Judaism and politics - Wikipedia Judaism and politics From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to navigation Jump to search Part of a series on Judaism      Movements Orthodox Haredi Hasidic Modern Conservative Reform Karaite Reconstructionist Renewal Humanistic Haymanot Philosophy Principles of faith Kabbalah Messiah Ethics Chosenness God Names Musar movement Texts Tanakh Torah Nevi'im Ketuvim Ḥumash Siddur Piyutim Zohar Rabbinic Mishnah Talmud Midrash Tosefta Law Mishneh Torah Tur Shulchan Aruch Mishnah Berurah Aruch HaShulchan Kashrut Tzniut Tzedakah Niddah Noahide laws Holy cities / places Jerusalem Safed Hebron Tiberias Synagogue Beth midrash Mikveh Sukkah Chevra kadisha Holy Temple Tabernacle Important figures Abraham Isaac Jacob Moses Aaron David Solomon Sarah Rebecca Rachel Leah Rabbinic sages Chazal Tannaim Amoraim Savoraim Geonim Rishonim Acharonim Religious roles Rabbi Rebbe Posek Hazzan Dayan Rosh yeshiva Mohel Kohen Culture and education Brit Pidyon haben Bar and Bat Mitzvah Marriage Bereavement Yeshiva Kolel Cheder Ritual objects Sefer Torah Tallit Tefillin Tzitzit Kippah Mezuzah Menorah Shofar Four species Etrog Lulav Hadass Arava Kittel Gartel Prayers Shema (Sh'ma) Amidah Aleinu Kaddish Minyan Birkat Hamazon Shehecheyanu Hallel Havdalah Tachanun Kol Nidre Selichot (S'lichot) Major holidays Rosh Hashana Yom Kippur Sukkot Pesach Shavuot Purim Hanukkah Other religions Judaism and Christianity Hinduism Islam Mormonism Samaritanism Abrahamic religions Judeo-Christian Pluralism Related topics Jews Zionism Israel Criticism Antisemitism Anti-Judaism Holocaust theology Music Jesus Muhammad  Judaism portal v t e The relationship between Judaism and politics is a historically complex subject, and has evolved over time concurrently with both changes within Jewish society and religious practice, and changes in the general society of places where Jewish people live. In particular, Jewish political thought can be split into four major eras: biblical (prior to Roman rule), rabbinic (from roughly the 100 BCE to 600 CE), medieval (from roughly 600 CE to 1800 CE), and modern (18th century to the present day). Political leadership is a common topic in the Hebrew Bible, and several different political models are described across its canon, usually composed of some combination of tribal federation, monarchy, a priestly theocracy, and rule by prophets. Political organization during the Rabbinic and Medieval generally involved semi-autonomous rule by Jewish councils and courts (with council membership often composed purely of rabbis) that would govern the community and act as representatives to secular authorities outside the Jewish community. Beginning in the 19th century, and coinciding with the expansion of the political rights accorded to individual Jews in European society, Jews would affiliate with and contribute theory to a wide range of political movements and philosophies. Contents 1 Biblical models 2 Rabbinic period 2.1 The Sanhedrin 2.2 Talmudic sources on political philosophy 3 Medieval period 3.1 The Qahal 3.2 Medieval Jewish political philosophy 4 Modern period 4.1 In Europe 4.1.1 21st century 4.2 In the United States 4.2.1 19th century 4.2.1.1 American Civil War 4.2.2 20th and 21st centuries 4.2.2.1 Jewish political philosophy in North America 4.3 In Israel 5 References 6 External links Biblical models[edit] This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (February 2019) There are many models for political leadership described in the Hebrew Bible. Stuart Cohen has pointed out that there are three separate power centers depicted in the Hebrew Bible: the priesthood, the royal throne, and the prophets.[1] One model of Biblical politics is the model of the tribal federation, where power is shared among different tribes and institutions. Another is the model of limited constitutional monarchy.[2] The Bible appears to command appointing a king in the Book of Deuteronomy with the following command: "When you come into the land that the Lord your God is about to give you, and you take hold of it and dwell in it, and you say, 'Let me put a king over me like all the nations that are around me', you shall surely put over you a king whom the Lord your God chooses..." (Deut. 17:14–15). The Hebrew Bible contains a complex chronicle of the Kings of Israel and Judah, written over the course of many generations by authors whose relationships and intimacy with the rulers of the several kingdoms fluctuated widely in both intimacy and respect. Some historical passages of the Hebrew Bible contain intimate portrayals of the inner workings of the royal households of Saul, David, and Solomon; the accounts of subsequent monarchs are frequently more distanced and less detailed, and frequently begin with the judgement that the monarch "did evil in the sight of the Lord". Daniel Elazar has argued that the concept of covenant is the fundamental concept in the Biblical political tradition and in the later Jewish thought that emerges from the Bible.