When your great-grandfather becomes your little brother: reflections on the US/Israel relationship
With the recent celebration of the 250th anniversary of the United States, much has been written about the Jewish/Biblical roots that inspired the Founding Fathers. Like the Jews who fled the bondage in Egypt, the persecuted Puritans viewed their journey across the Ocean blue to the New World as a mimic on some level of the Biblical narrative. The country they built was very influenced by Biblical values, as many of the Founding Fathers were devoutly religious people. From this perspective, one can almost say that the Jewish people are almost like the Great Grandfather of the United States and a large part of the inspiration behind this modern empire
However, when one looks at the political landscape today, the story looks quite different. The modern state of Israel is dependent upon the United States for many things. Hardly a move is made without some consideration of old Uncle Sam ( or Donald Trump). It is almost as if the reverent Great Grandfather from the times of the Founding Fathers has turned into a little brother who can’t make a move without the approval of his big, imposing brother. How do we make sense of this strange dynamic?
The truth is that the answer is very simple: A very strong distinction must be made between the State of Israel ( Medinat Yisrael) and the Land of Israel ( Eretz Yisrael). The State of Israel is only 78 years old. From the perspective of the State of Israel, the United States is a much older and established country. They are our big brother guiding us through some challenging times.
However, from the perspective of the Land of Israel, or Eretz Yisrael, the situation is something else completely. Eretz Yisrael was given to the Jewish people more than 3,000 years ago. It is the land of King David and the Prophets. It is a land that precedes the United States by so many years- that it is hard to even make a comparison between the two.
And this is the point: As Jews, we must accustom ourselves to start using the term Eretz Yisroel or the Land of Israel in place of the term Medinat Yisroel or the State of Israel. The Lubavitcher Rebbe would often encourage people on this point. Because if our claim is to the State of Israel, then the Arabs were here long before us. However, if our claim is to Eretz Yisroel, then we have a claim to something that precedes their whole culture of Islam by more than 1,500 years. We have a claim to a land that the Creator of the world has given to us. We have a claim to the land of the eternal covenant.
As a young boy, I grew up in Cleveland Ohio, and davened at Heights Jewish Center. The Rabbi of our congregation was Rabbi Doniel Schur z”l. He was a very interesting person. On one hand, he was very Charedi, as he was a graduate of Telshe Yeshiva and Torah Vedaas. On the other hand, he was a very strong, passionate Zionist. Every year he would invite Rabbi Meir Kahana to speak in our shul. He would also make a “misheberach” every Shabbos for Israel. However, he made one change from the standard text. Instead of mentioning “Medinat Yisroel” he would always change the text and say “Eretz Yisroel”.
Some may think that this is all a bunch of semantics. However, recently even President Trump has begun to realize that the choice of words we use makes a huge difference. This is why during the second Trump administration, such terms as the “Department of Defense” have been changed to the “War Department”. And the “Gulf of Mexico” has become the “Gulf of America”. Our words make a big difference. Little changes can often express gigantic shifts in meaning.
So let us begin to use the term Eretz Yisroel more often. ” I live in Eretz Yisroel”. ” I am going to visit Eretz Yisroel” . And who knows? Maybe one day, if we can create a strong collective energy, this will result in the actual changing of the name of Medinat Yisrael to Eretz Yisroel as well.
Ariel Galian