We think about the Book of Ruth as the original story of conversion. We may also think of the Book of Ruth as a great love story, or as a story of the origins of King David. And, of course, Ruth can be seen as a story that teaches us about true friendship and about the highest forms of Gemilut Chasadim (acts of lovingkindness). But we don't usually think of the Book of Ruth as a story about Zionism. Tonight, we are going to explore the unlikely, but deep connection between the Book of Ruth and Zionist ideals.
To begin our discussion, let's consider, "what words come to mind when you think about Zionism?"
The land of Israel plays a central role in the story of Ruth from the very beginning. How does Elimelech's family respond to the famine in Israel? How does this story echo the stories famine in the Torah's accounts of the lives of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob? Is there an overarching pattern here?
Religious Zionism
(1) In the days when the chieftains” ruled, there was a famine in the land; and a man of Bethlehem in Judah, with his wife and two sons, went to reside in the country of Moab. (2) The man’s name was Elimelech, his wife’s name was Naomi, and his two sons were named Mahlon and Chilion—Ephrathites of Bethlehem in Judah. They came to the country of Moab and remained there. (3) Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died; and she was left with her two sons. (4) They married Moabite women, one named Orpah and the other Ruth, and they lived there about ten years. (5) Then those two—Mahlon and Chilion—also died; so the woman was left without her two sons and without her husband.
How does the following passage from the Talmud explain Elimelech's death and Naomi's hardship? How do you feel about Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai's teaching?
How does Ramban's view compare to that of Shimon bar Yochai in the Talmud?
(א) והורשתם את הארץ וישבתם בה כי לכם נתתי את הארץ לרשת אתה על דעתי זו מצות עשה היא יצוה אותם שישבו בארץ ויירשו אותה כי הוא נתנה להם ולא ימאסו בנחלת ה' ואלו יעלה על דעתם ללכת ולכבוש ארץ שנער או ארץ אשור וזולתן ולהתישב שם יעברו על מצות ה' ומה שהפליגו רבותינו (כתובות קי) במצות הישיבה בארץ ישראל ושאסור לצאת ממנה וידונו כמורדת האשה שאינה רוצה לעלות עם בעלה לארץ ישראל וכן האיש בכאן נצטווינו במצוה הזו כי הכתוב הזה היא מצות עשה ויחזיר המצוה הזו במקומות רבים באו ורשו את הארץ (דברים א ח):
(1) AND YE SHALL DRIVE OUT THE INHABITANTS OF THE LAND, AND DWELL THEREIN; FOR UNTO YOU HAVE I GIVEN THE LAND TO POSSESS IT. In my opinion this is a positive commandment Thus if the thought occurs to them to go and conquer the land of Shinar or the land of Assyria or any other country and to settle therein, they are [thereby] transgressing the commandment of G-d. And that which our Rabbis have emphasized, the significance of the commandment of settling in the Land of Israel, and that it is forbidden to leave it [except for certain specified reasons], and [the fact] that they consider a woman who does not want to emigrate with her husband to live in the Land of Israel as a “rebellious [wife],” and likewise the man27“If she wants to emigrate [to the Land of Israel] and he refuses, he may be forced to go there, and if he still refuses, he must divorce her and give her the kethubah (ibid.). — the source of all these statements is here [in this verse] where we have been given this commandment, for this verse constitutes a positive commandment.This commandment He repeats in many places, such as Go in and possess the Land.
During my first year in Israel, I became friendly with some Religious Zionists who were fellow students. They organized tiyulim (trips) during which they argued that the all Jews should live in the land of Israel. One of their inspirations was Rav Abraham Isaac Kook, Israel's first chief rabbi. How does his view compare to the views of the rabbis above?
Zionism as a Solution to "The Jewish Problem"
Why does Naomi return to the land of Israel? What does she expect to find there? Why do you think Ruth goes with her? What is she hoping to find?
