The swearing-in ceremony of Israel's new president brought a few words like "unity" and "national responsibility" back to the discussion – but have our ears become cynically closed to hearing them? Are our hearts still open to the hope they contain? Do we have faith in our ability to work together?
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
Sixteen years ago, we, the residents of Gush Katif, were uprooted form our homes and our land. Apart from the great pain of this, there was an awful sense that the political dispute had hardened our hearts toward one another. We were the subject of a delegitimization campaign that blackened us.
However, we at the Gush Katif Heritage Center have chosen to try and lead a different discourse. As part of the Gush Katif legacy, we have made it one of our goals to strengthen national responsibility in Israeli society, and therefore we host the Katif Conference on national responsibility. Every year, the conference focuses on relevant issues and current events. This past year, we have witnessed major changes and a new political order that are sparking many different emotions.
At the Katif Conference, we insist on holding a respectful dialogue between people who are in deep dispute with one another. We believe that "unity" and "love for Israel" are not slogans to be droned. These are words that demand challenging action of listening and respecting different opinions, without belittling in the slightest the truth that the dispute exists.
At the conference, we intentionally bring up sensitive and volatile topics, and allow a wide range of voices in Israeli society to express themselves. We try to lift the discourse to a level that deals with the relationship between the values of Judaism, Zionism, and democracy, which make up the foundations of our existence in this land.
We, who felt that our voices were being ignored and silence, have chosen to create a space that challenges us to confront painful pressure points, and still try to manage a discussion in a nationally responsible manner.
The past few months have given voice to the waves that are pounding among religious Zionists, who see themselves as a bridge between Jewish tradition and the discovery of a new life in the modern state of Israel, with all the challenges that presents. Part of the religious Zionist public was on the more conservative end of that spectrum, and some see themselves as closer to the modern end, but religious Zionism always included an element that preserved both these sections under one roof.
The rounds of elections in the past two years have rocked the political structure of religious Zionism. Every election offered a different combination of parties that attempted to express religious Zionism. Different alliances created different disputes, but in the end, it turned out that religious Zionists no longer have a clear political home.
Have some sectors of religious Zionism redefined themselves? How will the dispute among religious Zionism be managed? Will the great crisis of the 2005 disengagement, which fractured religious Zionism, lead to a reconfiguration of the puzzle pieces that make up religious Zionism? What new insights have we gained since 2005 are influencing the processes under way among religious Zionists, and reshaping religious Zionism?
The attitude toward the Arab population is another example of an important issue of values that is also volatile and disputed. Every year, various aspects of this matter are addressed. Does the religious Zionist ethos have an appropriate response that combines a vision of values and a realistic view of the challenge of life in mixed cities?
These are some of the subjects this year's conference will focus on. On the eve of this Tisha B'Av, which begins Saturday, July 17, there will be many mourning voices in Israeli society. Rabbi Nachman of Breslav teaches us that the letters in the Hebrew word for "lament" (kinot) can be used to form the Hebrew word "tikkun" (fix or repair). The lamenting about our situation leads us to open our eyes to it, and to the true disputes between the different vision of values in the Jewish-Zionist mosaic.
But Rabbi Nachman also calls on us not to remain "lamenting," but to look at the complex reality and make the choice to lead processes of "tikkun." We keep this belief before us when we think about the legacy of Gush Katif and lead a discussion about handling disputes that includes listening, respect, and national responsibility.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
