More in ‘The Invention of the Jewish People’

Middle East

Inventing Israel

Historian Shlomo Sand argues that ‘Jewish peoplehood’ is a myth
By Evan R. Goldstein | 7:00 AM Oct 13, 2009

The key assumptions about Israel and the Jews are indelible. Forced from Jerusalem into exile, the Jews dispersed throughout the world, always remaining attached to their ancient homeland. Psalmists wept when they remembered Zion. A people were sustained by an unflagging determination to return to their native soil. “Next year in Jerusalem!” The triumph of ...