I like the idea of placing Memorial Day immediately before Independence Day. It serves as a reminder that independence comes only with a high price - not just for Israel, but for many nations on the earth. Memorial Day here is quite somber. The radio stations play minor-key music, the TV is full of programs about battles and their casualties, and there's a national moment of silence as there was for the Shoah this week. The juxtaposition does not temper the celebrations - which here in Israel can be quite raucous - but reminds the populace of the cost to be able to celebrate. In the USA, with Memorial Day occurring on the last Monday in May and Independence Day on the Fourth of July, it's no surprise that we don't have that level of clarity.
The State of Israel is about to turn 69 years old. Being such a young state, it is not surprising that there is still much argument over what sort of country it is. It is, strictly speaking, a secular state but it is the most religious secular state I've ever seen. Some secularists here see the influence of religion - specifically, Orthodox Jewish religion - as being coercive at times. That influence is often inconvenient for those not inclined towards religious observance. Just to take one example, the way that all public transport shuts down considerably before sundown Fridays and the eve of religious holidays. And doesn't start up until after sundown on the next day. This makes travel quite chaotic before and after the Sabbath and festivals.
Being a religious guy myself, and retired (at least for now), I don't mind the inconveniences. They force me to accomplish everything I need to before the chaos starts, so that I can observe the coming holy day in its fullness. But I understand why, for secular Jews, the government-mandated Shabbat and festival observances grate on them.
My only wish is that religious teachings other than specific ritual observances would get more play in the marketplace of ideas. There seems to be little to no conversation about the lofty traditions of mutual respect, the worth of the human being, and the value of peace. Since the 'Peace Camp,' of the Left, collapsed as a political force after the start of Intifada II in 2001, the nationalist camp seems to have set aside the teaching of ethics and humanity. An example: not long ago, a soldier in the IDF shot and killed a Palestinian Arab who had attacked a group of soldiers, but was that the time wounded and restrained. From the aforementioned nationalists, there was an outcry and a raft of political protest when the soldier was convicted by a military court, even though the sentence was fairly light. The outcry that the soldier should have been acquitted of any crime, as opposed to being given a light sentence because of the circumstances of the transgression, represents turning away - at least for some - of the principles of Tohar Haneshek, meaning 'Purity of Arms' or ethics in warfare, that have been the guiding principle of the IDF since its inception. But the religious/nationalists have turned their focus, to an unfortunate degree, on ways to force the populace to 'act religious.' In my mind, this only trivializes religion.
(By the way, I find my own civic home more in the nationalist camp, but I think it's important to have a robust and self-confident Left as well; it makes for a acknowledgement of different ideas, different options, different visions of society. If only one side of the philosophical coin can express itself confidently, it's to everybody's loss.)
It's not unique to Israel that there are conflicting ideas as to the nature of the country. In the USA, 240 years after her founding, there are still deep divisions over the kind of society that should be created. I saw such conflict in Australia also. So the kulturkampf underway in Israel today makes an important statement, not so much about the influence of religion or the uniqueness of Israel, as about the free and open forum of ideas that exists here. Hopefully it will stay that way!
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