ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the influence of the Jewish religion on democracy in Israeli society. It argues that Judaism, as it is presently perceived, in Israel does not reinforce attitudes and values that undergird a democratic system. The chapter also argues that Israelis define Judaism in narrow, particularistic, and nationalistic terms, but that this is only one alternative conception of Judaism. The tradition has been nationalized, among both nonreligious and religious Zionists, through a selective interpretation of sacred texts and of Jewish history, and has taken place independently of the rabbinical elite's influence. Judaism in Israel has become increasingly particularistic and ethnocentric. It promotes little tolerance for the individual rights of non-Jewish citizens, and even less for group rights of minorities. The emergence of any alternative definition of Judaism that demonstrates both intellectual vigor and the capacity to inspire a way of life would generate a new breed of religious thinkers who would be forced to confront these new developments.
