follow the most common traditional religious practices.а Also astonishing in this connection is a 1992 study by Tel Aviv University Professor Yochanan Peres, indicating that 23% of those who identify as УsecularФ believe in the TorahТs divine origin![11] And to further compound the difficulty of classifying these Уsecularists,Ф some 50,000 voted for the National Religious Party in the 1996 Knesset elections!а Nor is this all.ааа

ааааааааааа It was reported in 1997 that in the preceding six years 200,000 Israelis had become Orthodox, while another 130,000, previously self-identified as Уsecular,Ф had become traditional.а What makes all this data so astonishing is that secularists, not to say atheists, founded the state, controlled the entire public domain between 1948 and 1977, and still dominate the countryТs media and economy, as well as its educational and cultural institutions.

ааааааааааа Turning to Jewish political opinions, a 1997 poll indicates that 74% of Jewish high school students oppose Arab membership in the Knesset.а This reflects the national attitude reported in Professor PeresТs 1992 study mentioned above.а (Incidentally, the disloyalty of Arab Knesset members today is far more conspicuous than it was in 1992 and even in 1997.)[12]

ааааааааааа The above studies clearly demonstrate that the people of Israel are very religious.а In fact, more than 50% believe in the divine origin of the Torah!а Which means that the beliefs and practices of a large majority of IsraelТs Jewish citizens tend to foster, against the egoistic propensities of human nature, respect for moral excellence, wisdom, and truthЧa precondition of Jewish statesmanship.а Yet no such statesmanship exists in Israel.а Why not?

 

ааааааааааа From the studies I have cited one may infer that perhaps only 10% of IsraelТs Jewish population consists of alienated Jews (mostly Ashkenazim).а It so happens, however, that this 10% contains a clique of Ultra-Secularists that controls the major levers of power in the State of Israel.а The key question is: What preserves the (interlocking) power of this clique?а The answer has already been stated: IsraelТs parliamentary electoral system of fixed party lists without constituency elections on the one hand, and the myth of Israeli democracy on the other. The dissipation of this myth and the establishment of constituency elections are preconditions for the emergence of Jewish statesmanship.

ааааааааааа Now, to avoid misunderstanding, it should be noted that proportional representation with a 1.5% electoral threshold has made the Knesset more or less representative of the diverse groups composing Israeli society, be they secular or not.а This is why the Knesset appears democratic.а As previously indicated, however, power is concentrated in the Government.а Basic Law: The Government stipulates that УThe Government is competent to do in the name of the State, subject to any law, any act whose doing is not enjoined by law upon another authority.Ф Hence the Government can declare war, make treaties with states and even terrorist organizations, and change the exchange rate without consulting the Knesset!а The Knesset, all-powerful in theory, is impotent in practice.а The Government, moreover, has always been led either by alienated Jews from the Labor Party or by assimilated Jews from the Likud. Which means that IsraelТs Government, apart from the promotion of aliya, has never had a national agenda commensurate with the prevailing beliefs and customs of IsraelТs Jewish population.а

ааааааааааа This is most conspicuously true of IsraelТs Supreme Court.а Of its current fifteen members, none is Orthodox.а Like its American counterpart, which it apes, the Court has sanctioned homosexuality, gay marriages, pornography, and the feminist agenda, thus fostering the neo-paganism and moral egalitarianism destructive of the family, the heart of Judaism.а The CourtТs President, Justice Aharon Barak, deems it his duty to be Уfaithful to the views of the enlightened population in whose midst he sits.Фа By the Уenlightened populationФ Barak means IsraelТs diminishing minority of Ultra-Secularists.[13]а It should be understood, however, that the power of IsraelТs Supreme Court is ultimately dependent on Knesset law.а The CourtТs contempt for the majority of the Jewish people would not get very far if Knesset Members were accountable to the voters in constituency elections.

ааааааааааа IsraelТs Supreme Court has become a УCourtocracy.Фа Its disregard of Jewish and even Knesset law may also be seen in its negative attitude toward the Foundations of Law Act, which the Knesset passed in 1980.а This most important statute severed IsraelТs legal system from the binding force of English common law, and created a link with Jewish law to which it gave official status as a complementary legal source, making Jewish law a part of Israeli positive law.а The statute reads, in part:а УWhere a court finds that a legal issue requiring decision cannot be resolved by reference to legislation or judicial precedent, or by means of analogy, it shall reach its decision in the light of the principles of freedom, justice, equity, and peace of the Jewish heritage.Фа However, because of its contempt for the general public, the Court has minimized the incorporation of Jewish law (we are not speaking of religious law) into the laws of the state, contrary to the intentions of the Knesset.а