[2] Rabbinic period[edit] The Sanhedrin[edit] Main article: Sanhedrin In Roman Judea, Jewish communities were governed by rabbinical courts known as Sanhedrin. Lesser Sanhedrin composed of 23 judges were appointed to each city, while a Great Sanhedrin with 71 judges was the highest authority, taking cases appealed from the lower courts. The Sanhedrin served as the leadership of the Jewish community under Roman rule, and served as emissaries to the imperial authorities in addition to overseeing religious practice and collecting taxes.[3] The Sanhedrin was the highest Jewish governing body of the Second Temple period, and the codification of the Mishnah by the Tannaim during this period laid the foundations for later Rabbinic Judaism. Talmudic sources on political philosophy[edit] See also: Talmud A statement by Rabbi Judah in the Babylonian Talmud (Sanhedrin 20b) depicts kingship as the ideal form of Jewish governance, following the Book of Deuteronomy statement that, "When you come into the land that the Lord your God is about to give you, and you take hold of it and dwell in it, and you say, 'Let me put a king over me like all the nations that are around me', you shall surely put over you a king whom the Lord your God chooses..." (Deut. 17:14–15).[4] But the Talmud also brings a different interpretation of this verse from Rabbi Nehorai, who is quoted as explaining that, "This section was spoken only in anticipation of their future murmurings, as it is written, and you say, Let me put a king over me..." (Sanhedrin 20b). In many interpretations, Rabbi Nehorai does not think of appointing a king as a strict obligation, but as a concession to later "murmurings" from Israel.[4] In addition to imagining ideal forms of governance, the rabbis accept a principle to obey the government currently in power. The Talmud makes reference to the principle of dina de-malkhuta dina ("the law of the land is law"), a principle recognizing non-Jewish laws and non-Jewish legal jurisdiction as binding on Jewish citizens, provided that they are not contrary to any laws of Judaism.[5][6] Medieval period[edit] This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (February 2019) The Qahal[edit] Main article: Qahal During the Middle Ages, some Ashkenazi Jewish communities were governed by qahal, a form of government based on Jewish principles. The kahal had regulatory control over Jewish communities in a given region; they administered commerce, hygiene, sanitation, charity, Jewish education, kashrut, and relations between landlords and their tenants. It provided a number of community facilities, such as a rabbi, a ritual bath, and an interest-free loan facility for the Jewish community.[7][8] The kahal even had sufficient authority that it could arrange for individuals to be expelled from synagogues, excommunicating them.[7][9] Medieval Jewish political philosophy[edit] Some medieval political theorists such as Maimonides and Rabbeinu Nissim saw kingship as the ideal form of government. Maimonides' views the commandment in Deuteronomy to appoint a king as a clear positive ideal, following the Talmudic teaching that "three commandments were given to Israel when they entered the land: to appoint a king, as it says, 'You shall surely put over you a king'..."[10] A large section of Maimonides' legal code, the Mishneh Torah, titled "The Laws of Kings and their Wars", deals with the ideal model of kingship, especially in the messianic era, and also concerning ruling over non-Jewish subjects through the Noachide laws. Other sections of Maimonides' Mishneh Torah (mostly also in Sefer Shofetim, the book of Judges, where the laws of kingship are also found) is dedicated to the laws relating to legislators and judges. Whereas Maimonides' idealized kingship, other medieval political theorists, such as Abravanel, saw kingship as misguided.[4] Later on, other Jewish philosophers such as Baruch Spinoza would lay the groundwork for the Enlightenment, arguing for ideas such as the separation of church and state. Spinoza's writings caused him to be excommunicated[11] from the Jewish community of Amsterdam, although his work and legacy has been largely rehabilitated, especially among secular Jews in the 20th and 21st centuries.