Religion 101 30 minut Test

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Review questions – Understanding Religions Ancient Egypt,

Babylon, Zoroastrianism and Judaism

Read carefully the review questions.

What is the meaning of monotheism?

Monotheism means a belief in one god as opposed to belief in many gods and

goddesses. In some monotheistic religions the one god assumes the roles of many

gods and goddesses and due to this fact sometimes the narratives seem to

present a deity that contradict oneself, such as speaking apparently to himself,

regret, neglect a manifestation of oneself, or struggle with oneself.

In the Abrahamic religions, Judaism, Christianity and Islam, the one god is a

personal god. It means that he looks very carefully at each and every individual,

examines his/her life and rewards or punished the individuals according to their

behavior.

What is the meaning of Polytheism?

Polytheism as opposed to monotheism is a belief in many gods and goddesses. In

creation narratives, creation may be carried out by many gods and goddesses,

each is responsible for a certain stage in the creation.

Some anthropologists and theologians speculated that people were at the very

beginning monotheistic believing in one superpower, then developed into

polytheism in which many more gods and goddesses join the single superpower

and then went back again to monotheism. This linear development is refuted by

most scholars today. Some human societies developed in that way and some were

not. There was no rule of development. Human societies developed their religions

according to their concerns and human concerns vary from time to time and from

place to place.

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Did the Neanderthals have religion?

The Neanderthals seem to be the first human beings to develop religion. We have

no details about their religion because there is no literacy in this early period and

without literature it is difficult to assess what was their religion all about.

However, judging from the material culture that was preserved in archaeological

finds such as burial of the dead, collecting skulls of bears, horses, and human, it is

assumed that this was done for religious purposes. Since these customs are not

natural or observed in by animals, there must have been another explanation, and

the theory that they responded to religious concerns is currently the best theory.

What is Agnosticism?

Gnosis in Greek means knowledge. The prefix A in Greek means NOT (like

asymmetric). Agnosticism means an unknown state, the indecisive state about the

existence of the divine, whether he does exist or not. This state derives from the

impossibility to prove or disprove the existence of any divine being.

What is the meaning of Zoroastrian dualism?

Zoroastrianism attempt to give a simple answer to the question that bothers

theologians for millennia. Why there is evil in the world and who is responsible for that?

While monotheistic religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam) are struggling with

convoluted answers to this because they do not want to ascribe to the one god they

worship, evil traits or bad features, Zoroastrianism came up with a simple idea of

dualism. In this theology there are in fact two gods in the world. All good things were

created by the good god who they call Ahura Mazda, and all the evil and bad things

were created by Angra Manue the bad god. This theology is simple and does not have

exceptions. A theory that is simple and does not have exception is always considered to

be a good theory. The problems begin when theories are put into practice. In this case it

is the demand from the faithful to love the good god and hate the bad god. Teaching

hate is always very problematic because the borders of good and bad are not always

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well defines. Some cases could be liminal and relative meaning, what is good for one

person may be bad for another. People who are viewed to do bad things may be

interpreted as succumbing to the bad god and therefore should be also hated. In the

Abrahamic religions they would be identified with Satan who is the embodiment of

Angra Manue.

What was the most upsetting event that shaped the editing and redaction of the Hebrew Bible?

The destruction of the first temple in Jerusalem by the Babylonians in the year 586

BCE was the first traumatic event that shaped the history of the Jewish people.

Jews were in the exile of Babylon and asked themselves what went wrong? Why

were they exiled? Why God let the Babylonians destroy the temple? Instead of

deriving to a conclusion that their kings made fatal political decisions, by assuming

that the Egyptians are the rising superpower instead of the Babylonians, they

came up with theological answers to these questions and said, “We sinned and

therefore we were punished”.

If earth, water, wind and fire are considered sacred and pure in the Zoroastrian belief, how then the

disposal of the dead is possible without defiling all these elements?

Zoroastrians would wait three days to the soul of a person to depart from his

body. Then people designated to do this, will come in and take the deceased to a

place called Dokhma in Farsi, or “Tower of Silence” which is a lonely place outside

the city, surrounded by high walls and has neither roof nor windows, there is only

one entrance. They would place the body in the center of the structure, tear open

his clothes and quietly leave the place and close the door behind them. Then,

vultures perched on the top of the wall would plunge and consume the flesh out

of the body. After a time the bones would be removed to a box or a cavity in the

rock.

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What was the chief theological code by which the history of the Israelite was told in the Hebrew

Bible?

