Podcasts about degania

Yael grew up in Israel's first kibbutz – Degania – with a secular mother and a traditional Moroccan father. When she was younger, she thought she was volunteering for a non-profit in Jerusalem, but it turned out to be a cult. Today, Yael is a Hebrew tutor and translator by day, musician by night, and a volunteer at The Feminist Library in Florence, Italy. She also writes for the Israeli magazine, Politically Corret (“corret” in Hebrew means “she reads”).Follow Yael on yaelfine_ (Twitter), and yael.hebrew (Instagram)

Im Kontext des Nahostkonflikts zwischen Israel und der Hamas fällt in den Medien immer wieder ein Wort: Kibbuz. Es wird dabei so selbstverständlich verwendet, als wäre seine Bedeutung allen in Deutschland und Europa völlig klar. Aber ich muss doch zugeben: Mir war das bis vor kurzem ganz und gar nicht so klar! Was ist ein Kibbuz denn genau? Einfach nur ein Dorf in Israel? Eine jüdische Siedlung? Nun ... wie sich herausstellt: Irgendwie beides zugleich und doch weder noch. Ein Kibbuz – im Plural übrigens Kibbuzim – ist eine der historischen Siedlungsformen im modernen Israel und steht damit neben anderen Formen wie etwa den Moschawim. Aber doch unterscheidet sich ein Kibbuz ganz gewaltig von einem "normalen" Dorf. Denn vor allem sind Kibbuzim eben auch eines: Ein sozialistisches Experiment.Melde dich hier für den Newsletter an und erfahre hier mehr über den Déjà-vu Club.Die Geschichte der Kibbuzbewegung geht dabei zurück in die Frühzeit des Zionismus im ausgehenden 19. und frühen 20. Jahrhundert. Die frühen Anhänger:innen dieser Idee verbanden mit ihren zionistischen Idealen der Besiedlung Israels aber auch die Erschaffung einer neuen, egalitären Gesellschaft im Sinn des Sozialismus. Und genau so wurde das dann auch umgesetzt. Zuerst im ersten Kibbuz überhaupt – in Degania – und bald in vielen weiteren. Und so besteht die Idee in Israel teils noch heute. Aber doch mit großen Veränderungen ... Steigen wir heute also ein in diese Geschichte eines doch zu unbekannten kommunistisch-zionistischen Experiments.Déjà-vu Geschichte ist Mitglied des Netzwerks #Historytelling. Diese Episode findest du auch auf ralfgrabuschnig.com. Hinterlasse mir dort gerne einen Kommentar mit deinen Gedanken. Und wenn dir der Déjà-vu Geschichte Podcast gefällt, abonniere ihn doch bitte, wo auch immer du ihn hörst.Links zur EpisodeAlles über den Déjà-vu NewsletterZum Club auf SteadyFolge zur LebensreformbewegungZu Andreas BlogAlle Infos aus der WerbungTags: Israel, Naher und mittlerer Osten, Zeitgeschichte, Neuere und neueste Geschichte Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Bass, vocals. Recorded live.

Bass. Recorded live.

El establecimiento al norte del Degania Alef fue fundado como el primer Kibbutz oficial en Palestina. La idea de establecimientos colectivos fue central para la ideología sionista, en sus inicios en el siglo XIX, con muchos de los primeros líderes sionistas influyentes pidiendo la formación de comunidades agrícolas para servir como núcleo para la patria judía en Palestina. El día de su establecimiento, un grupo conocido como La Comuna Hadera llegó a Umm Juni en el Kinneret, donde firmaron un acuerdo con el Fondo Nacional Judío para arrendar el terreno como el lugar para el establecimiento. Más tarde, el grupo cambió su nombre a Degania, en base a la palabra hebrea dagan, que significa grano. El primer año fue un éxito, sobrepasando los primeros logros de los experimentos judíos que tenían el objetivo de establecer comunidades agrícolas colectivas en Palestina. En pocos años, el modelo establecido en Degania fue replicado ampliamente, dando origen al movimiento Kibbutz.

