About the Book

Does the Bible justify Zionism? Since the foundation of the state of Israel in 1948, Torah and tank have been inseparable, resulting in the forced expulsion and subjugation of millions of indigenous Palestinians.

Nur Masalha‘s groundbreaking new book traces Zionism‘s evolution from a European secular settler movement in the late 19th century to the messianic faith it has become today. Analysing Zionism’s multiple inventions of tradition, he shows how the Bible and Biblical archaeology have been used by many Christian and Jewish Zionists as ‘title deeds‘ for the land of Palestine, justifying an apartheid system and legitimising war crime. With Edward Said, Masalha argues that a new politics of peace can only be developed through the advocacy of a single, democratic state, which would replace religious zealotry with secular equality.

Commendations

'Groundbreaking'. - Abrar

'His argument should be read and taken deadly seriously...Nur makes a fascinating comparison between US backing for Israel today and British Christian backing for the Zionist project over a hundred years ago.' - John Rose, International Socialism

'Challenging.' - The Pastoral Review

Contents

Acknowledgements
Introduction
Part I The Bible, Zionism and the Invention of a Tradition
1. ‘The Bible is Our Mandate‘: Zionism, the Hebrew Bible and the Palestinian Catastrophe
2. Prophetic Politics and Imperial Interests: Christian Zionism, Armageddon Theology and the Battle for Jerusalem
Part II From the Secular to the Sacred (1967-2007)
3. From Secularism to vessianism: The Geopolitics of Neo-Zionism (1967-2007)
4. Jewish Fundamentalism, the Bible and the ‘Sacred Geography‘ of Jerusalem: Implications for Inter-faith Relations
5 Reinventing Maimonides: From Universalist Philosopher to Messianic Zionist (1967-2007)
Part III Invented Traditions and New Challenges
6. Palestinian Religious Nationalism and the Biblical Paradigm: Hamas, Zionism and Resisting the Occupation
7. Is the Hebrew Bible Historical? The Invention of a Tradition and the Challenge of Archaeology and ‘Minimalism‘ for Biblical Scholarship and Nationalist Historiography
8. The Bible, Post-Colonialism and the Moral Critique: Michael Prior, Liberation Theology and the Biblical Academy
9. Cultural Resistance and the Secular Humanist Challenge: Edward W. Said, Zionism and Rethinking the Question of Palestine

About the Author

Nur Masalha is Reader in Religion and Politics and Director of the Holy Land Research Project at St.Mary's College, University of Surrey. He is editor of the journal Holy Land Studies: A Multidisciplinary Journal. His books include: Expulsion of the Palestinians (1992); A Land Without a People (1997); Imperial Israel and the Palestinians (2000), The Politics of Denial (2003) and Catastrophe Remembered (2005).