MembersIsraeli Chutzpa and Independence

Israel’s Independence Day commemorates another redemption, when the Jewish nation returned to its biblical homeland. The Declaration of Independence proceeds from the Balfour Declaration of 1917: “The Land of Israel was the birthplace of the Jewish people. Here was where their spiritual, religious and political nature was formed. Here Jewish people lived freely and independently, here they created cultural values of national and universal significance and gave to the world the eternal Book of Books. After being forcibly exiled from their land, the people kept faith with it throughout their Dispersion. Their hope never wavered. Their prayers for freedom and a return to their home were never silenced.”

The Passover Haggadah speaks of four youths (wise, wicked, simple, and the one who does not know how to ask), who represent four types of people in Jewish society. We have translated this idea, with reference to our newly won...