COMMUNITY
Jews
What is an Israeli? An Israeli can come from Yemen, from
Ethiopia, from Russia or from America. An Israeli can be a Christian, a Moslem,
a Jew, or a Bahai. His home might be a kibbutz (collective settlement), a
Christian monastery, a tent in the desert or a modern skyscraper. An Israeli,
in short, is a member of one of the most diverse communities in the world.
JEWS
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At the end of 1995, 4,529,600 of Israel's population of
5,596,900 were Jews. Israel's Jews are like Joseph's coat of many colors. They
come from more than 100 countries, speak many languages, have different customs
and outlooks and are white-skinned, brown and black. They reflect the
dispersion of the Jewish people and the great ``ingathering of the exiles.''
Broadly speaking, the Jews are divided between Ashkenazim and Sephardim ,
with the latter constituting the majority, though intermarriage is changing the
picture.
SEPHARDIM
Though Israel's founding generation were Ashkenazim who came
mainly from Eastern European countries and from Russia, today Israel has a
majority of Jews who are labelled Sephardim.
The word ``Sephardim'' is in fact a misnomer. It is derived
from the word ``Sefarad'', which means Spain, and originally referred to Jews
of Spanish decent whose common tongue (besides Hebrew) was Ladino. Some of them
live in Israel today, but more commonly the term Sephardim is a blanket one
applied to Jews from North African countries such as Morocco and Tunisia or
from Middle Eastern countries, including Yemen and Syria. Today, a more
commonly applied term is ``Edot Hamizrach,'' ``Communities of the East.''
The Sephardi community in 19th-century Palestine formed the
elite of the Jewish population. Later, however, the situation changed. Because
most of the Sephardim came to Israel later than the Ashkenazi pioneers, they
were often faced with an Ashkenazi-dominated society and culture that appeared
strange and alien, and a population that seemed unsympathetic to their cultural
traditions. It has taken several generations for Eastern Jews to take their
place among the country's political, academic, artistic, army and business
leaders. A high intermarriage rate between Jews of Ashkenazi and Sephardi
background has hastened the process of acculturation.
Though Sephardim have become part of the mainstream in
Israel, they have not lost touch with their rich heritage. In the religious
sphere, an ultra-Orthodox religious party, Shas (Sephardi Torah guardians), has
achieved electoral popularity in recent years, and in the secular sphere,
Sephardi-influenced pop music, businesses and local leadership attest to their
strong influence on Israeli life today.
ASHKENAZIM
The term Ashkenazi derives from the name given in the Middle
Ages to the Jews of northern France and western Germany. Later it came to mean
all Jews whose culture originated in Europe, and whose everyday language was
Yiddish. Until the great waves of immigration in the 1950s, the Ashkenazim were
the elite, who devised and developed such institutions as the Histadrut labour
cooperative, the kibbutz and moshav collective settlement movements. They
include Jews from Russia, Romania, Poland, the ``Yekkes'' (a nickname given to
the orderly, formal German community), and the ``Anglo-Saxim'', or Jews from
the prosperous communities of North America, Britain, South Africa, Australia
and New Zealand.
While most of the Ashkenazi pioneers were secular
socialists, many of today's Ashenazim (as indeed, many Sephardim) are
religious: some indeed are ultra-Orthodox. Hasidic and ``Haredi'' or
ultra-Orthodox men can be frequently seen on the streets, particularly in
Jerusalem or B'nei Brak, sporting the black caftans or frock coats, the fur
hats and the white or black stockings of 19th-century eastern Europe. Some
Israeli Jews, of course, are neither secular nor ultra-Orthodox, and practice
Conservative or Reform Judaism.
OTHER JEWISH GROUPS
Not all Jews fit neatly into the broad categories
``Ashkenazi'' and ``Sephardi''. Others include Indian
Jews, from Cochin, India, who have settled mainly in Kfar Yuval and Mesillat
Zion, or the Bene Israel, mostly from Bombay, India, and now settled in large
numbers in Beer Sheva, Dimona, Lod and Elat. They claim to have arrived in
India before the Hasmonaean revolt.
Also adding to the Israeli mosaic are the Kurdistani
Jews from Iraq, the Bukharan Jews from central Asia,
and among more recent arrivals, the Ethiopian Jews
(or Beta Israel), about 23,000 of who now live in Israel. They come mainly from
the north-western region of Ethiopia where they were persecuted throughout the
centuries for their beliefs. They consider themselves descendants of King
Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. In 1973 they were recognized as descendants of
the tribe of Dan by the Sephardi Chief Rabbi of Israel. Some 8,000 arrived in
Israel in 1984 during a dramatic rescue operation named ``Operation Moses'',
and another 14,000 arrived in 1991 in ``Operation Solomon''.
