It's an interesting quote and helpful to think about how the Israeli situation is so specific. The religious element is definitely more emphasized than with other nations - the explicitly "religious homeland" gives the countryside itself a spiritual aspect that almost certainly doesn't exist with the same intensity in the Italian or Fren…
It's an interesting quote and helpful to think about how the Israeli situation is so specific. The religious element is definitely more emphasized than with other nations - the explicitly "religious homeland" gives the countryside itself a spiritual aspect that almost certainly doesn't exist with the same intensity in the Italian or French countryside. They'll of course also have their monuments and "sacred" sites, though probably less overtly religious (like the home of Dante or Joan of Arc) as well as less relevant to their modern experience (like the ancient sacred sites - say Delphi in Greece or Stonehenge in England).
There’s also the long history of exile within Judaism and, alongside that, the fact that other groups have lived on that land in large numbers. It creates a kind of mixed history that we don’t really see in the same way elsewhere. Also the fact that the land is sacred ground for other religions as well. That all creates a really specific and intense dynamic.
I don’t know too much about the economic situation there, though I assume it’s similar to much of what’s happening elsewhere around the world (crony capitalism, oligarchs, etc.) I imagine it would be a whole article in itself… :)
It's an interesting quote and helpful to think about how the Israeli situation is so specific. The religious element is definitely more emphasized than with other nations - the explicitly "religious homeland" gives the countryside itself a spiritual aspect that almost certainly doesn't exist with the same intensity in the Italian or French countryside. They'll of course also have their monuments and "sacred" sites, though probably less overtly religious (like the home of Dante or Joan of Arc) as well as less relevant to their modern experience (like the ancient sacred sites - say Delphi in Greece or Stonehenge in England).
There’s also the long history of exile within Judaism and, alongside that, the fact that other groups have lived on that land in large numbers. It creates a kind of mixed history that we don’t really see in the same way elsewhere. Also the fact that the land is sacred ground for other religions as well. That all creates a really specific and intense dynamic.
I don’t know too much about the economic situation there, though I assume it’s similar to much of what’s happening elsewhere around the world (crony capitalism, oligarchs, etc.) I imagine it would be a whole article in itself… :)