Taking Jewish history out from the class room

Jewish historical figures and texts are rich in leadership lessons and can provide guidance in practicing and teaching Jewish morals and ethics. As a leadership case study, Jewish history and text have both depth and breadth that is wasteful to restrict their use to the board room dvar Torah. Jewish morals and ethics can serve as a resource for leaders and their followers on a regular basis. As King David may have thought the Commandment, “Neither shall you covet your neighbor’s wife,” is a lip service for the board his time, the elders of Zion gatherings. The prophet Nathan guided King David to understand his sin in the Biblical story of Batsheba and thus, sets an example for the Jewish people that even the king of Israel is not above God's law. And with this moral landscape revealed to the reader, it become clear that Jewish leaders have a legacy in which they are obligated to practice what they preach.

Jewish texts, in particular the Torah, influenced large human populations. Biblical figures, like Moses, are well known among Muslims, Jews and Christians. Jewish text has many famous characters in which they must deal with change, and in doing so, modern-day readers are given nuanced leadership lessons. It is highly probable, that case studies of contemporary leadership are going to be forgotten in a couple of centuries, while Jewish texts and historical figures will keep inspiring people's leadership. With the ability to cross borders of time and culture, Jewish texts will continuously influence the general public, and especially Jewish professionals, in their understanding of leadership. Jewish professional leaders routinely cope with change that effect the Jewish community and can use biblical case studies as tools for decision making in both religious and secular issues. Jewish texts offer multiple types of leadership scenarios: King David sets an example for courage when he confronts and accepts Goliath's challenge, and in contrast, Joshua performs a different type of leadership as he starts the process of transforming the Israelites from nomad tribes into a settled nation.

The establishment of a Jewish entity in the land of Israel, with a solid Jewish majority for the first time since the Bar Kokhba revolt, brings the question of the role of Jewish texts in time of Jewish statehood to the forefront. Yehoshafat Harkabi presents a way for Jewish texts to serve contemporary Jewish leaders, in Israel and the Jewish diaspora, as leadership case studies in political and religious affairs. Any Jewish leader that wishes for Israel to compromise on Judea and Samaria needs read Yehoshafat Harkabi’s analysis of the Bar Kokhba revolt(1). Harkabi's thesis’ main achievement is that it offers a realistic explanation why Israel needs to compromise. Harkabi utilizes an historical event more than eighteen years old and transforms it into a leadership case study. His work highlights realism in military operation goal setting, along with the necessity to transcend victory in the battle field into political victory. He also differentiates between the need for communities in exile to use the myth of Bar Kokhba's bravery, and the fact Israel's complex situation does not allow for careless decision making, as seen in the Bar kokhba revolt.

Reference list:
1. Harkabi, Yehoshafat . The Bar Kokhba syndrome: risk and realism in international politics . Chappaqua, NY: Rossel Books, 1983. Print.