As Israel soon turns 78 years young, daily headlines debate the future of the country’s relationship with its Arab neighbors. In the meantime, four Israeli scholars offer a framework for considering how the Jewish state should treat those minorities within its midst. “That They May Live Among You: Minorities in a Jewish State,” by Yakov Nagen, Sarel Rosenblatt, Michal Tikochinsky and Assaf Malach lays out the Jewish values and laws that should guide the way. (The book was recently released in Hebrew. An English translation is in the works.)
As the authors note, “The Torah emphasizes that this value is one of the important aspects of Israel’s relationship with the resident non-Jews living among its borders: ‘And you shall love the stranger as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt’” (Deuteronomy, 10:19). This very principle is emphasized every year at the Seder, when we start our foundational story by emphasizing that we were an ostracized, mistreated minority — an annual warning not to allow others to be treated poorly in kind. Abraham, history’s first Jew, was himself a wandering resident, building into our familial history a sensitivity to looking out for those in similar situations.
The authors add that in Genesis 18, God tells Abraham that through him all nations will be blessed, a blessing that is repeated to Isaac in Genesis 26 and Jacob two chapters later — yet another articulation of the principle that Jewish behavior should serve as a model and inspiration for those non-Jews we interact with, both within Israel and beyond.
In the Book of Exodus, Moses names one of his sons Gershom, from the Hebrew word for “stranger,” in an explicit acknowledgement that he himself is a “stranger in a strange land,” before he leads the Jews to liberation from Egypt.
Looking ahead to life in the Promised Land, Leviticus 25:35 instructs, in the verse from which the book draws its title: “If any of your fellow Israelites become poor and are unable to support themselves among you, help them that they may live among you as you would a foreigner and stranger.”
Rabbinic tradition, as the authors detail, has for centuries discussed what would constitute the obligations of a minority within a Jewish country, in return for which they would receive equal rights. Of course members of such a group would not have to observe all 613 commandments, which are incumbent only upon Jews. But, many sages have argued, non-Jewish residents of Israel would have to observe the seven Noahide Laws, which include prohibitions against worshipping idols, cursing God, murder, adultery and sexual immorality, theft, eating flesh torn from a living animal, as well as the obligation to establish and abide by judicial courts. Citing the doctoral dissertation of Yeshiva University’s President Ari Berman on the topic of ger toshav (a resident of Israel who is not Jewish), “That They May Live Among You” notes that the medieval scholar Maimonides suggested that to attain such status does not require formal approval by a Jewish court, unlike formal conversion to Judaism.
With regards to the implicit obligations incumbent upon these minorities, the requirement to abide by rules of justice, the authors note, would of course preclude allowing criminal behavior and terrorist activities.
Rabbi Nagen and his co-authors are not naive. They acknowledge that there are those sympathetic to the terrorists that attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, among Israel’s Arab population, and both personal and national security should not be compromised by presuming positive intentions among those who take up residence within Israel’s borders. As Israeli journalist Amit Segal reported in late November, Mansour Abbas, the Arab member of the Knesset whose party is affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood dug himself a hole when asked on Kan Reshet Bet radio about his vision for a post-ceasefire Gaza. “We want to bring about a new governing reality in the Gaza Strip,” he said. “The Palestinian people must choose their leadership and embark on a new path that will emphasize the values of peace and reconciliation.” If you thought something was missing in his answer, you’re not alone, Segal observed. What about Hamas? Well, that’s what he was asked next: Does Hamas need to be destroyed? Abbas burst into a rage, telling his hosts that the interview “is starting to feel like some kind of interrogation.” Abbas then hung up.
On the flip side, Rabbi Nagen noted in a recent Times of Israel article: “Within Israel, following the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, many feared that the country’s nearly 2 million Muslim Arabs might join in the violence. Overwhelmingly, this did not happen. Numerous statements of solidarity with the victims and condemnations of Hamas were issued by leaders among Israel’s Muslim minority. Moreover, Israel’s Muslim minority was among both the victims of the Oct. 7 massacre and its heroes. A poignant example is Youssef Alziadana, a Bedouin minibus driver who risked his life to courageously save dozens of young people at the Nova music festival, where hundreds were massacred.”
Negotiating these complex realities is Israel’s ever-present challenge.
Throughout their explanation of topics related to the reliance on non-Jewish residents for electrical infrastructure in Israel during Shabbat and festivals so as to avoid Jews performing forbidden labors on these holidays to balancing the Jewish character of Israel with its democratic political system, the authors emphasize that a guiding principle should be kiddush Hashem. This obligation, upon us Jews as individuals and as a nation, is to sanctify God by observing His law in such a way that it will, as Deuteronomy so movingly describes, “show your wisdom and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these commandments and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’”
With God’s help, as Israel heads into its Independence Day celebration, the Jewish state will continue in its mission of serving as a source of wisdom and inspiration for its minority groups and nations throughout the globe.
Rabbi Dr. Stuart Halpern is Senior Adviser to the Provost of Yeshiva University and Deputy Director of Y.U.’s Straus Center for Torah and Western Thought. His books include the newly released “Jewish Roots of American Liberty,” “The Promise of Liberty: A Passover Haggada,” “Esther in America,” “Gleanings: Reflections on Ruth” and “Proclaim Liberty Throughout the Land: The Hebrew Bible in the United States.”