[12] Modern period[edit] This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (February 2019) With Jewish Emancipation, the institution of the Qahal as an autonomous entity was officially abolished. Jews increasingly became participants in the wider political and social sphere of larger nations. As Jews became citizens of states with various political systems, and argued about whether to found their own state, Jewish ideas of the relationship between Judaism and politics developed in many different directions. In Europe[edit] In the nineteenth century and early twentieth century, when there was a large Jewish population in Europe, some Jews favored various forms of liberalism, and saw them as connected with Jewish principles. Some Jews allied themselves with a range of Jewish political movements. These included Socialist and labor movements favored by the Jewish left, Zionist movements, Jewish Autonomist movements, Territorialist movements, and Jewish Anarchism movements. Haredi Jews formed an organization known as World Agudath Israel which espoused Haredi Jewish political principles. 21st century[edit] In the 21st century, shifts are occurring. The Jewish community in Great Britain, one of the largest in the diaspora, is leaning conservative, as a poll published by the Jewish Chronicle in early 2015 shows. Of British Jews polled, 69% would vote for the Conservative Party, while 22% would vote for the Labour Party. This is in stark contrast to the rest of the voter population, which, according to a BBC poll, had Conservatives and Labor almost tied at about a third each. Jews have typically been a part of the British middle class, traditional home of the Conservative Party, though the number of Jews in working-class communities of London is in decline. The main voting bloc of poorer Jews in Britain now, made up primarily of ultra-Orthodox, votes "en masse" for the Conservatives. Attitudes toward Israel influence the vote of three out of four of British Jews.[13][14] A shift toward conservatism has also been exhibited in France, where about half of the Jewish population is Sephardic. Jérôme Fourquet, director "Public opinion and corporate strategy" department at the polling organization IFOP, notes that there is a "pronounced preference" for right-wing politics among French Jews. During the 2007 election, Jews (Orthodox or not) represented the strongest pillar of support for Sarkozy after observant Catholics.[15] In the United States[edit] This section is in list format, but may read better as prose. You can help by converting this section, if appropriate. Editing help is available. (November 2017) See also: Jewish views and involvement in U.S. politics 19th century[edit] American Civil War[edit] During the American Civil War, Jews were divided in their views of slavery and abolition. Prior to 1861, there were virtually no rabbinical sermons on slavery. The silence on this issue was probably a result of fear that the controversy would create conflict within the Jewish community. Some Jews owned slaves or traded them. Most southern Jews supported slavery, and few Northern Jews were abolitionists, seeking peace and remaining silent on the subject of slavery. America's largest Jewish community, New York's Jews, were "overwhelmingly pro-southern, pro-slavery, and anti-Lincoln in the early years of the war". However, eventually, they began to lean politically toward Abraham Lincoln's Republican party and emancipation.[16] 20th and 21st centuries[edit] While earlier Jewish immigrants tended to be politically conservative, the wave of Eastern European Jews starting in the early 1880s, were generally more liberal or left-wing, and became the political majority.[17] For most of the 20th century since 1936, the vast majority of Jews in the United States have been aligned with the Democratic Party. Many religious supporters of the Jewish left have argued that left-wing values vis-à-vis social justice can be traced to Jewish religious texts, including the Tanakh and later texts, which include a strong endorsement of hospitality to "the stranger" and the principle of redistribution of wealth in the Biblical idea of Jubilee – as well as a tradition of challenging authority, as exemplified by the Biblical Prophets. American rabbinic leaders who have advanced a progressive political agenda grounded in Jewish principles have included: Michael Lerner (rabbi) of the Jewish Renewal movement Arthur Waskow of the Jewish Renewal movement Jill Jacobs of Conservative Judaism David Saperstein of Reform Judaism Other prominent Jews who have argued based on Jewish principles for a progressive political agenda have included: Ruth Messinger, former President and CEO of