Jewish Homogeneity and the Jewish Personality

Description

This book comprises several articles published in various Arab newspapers over the past few years. A weekly article typically revolves around a specific event—a “hot” event, as they say in the media world, usually meaning one that has just occurred. This expectation reflects the reader’s perception of their daily newspaper. However, the author of this book does not believe in the efficacy of what he calls “receptive material objectivity,” which receives details of reality and records them without classification or arrangement, solely for the purpose of accumulating information. Therefore, he has strived to place the event within a recurring pattern that transcends the event itself and is more general than it appears. He has also placed it within its historical, social, and cultural context to allow for a comprehensive understanding of its complex dimensions. In this way, some fundamental analytical concepts from the Encyclopedia of Jews, Judaism, and Zionism have been applied to current events. The author has compiled these articles into this book after reclassifying them according to their underlying central theme and within the recurring pattern. Thus, the reader can view the “hot” event within a “warm” framework and a vibrant context that gives the event its true meaning and dimensions. There is a collection of articles on what is called “Jewish nationalism,” another on what is called “Jewish identity,” and a third on the Temple and attempts to rebuild it.