Rock of Israel
The Rock of Israel (
Definition
In
A phrase beginning "Rock of Israel" is part of the morning prayers in some versions of the
Controversy
The term "Rock of Israel" was subject of controversy just before the promulgation of the Israeli Declaration of Independence on 14 May 1948.[1] The leaders present at the ceremony and who were to be signatories of the declaration believed that the declaration should express the fundamental values and principles that would define the new state, which would give the Jewish people a homeland in Palestine after 2,000 years of exile.[1]
The Jewish religious leaders, led by Rabbi Fishman-Maimon wanted a clear reference to God by the usage of the words "The Rock of Israel and its Redeemer."[1] However, a large segment of the Jewish leadership included those with secular and socialist convictions who sought a clear separation of church and state. Aharon Zisling, the left-wing leader of Mapam refused to sign the declaration of independence if it contained references to "a God in whom he did not believe."[1][7] The disagreement threatened to derail the actual and ceremonial proclamation of the establishment of a Jewish state in the former British Mandate of Palestine.
Israeli leader David Ben-Gurion, who would become the country's first Prime Minister, spent the morning of 14 May mediating the dispute between Rabbi Maimon and Zisling. After hours of talks, Rabbi Maimon agreed to leave out the term "Redeemer" from the text of the declaration. The compromise was included without a final vote.[1][7]
Later in his life Ben-Gurion is said to have explained that to him, "Rock of Israel" meant "the
English translation
Significantly, the whole passage containing the words "Rock of Israel" was not included in the English-language translation that was released for publication, owing to the military censorship imposed to keep the time and place of the ceremony secret in the wake of the
Despite Ben-Gurion's conviction that "Rock of Israel" was not necessarily a religious term, the official English translation composed by
See also
- Labour Zionism
- Names of God in Judaism
References
- ^ a b c d e f g Golda Meir. My Life. G.P. Putnam's Sons. pp. 223–24.
- ^ Declaration of Independence
- ^ The Hebrew Name for God
- ^ E.W. Hengstenberg, T. Martin and J. Meyer (1868). Christology of the Old Testament. T. & T. Clark. pp. 155.
- ^ Israel at 50: Ben Gurion Activities
- ^ Between a Rock and a Soft Place
- ^ a b The State of Israel Declares Independence Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs
- ^ Ami Isseroff. "The Declaration of the State of Israel". Retrieved 24 March 2009.
- ^ Rabbi Jeremy Rosen (2004-10-22). "Civil Marriages". Retrieved 24 March 2009.
- ^ Eliezer Segal. "From the Sources". Retrieved 24 March 2009.