Part 3

The Zionist platform is known to all: A publicly recognized and legally secured home in Palestine for the Jews. What is the historic meaning of this program? It is to convert an unhistoric people, that is, a people that does not live a historic life, to a normal historic people and to create for it all the factors necessary for a national civilization: a Hebrew administration, a national Hebrew economic life, a Hebrew education, a Hebrew social organization. The Zionist genius realized that there cannot be even national Hebrew culture without a national Hebrew civilization, for the culture of a people is only the roof on the edifice of a national civilization, and woe to the culture which lays its foundation upon personalities and does not draw from the wells of the nation's civilization. At present there are only atoms connected to one another by the ties of national remembrances, spirit, tradition, and poetry. Zionism purports the building out of these atoms, which are scattered throughout the world, of a national organism in the land of the Hebrews. And since every national polity and civilization is secular, with the exception of papal Rome and theocratic Tibet, the function of Zionism is to create those conditions which will again secularize Judaism, and raise it to the pedestal of its ancient glory--to make it a historic force.

Goluth means: a scattered existence, and one of misery and affliction. Zionism means: a national historic life. And he who prefers a national life to a miserable existence has no other choice than to join the Zionist ranks.

DRIVING FORCES: NATIONAL OR SPIRITUAL?

The days of religious wars have gone. The Inquisition is dead and theocracy is dying even at Tibet. The modern man, be he Gentile or Jew, no longer thinks _more theologico_ as in the Middle Ages, but rather _more sociologico_. The time when a given religious dogma, a categorical philosophic principle, or some definite spiritual force was the driving power in history is far gone. Law and order in our political and social life are not derived from books and principles, but from life itself. Any attempt to return to the status quo ante 1789, is an assault on modern civilization, an attempt to re-establish theocracy in its various forms.

In the life of our own people the process of secularization is going on with the same rapidity as in the life of any other nation. Within five decades we have created a secular literature in Hebrew as well as in the other languages spoken by Jews, and all the forms of our modes of life, public as well as private, have gone through the process of secularization. Even the modern orthodox Jew, who observes all laws and rituals, differs quite in his disposition of mind from the orthodox Jew of the seventeenth or eighteenth century. In worldly affairs he is a man of his time and thinks in the terms of his time. To the credit of our people be it said that they have understood how to adapt themselves to the conditions of the time.

It often happened that during the process of adaptation, Jews lost their way and became separated from their people, but the bulk of the nation has passed through the crisis caused by the process of transition and made itself at home in the new conditions without disintegration.

Though fanatics have profaned the tombstone of Maimonides by writing on it: "Infidel and Heretic," Judaism ratified the peace which Maimonides concluded in its behalf with Aristotelianism. All the hue and cry against Maimonides was in the end of no avail, because at that time the deed of Maimonides was a step forward towards progress. At a time when the Roman Catholic Church fought Copernicus and Galileo no representatives of Judaism participated in this fight, though the Synagogue had an older historic reason to oppose Copernicus than had the Roman Catholic Church.

In short, Judaism has never resisted real progress and has always known how to make peace with the tendencies and currents of the time without weakening its own position. As it has reconciled itself to new conditions in the past so today it is making peace with the tendencies of our own time. Separation of state from church and the overthrow of theocracy and secularization of life are strong currents in our contemporaneous history. In the life of our people, these tendencies of the time have taken the form of nationalism and Zionism. Neither mean alienation from the religion of our ancestors, as many misled rabbis argue, but only imply that the Jewish religion has a definite place in Jewish life, but cannot and should not rule our lives altogether.

This is a general human tendency which we should not and ought not oppose; unfortunately, there are leading Jews who deem it their duty to resist the forces of progress and to display medievalism at the expense of our people and its prestige, and to the exclusion of all modern and intellectual forces. This resistance we find represented in two schools of thought, in the school of _old-fashioned Reform_ and in that of the _semi-nationalistic spiritualism_. The representatives of the one school argue that we are only a spiritual people and that we are violating the spirit of Judaism if we strive to become a secular people. The others do not go so far, but they also maintain that Jewish nationalism is above all spiritual in nature and that, if Jewish nationalism has a duty to perform, this duty consists in establishing a Jewish _spiritual_ centre in Palestine. Both schools of thought may be characterized as utterly reactionary, because they imply that we should stand still, where humanity stood two or three hundred years ago; that we should continue to submit to the law of the book instead of submitting to the law of life, and that we should continue to live as a spiritual people and give spiritualism the first place, while the basis of present day civilization is secular in nature.

