Historical Overview

Ancient Israel is the birthplace

of the 3 great monotheistic
religions of the world: Judaism,
Christianity and Islam

Ancient Israel dates back
approximately 4000 years to the
books of the Old Testament

Great patriarchs of Judaism:
Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Joshua

Hebrews, Israelites, Jews,
Semites: have all undergone
persecution throughout history;
from Babylonian Captivity,
Exodus, Diaspora, Spanish
Inquisition, Holocaust
What is in a name?
Hebrew means From across-
name given to Abraham and his
followers
Israelites: Abrahams grandson
Jacob renamed Israel which
means he who has wrestled
with God. His descendants
were called Israelites
Jews: named after Jacobs son
Judah, ancient father of tribe of
King Davids dynasty


Tracing Roots of Israels History
Nomadic tribes wandered
into Palestine from east in
approximately 1900 BCE
Mesopotamian society
dominated by polytheism
God (Yahweh) appeared
before Patriarch Abraham
and told Abraham to go
and raise a great nation
This began the
monotheistic tradition of
the Hebrew faith with the
establishment of the
Covenant, Chosen
People and Promised
Land
Abraham settled in Canaan
Story: Sacrifice of Abraham
Jacob (grandson of Abraham)
Abrahams
grandson Jacob
took name Israel
which means God
ruled and
organized
Israelites into 12
tribes

Some tribes settled
in Egypt (due to
drought and
famine) and where
subjected to
Pharaoh rule and
slavery
Moses & Exodus:
Let My People Go!
Moses received revelations from
God: burning bush, rod / staff, 10
plagues, parting of the Red Sea
End of 13
th
century BCE- Moses led
the Israelites out of bondage in
Egypt during Rames II reign called
the EXODUS
Moses led the 12 Tribes of Israel to
Mount Sinai where Yahweh gave
him the 10 Commandments, uniting
the Hebrews under one God
Moses and Hebrews searched for
the Promised Land or the land of
milk and honey, however they
wandered in the desert for 40 years
Kings of Israel
1230 BCE, Israelites
guided by Joshua,
invaded Canaan
(Promised Land)
1020 BCE: first king of
Israelites was Saul, then
David, then Solomon
Under King David the
Israelites captured city of
Jerusalem
King Solomon built the
Temple of Jerusalem, to
house the Arc of the
Covenant (sacred box to
hold Torah)
Solomons Temple was
destroyed during
Babylonian invasion,
rebuilt in 6
th
century BCE,
and destroyed again in
70 CE by the Romans
Only remaining part of
Solomons Temple is the
Western Wall

Diaspora
Diaspora is a Greek word meaning sowing of seed or dispersal which
refers to Jewish population living outside of Israel
In 332 BCE, Jewish people in fell under Hellenization (Greek culture) as
Alexander the Great conquered Persia, Egypt and India
164 BCE, group of Jews called the Maccabees revolted against Greek rule,
took control of Jerusalem and rededicated the Temple to God (Hanukkah)
64 BCE, Jerusalem fell to Romans and the Kingdom of Judah became one
of the provinces of the Roman Empire (Judea). The people living there
were called Judeans, and it is from this word that we get the word Jew
In 66 CE the people of Judea revolted against Rome. This uprising was
crushed and the temple was destroyed for a second time in 70 CE
Despite the dispersion of Jewish people throughout Europe after 70 CE,
their culture and religious beliefs have been by far the most influential of
all the ancient cultures of the Near East
Impact of Ancient Israel
Covenant = formal agreement
between Hebrews and God
(Yahweh); Hebrews worshipped God
and only God, and in return, they
would be Gods Chosen People and
given Canaan as the Promised Land
Spiritual ideas profoundly influenced
Western culture, morality, ethics and
conduct
Three of the worlds most dominant
religions: Judaism, Christianity and
Islam all derive their roots from the
spiritual beliefs of the Ancient
Israelites