The chief theological code in the Hebrew Bible is the principle of reward and

punishment. Meaning if you are righteous and you have been good, you will be

rewarded in your own life time, here and now. If you are an evil-doer you will be

punished by god and by the society in your life time and not in the afterlife. An

answer to the question, why then evil-doer still thrive and righteous people are

not yet rewarded is that reward and punishment is carrying on to the next

generation. It means that if an evil-doer is not punished in his life time his children

grandchildren and great grandchildren are liable for punishment. It imposes

responsibilities not only for a single person but for four generations that follow.

How did the Bible treat the Babylonian myth of Enkidu and the Harlot?

The myth of Enkidu and the Harlot is a Babylonian story about a man who resides

in a place similar to paradise and was lured to leave it and go to the city in order

to match his double and to discipline him. In the story a woman was sent to make

love to him and by that he would lose his paradise and go with her to the city. This

is perhaps the forerunner of story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. The

Bible interpreted this story using the idea of reward and punishment. Adam and

Eve were expelled for wrong doing. Enkidu was expelled because he was needed

in the city.

What was the mission of Moses do according to the Hebrew Bible?

According to the Hebrew Bible Moses delivered the Israelite from bondage in

Egypt to the Promise Land, although he never crossed the River Jordan and set a

foot there. He was also considered to be savior from slavery and the law giver.

The Bible tells that while in the wilderness of Sinai, he went up to Mount Sinai and

received the Ten Commandments in two tablets. These Ten Commandments serve

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as the basic laws of ethics for Judaism. In later Judaism Moses is a paragon and

role model for all Rabbis. Rabbis fashioned themselves in the image of Moses and

adopt charismatic leadership characteristic as Moses.

What event the holiday of Passover commemorates?

Passover commemorates the Exodus from Egypt. According to the Bible, the

Israelites were slaves in Egypt and desired to go back to their Promised Land.

Pharaoh was reluctant to let them go and wished to punish them. Moses who led

the Israelites struck Egypt with ten Plagues. After the tenth plague, in which all

firstborn Egyptian children died, Pharaoh agreed to let the Israelites go. The

plagues passed over the Israelites in Egypt and this is the reason the holiday is

called in Hebrew Pesach meaning: Passover.

Who according to the Hebrew Bible was the one who introduced monotheism to the Israelites?

According to the Bible Abraham was n the city of Ur in southern Mesopotamia

(Iraq of today) when God was revealed to him and told him to leave his homeland

and to go to the Promise Land where he will be the forefather of a nation. So

according to the Bible Abraham was the one who introduced monotheism to his

family and to the people of Israel.

What happens to the souls of the deceased in the Zoroastrian belief?

Souls depart the body three days after death and travel to the Separation Bridge.

If they were righteous people the bridge will wide open for them, they will smell

heaven hear singing and see the beautiful sight of Heaven. But if they were evil

doers the bridge will tilt, the stench of hell will come up from the immeasurable

depth and darkness, the will hear lonely voices crying from the depth; finally they

will fall into hell and vanish.

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Who was King Josiah? What did he do and why was he so important?

King Josiah lived in the beginning of the seventh century BCE. The Bible says that

he performed a religious reformation in Israel in which he abolished all idol

worshipping and strengthened the worship of Jehovah. The Bible calls says that

he was the most righteous king after King Solomon. In fact, from a historical point

of view, he was the first to impose strict monotheism to the kingdom of Judah.

Thus, austere monotheism only begins with his reign, about fifteen centuries after

the presumed life of Abraham. It means that while the biblical narrator ascribed

the establishment of monotheism to Abraham (allegedly 21st century BCE), it was

actually practiced in the 7th century BCE.

How did the Bible interpret the story of Utnapishtim in the Gilgamesh story?

The story of Utnapishtim is a Babylonian story which is very similar to the story of

the biblical Noah. In the story Utnapishtim was a king who had particular

connection to one specific god. In return, this god revealed to him that the other

gods plot to destroy humanity by a great flood and he advised Utnapishtim to

save himself and his family by building up an ark. He did so and he and his family

were saved. The idea in this myth was that if you know what the gods plot against

you, you may be saved. The biblical Noah story put the emphasis on reward and

punishment. Noah was saved because according to the Bible, he was the most

righteous person in his time.

What did the returnee from the Babylonian exile do in Jerusalem?

The returnee rebuilt the temple, now known as Second Temple. They formed a

priestly government over the Jewish community in and around Jerusalem. Resume

the worship in the Temple and rebuilt the city of Jerusalem.