With regard to the philosophy of Judaism as represented by old-fashioned Reform, it suffices to remember that every people on earth had a period in its history when it considered itself a spiritual people. And to the present day every civilized people firmly and sincerely believes that it has a special mission to perform. The author of "Oraisons Funèbres" formulated such a spiritual mission for the French, Fichte did it for the Germans, and Katkov for the Russians. But neither the French nor the Germans nor the Russian people clung to their mission-theory. While appreciating these spiritual values, they have outgrown spiritualism as the all embracing guide of the nation's life and have settled down to work out their salvation in a very prosaic and profane way. Either the Jewish people are subject to the laws of historic progress, and then we have to keep pace with that historical progress, or else we miraculously form an exception to the rule and laws of history--we are an island in the ocean of life--and then we ought to be today what we were two, three, five or twelve hundred years ago.

Reform Judaism of today is surely not the Judaism of the year 1700 or 1500. It is a modern Judaism adapted to modern life. The same Jews, who are arguing that we cannot give up spiritualism as the prime factor of Jewish life and that we cannot stick to the old conception of Judaism, have deemed it advisable to introduce reforms into a field of Judaism that was considered the very stronghold of spiritualism in the Jewish religion. That is where the contradiction and confusion come in. So far as religion is concerned, these reformers conform to the requirements of the time, but on the other hand they still cling to the spiritualistic supremacy in Jewish life, to the theory of Israel's mission, as if they were Jews of the seventeenth century.

Either Judaism cannot undergo a change and must remain what it always was--and then reform is unjustifiable--or Judaism can adapt itself to modern life and make peace with the tendencies of the time--and then why stick to the fictitious supremacy of the spiritual side of Judaism?

No less contradictory and confusing is the philosophy of the other school of thought that preaches spiritual nationalism as the only solution of the Jewish question. If spiritualism is no longer the prime factor in life, and if it is no longer in a position to maintain its hold on the peoples of the earth as it did in the days gone by when men thought _more theologico_, how can it hold its grip on the Jewish people? And how can a purely spiritual centre even in Palestine answer the Jewish question?

Did Mecca, the centre of Mohamedan spiritualism, prevent the conquest of Egypt, Morocco, Tunis and Tripoli by the Christian nations? (And Mecca is the spiritual centre not of a people of fourteen but of a religious community of two hundred millions.)

Despite Mecca and despite the pan-Islamic movement, the holy war proclaimed by the Caliph two years ago was a failure. Instead of a united Islam we have today an independent Mecca, an Egypt that is loyal to England, and an Algeria and a Morocco that are loyal to France. If Mecca could not contain Islam politically and could not save the Islamitic nations from being conquered, how could a much smaller Jewish _spiritual_ centre in Palestine save the Jewish people politically and nationally? This is the question which we would like to submit to these "spiritual" nationalists.

These Neo-Ahad-Ha'amists are by no means better than the adherents of old-fashioned Reform; both cling to the spiritualistic supremacy in Jewish life, and both oppose the necessary gradual secularization of Judaism. Both would have us stand still, or, if possible, draw us back to a medievalism that has no room in modern life, and both are reactionaries in the full meaning of the term. They are our "dark forces" and the time seems very near when we will have to rise against both and overcome them. There is reason to fear that in the hour of fate they will put obstacles in the way of our redemption.

THE ETERNAL CYCLE

Every revolutionary phenomenon in life, every political catastrophe, upsets men's minds and shakes old rooted opinions to their very foundations. The sudden break with tradition affects both the mind of the individual as well as that of the collective body. It brings about a radical change in views and sentiments and often in the whole world-concept. The gloomy pessimist may suddenly become a joyous optimist and vice versa. The earthquake of Lisbon of 1755 not only shook the belief in Providence of the young Goethe, but turned numerous orthodox circles into agnostics. The French Revolution broke the conservative spirit that was prevailing in Western Europe and put an end to the mediaeval conception of the state, just as the appearance of Bonaparte brought about the revival of the longing for Caesaric splendor and the cult of the superman.

