THE JEWISH STATE OF ISRAEL: DARLENE CASSELLA
http://www.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/id.11165/pub_detail.asp
Egyptian archeological records from the 9th century BC show that King Saul established a Jewish Monarchy in the land of Israel. Famine ravaged the Kingdom causing Jacob, his twelve sons, and their families, to settle in Egypt. They became the twelve tribes of Jacob. Descendants became slaves, until Moses led the Jews out of Egypt. The movie Exodus depicts that journey. Jews returned to the the Dead Sea, went north to the Golan Heights, and south to the Negev Desert.
King David’s reign over Israel is recorded in the Hebrew Bible and in the Gospels of Luke and Mathew. The Twelve Tribes of Jacob were Israel’s common bond. Jerusalem became the capital city. King Solomon, David’s son, built The Temple in Jerusalem.
Persians and Greeks conquered the land for centuries. Jews were prohibited from practicing Judaism in their Temple, which was desecrated in 166 BC. The Maccabea family led a revolt, achieving Jewish independence. The Jewish Kingdom flourished until the Romans arrived.
The Roman Empire was harsh in its treatment of Jews, but Julius Caesar was a friend to Jews. In 47 BC Caesar defeated the Pharaohs and installed Cleopatra as Queen of Egypt. They remained lovers for 14 years, until his death. Subsequently, following a battle at Alexandria, Marc Antony summoned Cleopatra to Tarsus for a military alliance. They became lovers for life.
King Herod, a practicing Jew, was elected by the Roman Senate as Ruler of Israel. Herod’s most famous project was the expansion of The Second Temple in Jerusalem. Herod developed water supplies, built fortresses, such as Masada and founded cities such as Ceasarea.
Herod and Queen Cleopatra VII of Egypt owned a monopoly on the extraction on asphalt from the Dead Sea, used in ship building. It is disputed whether Herod’s fifth wife, named Cleopatra, was Queen Cleopatra VII of Egypt. According to Jewish Historian Flavius Josephus, Queen Cleopatra VII and King Herod were intimate; she was overcome with love for him, and they had a son named Phillip. During Marc Anthony’s absences the Queen spent a great deal of time with Herod. Cleopatra’s third son with Marc Anthony was Phillip. Whether there were two sons named Phillip or one son with two potential fathers is uncertain.
Jesus of Nazareth was born during Herod’s rule. Herod died when Jesus was a child. Pontius Pilatus became the Prefect of the Roman province of Judaea. His duties were civil administration. Little is known of Pilatus, who was born in Italy. He is best known for his role in the death of Jesus Christ.
The life and death of Jesus Christ divided history into BC (before Christ) and AD (In the year of the Lord). Jesus grew up in Galilee, and became a rabbi in Jerusalem with a three year public ministry. He honored the traditions of Jewish religious law, but was critical of certain practices which brought him into conflict with some Pharisees. Around 33 AD, under the administration of Pontius Pilatus, he was condemned to die by crucifixion. The impact of Jesus Christ on the world is profound and immeasurable.
Byzantine Christians dominated the land of Israel by the end of the 4th Century AD. The death of the Prophet Mohammad in 632 brought Arabs and Islamic Rule. Crusaders arrived in the 11th Century. In 1517 Ottoman’s conquered the land. Four hundred years of Ottoman Rule ended in British conquest.
To gain support during WWI, Britain promised Sayyid Hussein, Sharif of Mecca, an Arab Kingdom under his rule. In 1917 a letter was sent from the Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour to Baron Rothschild a leader of the British Jewish community for transmission to the Zionist Federation. It supported the establishment of a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine. This became known as the Balfour Declaration. Winston Churchill and Chaim Weizmann said that the Balfour Declaration “had always meant a Jewish State”.
What was Palestine? Palestine was a land region between the southern Mediterranean coast and the Syrian interior, between Egypt and Arabia. Arabia is today Iraq, Lebanon, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Yemen. The region has been controlled by Egyptians, Ancient Israelites, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Arab Islamists, Crusaders, Ottomans, the British, and modern Israelis.
The two state solution happened in 1922. The British Mandate for Palestine partitioned the region into two states. The region had been promised twice; to Hussein as an Arab Kingdom, and to the Jews for a Jewish Homeland. The partition had been three fourths for Arabs, and one fourth for the Jewish nation. Reneging, original lines of partition were redrawn which cut the Jewish portion in half. The 1/8th area west of the Jordan River was called Palestine and the 7/8th area east of the Jordan River became Transjordan.
On May 23,, 1923 Transjordan was granted independence. Abdullah, the son of Sayyid Hussein, was made King of Transjordan (later Jordan).
Israel remained in limbo until May 14, 1947 when the State of Israel was proclaimed. Armies of Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Trans-Jordan, Sudan, and Syria invaded in what became her War of Independence. She fought for survival, and increased defensible land mass against hostile neighbors. Armistice agreements were signed in 1949, and the State of Israel became the 59th member of the United Nations.
Family Security Matters Contributor Darlene Casella was, before her retirement, an English teacher, a stockbroker, and president/owner of a small corporation. She lives with her husband in La Quinta, California, and can be reached at thedeadseawest@aol.com.
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