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What historical event the holiday of Hanukah commemorates?

The holiday of Hanukah commemorates the priestly family known as Hasmonean,

or Maccabees in other traditions, successful revolt against the Greek kings of Syria

in 165 BCE. As a result of the revolt the Jews regained political freedom from the

Syrian Greeks, removed the non-Jewish symbols of worship that the Greeks

installed in the Temple and according to the tradition, “purified” it after being

defiled by foreign worship. The holiday is a commemoration of the independence

war against the Syrian Greek kings.

What was the second most distressing event that shaped the history of the Jewish people?

The destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem by the Romans in the year 70

CE was the most traumatic event that shaped the history of the Jewish people

during the Second Temple Period. The Jews again in the exile, asked themselves

the same question they asked when the first Temple was destroyed and it was

“what went wrong?” This time they came up to a “political science” answer. One

of the commanders of the rebellion, a Jew by the name of Josephus, wrote twenty

volumes on the revolt against the Romans. It did not turn into a “Bible” because it

lacks theological reasons for the defeat.

What were the results of the destruction of the second Jewish Temple in Jerusalem?

At the aftermath of the rebellion against the Romans and the destruction of

Jerusalem and the Temple, the Rabbis, the Jewish leaders, leaders at the time,

decided to create uniformity and unity to the pluralistic Judaism that they thought

there was and they believed it caused the failure of the revolt. One of the ways to

create uniformity, they thought, was to create uniformity of the sacred scripture.

This process is called the canonization of the Bible. They formed a committee that

took all what was considered to be sacred literature that existed in separate

scrolls, examined them one by one and decided whether they should be included

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in the Bible. Only 39 books out of unknown number scrolls were canonized. Books

that called for rebellion such as the four books of the Maccabees were dismissed

from the canon. This process came to an end about the year 90 CE, twenty years

after the destruction of the Second Temple.

Another resolution was to substitute sacrifice by prayers. Since the temple and

the altars were destroyed, sacrifices could no more be made. Therefore, the

Rabbis ruled that prayers would replace sacrifice.

What did Zoroastrianism contribute to the monotheistic religions?

Despite their small number today, at the time when they flourished (5th century

BCE to the 8th century CE) they contributed immensely to the Abrahamic religions.

To Judaism it contributed the notion of purity and impurity and in particular the

impurity of dead people. To Christianity and Islam they contributed the concept of

heaven and hell and the belief in angels and the belief in evil power.

What was the main question the Jews asked themselves after the first and the second temples were

destroyed?

The question the Jews asked themselves was what went wrong? Where was God

in the siege over Jerusalem and why did He not intervene in the war and let his

Temple and his city of Jerusalem be destroyed and his Chosen People taken to

exile? In short what went wrong? Why the salvation program did not come true?

What was the answer the Jews gave to themselves for the question “What went wrong” after the

First Temple had been destroyed?

The answer was given on a theological mode and not on a political mode. It stated

very simply, we sinned and we were punished. They did not make a political

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analysis of the situation and did not realize that in fact their king made some

wrong decisions. He supported the wrong side in the struggle between the

Babylonians and the Egyptians.

What was the role of Joshua in the Biblical narrative?

According to the book titled after his name, Joshua led the Israelite to the Promise Land,

cross the River Jordan and conquered most of the country from the native Canaanites. He

conquered Jericho, a city by the name of Ai, Jerusalem, Hazor and many other locations.

When the conquest was completed he assigned a lot to each tribe and settled them in their

places.

What does it mean “the canonization of the Bible”?

Canon is a yard stick used for measuring. Canonization means using a measuring

standard to determine what would be included in the Bible and what not. The

Hebrew Bible was canonized in around the year 90 CE. Only 39 books were

recognized as sacred scripture and entered the Bible in one volume. It is not yet

precisely known what the criteria for the selection were.

What is the Septuagint?

The Septuagint means in Greek the Seventy. This is the name of the Greek

translation of the Bible. The translation was commissioned by Ptolemy II, the

Greek king of Egypt. According to the legend he invited 70 Jewish sages to

Alexandria in Egypt to translate the Bible from Hebrew to Greek.

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What is Hallakha?

Since the Bible in not explicit about the details of the commandments and rules, it

became necessary to define more precisely the precepts. For example, the Bible

teaches not work on Shabbat (Saturday), the faithful who wishes to comply with

this should know when exactly Shabbat begins and what is considered to be work.