American Jewish World Service Stosh Cotler, CEO of Bend the Arc Towards the end of the 20th century, and at the beginning of the 21st century, Republicans began a platform that sought to take the Jewish vote away from the Democrats. While a solid majority of American Jews continues to be aligned with the Democratic Party, many have argued that there is increased Jewish support for political conservatism. (The "List of Jewish American politicians" illustrates the diversity of Jewish political thought and of the roles Jews have played in American politics.) Rabbinic leaders who have advanced a conservative political agenda grounded in Jewish principles have included: Seymour Siegel of Conservative Judaism David Dalin of Conservative Judaism Other prominent Jews who have argued based on Jewish principles for a conservative political agenda have included:[18] Daniel Lapin of Orthodox Judaism David Klinghoffer Dennis Prager Elliott Abrams David Mamet Ben Shapiro Jewish political philosophy in North America[edit] Significant Jewish political philosophers in North America have included: David Novak, a rabbi and philosopher at the University of Toronto, associated with the Union for Traditional Judaism Alan Mittleman, a rabbi and philosopher at the Jewish Theological Seminary of Conservative Judaism Daniel Elazar, a professor of political science at Bar-Ilan University and Temple University Michael Walzer, a political theorist at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey Michael Sandel, a political philosopher at Harvard University Robert Nozick, a late political philosopher at Harvard University Murray Rothbard, a late anarcho-capitalist philosopher and economist at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Ronald Dworkin, a philosopher of law and political philosopher at New York University In Israel[edit] Main article: Politics of Israel The development of a political system in Israel drew largely on European models of governance, rather than on models from the Jewish political tradition.[19] Some political figures in Israel, however, have seen their principles as based in Judaism. This is especially pronounced in political parties that see themselves as religious parties, such as Shas, United Torah Judaism, and The Jewish Home. Recent interest in developing political theory grounded in Jewish sources has been spurred on by the activities of the neo-conservative Shalem Center.[20] References[edit] ^ Stuart Cohen, The Three Crowns ^ a b Daniel Elazar, "Covenant as the Basis of the Jewish Political Tradition" ^ Jack N. Lightstone; Canadian Corporation for Studies in Religion (13 May 2002). Mishnah and the social formation of the early Rabbinic Guild: a socio-rhetorical approach. Wilfrid Laurier Univ. Press. p. 189. ISBN 978-0-88920-375-4. Retrieved 21 July 2011. ^ a b c https://web.archive.org/web/20110821083739/http://www.schechter.org.il/iyounei_chabate.asp?id=238 ^ Dina de-Malkhutah dina Jewish Virtual Library ^ The Jewish Law Annual 1978 p 146 Maimonedes on Din de-Malkhuta dina (The Law of the State is Law) Shmuel Shilo Senior Lecturer in Jewish Law. Hebrew University of Jerusalem ^ a b Louis Finkelstein, Jewish Self-Government in the Middle Ages ^ Joseph Caro, Shulkhan 'Arukh, Hoshen Mishpat chapter 2 ^ Encyclopedia of Ukraine, (1989) volume 2, entry for Kahal ^ Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, "The Laws of Kings and their Wars" 1:1) ^ Nadler, Steven M. (2001). Spinoza's Heresy: Immortality and the Jewish Mind. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 120. ISBN 0-19-926887-8. ^ "Einstein believes in "Spinoza's God"; Scientist Defines His Faith in Reply, to Cablegram From Rabbi Here. Sees a Divine Order, But Says Its Ruler Is Not Concerned "Wit [sic] Fates and Actions of Human Beings".". The New York Times. 25 April 1929. Retrieved 8 September 2009. ^ Huge majority of British Jews will vote Tory, JC poll reveals The JC.com, 7 April 2015 ^ How Ed Miliband Lost Britain's Jewish Voters The Jewish Daily Forward, 8 April 2015 ^ French Jews Mostly Side With Sarkozy The jewish Daily Forward, 22 february 2012 ^ Jews Mostly Supported Slavery — Or Kept Silent — During Civil War The Jewish Daily Forward, 5 July 2013 ^ Hasia Diner, The Jews of the United States. 1654 to 2000 (2004), ch 5 ^ Friedman, Murray (2003). "The Changing Jewish Political Profile". American Jewish History. 