ааааааааааа Here are some examples of Jewish civil and criminal law which have been incorporated into IsraelТs legal system: the Wage Delay Prohibition Law (1955), the Severance Pay Law (1963), the Prohibition of Defamation Law (1965), and the Right to Privacy Law (1981).а Also noteworthy are public laws that incorporate basic tenets of Judaism.а The Law and Administration Ordinance of 1948 states:а УThe Sabbath and the Jewish festivalsЧthe two days of Rosh Ha-Shana, the Day of Atonement, the first and eighth day of Sukkot, the first and seventh day of Passover, and the festival of ShavuТotЧare legal holidays in the State of Israel.а Non-Jews have the right to observe their own sabbaths and holidays.Ф[14]ааааа

ааааааааааа

ааааааааааа Now let us contrast Justice BarakТs autocratic attitude toward the public in Israel with certain passages of Professor Menachem AlonТs monumental work, Jewish Law: History, Sources, and Principles (Ha-Mishpat Ha-Ivri).а We need only bear in mind that Alon is referring to Jewish communities in the Diaspora which, prior to the eighteenth century, possessed juridical autonomy and could thus enact civil and even criminal laws.а He remarks:

ааааааааааа

[Not only in the case of communal enactments, but] even when legislation emanates from the halakhic authorities, the public does have a decisive influence on this important and substantial source for creating and developing Jewish law; but the time when this influence is brought to bear is not the same as in the case of legislation in other legal systems.а In other systems, the public plays its role before the legislation is enacted, whereas in the case of legislation by the halakhic authorities, the influence of the public operates afterward.

 

Reserving comment for later, Alon continues:

 

аааааа In other legal systems, the public (whether directly, as in the Roman public assemblies, or through its representatives) is the legislator; the public is the source of legislation.а This is also true in the case of communal enactments in Jewish law.а The situation is otherwise when the halakhic authorities legislate: the courts and the halakhic authorities do the legislating, but after the legislation is enacted, the public determines whether the legislation will continue in force.а Actually, this ultimate effectiveness of communal power means that the influence of the public operates to an extent even before legislation is enacted, because the legislator must first carefully investigate whether the public will be able to conform to any enactment to be adopted on its behalf.а This need for the halakhic authorities to investigate before they legislate is a consequence of the decisive power possessed by the public after the legislation has been enacted.[15]

ааааааааааа

ааааааааааа The significant role of the public in legislation by the halakhic authorities is expressed in a principle laid down in the Babylonian Talmud:а УNo legislation should be imposed on the public unless the majority can conform to itФ (Avoda Zara 36a).а This principle is expressed differently in the Jerusalem Talmud:аа У ... any legislation enacted by a court but not accepted by the majority of the public is no lawФ (Avoda Zara 2:8).аа Consequently, and as formulated by Professor Alon:а У(1) before legislating the legislator must examine and investigate whether a majority of the public will be able to conform to the proposed enactment, and (2) if, after the legislation is enacted, it appears that a majority of the public do not accept it, the legislation is legally ineffective.Ф[16]

ааааааааааа Two caveats are in order.а First, under conventional democratic legal systems, the extent to which the public plays a role before legislation is enacted depends on whether legislators are not only sensitive to public opinion but also directly accountable to the voters in constituency elections.а As previously explained, such accountability does not exist in Israel.а Second, under the Jewish legal system, the ability of legislators to ascertain whether a majority of the public will be able or willing to conform to proposed legislation presupposes a relatively small country divided into districts for electoral purposes.а (I am assuming that legislators will not have sacrificed their intellects to mindless and media-generated opinion polls.)[17]

ааааааааааа

From the preceding it should be obvious that Jewish law, whether emanating from communal assemblies or from halakhic authorities defies conventional classification.а Jewish law cannot rightly be called Уtheocratic.Фа Even to describe it as УdemocraticФ is misleading when divorced from a Torah context.а But this only means that the Torah is suis generis, that it cannot be accurately understood in Western terms.а Nevertheless, making Jewish law a part of Israeli positive law is the most effective way of assimilating democracy to Judaism and of providing freedom and equality with ethical and rational constraints.аа Indeed, the incorporation of Jewish law into IsraelТs legal system is essential to the unity and cultural preservation of the Jewish People.

