Winter 1984 - 1985 - Quarterly Review

JEWS AND CHRISTIANS
overexaggerate the negative record of Israel in this regard. But there
are definite problems of domestic prejudice as well as seeming
annexationist policies on the West Bank that can no longer be swept
under the carpet in the dialogue. This also holds true for the case of
Jewish terrorism against Christian and Muslim institutions in the
country. While such Jewish terrorism pales in comparison to terrorism
from the Arab side, it represents a growing concern, as does
increasing ultraorthodox Jewish influence in the city of Jerusalem.
Finally, Israel's growing involvement in political events in Central
America and Africa must be addressed. This involvement is the basis
for increased criticism of Israel within the churches by those with little
direct interest in the Middle East. While firmly resisting the attempts
in some church and political circles to isolate Israel totally as a political
pariah, there is room here for serious questions by Christians to their
Jewish partners in the dialogue. Jewish appeals to Israeli self-interest,
while to be taken seriously, will not end the concern on the part of
Christians. Apart from political dimensions of the Arab-Israeli
conflict, the dialogue will also need to turn its attention to what
scholars have termed the Jewish "land tradition," a tradition with
deep roots in the Hebrew Scriptures. Pioneering work by several
Christian scholars will prove especially useful in the discussion.
Prominent among these scholars are W. D. Davies, Walter Brueggemann,
and John Townsend. Although differences exist in their
perspectives, they nonetheless seem to agree that (1) the New
Testament does not clearly rule out Judaism's historic claims to the
land; and (2) that land remains important for Christian faith as well, at
least to the extent that the process of salvation in Christianity is deeply
rooted in the process of human history. (Davies's most recent volume,
The Territorial Dimension of Judaism, is especially strong in bringing out
the land dimension of Judaism.)
While recognizing that the theological approach to the land may be
one of the basic differences between Christianity and Judaism,
Christians can still profit greatly both in their own self-understanding
as well as in their understanding of Jews through discussions of the
land tradition. Christians can also properly address some questions to
their Jewish brothers and sisters. Does the land tradition in Judaism
necessarily demand perpetual sovereignty over a piece of real estate in
the Middle East? Could the values inherent in the land tradition be
sustained under some other political arrangement? Put another way,
is the nation-state defide in Jewish theology? Another major question
concerns the relationship between Zionism and the more universal-
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