Richard D. Bank - The Everything Jewish History and Heritage Book: From Abraham to Zionism, all you need to understand the key events, people, and places

The

The Jewish History & Heritage Book

Dear Reader:

The great Yiddish writer Yitzhak Leib Peretz once wrote, A people without a memory is like an individual with amnesia. Each generation is a link in a chain stretching back to Abraham and forward to the end of time. And according to the Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel, it is precisely this memory that has connected Jews throughout the ages.

Memory has kept the Jews together as a people through four millenniamemory of a shared history and a rich heritage that we are proud and honored to write about. Every Jew has a responsibility to keep that memory alive, and one way to do this is to know about the lives of those who preceded us.

Although this is a book concerning Jewish history, it is intended for everyone. Dispersed among the nations of the world, the saga of the Jews also informs us about Western civilizationits people, nations, and religions.

Enjoy the adventure that follows, for it is truly an amazing story!

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THE

JEWISH
HISTORY & HERITAGE
BOOK

From Abraham to Zionism, all you need to
understand the key events, people, and places

Richard D. Bank & Julie Gutin

History is about generations and family. To my history: Ruth and Louis Bank, Rose and Herbert (alav ha-sholom) Jacobs, Frani, Ari, Cory, and Joy.
In memory of Asya Poleyes and Zinaida Samsonovich.

I dont think I could have faced 4,000 years of Jewish history without knowing Julie Gutin was by my side. Her keen eye for detail insured the accuracy of this book. I would like to thank my editors, Gary Krebs and Eric Hall, for making this project a reality; Jack Herzig, Esq., for providing research material; and my agent, Carol Susan Roth.

Richard Bank

I would like to thank my familyNonna, Faina, and Leonid Gutinfor all their love and support. I would also like to thank Richard Bank for his expertise and all the hard work he put into this project. And of course, many thanks go out to Eric Hall, Kate McBride, and Gary Krebs at AdamsI couldnt have done this without your help. Finally, I would like to acknowledge the Jewish Federation of the North Shore for helping Russian families like mine find new homes in the Boston area.

Julie Gutin

1. 1. Abraham and his family leave Mesopotamia and travel to Canaan, led by Gods promise that Abraham will become the father of a great nation.

2. 2. Moses leads the Israelites out of Egypt and receives the commandments at Sinai. After forty years of wandering in the desert, the Israelites enter the Promised Land.

3. 3. King David establishes the capital in Jerusalem and his son Solomon constructs the Temple.

4. 4. The kingdom of Israel is destroyed by the Assyrians; the Ten Israelite Tribes are exiled and disappear.

5. 5. The kingdom of Judah is conquered by the Babylonians and many Jews are taken into exile, but the Jewish community in Babylon remains strong and does not succumb to assimilation.

6. 6. When Greek culture threatens to destroy Judaism, the Maccabeans stage a revolt and reclaim the Temple.

7. 7. The Romans vanquish Jerusalem and destroy the Second Temple as the Jews are exiled, marking the beginning of the Diaspora.

8. 8. After centuries of persecution, the Jews of Western Europe are emancipated and become full citizens of their countries.

9. 9. The Holocaust claims the lives of six million Jewish people and threatens to destroy Jewish European culture.

10. 10. The creation of the State of Israel marks the end of the Diaspora as all Jews from around the world are invited to return to their ancestral home in Israel.

PREPARE YOURSELF FOR AN EXTRAORDINARY ADVENTURE! In the following pages, youll traverse a time continuum spanning more than 4,000 years as you learn about the history of the Jewish people.

Well begin in the area known as the Fertile Crescent, the cradle of civilization and the home of the early Hebrews. Then, well move forward in time and place to follow the footsteps of Abraham and descend with Jacobs clan into Egypt, emerging years later as a nation searching for freedom and the Promised Land. We will witness the founding of the kingdoms of Judah and Israel, their destruction, the re-establishment of the Second Temple, and how it, too, was destroyed.

The loss of the Temple led to a 2,000-year exile, the Diaspora. During this time, the Jews dwelled in all parts of the world, often strangers among their countrymen. The pressure to give up their religion and their culture was great, but despite all the hardshipsincluding social and cultural isolation, as well as religious persecutionthe Jewish people persevered. Then, out of the ashes of the Shoah (Holocaust), one of the most horrific acts ever visited upon a people in human history, arose the modern State of Israel.

What kept the Jewish people together over the two millennia of exile and separation is a mystery unique in civilization. One answer is their adherence to Judaisma shared set of beliefs, practices, and laws. (If youd like to learn more about Judaism, you can turn to Richard Banks The EverythingJudaism Book.) However, there is another explanationtheir cultural heritage, which we will examine as we explore Jewish history.