Conflict between Israelites and the Palestinians - Essay Example

The Israeli/Palestinian conflict remains one of the most contentious and debated socio-political conflicts in contemporary history and whilst international efforts to secure peace in the region continue, any meaningful attempts to achieve peace and stabilise the region have remained elusive. It is submitted that a historical perspective of the conflict highlights that at the root of the continued conflict is the religious beliefs fuelling primacy over the territory that is the fundamental problem. For example, Milton-Edwards (2008) opines that “it is the people – Israeli and Palestinian – constituted as distinct nations and with competing aspirations for statehood over the same territory that truly explains why this conflict came about” (p.3). The focus of this paper is to critically evaluate the extent to which the religious belief system of Israelis and Palestinians influences their socio-cultural development and how this impacts their cross-cultural communication. It is submitted at the outset that the religious belief system of Israeli Jews and a predominantly Muslim Palestinian population has shaped both communities in their attitudes vis-à-vis the other. In turn in both collectivist cultures, religious beliefs and culture are intrinsically intertwined and Milton-Edwards (2008) highlights the point that the continuation of conflict between Israelis and Palestinians is rooted in their entrenched cultural standpoints. For example, Milton Edwards observes that this polarity “is why the conflict may be considered to be a people’s war and….. Israeli versus Palestinian in a conflict with each other that is military, economic, political, cultural and religious in expression at one time or another” (p.3). Accordingly, the Israeli/Palestinian conflict has roots in cultural differences and religious differences, which clearly shapes their current relationship with each other and indeed, Cofman Whites (2005) argues that culture clearly played a part in the failures of the Oslo peace process “colouring the preferences and strategies of political leaders, shaping the domestic politics that constrained the talks and moulding each side’s perceptions of the other’s intentions and behaviour” (p.vii). Moreover, cultural differences intrinsically impact cross cultural communication and Cofman (2005) highlights the point that Israelis and Palestinians are both ethno-national groups, whereby social customs and political constructs are intrinsically intertwined with ethno-national identity (p.5). Additionally, this ethno-national backdrop has influenced the attitudes of both peoples in relation to the territory of Israel, fuelling the continued tension that hinders any attempts at genuine peace (Cofman, 2005, p.5). Additionally, the continuation of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict highlights the importance of ethnic heritage in both cultures, which in turn shapes the political culture of both groups (Cofman, 2005, p.5). Indeed a similarity in the ethno-national identity of both Israelis and Palestinians is the infusion of religion into social and political constructs. To this end, it is arguable that the continued conflict between Israelis and Palestinians is their varying approaches to religion, both of which teach superiority over the other. However, the contemporary conflict goes further in terms of the similar roots of both Judaism and Islam, which differ in their interpretation of the role of Abraham. For example, the contemporary framework of religion, social behaviour and global governmental structure are often traced to the inception of the three central belief systems of Judaism, Christianity and Islam (Grayson, 2006, p.40). Whilst there are numerous alternative religious organisations in the world, arguably these three monotheistic faiths have had the most significant influence in contemporary civilisation. Moreover, these three religions have distinct parallels in terms of the underlying belief system of monotheism and Busse (1998) in his discussion of the interrelationship between the three faiths asserts that: “From the beginning, Islam was for obvious reasons closely tied to Judaism and Christianity. The Koran evolved over more than three decades, during which Muhammad was engaged in discussion with adherents of both religions. There is an abundance of documentation on this subject in the Koran, including …… narratives with a biblical background and various traditions, both written and oral, of Jewish and or Christian origin” (p.1). Moreover, a fundamental element of the interrelationship between these three faiths was the intolerance of other religious practices and originated from Abraham. To this end, Peters (1990) comments that whilst alternative polytheistic religions are characteristically tolerant of other religious practices, “the Children of Abraham, on the other hand, though grudgingly accepting of each other, were professedly and actually intolerant of other religious systems. The One True God of Abraham was, on his own witness a jealous deity who brooked no rivals” (p.xxi). Therefore, whilst the origins of the three faiths share the same roots; the formation of Islam, Christianity and Judaism as separate religious systems has resulted in different belief systems and the focus of this paper is to evaluate the development of Judaism from its historical roots to the contemporary manifestation of the religion. As such, it is arguably the interpretation of Abraham’s role and the concept of inheritance, which has fuelled entrenched polarised positions as to which religion has superior claim to the territory that is now Israel (Cofman, 2005 p.7). For example, the roots of Judaism are traced to the Old Testament with numerous references to the worship of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and YAHWEH (the Hebrew name for God) prior to Moses. This is referred to in Ben Sira’s deuterocanonical book Sirach in the “Praise of the Elders”: “Abraham was the great father of a multitude of nations, And no one has been found like him in glory; He kept the law of the Most High, And was taken into covenant with him; He established the covenant in his flesh, And when he was tested he was found faithful. Therefore the Lord Assured him by an oath That the nations would be blessed through his posterity; That he would multiply him like the dust of the earth, And exalt his posterity like the stars, And cause them to inherit from sea to sea And from the River to ends of the earth (Sirach: 44: 19-21). Moreover, a central underlying foundation of Judaism’s development is the covenant relationship with Abraham (approximately 2,085 BC); where God decreed to Abraham and decreed that the Israelites were the chosen people by the Lord and that everyone in the world would see God through Israel. Indeed, reference to Abraham’s belief in Yahweh is highlighted in the Genesis narrative: “he believed Yahweh; and he reckoned it to him as righteousness” (Genesis: 15:6). Abraham’s line is then traced through Isaac to Jacob and his 12 sons, along with their descendants, who are referred to as the 12 tribes of Israel. It is believed that at the end of this period, YAHWEH manifested himself Israel catalysing the Exodus and the commandments to Moses at Mount Sinai where Moses proclaimed “O, let me behold Your Presence!” And he answered “I will make all My goodness pass before you and I will proclaim before you the name Lord [that is YAHWEH]……. And the Lord said, “See, there is a place near Me. Station yourself on the rock and, as My Presence passes by, I will put a cleft in the rock and shield you with My hand until I have passed by. Then I will take My hand away and you will see My back; but My face must not be seen” (Exodus 33:7-23). However, from an Islamic perspective, Abraham’s first son was Ishmael who built Mecca. This was then followed by Abraham’s son Isaac and therefore Judaism suggests that Abraham’s covenant was to flow through Isaac’s line. This in turn has continued to create conflict as to entitlement to the territory. Moreover, as these tenets of both faiths remains fundamental foundations of Israeli and Palestinian culture, it is inherently difficult to move from the ethno-national identities towards a collaborative peace process. The result of this cross-cultural conflict has perpetuated hatred on both sides, with both believing they are right as regards the other. This is further evidenced by contemporary Israeli military policy and use of force as part of self defence strategy, which is contrasted with the development of martyr syndrome in the contemporary Palestinian consciousness, which makes it difficult to see how both parties can go forward to achieve meaningful peace and stability whilst preserving entrenched cultural beliefs. BIBLIOGRAPHY Busse, H. (1998). Islam, Judaism and Christianity: theological and historical affiliations. Markus Wiener Publishers. Cofman, Wittes, T. Israelis and Palestinians negotiate: a cross cultural analysis. US Institute of Peace Press, 2005. Grayson, F. (2006). World History. Wiley. Milton-Edwards, B. (2008). The Israeli- Palestinian conflict. Taylor and Francis. Peters, F. (1990). Christianity, and Islam: the classical texts and their interpretation. Princeton University Press. Read More