PRINCIPLES FOR THE LOCATION OF SYNAGOGUES: SYMBOLISM AND FUNCTIONALISM IN A SPATIAL CONTEXT

Two traditional Jewish approaches to the location of synagogues can be found, one symbolic and one functional. The locational requirements are not identical; the symbolic approach deals with idealistic spatial status while the functional approach poses realistic locational demands. This spatio-locational conflict reflects a problematic situation on both theoretical and practical levels.     

Religious factors in territorial disputes: An intra-Jewish view

This paper concerns the internal political controversy that polarises the concepts of sanctity and sovereignty over Eretz Yisrael (The Land of Israel; Palestine). The controversy has deep religious roots in the history of the Jewish people's bonds with their country. The historical elements of which derive from a longing for religious perfection, which included observing Commandments associated with the Land. The destruction of the Temple, the Exile and the devastation of Jewish settlement in the Land of Israel broke the chain of such continued observance. Polarisation of the concepts of Sanctity and Sovereignty accentuates the problem of the relation between political sovereignty and national bonds with it. The association of religious affinity with the relatively recent phenomenon of Nation-State sovereignty led many to see religious connotations in political sovereignty. The traditional, religious bond with Eretz-Yisrael, which many of the more secular Israeli public also feel, has existed for generations; conversely, national sovereignty continually changes form, not always conforming to traditional, religious perceptions of dominion over the Land. This raises problems about the link between Jewish religious laws and the political world. Abandoning the knit between national sovereignty and religious bonds may lead to the loss of religious and cultural bonds. The conflict between beliefs and opinions on the one hand and new objective circumstances on the other leads to confrontations that may cause serious harm. Time becomes critical and expediting the processes of appeasement and adaptation is a matter of redoubled importance.     

Ethnicity and geography in Jewish perspectives

It is said that the Jewish people has had a surfeit of history but not enough geography. Deprived of its independence, expelled from its homeland, and dispersed among other nations, Jewish communities internalized different socio-cultural manners and customs. Throughout history, Jewish leaders — political and rabbinical — expresssed various attitudes toward territoriality and political aspirations for Jewish independence. As Zionism and the return of Jews to the Land of Israel became a real movement, those different attitudes had to confront a new reality, in which Jewish history meets Jewish geography. This paper discusses the encounter of a Jewish culture that developed under Diaspora conditions with the new reality of Jewish territoriality and sovereignty.     

Spatial competition between school systems: The case of state religious education in Israel

Spatial inequality characterizes the State-Religious school system in Israel visà-vis the other two systems servicing the Jewish population. The State-Religious school system caters to a smaller but equally dispersed population as the State schools, yet it is governed by the same legislation on school size and extent of catchment. The ultraorthodox school system is not governed by such legislation. This situation leads to a spatial competition which leads to conflicts on issues of school size and accessibility, aiming at enlarging the State-Religious system and improving its spatial conditions. Such conflicts are often politicized, reaching local and national levels of government.