Hallakha is a Jewish religious decree that instructs the faithful how to live a life

without violating the biblical commandments, laws and precepts. The first

Hallakhas were compiled and published in about the year 200 CE and are known

as the Mishnah, in 400 CE another compilation was published and was known as

the Jerusalem or Palestinian Talmud, in 500 CE another compilation was published

under the title, the Babylonian Talmud.

What was the theological product of the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem?

The theological outcome of the destruction of the Second Temple was the

canonization of the Bible. This was done by a committee of Rabbis in the city of

Yavneh (Yamnia in Greek) headed by Rabbi Yohanan Ben Zakai. The process of the

canonization of the Hebrew Bible was completed in 90 CE.

Who was Maimonides?

Rabbi Moshe Ben Maimon, known in Arabic as Musa Ibn Maymun , in Latin as

Maimonides or his Hebrew Acronym RaMBam was a preeminent Jewish

philosopher, physician and a prolific biblical interpreter (1137 – 1204) in Jewish

Sephardic community of Spain. His 14 volumes of Misheh Torah still carries

significant canonical authority as a codification of the Talmudic laws. In his book

Guide to the Perplexed, he revived the philosophy of Aristotle and suggested to

reconcile between science and religion.

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Maimonides explained the source of evil as occurs in the absence of good.

Wherever good does not exist there exists evil. Therefore, according to him, good

is divine while evil is the lack of divine nature.

What is Mishnah?

The Mishnah is a compilation in six volumes of Hallakhas. The Mishnah was

published in 200 CE by Rabbi Judah the Prince. The Mishnah deals with all walks of

life and instructs how to live a life according to the biblical laws.

What is Talmud?

Despite the fact that it was written in six volumes the Mishnah was not detailed

enough and did not cover many questions that people faced while attempting to

comply with the biblical laws. Therefore three hundred years after the

compilation of the Mishnah there was a need for more details and the Talmud

was published. It expands on the biblical laws as were interpreted in the Mishnah.

Who among the Jewish movements suggests worshiping with joy?

The Hassidic movement emerged in the 17th century Eastern Europe as a

movement advocating worship with joy as opposed to the stern attitude of the

other orthodox Jewry. They confronted a strong opposition from the mainstream

orthodox Jews at the onset of the movement. In addition to worship with joy they

form communities of disciples around their Rabbis. Worship with joy is in many

cases mixed with overwhelmingly admiration to their Rabbis.

What does the Jewish Reform movement suggest to do?

The Reform Jewish movement emerged in the middle of the 19th century as a

result of the emancipation of the Jews, and offered to reconcile modern life with

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Judaism and to adapt it to the society in which the Jews live. It is considered to be

a very liberal interpretation of Jewish precepts.

What does the Zionist movement suggest that Jews should do?

The Zionist movement emerged in the end of the 19th century in Europe as a result

of growing European anti-Semitism and suggested that Jews should return to the

Land of Israel and restore the Jewish state that existed nearly two thousand years

earlier. In 1948 the movement was successful when they managed to declare an

independent Jewish state which was recognized by most of the countries in the

world.

What were the major Jewish sects during the Second Temple period?

Judaism during the Second Temple period was very pluralistic and did not consist

of one group. The major Jewish sects were the Sadducees, Pharisees, Essenes

(Dead Sea Scrolls sect), Scribes, Zealots and others.

What does the Orthodox Jewish movement suggest Jews should do?

The Orthodox Jewish movement suggested not to change Jewish customs in light

of modern life but to retain the old traditions as they were practiced for centuries

in the Jewish ghettos.

What are the Dead Sea Scrolls?

The Dead Sea Scrolls are group of written scrolls found near the Dead Sea in Israel.

They originated from a library that contained about 800 scrolls discovered torn

into 2000 pieces. The scrolls contain all the books of the Bible (except for the Book

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of Esther) many Apocrypha literature and sectarian writing. The sectarian

literature is perhaps the most interesting body of scrolls since it was not known

from any other literature. It describes a very dogmatic dissident sect that did not

agree with the way the temple was managed and advocated to void it. The scrolls

are believed to be written by a Jewish sect called Essenes. The authors of the

scrolls divided the world into the Sons of Light and Sons of Darkness. They vision

an apocalyptic war between the Sons of Light and the Sons of Darkness in which

the Sons of Light will defeat the Sons of Darkness. They saw themselves, naturally,

as the Sons of Light.

What is Yom Kippur?

