From Jewish Renewal to Israeli Judaism

An analysis of emergent “soft” Religious Nationalism

Bibliographic Data

ID7147547
AuthorsRachel Werczberger (0009-0006-8060-9693), Dana Kaplan (0000-0003-3077-5897), Dana Evan Kaplan (0000-0001-6705-5004), N Beider (0000-0002-3565-3453)
Year2025
Volume210-211
Pages159-179
Publication date2025-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueArchives de sciences sociales des religions (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0335-5985 • E-ISSN: 1777-5825
PublisherOpenEdition (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.4000/15a1x
OpenAlexW4416990982
LanguageEN
References cited48

This article examines the case of Israeli Judaism to explore how processes of religious nationalism manifest in Israel, offering a more nuanced perspective on religious nationalism than what is currently proposed in the existing scholarship. Specifically, we investigate the development of Israeli Judaism as a « soft » form of religious nationalism, particularly within secular and liberal sectors of Israeli society. To trace the shift from a secular Jewish renewal movement to a more religiously and nationally integrated network, we focus on generational changes within Israeli Judaism to better understand this evolution. Our findings reveal that while older participants generally maintain a cohesive, left-leaning political stance, younger members tend to be more religious and exhibit less resistance to the religious establishment. National sentiments and opinions emerge as a unifying force across both generations. We argue that the establishment of integrative pre-military academies and the emergence of new rituals, such as reading the Declaration of Independence at the Western Wall, highlight a shift in Israeli Judaism from secularist renewal toward religious nationalism. However, this form of religious nationalism is distinctly softer than the more exclusionary forms of religious nationalism seen in the Israeli political field

Declaration · Declaration of independence · Jewish state · Judaism · Nationalism · Politics · Zionism · Agricultural and Environmental Management · Jewish and Middle Eastern Studies · Jewish Identity and Society

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