In a message dated Wed, 27 Mar 2002 5:28:25 PM Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
> For the last few millenia, the Jews wanted to return to > what they call > > their Holy Land Well it is their holy land. I would assume that there can be no arguement that the jews are allowed to consider Israel their holy land since it is the site of the destroyed temple that was the center of their religion. or is it a "so called religion". Are the Jews to be denied even the right to claim they hold a place holy? But let us be more accurate here. The Jewish desire to return to Israel is a relatively recent phenomenum. Modern Zionism was founded by Theodore Hershel. Now why did he think Jews had to return to their ancient homeland? He was responding to the Dreyfus affair at the beginning of this century. He was convinced by the obvious scapegoating of a Jewish officer by the french military establishment and by the vehement anti-semitism aroused by the defense of Dreyfus that Jews would never be safe in Europe. His solution, go back to Palestine. It is this history of viscious murderous and essentially continuous anti-semitism by all countries in Europe ever since Constantine converted to Christianity that makes jews so sensitive about the European response to the current crisis. After 1500 years of why should we assume that anti-Israeli sentiment on the part of Europeans is not simply a way of dressing up conscious or unconsious anti-semitism.