In our last episode we talked about the kibbutz movement—the collective farming system that began in Israel in 1909 in Degania just south of the Sea of Galilee. While I am no fan of socialism, it was successful as long as Israel’s existence depended on it. But what happened once Israel stabilized? First, let me tell you how a kibbutz worked. The ideology came out of Eastern Europe and Russia. The layout of a kibbutz was simple. You had a residential area. The children, at least for the first few decades, would sleep not in their homes, but in the children’s house. Remember, everything was equal. There were common grounds for swimming and dining and an auditorium for meetings and entertainment. Elana and I once went to a costume party on the Jewish feast of Purim at a kibbutz.  The kibbutz life is simple. Everything you needed is on the kibbutz. In most cases, cars are not needed, as you either walk or bike to your destination. In comes cases, golf carts are used.  AD Gordon, was the father of Israel agricultural movement. He was an exhorter credited with getting the Jews of Eastern Europe to get their hands direty and become farmers. He said, You work here [on the farm] simply without philosophizing; sometimes the work is hard and crowded with pettiness. But at times you feel a surge of cosmic exaltation, like the clear light of the heavens... . And you, too, seem to be taking root in the soil which you are digging, to be nourished by the rays of the sun, to share life with the tiniest blade of grass, with each flower; living in nature's depths, you seem then to rise and grow into the vast expanse of the universe. He turned farming into a religion.  In the early years, there was a large focus on equality in all things. Women would do any job that the men did. However, things have changed today. While the women still work, no so much in hard labor. Teachers are needed in every kibbutz, not mention doctors and nurses.  Everyone in the kibbutz works on the kibbutz. In rare situations, some are sent outside of the kibbutz because of their skill in a particular area. One of my wife’s childhood friends is a leader in his kibbutz outside of Beersheva in the desert. Each day he leaves to go work in the computer industry. But, according to the ideals of kibbutz life, he freely turns over his entire paycheck to the kibbutz. Why would he do that? He loves the kibbutz life. It is called voluntarily socialism.  If ever there was a model of socialism that should have succeeded it was the Israeli Kibbutzim. Why? Unlike in the Soviet Union and its satellites, there was no one getting fat at the top at the expense of the workers.  What held them together was not a totalitarian government as we see in Cuba, but a shared desire to see Israel succeed as a nation—they were committed to the prophetic declarations, such as we see in Ps. 102 verse 16, “For the Lord will rebuild Zion and appear in his glory.” And Amos 9,14 “They will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them. They will plant vineyards and drink their wine; they will make gardens and eat their fruit.” Nevertheless, the Kibbutzim were dependent on the state to forgive their debt. But in the mid-80s the state could no longer afford the status quo. Things had to change. While a minority of kibbutzim remain loyal to the founders’ motto, “from each according to his ability, to each according to his need,” most have abandoned the socialist system. When kibbutzim kids would go to university, they were often presented with a new and exciting world of opportunities. To make ends meet, most of the Kibbutzim, in addition to farming opened up wedding halls, hotels and even water parks.  In nearly 80% of kibbutzim there have been massive reforms. Children sleep together, but with their families. Members get paid according to their contribution, not need. Home ownership is now allowed. And members can work outside jobs and contribute a portion to the kibbutz.  This has led to a revival in the kibbutz movement which still contributes over 80% of Israel’s produce. It is hard to separate the Kibbutz movement from the Zionist dream. They go hand in hand. And while communism never works long, it did work long enough in Israel’s kibbutz movement for the nation to stabilize. 

In our last episode we talked about the kibbutz movement—the collective farming system that began in Israel in 1909 in Degania just south of the Sea of Galilee. While I am no fan of socialism, it was successful as long as Israel’s existence depended on it. But what happened once Israel stabilized?

Would you believe it if I told you that socialism helped young Israel survive? That was what I told a conservative talk show radio host some 30 years ago and he simply could not believe it.    Personally I am a fan of the free market. But about 40 years before Israel become a nation, they realized that the only way they could survive was to start collective farms where everything was equal. They called these farms Kibbutzim.  When the Jews returned to the promised land, it had been badly neglected by the Ottoman Empire and the Arabs who lived there. It was unfarmable. In the south, rocks had to be cleared and in the north malaria infested swamps had to be drained. The Jewish people worked together for the common good.  Degania—from the Hebrew word for grain—was the very first kibbutz, located at the southern end of the Sea of Galilee. The idea of reclaiming the soil had become something of a religion for the early Jewish Chalutizm, or pioneers. The young men and women came mostly from Eastern Europe. They were not used to physical labor and knew little about agriculture. But they had memorized of the prophecies about rebuilding the land.  They overcame these odds to create the foundation for Israel’s booming agriculture. Israel is famous for her creativity, but few people believed you could grow potatoes in the desert. Kibbutz Yotvata, after failing with fruits and vegetables, determined to grow potatoes. They were told it wouldn’t work, and yet 60 years later it is one of their main products. By bringing the Jewish people back to this barren land, the Lord would test his people. It would take faith. Author Moshe Kempinsky says, “God says, ‘I’m going to do something miraculous—I'm going to create a land that even though those climate issues don't call for it, it's going to be a land that's going to be filled with dates and honey, and also with milk so that you know that... nothing in this land comes here except when it’s from Me.’” Is that not what we see in the Scriptures? Did not God say that the dessert will blossom like a rose? Isaiah predicted that, “Israel shall blossom and bud, and fill the face of the world with fruit (Isa 27.6) and Ezekiel said, “The trees of the field shall yield their fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase” (Ezek 34.27) And Did not God promise a land flowing with milk and honey? CBN’s Julie Stahl writes, “It appears God has delivered on that promise. Despite the heat, humidity and limited resources, Israeli cows produce more milk per year than cows in the United States, European Union, and Australia.” The aforementioned Kibbutz Yotvata is the largest milk producing facility in the country. They were laughed at when they said they would raise cows in the desert heat. It was an impossible mission, but by 2008 they were churning out 62 million liters of milk per year.  Stahl claims that ancient honey came mainly from dates. She writes, “Today, Israel's dates are still famous throughout the world. Israel exports some 12,000 tons of dates each year to 20 countries.” The Kibbutz movement is largely to thank for Israel’s becoming a world leader in agriculture. But it was not without controversy. Socialism is a failed economic system. The Kibbutz movement was great when Israel’s existence depended on it, but would it survive once Israel stabilized? I will let you know in part 2. 