Another group is the Karaites ,
who are a community of Jews who follow the precepts of the Bible, but not the
Oral Law or Talmud. Their sect broke away from mainstream Judaism in the 8th
century. The few hundred living in Israel are to be found mainly in the Ramla
district, and in Ashdod and Beer Sheva.
A type of community unique to Israel is the central kibbutz (collective settlement). Although only 4 per
cent of Israelis live on the 230 or so kibbutzim scattered around the country,
they wield a lot of influence in Israeli society. From primitive beginnings
(the first kibbutz was founded at Deganya in 1909), the kibbutzim have evolved
into beautiful, well-tended settlements, often with luxurious standards of
living which would have astounded - and probably shocked - their founders. Many
have added industrial enterprises to their traditional agricultural pursuits.
While the kibbutzim are structurally the same, they differ radically in their
political and religious beliefs. Each is affiliated to one of the Kibbutz
Federations, drawn along political lines from the far left to the centre. For
information about volunteering to work on a kibbutz, see the section on Youth
Travel, under ``Miscellaneous Information.''
ARABS
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There are about 1,067,300 Arabs living in Israel, and a
further 1,122,900 in Judaea and Samaria. Most are Sunni
Moslems, though a few communities of Shi'ite Moslems
exist.
Though some Arabs still live in rural areas, particularly in
the Galilee, today many more reside in towns and villages. Some Israeli cities,
such as Jaffa, Akko, Ramla, Jerusalem and Haifa, have mixed populations of Jews
and Arabs.
About 80 per cent of these Arabs are Moslem
, while most of the others are Christian , usually
Greek Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholic or Maronite. Some 10 per cent
are Bedouin or Druze.
Although the Arabs of Israel live in a somewhat ambivalent
position as Moslems or Christians within a Jewish state, their freedoms are
guaranteed by law. Arabs have the same civil rights, including representation
in the Knesset, as Jews or any other citizens have, with the exception of
compulsory military service.
As the standard of living in Israel has improved over the
years, so has that of Israeli Arabs. Modernization has led to a decline in the
birthrate, a decrease in infant mortality, an improvement in health and a much
higher level of general education. This is true also in Judea and Samaria,
where several universities were established in the years after 1967.
DRUZE
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A loyal minority group which elected to send its sons for
compulsory service in the Israel Defense Forces, the Druze number about 85,000
in eighteen Galilee villages, notably at Dalyat el-Carmel and Isifiya.
They speak Arabic, but the community split from Islam in the
11th century.
Although known for their warm hospitality, the Druze are not forthcoming when
probed about the secrets of their religion. They are known, however, to believe
in one God and seven prophets - Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, Mohammed and
Mohammed Ibn Ismail. They revere Jethro, father-in-law of Moses, and make an
annual pilgrimage to his tomb at the Horns of Hittin (see Route No. 11).
SAMARITANS
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From hundreds of thousands in biblical times, the Samaritans
number only a few hundred today. Centered in Nablus and Holon, they claim to be
direct descendants of Ephraim and Manasseh. Popular belief claims they are
descended from the offspring of Assyrian colonizers of the 8th century BCE.
They believe that the Five Books of Moses are the only
scriptural guide and that Moses was the sole prophet.
The Samaritans worship in synagogues, after first removing
their shoes. They also circumcise their male children and hold the equivalent
of a Bar Mitzvah celebration. Pilgrimages to the summit of Mt. Gerizim near
Nablus are held on Passover - for the ritual slaughtering of sheep - and on
Shavuot and Succoth.
BEDOUIN
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A picturesque example of life in ancient days, the Bedouin
are nomads or semi-nomads who live today in much the same way as the Patriarchs
did thousands of years ago - with a slight difference: it is no rare sight to
see them driving a jeep instead of riding a camel, and transistor radios
accompany the tribe on its wanderings.
The Bedouin are Semitic in origin, hailing from Saudi Arabia
from where they spread northwards in order to find new grazing grounds and
sources of livelihood. Throughout history we see the Bedouin periodically
coming forth from the desert in times of drought and attempting to penetrate
the settled areas. These attempts were always marked by warfare between the
Bedouin and the city dweller.
The semi-nomad and the settled Bedouin have a stronger link
with urban civilization than the wandering Bedouin, who only reaches settled
areas once or twice a year for a short period. The former supply the towns with
produce from their herds, and buy all their needs from there. On Thursday
mornings, the Bedouin market in Beer Sheva is a colorful event attracting many
visitors.
Bedouin hospitality is famous for its ritual sumptuousness and it is a grave insult to refuse it without good reason.