This is undoubtedly the most important Jewish holiday. It is a day of atonement

and is celebrated ten days after Rosh Hashanah, New Year’s Eve. This is a day of

fasting, forgiveness and repentance. People are supposed to contemplate about

their behavior and to seek forgiveness from each other and to confess their sins.

What was the Nazi’s “Final Solution”?

The “Final Solution” was the name of the Nazi Germans plan to exterminate all the

Jews in the world. During the six years of WWII the Nazis managed to annihilate

six million Jews, a third of the entire Jewish population.

Who was the Herodian dynasty?

The Herodians were a dynasty of Jewish kings. The founder of the dynasty was

Herod the Great. He came to power in 37 BCE and reigned until 4 BCE. His dynasty

reigned until the year 90 CE.

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Who was the Hasmonaean dynasty?

The Hasmonaean dynasty was a dynasty of Jewish kings reigning from 165 BCE to

the accession of Herod the Great to power in 37 BCE. The Hasmonaeans, known

also as the Maccabees led the successful revolt against the Greek kings of Syria

and managed gain independence. Their victory over the Greek Syrians and the

rededication of the Temple is commemorated in the holiday of Hanukah.

Who were the Sadducees?

The Sadducees were the hereditary priestly families who run the temple in

Jerusalem. Because of their position they gain power and wealth and became

corrupt.

Who were the Pharisees?

The Pharisees were the Jewish population who were not the priests in the temple

and despite the fact that they were resentful to the Sadducees they did not avoid

the temple, kept visiting it bringing offering sacrifice and donations.

Who were the Essenes?

This was a Jewish sect who resented the corrupt Sadducees priests but unlike the

Pharisees they avoided the temple and did not participate in the temple rituals

such as pilgrimage, offerings, and sacrifice. They waited for a Messiah to come

and redeem the Temple from the corrupt priests and restore the divine order.

Who were the Zealots?

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The Zealots were a group of Jewish extremists living during the Second Temple

period, who resented the corrupt priests, advocated for an imminent Messiah

that was supposed to emerge and redeem the Temple from the corrupt priests.

The Zealots thought that they will urge the coming of the Messiah by using

terrorism and creating anarchy.

What Sabbath means?

Sabbath is Saturday, the seventh day of the week. According to Genesis God

rested on this day from the creation and therefore the Jew are instructed s to

follow through this example and rest on Sabbath. This law of rest required

elucidation and definition of things like work, a day, and many other problems

people would have if they would want to follow the law and rest on Sabbath

without violating the biblical law.

What is the meaning of Kosher food?

Kosher means ritually correct. It pertains mainly to food. The Bible prescribes

features for animals that are permissible for consumption and features of animals

that are not. These laws were elaborated and interpreted in the Mishnah and the

Talmud.

What is the Kabbalah?

It is a movement of Jewish mysticism. Mysticism means that there are some

secret mysteries that humans cannot discover or comprehend. These mysteries

relate to the nature of God and the hidden structure of the universe. These

mysteries can only be approached after a long study. Kabbalah advocate for a

symbolic reading of the Bible and that the Bible was written in a code.

The most famous book of the Kabbalah is the Zohar (“Splendor”) which was

written in the Middle Ages but ascribed to the first century. According to the

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Zohar the universe emerged from a pure boundless, spiritual reality. There are ten

divine powers separating between human and the divine. Humans are a blend of

earthly and spiritual beings. Within their bodies there is a spark of divine light that

seeks liberation and a return to God.

What was the Jewish reaction to the growing anti-Semitism of the 19th century?

The Jewish reaction to the growing anti-Semitic sentiments among the Christian

countries in the 19th century was the notion that emancipation and integration

with the Christian communities does not end the anti-Semitic feelings but perhaps

only intensifies it. Facing this reality the Jews realized that the only way to escape

anti-Semitism is to leave Europe and go back to the Jewish old homeland, the

Land of Israel, to reclaim it and restore their long lost Jewish independent state.

This notion was made a movement known as the Zionist movement. The first

Zionist Congress was held in Basel Switzerland in 1897.

What Karl Marx said about religious beliefs?

Karl Marx, a Jewish economists, philosopher, political theorist, sociologist,

journalist and revolutionary socialist, born in Germany and spent much of his life

in London. He is considered to be the father of communism. He developed the

theory of Historical Materialism. In his opinion religions promise false things that

never materialize. In his words: “Religion is opium to the masses fed by the rich

and wealthy in order to keep the deprived and lower class quiet and exploited”.

What Sigmund Freud said about religion?

