Part I Introduction

Thus, in theory, begins the cycle of tension between Arabs and Jews.1 It may have been Isaac or it may have been Ishmael who was the favorite child and heir of Abraham (or, of course, it may have been neither at all). The fact remains that two peoples point to this millennia-old story as their “origin myth.” More importantly, two people point to the land bequeathed by the shepherd Abraham and call it their own.