Moshe Dayan, the iconic eye-patch wearing soldier, is considered by many to be one of Israel’s greatest generals. But his life was not free from controversy.  intro He was the second child born on the very first Kibbutz, or collective farm—in Israel, situated below the Sea of Galilee, right next to Yardenit on the Jordan, where millions of pilgrims come to be immersed in water. He was named Moshe after the first member of the Kibbutz that was killed by Arabs, as he was seeking medication for Moshe’s father. At the time, Degania was part of the Ottoman Empire. This was before the first world war, after which Great Britain would take control of what would become Israel, a few decades later. At the young age of 14 he joined the Haganah, the main forerunner to the Israeli Defense Forces, along with a few other militias. He later was accepted into an elite force led and trained under famed British Commander Orde Wingate. There Dayan would learn guerilla warfare—the only way for the outnumbered Israelis to survive. Wingate was known for his unconventional fighting tactics. He was Christian and a devout Zionist. He felt it his Biblical duty to serve the Jewish people in establishing their own state.  Wingate, who personally selected Dayan, organized the Special Night Squads or the SNS. The SNS, amongst, other responsibilities, would stealthily attack known Arab terrorists with small, but well-trained, squads in the middle of the night. They were highly successful and today, one of our nations universities bears his name—my wife Elana studied there. Dayan continued to serve with the British and is most famous for the eyepatch that covered his left eye. On June 7th, 1941, in the midst of a firefight with the Syrians, he was looking through the scope of his rifle, when he was shot in the eye. In most cases such a wound be fatal. But Dayan recovered and his eye patch became legendary.  In 1967, he was appointed defense minister, and oversaw the miraculous victory of the Six-Day-War. Dayan was the one who boldly decided to confront the belligerent Syrians who were bombing Israeli villages from the Golan Heights. Furthermore, it was Dayan who imposed a news blackout for the first day of the war.  The effect of this blackout was remarkable. On the one hand, Israelis and Jews all over the world, were left to believe the false reports coming out of Egypt of an Arab stampede. On the other hand, this enabled Israel to achieve all her objectives without the UN interfering. No one at the UN was concerned about an Israeli loss—but an Israeli rout of her overconfident neighbors would lead to calls for an immediate ceasefire.  When the results came in, the world was shocked: Nearly 500 Arab planes destroyed, the Israelis were advancing with little resistance throughout the Sinai, all the way to the Suez Canal, 600 Egyptian tanks were taken out and 10,000 Egyptians killed or wounded, and another 5,000 plus were taken as POWs. Moshe Dayan was celebrated around the world as one of the great military minds of our day. But his story doesn’t end there. Join me for part 2.

Hedva Harechavi is an early feminist voice in contemporary Hebrew poetry, and, as you will hear, her work often combines the language of prayer and biblical texts with contemporary daily realities. Her first book, Because He Is King, won the Rachel Newman Poetry Award and established her as a poet. Harechavi's eight subsequent poetry collections have won all the major Israeli prizes. She was born on the kibbutz Degania, and lives in Jerusalem. Text: Hedva Harechavi, “A Very Cheerful Girl” translated by Tsipi Keller in Poets on the Edge. An Anthology of Contemporary Hebrew Poetry, SUNY 2008. Hedva Harechavi, “All of Reality to Me” translated by Tsipi Keller, Asymptote Journal