Side by Side


Book Description

In 2000, a group of Israeli and Palestinian teachers gathered to address what to many people seemed an unbridgeable gulf between the two societies. Struck by how different the standard Israeli and Palestinian textbook histories of the same events were from one another, they began to explore how to "disarm" the teaching of the history of the Middle East in Israeli and Palestinian classrooms. The result is a riveting "dual narrative" of Israeli and Palestinian history. Side by Side comprises the history of two peoples, in separate narratives set literally side-by-side, so that readers can track each against the other, noting both where they differ as well as where they correspond. The unique and fascinating presentation has been translated into English and is now available to American audiences for the first time. An eye-opening--and inspiring--new approach to thinking about one of the world's most deeply entrenched conflicts, Side by Side is a breakthrough book that will spark a new public discussion about the bridge to peace in the Middle East.




The David Story: A Translation with Commentary of 1 and 2 Samuel


Book Description

"A masterpiece of contemporary Bible translation and commentary."—Los Angeles Times Book Review, Best Books of 1999 Acclaimed for its masterful new translation and insightful commentary, The David Story is a fresh, vivid rendition of one of the great works in Western literature. Robert Alter's brilliant translation gives us David, the beautiful, musical hero who slays Goliath and, through his struggles with Saul, advances to the kingship of Israel. But this David is also fully human: an ambitious, calculating man who navigates his life's course with a flawed moral vision. The consequences for him, his family, and his nation are tragic and bloody. Historical personage and full-blooded imagining, David is the creation of a literary artist comparable to the Shakespeare of the history plays.




The Myth of the Twelve Tribes of Israel


Book Description

The Myth of the Twelve Tribes of Israel is the first study to treat the history of claims to an Israelite identity as an ongoing historical phenomenon from biblical times to the present. By treating the Hebrew Bible's accounts of Israel as one of many efforts to construct an Israelite history, rather than source material for later legends, Andrew Tobolowsky brings a long-term comparative approach to biblical and nonbiblical “Israelite” histories. In the process, he sheds new light on how the structure of the twelve tribes tradition enables the creation of so many different visions of Israel, and generates new questions: How can we explain the enduring power of the myth of the twelve tribes of Israel? How does “becoming Israel” work, why has it proven so popular, and how did it change over time? Finally, what can the changing shape of Israel itself reveal about those who claimed it?




My Promised Land


Book Description

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW AND ECONOMIST BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR “A deeply reported, deeply personal history of Zionism and Israel that does something few books even attempt: It balances the strength and weakness, the idealism and the brutality, the hope and the horror, that has always been at Zionism’s heart.”—Ezra Klein, The New York Times Winner of the Natan Book Award, the National Jewish Book Award, and the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award Ari Shavit’s riveting work, now updated with new material, draws on historical documents, interviews, and private diaries and letters, as well as his own family’s story, to create a narrative larger than the sum of its parts: both personal and of profound historical dimension. As he examines the complexities and contradictions of the Israeli condition, Shavit asks difficult but important questions: Why did Israel come to be? How did it come to be? Can it survive? Culminating with an analysis of the issues and threats that Israel is facing, My Promised Land uses the defining events of the past to shed new light on the present. Shavit’s analysis of Israeli history provides a landmark portrait of a small, vibrant country living on the edge, whose identity and presence play a crucial role in today’s global political landscape.




Us-Israeli Relations in a New Era


Book Description

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Israel Denial


Book Description

A work of “rigorous intellectual inquiry” critiquing the BDS movement in academia (Jewish Journal). Israel Denial is the first book to offer detailed analyses of the work faculty members have published—individually and collectively—in support of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement; it contrasts their claims with options for promoting peace. The faculty discussed here have devoted a significant part of their professional lives to delegitimizing the Jewish state. While there are beliefs they hold in common—including the conviction that there is nothing good to say about Israel—they also develop distinctive arguments designed to recruit converts to their cause in novel ways. They do so both as writers and as teachers; Israel Denial is the first to give substantial attention to anti-Zionist pedagogy. No effort to understand the BDS movement’s impact on the academy and public policy can be complete without the kind of understanding this book offers. A co-publication of the Academic Engagement Network




Israel's Story


Book Description

This book explores Old Testament history, theology, and stories, bringing a clear presentation of the God who acts and the people of the covenant, from the creation accounts of Genesis to the fall of the Northern Kingdom and its prophets. Dianne Bergant, CSA, is professor of Old Testament studies at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. She is author of the Preaching the New Lectionary series and general editor of The Collegeville Bible Commentary (Old Testament) published by Liturgical Press. She was also editor of The Bible Today from 1986-1990.




