Catch-67: The Left, the Right, and the Legacy of the Six-Day War

by Micah Goodman, Eylon Levy (Translator)

Overview

A controversial examination of the internal Israeli debate over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from a best-selling Israeli author

"A must for anyone who wants to understand the tectonic forces underlying Israeli politics."—Rabbi Robert Orkand, Reform Judaism

"An eloquent expression of the distant hope that deeply committed human beings can stop, inhale deeply, listen, change, and compromise."—Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review 

Since the Six-Day War, Israelis have been entrenched in a national debate over whether to keep the land they conquered or to return some, if not all, of the territories to Palestinians. In 2017, best-selling Israeli author Micah Goodman published a balanced and insightful analysis of the situation that quickly became one of Israel’s most debated books of the year. Now available in English translation with a new preface by the author, Catch-67 deftly sheds light on the ideas that have shaped Israelis’ thinking on both sides of the debate, and among secular and religious Jews about the Israeli‑Palestinian conflict.

Contrary to opinions that dominate the discussion, he shows that the paradox of Israeli political discourse is that both sides are right in what they affirm—and wrong in what they deny. Although he concludes that the conflict cannot be solved, Goodman is far from a pessimist and explores how instead it can be reduced in scope and danger through limited, practical steps. Through philosophical critique and political analysis, Goodman builds a creative, compelling case for pragmatism in a dispute where a comprehensive solution seems impossible.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780300248418
Publisher:	Yale University Press
Publication date:	10/08/2019
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	264
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Micah Goodman is the author of four best-selling books in Israel including Maimonides and the Book That Changed Judaism. He is president of Beit Midrash Yisraeli–Ein Prat, and a senior fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem.

Table of Contents

Preface to the English Edition ix

Maps xiv

Introduction: Can the Israeli National Conversation Be Healed? 1

Part I Political Ideologies in Crisis

Introduction: Right and Left-A Tale of Two Shifts 19

1 The Right's Ideological Shift 23

2 The Left's Ideological Shift 37

3 Religious Zionism and the Messianic Shift 51

Part II Political Ideas in Crisis

Introduction: Both Sides Are Right 65

4 A Confusing Paradox 67

5 No Security Problem? 73

6 No Demographic Problem? 81

7 The Moral Dilemma 93

8 The Jewish Dilemma 105

9 From Confusion to Understanding 117

Part III The Sphere of Pragmatic Discourse

Introduction: The State and Its Dreams 133

10 The Partial-Peace Plan 143

11 The Divergence Plan 155

12 Political Pragmatism as a Bridge Between the Left and the Right 163

Afterword 171

Notes 179

Acknowledgments 227

Index 231

Editorial Reviews

"The author's voice is calm, rational, analytical. . . . Beneath the narrative lies a strong foundation of historical and religious research, solid organizational principles, and clear, informed prose. . . . An eloquent expression of the distant hope that deeply committed human beings can stop, inhale deeply, listen, change, and compromise."—Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review 

"Goodman’s vision is simple: Israel can’t go back. But Israelis can still extricate themselves from the zero-sum game, heal their ideological wounds, and only then begin thinking clearly again about peace with the Palestinians."—Mark Horowitz, Tablet

 "A must for anyone who wants to understand the tectonic forces underlying Israeli politics."—Rabbi Robert Orkand, Reform Judaism

"Goodman separates fact from fiction, even-handedly presenting the case for reasonable arguments, and dismissing those which lack legal, political or historical justification."—Jewish Book Council

"Probably the best guide produced in recent years to the present state of Israeli political discourse, and to its woeful limitations."—Haviv Gur, Mosaic, The Best Books of 2018

“Catch-67 is a book that dares to imagine a solution to one of the most intractable geopolitical conflicts in the long history of the Jewish people, but Goodman also embraces a more modest goal: 'I have sought throughout to acquire an understanding heart; to listen with empathy to different viewpoints; and, guided by the spirit of the Talmud, to try to rehabilitate Israel’s fractured conversation.' In that effort, he has succeeded magnificently.”—Jonathan Kirsch, Jewish Journal 

“An astonishingly succinct and trenchant guide to the complexities of the internal Israeli debate.”—Peter Berkowitz, RealClearPolitics

“Catch-67 plumbs the ideological and historical depths of the arguments of both the right and the left, treating them with equal respect. Goodman’s book won’t bring an end to what has long been our most urgent national conversation, but it does demonstrate, by both precept and example, how best to participate in it.”—Avi Shilon, Jewish Review of Books
 

“Goodman emerges as a thinking, open person who is not fixed in his ideas, and is sincerely searching for a way to create an exit from the maze in which we’re trapped. He is endowed with a real ability to listen, something rare in these parts.”—Ehud Barak, Haaretz

“Micah Goodman offers us a way forward through introducing a different kind of dialogue into a deeply divided Israeli society. By shifting the debate away from empty slogans and towards concrete solutions, he provides a way out of the rut that we’ve been in since 1967 and enables us to make the tough decisions, heal the rifts and continue to live as one people.”—Tzipi Livni, former Foreign Minister of Israel

 

From the Publisher

★ 2018-07-31

An Israeli scholar assesses the consequences of the Six-Day War and the chasm that divides political opponents in Israel, offering some ideas for solutions.

Goodman (Maimonides and the Book that Changed Judaism: Secrets of The Guide for the Perplexed, 2015, etc.), a senior fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem, has no Pollyannaish delusions about the ongoing conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians (and among Israelis themselves). He clearly recognizes the problems of satisfying everyone, including a tiny geographical space and enormous religious and cultural differences. Throughout, he comments on the tribalism that divides political opinion in Israel (and in America and elsewhere), a situation that is difficult—perhaps impossible?—to remedy. The author's voice is calm, rational, analytical. He points out the strengths of the right and the left, the logical and moral errors on both sides, the apparent intractability of the problem, and the intransigence of the principal players. Beneath the narrative lies a strong foundation of historical and religious research, solid organizational principles, and clear, informed prose. Goodman begins by describing and analyzing the opposing political ideologies among Israelis and then focuses on the essence of the problem. Israel is small, surrounded by those who wish her ill, and if Israel yields in some fashion, won't Jews quickly become a minority in the country? He explores the moral dimension and dilemma, as well: How can you consider yourself a democracy if a large number of residents have no political rights? Near the end, the author offers some ideas for solutions; none are perfect, as he quickly admits—and he adds that perfection is hardly a useful aim when all involved are imperfect. Finally, he states his firm opposition to all-encompassing "political ideologies" and urges "listening" to "elevate Israel's culture of debate."

An eloquent expression of the distant hope that deeply committed human beings can stop, inhale deeply, listen, change, and compromise.

Kirkus Reviews