Bøker av Yossi Katz

Judaism is a religion and a way of life that combines beliefs as well as practical commandments and traditions, encompassing all spheres of life. Some of the numerous precepts emerge directly from the Torah (the Law of Moses). Others are commanded by Oral Law, rulings of illustrious Jewish legal scholars throughout the generations, and rabbinic responsa composed over hundreds of years and still being written today. Like other religions, Judaism has also developed unique symbols that have become virtually exclusive to it, such as the Star of David and the menorah. This book argues that Judaism impacts human geography in significant ways: it shapes the environment and space of its believers, thus creating a unique "e;Jewish geography."e;

The State of Israel is the only Western state where the majority of lands are still owned by the State and by a public body related to it (The Jewish National Fund). At the root lies the divine command stating that the Land of Israel belongs to God and therefore should not be traded in perpetuity (Leviticus 25). This principle has been applied to almost all of the State lands, and was established in a Basic Law. Since the 1980s there were many pressures in Israel to privatize at least part of the State's and JNF's lands, due to the general privatization process of Israel's economy, the deepening globalization process, and the transformation of Israel to an individualistic society. However, only a small portion of the lands were privatized, constituting 4% of the area of Israel. The book is based wholly on primary sources. It describes and analyzes the history of the ideological, social and legal processes that took place and their development since the beginning of the 20th century until today- processes that brought about the unique phenomenon of the State of Israel as an advanced capitalistic state whose lands are mostly state-owned.

Formulated in 1937-38, the Jewish Agency Executive plan for partitioning Palestine - though never implemented - was not an isolated episode, but had short- and long-term implications from the Jewish perspective.

A VOICE CALLED - STORIES OF JEWISH HEROISM is a collection of articles about some of the great Jewish heroes of modern times. The book is a collage of role-models and inspiring makers of Jewish history. The first chapter tells the story of Theodor Herzl, father of modern Zionism, who died at the age of forty-four. He accomplished so much in just a few short years. His story is followed by an array of chapters about unique heroes and heroines including poets and song-writers, spies and underground fighters, soldiers and statesmen, boxers and a basketball player, a religious Christian, an astronaut and many others. The stories are written to shed light on Jewish history and to inspire the reader to live in the present with pride and dignity and to help build a better future. Some of the heroes are famous like Chaim Nachman Bialik, Sarah Aaronsohn, Rachel the Poetess, David Marcus and Menachem Begin. Other chapters deal with little known heroes like Michael Halpern, Manya Shochat and Zivia Lubetkin and then there are the unsung heroes like Michael Levin, Adam Bier, Alex Singer and Brian Bebchick. Readers will meet courageous fighters like Roi Klein and inspiring poets like Naomi Shemer. They will learn about the struggle after 1967 to free Soviet Jews from perspectives on both sides of the Iron Curtain. The book title takes its name from a poem by the great Hebrew poetess and fighting partisan Hannah Senesh who wrote, A voice called and I went . Hannah answered an inner calling when she moved to Israel in 1939 and again when she volunteered to parachute into Nazi occupied Europe to help rescue her Jewish people. She gave her life to light a fire that continues to burn brightly today. The legacy of these inspiring Jewish heroes is one that will remain with the reader for an eternity.

Military cemeteries are one of the most prominent cultural landscapes of Israel. Their story reflects largely the main social processes that Israeli society has been undergoing since the War of Independence (1948)until today. Until the end of the 1970s, the military tombstones and their surroundings were uniform and equal, according to rules set by the State. However, since the 1980s families of the fallen soldiers started to add on the tombstone personal expressions, as well as personal objects, photographs, military artifacts etc. Thus the military tombstone and the Israeli military cemetery became one of the expressions of the dramatic transformation, from a society which emphasized the importance of the collective, to a society which intensifies the significance of the individual. The book is based on many archival documents, as well as interviews and photographs, all of which shed light on one of the most sensitive issues in Israeli society and express its importance as a central component of Israeli identity.