Sigmund Freud, a Jewish neurologist, the father of psychoanalysis, spent most of

his life in Vienna Austria. Run away for his life to England when the Nazi regime

conquered Austria. Freud analyzed religion from a psychological point of view and

suggested that religion replace parents in adulthood, and similar to parent who

shelter their children from the unsafe and the unknown, religion take their place.

“In God We Trust” that God will save us from all evil things, describes in short the

role of religion as a shelter.

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Did ancient Egyptians believe in afterlife?

Yes, ancient Egyptians had a very strong belief in afterlife. They thought they

knew how to attain it. According to their belief it was not easy to reach afterlife.

There are several prerequisites one has to take. One has to contract a temple to

mention his name every day in the temple, upon his death his body should be

embalmed because life after death is in soul and body, not just the soul. After

embalming he has to go safely through the hurdles in the seven gates of heaven

and appear before Osiris, the king of the dead, in the Hall of Justice and to stand

in the last Judgment’s Day. He has to place his heart on a scale and see if his heart

is pure and lighter than one feather. Only then Osiris will send him eternal life in

heaven. If he was evildoer Apophis the dreadful monster will devour him and he

will be lost forever.

What Secularism means in Israel?

Secularism, by and large, means indifference to religious beliefs, not part taking

in religious rituals and not identifying oneself with one conviction or another.

Since Judaism is an ethnic religion, meaning, a religion that is based on people

and not on faith. In Judaism there is no need to confess belief in god. A person is

considered to be Jewish even though he shows disbelief in any of the Jewish

tenants and precepts or even disbelief that there is god. This is different in

Christianity, Islam and Buddhism which are religions based on faith and not on

people. A person cannot be Christian, a Muslim or a Buddhist if he does not

believe in the founding fathers of these religions (Jesus of Nazareth, Muhamad

and Buddha).

Therefore, secularism and atheism is possible in Judaism and in fact in Israel it is

a common concept. Most Israelis, 85% of them, define themselves as secular and

out of the secular Jewish Israelis 42% do not believe in god. This is one of the

highest number of people who do not believe god exists, in the world today.

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The Alfred Dryfoos Affair

The Alfred Dryfoos Affair caused great dispute in France at the end of the 19th

century and the beginning of the 20th century. It drastically changed the opinion

of the European Jews regarding their century long hard attempt to integrate in

the Christian European society and to continue contributing to their progress.

The affair begun in 1870-71 when the German Chancellor (Prime Minister), Otto

von Bismarck came up with the idea of unifying the 36 different German

autonomous principalities into a one big Germany under the Prussian King

Wilhelm I. The French under the emperor Napoleon III were very apprehensive

about it and declared war against Prussia. This war is called in history, the

French-Prussian war. The French military was larger and better equipped but the

Germans attacked France from the east and in a decisive battle, known as the

battle of Sedan they defeated the French army. In this battle the French lost

21,000 strong and 17,000 were captured. The German reported on a little more

than 200 casualties. Napoleon III was captured in the battle and a new French

republic was declared. The Germans advanced and put a siege over Paris.

This humiliating defeat of the France did not go without saying and in the next

twenty years the French looked for a reason for the defeat. The French did not

ask themselves “what went wrong”? But they asked themselves “Who we shall

blame for the defeat”? In 1894 they came up with a Jewish military officer,

Captain in the French army, by the name of Alfred Dryfoos, and accused him for

espionage and treason. After a short military marshal they publically stripped off

his ranks of his shoulders and ceremonially broke his sword. Dryfoos was

sentence to life prison in the Devil’s Island in the French Caribbean.

Shortly after that the French intelligent found out that an officer called

Estrerhazy was the spy who disclosed to the Germans the French plans. In 1904

Dryfoos was called back to Paris, his ranks restored. During WWI he served in the

French army and died in 1935.

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This trial that shock the public of French demonstrated how the Jewish attempts

to integrate in the Christian society is futile and how antisemitism is so deep

rooted in the European Christian society.

As a result a Jewish author and Journalist from Austria who covered the trial for

his paper, convened the Jewish people who came to his conclusion in the First

Jewish Congress (1894) and suggested that the Jews should depart from Europe

for good and go back to their historic homeland Israel and restore the state of

Israel. This movement is called Zionism and its aim was and still is to restore and

build the State of Israel. These are the roots of the establishment of the modern

State of Israel. It is not a Messianic prophetic call, it is not based on religious

beliefs, and neither is It European colonialism as is sometimes spelled out by

anti-Israelis or anti-Semitics, but a call for a national rehabilitation.