The Russian Revolution, successful till now, has naturally greatly affected the minds of our contemporaries, and compelled them to revise their attitude on many historical forces and to consider the course of recent history in an entirely new light. Men who never believed in the political ability of the Slavonic race and, therefore, thought that Russia was doomed as a political power, are now admiring the political genius of the Russian people and the tactfulness of its leaders. Many Jewish contemporaries, who considered the Jewish case hopeless because of the terrible oppressions directed against our brethren in Russia by the representatives of the old regime, are now joyous optimists and think that since millions of Russian Jews have been freed the Jewish question is completely solved. To the minds of these men the Jewish question will sink into forgetfulness within a short time because the Jews will enjoy everywhere freedom and liberty and will live in complete happiness.

This is the attitude of just those people who but the other day were convinced of the hopelessness of the Jewish cause and were worried over the sufferings that the future had in store for the Jews. This radical outburst of optimism, understandable at the present juncture, nevertheless betrays a naive intellect and a lack of historical intelligence. We all hope that the successful Russian Revolution, next to the world war the most important event in the history of the twentieth century, will open a new era for our people, an era of happiness and peaceful development but, at the same time, we should never lose sight of the fact that there is so far nothing new under the sun. There is only a definite number of forces and energies prevailing in history and each and every one of these forces has in turn its term of domination. History is only a continuation of biological nature plus human intelligence. There is only a certain definite amount of matter and energy in the realm of nature as well as in history, and energy in history can be destroyed as little as energy in nature. And just as there is always a substitution and constant change of forms in the realm of nature, so there is in history. Progress never assumes the shape of a straight line but that of a curve. The most glorious period in human history may be followed by a period of decay and misery. The golden era may be followed by an era of iron, to use a parable of Ovid.

There is in the realm of history as well as in the realm of nature an eternal cycle. The old Graeco-Roman historian, Polybius, already recognized the eternal cycle in the development of the state when he graphically described this development from despotism, monarchism and feudalism, and from republicanism, democracy and ochlocracy back again to despotism.

We, as Jews, have too often experienced ups and downs to believe that a happy era will last forever. The Jews in Spain not only saw golden days of complete happiness and freedom, but formed for a time the vanguard of human civilization. Yet within one hundred years the Spanish Inquisition annihilated 200,000 Jews while the other 400,000 were compelled to leave the country. Today, Spain is again inviting the Jews to settle in the land, promising them complete liberty and freedom where Torquamada's rule was supreme.

There was a time when the Jews of Poland lived in happiness. Today, the Poles are harassing the Jews in every possible way and are scheming and devising plans to break up Judaism in Poland. In Rome, where the Jews only one hundred years ago were humiliated and depressed, a Jewish mayor dared to criticize the Pope openly and to challenge all the forces of mediaevalism in the Eternal City. England, that invented the ritual murder accusation, has today a Jew as its Lord Chief Justice. On the other hand, the Jews of North Africa, who were politically supreme in the Atlas countries, are today the most oppressed human beings on God's earth.

All these ups and downs which we have experienced ever since we have lived dispersed warrant a certain reserve in our judgment on phenomena in life, even when these phenomena be of the most revolutionary nature. Too much optimism and too much overstating of matters must subsequently lead to disappointment, to despair, even to ruin. Our age as a people, our historical and general intellectual experience, do not warrant too much optimism even at present.

The Jews are a force in history. The other historical forces must take an attitude to and judgment from Judaism. This attitude and judgment are likely to change. The change that is necessary to take place from time to time is not always a product of malice, but a product of certain factors which the individual, be he even the most powerful, is often unable to control. If an oppressed people is set free, all the suppressed energies in it begin to pour out suddenly; this may lead to the reaction against the Jews. The people sheltering us may often need a scapegoat and it will without fail take the Jews for that purpose. National as well as international crises may often affect the attitude of a people to the Jews or the attitude of the dominating class to the Jews. In this case we will always be the sufferers. Because of the hostile encounter between clericalism and liberalism in France the Jews had to suffer. The Dreyfus affair is still in the memory of every contemporary. When the liberal forces in France finally emerged victors from the struggle, another Jewish group--the Hungarian--felt the effects of this struggle in a very unpleasant way. The Clericals not being in a position to do any more harm to the French Jews began to awaken the anti-Semitic instincts of the Hungarians, and set about to create an anti-Semitic movement in Hungary. Even the Polish Jews had to suffer because of the victory of liberalism in France, for the Clericals in Poland took revenge on the Jews for their defeat in France.