A diverse, 2000 year old religion followed
by almost one third of the worlds
population!
Based on the life, teachings, death and
resurrection of a first century Jew known as
Jesus, believed to be the Christ (messiah,
savior) by his followers (thus called
Christians)
Born, bred, lived, and died a Jew in first century
Roman occupied Palestine
Around age 30, took on a mission of
preaching, teaching, and healing as an itinerant
teacher
Had a following of 12 primary disciples and
countless multitudes attracted by his miracles
and words of wisdom
A political threat to Roman and Jewish
authorities, is put to death through torturous
crucifixion (a Roman punishment)
The Big Idea
Muhammad, a merchant from Mecca, introduced a major world
religion called Islam.

Main Ideas
Muhammad became a prophet and introduced a religion called Islam
in Arabia.
Muhammads teachings had similarities to Judaism and Christianity,
but they also presented new ideas.
Islam spread in Arabia after being rejected at first.
A man named Muhammad taught a new religion to the people of
Arabia.
Muslims believe that God spoke to Muhammad through an angel and
made him a prophet.
The messages he received were the basis for Islam and were collected in
the holy book of Islam called the Quran.
Religious factionalism threatened the caliphate
The Muslim community divided between those who
believed that the caliphate should remain in the
prophets bloodlines (shiites) and those who
insisted only that it remain within his clan, the
Quraysh (sunnis)




17
Intro to Islam in the World Today
- Second largest religion in the world
(1.2 billion adherents; 1/5 of world is Muslim)

- Fastest growing religion in the U.S. and in Europe
(2nd largest religion in France, Holland, Belgium, Germany; 3rd largest in U.S. + Britain)

- Majority of the worlds Muslims are NOT Arab
- Arabs comprise less than 20% of all Muslims
- Indonesia is the worlds most populous Muslim nation
- But: special importance of Arabic and Arabic culture

-Youngest of the three Abrahamic Faiths
- Began in Arabia in the 7th century with the PMs attempt to restore and return to the monotheism of
Abraham


Major Branches
1. Sunni - 88-89% - Four major schools
*Schism b/t Sunni and Shiah happens early - 680 CE - about leadership

2. Shiite - 12-13% + further sub-divisions

3. Kharijites

-Sufis (mystics)- not a separate branch
-Nation of Islam - considered to be outside of Sunni orthodoxy
Friday prayers at the
American Moslem Society
(AMS) in Dearborn, MI
(The mosque was first started at
Highland Park in 1919.)
Muhammad Ali
Member of the Nation of Islam,
a.k.a. Black Muslims

The conflict between
Israel and the
Palestinians is one that
is:
Extremely dangerous
Long-lasting
Complicated
Animated by religious
fervor
This conflict is destabilizing and could lead to a major world war.
Many wars have already been fought
Israel possesses nuclear weapons and its enemies would like to develop
such weapons to gain a military advantage
Many in the Middle East perceive the Palestinian-Israeli conflict as the
most important issue which makes progress in other areas impossible.
Unless peace is reached, the US is perceived as biased, and it is difficult
to get cooperation from other countries in the region
America has oil interests in the region
The War on terrorism
The Iraq War
Promote Democracy: Israel is a democratic, capitalistic state
US citizens have close ties to Israel and Arabs.
Palestinians are the Arabic
speaking people that live in
Palestine.
Most Palestinians practice
Islam which came to
Palestine around 638 AD,
although some are
Christian.
Jerusalem is one of the most
holy cities for Islam
because Moslems believe
that Muhammad ascended
to heaven here
Israel and Palestine has
been a major site for
Christian pilgrimage and
crusades
Jesus is said to have been
born in Bethlehem and
raised in Nazareth.
He is said to have been
crucified and resurrected
in Jerusalem
In 1947, the UN proposed a partition plan for Palestine which would create an Arab and
an Israeli state.
Under the plan, Jews (who accounted for 33% of the population) would receive 55% of
the land.
This plan was rejected by the Arab states and 5 nations attacked Israel when it declared
independence according to the UN plan on May 14, 1948.
Israel won the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and expanded its boundaries from the UN partition
plan.
War created Jewish and Palestinian refugees
Egypt took control of the Gaza Strip and Jordan annexed the West Bank.