The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy


Book Description

Originally published in 2007, The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy, by John Mearsheimer of the University of Chicago and Stephen M. Walt of Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government, provoked both howls of outrage and cheers of gratitude for challenging what had been a taboo issue in America: the impact of the Israel lobby on U.S. foreign policy. A work of major importance, it remains as relevant today as it was in the immediate aftermath of the Israel-Lebanon war of 2006. Mearsheimer and Walt describe in clear and bold terms the remarkable level of material and diplomatic support that the United States provides to Israel and argues that this support cannot be fully explained on either strategic or moral grounds. This exceptional relationship is due largely to the political influence of a loose coalition of individuals and organizations that actively work to shape U.S. foreign policy in a pro-Israel direction. They provocatively contend that the lobby has a far-reaching impact on America's posture throughout the Middle East―in Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, and toward the Israeli-Palestinian conflict―and the policies it has encouraged are in neither America's national interest nor Israel's long-term interest. The lobby's influence also affects America's relationship with important allies and increases dangers that all states face from global jihadist terror. The publication of The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy led to a sea change in how the U.S-Israel relationship was discussed, and continues to be one of the most talked-about books in foreign policy.




The A to Z of Ancient Israel


Book Description

For these very reasons, because Ancient Israel means so much to us and because we actually know so little for sure, The A to Z of Ancient Israel is particularly important. It examines the usual sources in the Old Testament and surveys the findings of more recent archaeological research to help us determine just what happened and when, a far from simple task. It includes entries on most of the persons, places, and events which are generally considered, and shows more broadly what the Kingdoms of Israel and Judah were like and what role they played in the ancient world, but it also defines them as closely as possible according to the latest data.




A New Chronology for Old Testament Times


Book Description

This book brings solutions to a very great list of hitherto unsolved chronological and synchronisation problems. The reason why those solutions could be found lies in the extensive research the author made in old and often rare texts instead of limiting himself to the near exclusive source of the Bible. Ample use has been made of information that is available in works like the Books of Enoch, The Apocrypha, The Legends of the Jews, The Seder Olam, the Book of Jasher and many more, as well as in the texts from known historians like Herodotus and the famous Jewish historian and priest Flavius Josephus Just a few of the many special findings are: - The real reason why Joseph was so popular with the Pharaoh. - Sarah was not Abraham's (half)-sister. - Moses was uncircumcised and even forbade the ritual for 40 years. - Terah was not 70 years old when he begat Abraham. - The exact period of the Judges: when they started and when they ended. - A solution for the verse of the "about 450 years" of Paul's speech. - Why did the Lord God give form and then blew life into Adam? - Eve was not made out of Adam's rib but from another body part - A solution to the "impossible synchronism" of Judah and his sons. - Enoch made not one but 4 trips to Heaven. - The definitive answer: why did King Josiah attack Necho II? - Why did King Ahab not fight at Qarqar? And many more. The book has a unique style. It has nothing of the "study book", difficult to understand texts. The subject is serious, well researched, and treated with respect. But that does not mean that it cannot be presented at a fast moving pace, in easy to read style with here and there even a bit of humour. The purpose of the book is to prove that the promise that the Lord God made to Adam was kept. It held that there would be exactly 5500 years between the arrival of Adam in this world and the arrival of Christ. Every person who was of importance in that timespan has been visited. For every single one there are his years of birth and death or the years of his rule. Every person has a short story about some important part of his life, his actions or the influence he had on the history of the Hebrew people that lived in that period.