Scroll Or the Sword ?

Israel's defence forces have traditionally been considered immune to divisive tensions within Israeli society at large.

Relations between religious and secular troops, were for many years thought to be harmonious and consensual. "The Sword or the Scroll?" demonstrates that this is no longer the case.

The first detailed analysis of contemporary Jewish religious attitudes towards armed service in Israel, this volume draws on a wide range of classical and modern sources to illustrate the variety of current theological challenges to Israel's military cohesion.

Cohen's study is essential reading for an understanding of such issues as: the reaction of the national religious troops and their rabbinic leadership to the current peace process; the attitudes of orthodox and ultra-orthodox Jewry to compulsory conscription; and the concerns generated in secular Israeli circles by the existence of units composed of specifically religious personnel.