The first peace treaty between Israel
and an Arab state
This historic agreement led to Israel
returning the Sinai Peninsula to
Egypt in return for diplomatic
relations
An agreement was signed for
negotiating a settlement of the
Palestinian claims, but this was not
successful.
Egyptian leader Anwar Sadat was
assassinated in 1981 by the Egyptian
Islamic Jihad organization, pursuant
to a religious decree by Sheik Omar
Abdel-Rahman, who was convicted
of the 1993 World Trade Center
bombing
The right of Israel to exist as a nation on land previously occupied by
Moslems
Refugees and the right of return
The building of settlements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip
Status of Jerusalem
Terrorism
Israeli occupation of the Golan Heights and the West Bank.
Water rights
Defensible and safe borders.
Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails
International and Arab recognition of Israel and normalized relations
30
Why?
1.Iraqs claimed to the land
2. Claimed Kuwait was
stealing oil (slant drilling)
3. $ owed to countries
Kuwait
4.Hussein thought no one
would stop him
31
What happened??
US invades w/full UN backing
US bombs Iraqi military & civilian
infrastructure
We make no attempt to hold Iraqi
towns or capture Saddam Hussein
Destroyed Vehicles Along Kuwaiti Highway
Destroyed cars and trucks line Kuwait's "Highway of Death" during the
Persian Gulf War. The name was given to the stretch of road leading north
out of Kuwait City which, while clogged with retreating Iraqi forces, was
furiously bombed by coalition forces, killing most on it.
Image: Peter Turnley/CORBIS
32
Kuwait Oil Well Fires
from Space
View from the space
shuttle Atlantis of
black smoke
billowing from
burning oil wells in
Kuwait, which were
set ablaze by
retreating Iraqi troops
at the end of the


Persian Gulf War.
Image: Digital image 1996 CORBIS;
Original image courtesy of
NASA/CORBIS
33
Results?
UN Embargo & Oil for Food Program
Peace Terms:
Iraq accepts border with Kuwait,
surrenders all WMDs, destroys all WMD
production capability
Iraq can sell oil in exchange for food &
medicine
Turn to page 647
First foreign attack since
Pearl Harbor
Created major shift in
foreign policy
Osama Bin Laden and
al Qaeda hiding in
Afghanistan where the
Taliban allowed them to
operate
Any govt that sponsors
terrorism should be
held accountable -Bush

In 1979, Afghanistan was invaded and eventually controlled
by the Soviet Union.
In 1989, Afghanistan and the Soviet Union signed a peace
agreement.
In 1995, the Taliban, promising traditional, Islamic values
came into power, imposing strict Islamic law, including
revoking many womens rights.
In 2001, American troops force the Taliban from power.
In 2004, Hamid Karzai became the first elected Afghan
president.
Patriot Act- Gave law
enforcement broader
powers to monitor
suspected terrorists
Department of
Homeland Security-
Was added to cabinet.
Coordinates domestic
security matters among
federal, state, and local
agencies

Saddam Hussein defied UN weapons inspectors
Many believed he had WMDs
Congress authorized Bush to use military forces
against Iraq
American and British forces captured Baghdad almost
immediately
Bush Doctrine: US can attack them before they attack
us
39
Why?: Bush argues Iraq
is a threat because of
WMDs
How? First US pushes for
tighter inspections, then
invades claiming Hussein
was not cooperating





















Source: Pew Global Attitudes Project report, America's Image Slips, But Allies Share U.S. Concerns Over Iran, Hamas,
6/13/06: http://pewglobal.org/reports/display.php?ReportID=252