Currently Reading: Jews and Power

Jews and Power, by Ruth R. Wisse

From the book jacket…

Taking in everything from the biblical Kingdom of David to the recent rise in global anti-Semitism, Ruth Wisse offers a radical new way of thinking about the Jewish relationship to power. Traditional Jews long believed that upholding the covenant with God at Sinai constituted a treaty with the most powerful force in the universe; this allowed them to pursue their way of life in exile knowing that they would eventually be returned to the Land of Israel if they fulfilled their religious obligations. Wisse demonstrates how the Jewish political experiment generated a great capacity for adaptation, but also increased Jewish vulnerability and unwittingly goaded power-seeking nations to cast Jews as perpetual targets.

Although she sees hope in the creation and flourishing of the State of Israel, Wisse questions the way the strategies of the Diaspora continue to drive the Jewish state. She also draws a persuasive parallel to the United States today, as it struggles to figure out how a liberal democracy can face off against enemies who view universal ideas of morality as weakness. With Jews and Power, Wisse gives us a provocative book that offers a compelling argument rich with history and bristling with a contemporary urgency.