As to the future of the Jews in Russia, it is hard to predict whether or not it will be a happy one. The mind of the Russian people is still a blank. The Russian people have been kept in ignorance; their will is not domesticated and their mind not trained. The Russians themselves, or, to be correct, the Great Russians do not know the Jews. They have never lived together. On account of the emancipation the Jews of the Pale will emigrate to the interior of Russia and will settle in the midst of the Great Russians, and they will become active in various spheres and fields.

How will the presence and the activity of this new neighbor react on the Russian mind? Will the presence of the Jews in the midst of the Great Russians result in the development of friendship or will the reverse be the case? And if a new crisis should break out in Russia, and a Russian Government should need a scapegoat to save its neck, will it or will it not pick out the Jews to serve as the scapegoat? Russia is a land of unlimited possibilities for good and for bad; there are no prophets nowadays to predict future happenings, especially since the mind of the Russian people is still a question mark.

Thus, besides the eternal cycle and besides the necessary ups and downs in history, we have now a special reason to be careful in our judgment and to moderate our optimism. But even taking for granted that the Jewish development in Russia will be unhampered, does it already mean that the Jewish question is solved? Does the Jewish question consist of bread and butter and human rights? Can the ideal of a people as old as the Jews be satisfied with just being permitted to live as individuals? Can it be the meaning and aim of 4000 years of Jewish history that the zenith of our development as a people should consist in being permitted to live among the people with mere civic equality? Is that what we have struggled for during the centuries?

Greater and more civilized people than the Russians have not succeeded in solving the Jewish question. Why then should we expect that from Russia will come the salvation, especially as only one-quarter of our people is today living in Russia?

The Jewish question can become simplified when we are liberated by the one people or the other, but it can be solved entirely only by the Jewish people itself. The Russian Revolution means for the Jews freedom to breathe and to move, freedom from prison and captivity, but even the free man has his own problem to solve. Life only begins when the prison-doors open.

JEWS AND RACE CONSCIOUSNESS

At the beginning of the war there were many who ascribed the world conflagration to a conflict of races. At present there are many who would either belittle the rôle of race as a factor in history or eliminate it altogether. These people describe the theories of race as "race mythology" and consider them the invention of scholars rather than facts of objective reality.

Among a certain section of the Jewish people this negation of race theories is very popular. If there are not races in this world, then assimilation is the easiest and best way to solve the Jewish question.

It may or may not be true that race is a biological category, but it is true beyond a doubt that the consciousness of race among all peoples always was and will be an historic factor of prime importance. Therefore, it matters little whether or not race is a biological fact. History and its interpretation are concerned only with consciousness of race.

If consciousness of race were to be recognized only because it exists and has always existed, people might say: "So other superstitions have likewise existed." The fact, however, is that the consciousness of race has a definite psychological basis, although we know next to nothing about its biological foundation. We see that the co-existence of like individuals in a definite place and during a long period of time, who are held together by a common ancestry, by a common destiny and interest, and the interaction resulting from such co-existence produces new phenomena and radiates creative energies which cannot be simply reduced to the qualities and forces of the individual minds. These energies radiating from the co-existence of a group of individuals are new, original and creative. They are more than actualized potentialities, and are to the individuals sharing in the co-existence as are sounds which the great artist draws from the violin to the violin itself. The energies emanating from this co-existence often assume shape and form which differ from the energies of the separate individuals. They appear rather one-sided and unbalanced. For instance, the separate individuals have about an equally large or small amount of religious or æsthetic desire, an equally large or small sense of justice or morality.

If the energies radiating from the co-existence would comprise and express the will of the individuals only, the culture of the ethnic group would necessarily consist of equal portions and exhibit a proportionate amount of logic, aesthetics and ethics. But we see that every great culture gravitates in a certain direction. Hellenism tends towards the artistic-philosophical, Judaism towards the religious-ethical, and Romanism towards the political-legal. We thus see that the manifestation of the mind of the race being one-sided is more than the sum total of the expression of all the individual members of the race, and as soon as we recognize a certain psychological or psychical unity, of a certain group of people, we must also recognize that this unity is modeled and shaped by time. In course of time this psychological or psychical unit becomes enveloped in traditions and experiences which make it stronger from day to day. As in biology many think that the function in time creates an organ, so the new energies radiating from the co-existence of a group of people become in course of time something organic in the mind of those people. This is the psychological basis of race consciousness and since earliest time the various peoples, all of whom had an outspoken race consciousness except those savages who cannot count, have recognized or felt that their consciousness of race was more than belief--that it was a psychological reality.