Ezra Taft Benson and the State of Israel - Brandeis Institutional ...

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Or perhaps it did not aid in his apparent goal of building camaraderie between Mormonsand Jews, so it was less important. In any case, it is clear that Benson emphasizedspecific elements of Hyde's dedication, which, because they could be seen already inevidence, would serve to bolster his and other Church members' faith, and to buildrelations with his Jewish friends.The continuity of Benson's message across two and a half decades, even regardinghis choice of words (i.e. “miracle” and “miraculous”; “oblivious”, “unobserved”,“unnoticed”, etc.), is striking. His assurance that the Mormons see an important realitythat the rest of the world does not is nothing new in Mormon theology, and can likewisebe found in most religious theologies. What is worthy of note is his conviction thatMormons have played a unique and particular role in the fulfillment of ancient prophecy,indeed that Mormons themselves claim modern revelation similar to prophets of old.This is a notion singular to Latter-day Saint doctrine, and a point of contention with mostof the Christian world to the present.Benson, therefore, is partially correct when he professes that the “miracle” of thegathering of the Tribe of Judah goes on largely “unnoticed or unappreciated.” Mostspiritual leaders, including Christian and even Jewish leaders, did not see the eventsthrough exactly the same prism as did Benson. Yet, he himself was acutely aware ofChristian support, albeit somewhat ambivalent, of the Jewish State, and he took greatpains to illustrate the similarities in Mormon perspectives with those of his Jewish“brothers.” Among Benson's files from his time as Secretary of Agriculture is a sectionentitled “Jewish Literature.” 82 The name is somewhat misleading, however, as it is made82Ezra Taft Benson, Papers, 10:29, Eisenhower Presidential Library (Abilene, Kansas).30
up largely of various Christian reports on the State of Israel, mostly from the year 1949,just after the Jewish State was born. It does include a 1951 pamphlet (on microfilm)from the American Zionist Council, “Israel and the Arab States: the Issues in Dispute,”and a lengthy article, “The Jerusalem Story,” published in 1949 in the magazine TheNation, which details the problems confronting the UN in establishing proprietorshipover Jerusalem. Notably, the literature includes nothing from an Arab perspective on theJewish State, an aspect of Benson's political views that will be discussed later.What is relevant and interesting here is that the bulk of Benson's “JewishLiterature,” is actually Christian Zionist reports on the fledgling state. He was clearlyaware of Christian (or certain Christian groups') appreciation for the miracles “takingplace before their eyes.” Yet his impression was one of general disregard for thosemiracles among spiritual leaders. Perhaps this is due to the notion that the Mormonperspective, while shared by some Christian groups, was unique. In his 1976 message,Benson addresses this: “There were a number of Christian sects in the nineteenth centurywhich held millennial views and saw the return of the Jews to their homeland as a 'sign ofthe times' which would precede the second advent of the Jesus Christ.” Yet, he stresses,“the Mormon interest was and is more than this. Our concern and interest is a kinship toour Jewish brothers.” 83For Benson, then, Mormons boasted a singular relationship withthe Jews.His perception was likely also influenced by the apparent ambivalence inAmerican opinions regarding a homeland for the Jewish people in Palestine. Variousstudies have examined American attitudes, including and especially Christian attitudes,83Benson, “Message to Judah,” 4-5.31
Page 2 and 3: AcknowledgementsI am indebted to Pr
Page 4 and 5: Table of ContentsIntroduction - 1Ch
Page 6 and 7: elationship in any depth.In researc
Page 8 and 9: friendships with various Israeli le
Page 10 and 11: Joseph Smith taught that Latter-day
Page 12 and 13: Gentiles, and it will be again inha
Page 14 and 15: for their long suffering. Yet, he,
Page 16 and 17: focus on both the fulfillment of pr
Page 18 and 19: Smith and Brigham Young, as previou
Page 20 and 21: Smith, the members of the group “
Page 22 and 23: Jews.'” 46Benjamin further descri
Page 24 and 25: Chapter 2: Benson's Religious Leade
Page 26 and 27: audiences. The first, called, “Je
Page 28 and 29: Benson's sense of kinship for the J
Page 30 and 31: eturn of the Jews to the land of Pa
Page 32 and 33: general mention of his efforts at s
Page 36 and 37: about Jews and Israel, throughout t
Page 38 and 39: and Peter Grose describe the frustr
Page 40 and 41: Israel's victory in the Six Day War
Page 42 and 43: the Messiah. Indeed, both Benson an
Page 44 and 45: those visits, as opposed to those o
Page 46 and 47: U.S. agricultural products on credi
Page 48 and 49: The American public, though divided
Page 50 and 51: States.” 133Indeed, a Gallup poll
Page 52 and 53: with Britain and France, for their
Page 54 and 55: many Americans that Israel was now,
Page 56 and 57: those experiences to give validity
Page 58 and 59: Benson, “I want you to pray to Go
Page 60 and 61: gathering. Some of those themes inc
Page 62 and 63: Ben Gurion and Levi Eshkol, both of
Page 64 and 65: sending “two Mormon Books,” and
Page 66 and 67: Yet Ben Gurion's next letter, dated
Page 68 and 69: on this occasion with Shimon Peres
Page 70 and 71: cultivate land for crops in the 194
Page 72 and 73: attitude in the Synagogue Light art
Page 74 and 75: United States, his views on Israel
Page 76 and 77: eminded the host that he had not be
Page 78 and 79: Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and
Page 80 and 81: "Though Thy servant is now far from
Page 82 and 83: BibliographyAlteras, Isaac. Eisenho
Page 84 and 85:
Madsen, Truman G. “Mormon Attitud
show all

Ezra Taft Benson and the State of Israel - Brandeis Institutional ...

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?