When they arrived in Bethlehem, the whole city buzzed with excitement over them. The women said, “Can this be Naomi?” (20) “Do not call me Naomi,”cI.e., “Pleasantness.” she replied. “Call me Mara,dI.e., “Bitterness.” for ShaddaieUsually rendered “the Almighty.” has made my lot very bitter. (21) I went away full, and the LORD has brought me back empty. How can you call me Naomi, when the LORD has fOthers “testified against.”dealt harshly with-f me, when Shaddai has brought misfortune upon me!” (22) Thus Naomi returned from the country of Moab; she returned with her daughter-in-law Ruth the Moabite. They arrived in Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest.
How do the quotes below relate to the return of Naomi and Ruth to the land of Israel? How does this Zionist idea compare to the ideas of Rav Kook?
| Right of Aliyah | 1. Every Jew has the right to come to this country as an oleh**. |
| Oleh's visa | 2. (a) Aliyah shall be by oleh's visa.
(b) An oleh's visa shall be granted to every Jew who has expressed his desire to settle in Israel, unless the Minister of Immigration is satisfied that the applicant (1) is engaged in an activity directed against the Jewish people; or (2) is likely to endanger public health or the security of the State. |
Judges uphold previous decision on matter against stance of Population Authority, which believes law only applies to non-Jewish widows of Jews, not widows of descendants
The 4-3 ruling this week was an example of the court’s role in determining Israeli policy, a capacity that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government had sought for months to diminish prior to the outbreak of the war with Hamas on October 7. Critics of the hardline government’s judicial overhaul plan contended that sapping the judiciary of its power endangered Israeli democracy.
The ruling is also a victory for those who want Israel to extend the rights and privileges of citizenship to a broader range of Jews and their relatives.
Spouses of living children and grandchildren of Jews are eligible to immigrate, and the Israeli branch of the Reform movement argued to the court that immigration rights should also extend to the widows of children and grandchildren of Jews. The widows and widowers lose the right to citizenship if they get remarried to non-Jews.
Cultural Zionism
What role does the Barley harvest play in the story of Ruth? Could this story have taken place anywhere else?
The poem below celebrates the land of Israel. What does Tchernikofsky love about the land? Do you see any echoes of the book of Ruth?
A smell of spring orchards.
A song of camel bells.
Low dunes surround the sea!
A fallen shade of a sycamore.
Land of the heirs of the Sinai Desert!
Magic of planets,
Steam of the heat-wave's rage,
A hut in the effoliation
A vine in a vineyard, half asleep.
A ploughed mound of ruins,
Blue nights and howls of jackals.
A beating pump.
Oh, oh, the country of my heart's love!
The wastelands.
An orphaned whitewashed well in the hole of a rock.
In the sky there's a vulture.
Morsels of desert and sand.
A path laden with gynoeciums
All sunken in a sea of light
and above all is the light blue sky.
Political Zionism
According to the Book of Ruth, what is Ruth's contribution to the Jewish people and the land of Israel? What attributes does Ruth show that are fundamental to Zionism?
(יח) וְאֵ֙לֶּה֙ תּוֹלְד֣וֹת פָּ֔רֶץ פֶּ֖רֶץ הוֹלִ֥יד אֶת־חֶצְרֽוֹן׃ (יט) וְחֶצְרוֹן֙ הוֹלִ֣יד אֶת־רָ֔ם וְרָ֖ם הוֹלִ֥יד אֶת־עַמִּֽינָדָֽב׃ (כ) וְעַמִּֽינָדָב֙ הוֹלִ֣יד אֶת־נַחְשׁ֔וֹן וְנַחְשׁ֖וֹן הוֹלִ֥יד אֶת־שַׂלְמָֽה׃ (כא) וְשַׂלְמוֹן֙ הוֹלִ֣יד אֶת־בֹּ֔עַז וּבֹ֖עַז הוֹלִ֥יד אֶת־עוֹבֵֽד׃ (כב) וְעֹבֵד֙ הוֹלִ֣יד אֶת־יִשָׁ֔י וְיִשַׁ֖י הוֹלִ֥יד אֶת־דָּוִֽד׃
How is the message of the Book of Ruth reflected in the passage from the Declaration of Independence below?
Which of the strains of Zionism n the Book of Ruth do you identify with? Are there ideas that make you uncomfortable? Are there other ideas about your relationship to the Israel that we have not considered?