“behold, rachel, behold”: The six day war as a biblical experience and its impact on israel’s political mentality

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Abstract

Israel had no aspirations for territorial expansion when the Six Day War broke out. Nine days after the fighting ceased, the government decided that in return for peace Israel would be ready to relinquish the Golan Heights and the Sinai Peninsula. The situation regarding the West Bank was different. The symbolic meaning of Israeli rule over that area, so steeped in biblical associations, changed Israeli political mentality and created a major policy predicament. Messianic euphoria, expressions of a new religiosity and a secular political theology emerged, creating a barrier to trading territories for peace. Viewing the Six Day War as a fulfillment of redemptive prophecies led a growing part of Israeli society and their opinion leaders to fix policy objectives in the light of those prophecies, and to abandon the instrumental approach to policy that had previously characterized Israeli decision making.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)229-250
Number of pages22
JournalInternational Journal of Phytoremediation
Volume21
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Jan 2005

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Environmental Chemistry
  • Pollution
  • Plant Science

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