With Israel, a nation renewed itself from the ashes of Holocaust in Europe and from uprooted Jewish communities. Zionism was not a revolt against this or that system but an uprising against the fate that has characterized Jewish history until now. Today, the memory of rural pioneers and the new Hebrews during the Jischuv years might enjoy local appreciation. New structures, big cities, and a digital pulse from the Internet, marked by a molecularization of concerns and processes, now determine the trends between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. We learn about different jewish “tribes” in an Israeli society that has become plural and complex. What does it mean for the life and perception of Jews in Europe? The emerging of an identity that could be called American-Jewish, European-Jewish, or Israeli-Jewish, means both that perceptions are in transition and a new coalescing of values becomes a reality. It is worthwhile to defend the success of a plural society based on knowledge and universal rights – in the state of Israel as well as in the domiciles called ‘Diaspora’ where Jews live today.
Jacques Picard, Professor for Modern History and Jewish Culture at the University of Basel where he serves as dean of Research of the Faculty of Humanities.
