This Land is Our Land

description of book [New edition of This Land is My Land] “G-d spoke to Abraham, saying ‘To you and your offspring I will give the land.’” (Genesis 17:8) With this verse the Bible establishes the eternal bond between the Jewish people and the Promised Land. But ask yourself this: Of what value is receiving the Holy Land when it brings aggravation, terrorism, and bad press? Can anyone imagine that G-d’s promise to the Jews was meant to force us to fight a never-ending war, with an interminable sacrifice of blood, sweat, and tears? There has to be a deeper meaning to the idea of a Promised Land and a Chosen People if we are to make any sense of the tinderbox that is the Middle East today. This book explores the conceptual beginnings of the Holy Land dating back to Creation, and traces its history from the time of the Patriarchs all the way to the present day. Along the way we learn of the conquering and settling of the Land by the Israelites under Joshua, its inhabitance during the epochs of the Judges, the Kings, and the Prophets, and the upheavals it experienced during subsequent periods of Jewish exile, including the destruction of the First and Second Temples. This Land is Our Land then gives an account of the Holy Land during the Dark and Middle Ages; throughout the aliyot (immigration) to her shores from different Diaspora communities; and during the early period of Hasidism, the Enlightenment and Zionism. It concludes with the story of the founding of the State of Israel and the ongoing Arab-Israeli conflict until the present day.