 

Part II.а Cultural Self-Preservation

 

he preservation of any nationТs cultural identity obviously requires leaders who can think, speak, and act in accordance with the beliefs and values of that culture.а For example, to preserve IrelandТs heritage, the Irish Constitution prescribes that 49 members of its 60-member Senate must be elected from five panels of candidates having professional knowledge of, and practical experience in, the following subjects of public concern: У(1) National Language, Culture, Literature, Art, Education and such professional interests as may be defined by law for the purpose of this panel; (2) Agriculture and allied interests ...; (3) Labor, whether organized or unorganized; (4) Industry and Commerce, including banking, finance, accountancy, engineering and architecture; (5) Public Administration and social services...Фа

ааааааааааа

ааааааааааа Clearly, IrelandТs Constitution prescribes a Senate consisting of well-educated menЧprofessionalsЧnot amateurs who become instant legislators or even instant cabinet ministers, as do retired Israeli generals.а Israel should not have to learn from Ireland.а The Torah states:а УSelect for yourselves men who are wise, understanding, and known to your tribes and I will appoint them as your leadersФ (Deut. 1:13).[18]а Jewish law prescribes representative government by meritorious and trustworthy men.а No social stratification is intended.а The Mishna states that, УIn procuring their release from captivity a learned bastard takes precedence over an ignorant high priestФ (Horayot 3:8).[19]а Two proselytes, Shemaya and Abtalyon (the famous teachers of Hillel and Shammai of the Mishna), served as the President and Deputy President, respectively, of the Great Sanhedrin (Gittin 57b; Yoma 71b).а

ааааааааааа Consider the awesome power invested in those on whom the security and well being of a people depend.а Surely such power should be adorned with wisdom, understanding, and knowledge, to which Exodus 18:19 adds fear of God, love of truth, and hatred of injustice.аа For a people to place their heritage and future in the hands of mediocrities is absurd.а That IrelandТs Senate must include persons having professional knowledge of the countryТs Language, Culture, Literature, Art, and Education signifies that its ConstitutionТs paramount concern is to preserve IrelandТs heritage, which requires well-educated IrishЧnot EnglishЧstatesmen.

 

ааааааааааа If we respect a peopleТs right to cultural self-preservation, we must then accept the following conclusion.а If Israel is to be a Jewish State and not merely a state in which Jews are nothing more than a numerical (and transient) majority, Israel must cultivate statesmen who can think, speak, and act Jewishly.а Such statesmen would have to comprehend the panorama of Jewish thought, the diverse ethnic backgrounds of the Jewish people, and the potential unifying influence of Jewish law.а Only such statesmen would be able to formulate new laws that strengthen the bonds of the Jewish People, deepen their reverence for the past, and, at the same time, foster Jewish pride and confidence in the future.

 

ааааааааааа

Part IV.а Summary and Conclusion

 

his essay has outlined the basic prerequisites of Jewish statesmanship: (1) statesmen possessing Jewish and secular wisdom; (2) political institutions that enable statesmen to exercise leadership yet render them accountable to their people; and (3) a people whose love of freedom is embedded in a tradition that honors moral excellence, wisdom, and truth.

 

ааааааааааа We have seen that a large majority of IsraelТs Jewish population is religious or traditional.а This majority is an increasing one, first because religious and traditional Jews have a higher birthrate than secularists, and second because, each year many thousands of secularists leave the country.а Were it not for the burgeoning Arab population, Israel would be on the way to becoming an authentic Jewish polity.а

ааааааааааа Not only has there been a renaissance in Jewish philosophy,[20] but even now Jews with strong Jewish roots are well represented in the Israel Defense Forces, in the countryТs academic institutions, and in the professional sectors of IsraelТs economy.а Conditions are thus emerging for the assumption of national leadership by a Jew with this supportive background of talent and sense of Jewish awareness.а Jewish statesmanship is on the horizon.

ааааааааааа In the final analysis, however, Jewish statesmanship and the solution IsraelТs institutional, sociological, and demographic problems requires nothing less than a Constitution based on Jewish principles and values.а The establishment of such a Constitution should be the goal of the Jewish statesman.а

ааааааааааа

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One last word.а The highest function of any statesman is to educate his people and to inspire them with confidence in the future.а This the Jewish statesman must also do.а In so doing, however, the Jewish statesman must bear uppermost in mind IsraelТs world-historical function.а For let it be known to young and old, in every classroom, from every pulpit, in every assembly, and wherever people gather, that IsraelТs only justification is to sanctify GodТs Name.а And this Israel can only do as a nation in which freedom dwells with righteousness, equality with wisdom, wealth with beauty, the here and now with love of the Eternal.[21]

 

*а *а *