91 (3/4): 423–438. JSTOR 23887289. ^ Daniel Elazar, The Jews' Rediscovery of the Political and its Implications, sees a "strong inclination toward centralized control of every aspect of public life brought from their European experiences by the state's molders and shapers". ^ http://www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/news/funded-by-u-s-neocons-think-tank-researchers-now-carving-israeli-policy-1.276236 External links[edit] Media related to Judaism and politics at Wikimedia Commons v t e Religion in politics General concepts Anti-clericalism Anticlericalism and Freemasonry Caesaropapism Clericalism Clerical fascism Confessionalism Divine rule Engaged Spirituality Feminist theology Thealogy Womanist theology Identity politics Political religion Religious anarchism Religious anti-Masonry Religious anti-Zionism Religious communism Religious humanism Religious law Religious nationalism Religious pacifism Religion and peacebuilding Religious police Religious rejection of politics Religious segregation Religious separatism Religious socialism Religious views on same-sex marriage Secularism Secular religion Separation of church and state Spiritual left State atheism State religion Theocracy Theonomy Christianity and politics Blaine Amendment Christian anarchism Christian anti-communism Christian anti-Masonry Papal ban Christian anti-Zionism Christian communism Christian corporatism Christian democracy Christian egalitarianism Christian environmentalism Evangelical environmentalism Christian fascism German Christians (movement) National Catholicism Positive Christianity Protestant Reich Church Christian feminism Mormon feminism Christian humanism Christian law Christian left Evangelical left Christian libertarianism Christian pacifism Christian peacemaking Christian reconstructionism Christian republic Christian right Christian socialism In Utah Christian state Christian Zionism Cisalpinism Dominion Theology Febronianism Gallicanism Liberation theology Papal state Pillarisation Political Catholicism Relations between the Catholic Church and the state In Argentina Sphere sovereignty Subsidiarity Temporal power Theodemocracy Ultramontanism Neo-ultramontanism Islam and politics Hui pan-nationalism Human Rights in Islam Imamate Islamic anarchism Islamic anti-Masonry Islamic anti-Zionism Islamic democracy Islamic fascism Islamic feminism Sharia law by country Islamic nationalism In Pakistan In South Asia Islamic pacifism Islamic republic Islamic socialism Islamic state Islamic Zionism Islamism Criticism Islamization Khilafat Petro-Islam Political quietism Taliban Talibanization Two-nation theory Judaism and politics Halachic state Jewish anarchism Jewish anti-Zionism Haredim Jewish Autonomism Jewish democracy Jewish fascism Kahanism Revisionist Maximalism Jewish feminism Jewish law Jewish left Jewish pacifism Jewish political movements Jewish right Jewish secularism Jewish socialism Bundism Humanistic Judaism Poale Zion Religious Zionism World Agudath Israel Hinduism and politics Akhand Bharat Hindu feminism Gandhism Hindu law Hindu modernism Hindu nationalism Hindutva Hindu Rashtra Panun Kashmir Bangabhumi Hindu revolution Hindu revivalism Hindu environmentalism Integral humanism Indigenous Aryans Rama Rajya Saffronisation Shuddhi Uniform civil code Buddhism and politics Buddhists anti-communism Buddhist feminism Buddhist law Buddhist modernism Buddhist nationalism 969 Movement Nichirenism Sinhalese Buddhist nationalism Buddhist socialism Engaged Buddhism Humanistic Buddhism Secular Buddhism Other American civil religion Imperial cult Ancient Rome Gottgläubig Khalistan movement Neopaganist feminism Religious aspects of Nazism Creativity (religion) Personality cult State Shinto Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Judaism_and_politics&oldid=999066260" Categories: Judaism and politics Jewish ethics Jewish political status Jewish society Judaism and society Hidden categories: Articles to be expanded from February 2019 All articles to be expanded Articles using small message boxes Articles needing cleanup from November 2017 All pages needing cleanup Articles with sections that need to be turned into prose from November 2017 Commons category link from Wikidata Navigation menu Personal tools Not logged in Talk Contributions Create account Log in Namespaces Article Talk Variants Views Read Edit View history More Search Navigation Main page Contents Current events Random article About Wikipedia Contact us Donate Contribute Help Learn to edit Community portal Recent changes Upload file Tools What links here Related changes Upload file Special pages Permanent link Page information Cite this page Wikidata item Print/export Download as PDF Printable version In other projects Wikimedia Commons Languages العربية Português Українська Edit links This page was last edited on 8 January 2021, at 09:32 (UTC). 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