The Brandeis Religious Zionist League (BaRZeL) invited renowned historian Rabbi Ken Spiro to speak about issues facing Israel last Tuesday in the Shapiro Atrium.Titled "Why Israel? The Jewish Connection to the Land and the Challenges Facing the State," the talk centered on the Jewish people's history and its connection to Israel.

Spiro is currently a Senior Lecturer and Researcher for Aish Hatorah and he has worked for the Israeli government.

According to BaRZeL President Paul Kandel '05, Spiro stressed the fact that, unbeknownst to many, Jews fought long and hard to gain rights and ownership of their land.

"There were two basic points that really stood out to me," Kandel said. "One was the Jewish historical connection to the land of Israel and, also, that Jews have been trying to get the land for more than 3,000 years."

Spiro gave a 2-hour Power Point presentation, opening by saying how today's representation of Israel-both "geopolitically" and in simple reporting of events by Western media-does not give an honest account of what happens.

"Geopolitically," according to Spiro, refers to the image on television stations of Israel being this gargantuan plot of land where bombings occur which, in fact, belies the New Jersey-sized country that stands amid Arab states covering the area of about half a dozen U.S. states.

"I want to give you the traditional Jewish perspective," Spiro said. "This [view of Israel] has been how Jews looked at Israel for thousands of years."

In addition to addressing this misrepresentation of Israel, Spiro spoke about how the very language of newspapers allows for the free interpretation of events that happen there. According to Shapiro, when newspapers print "seven killed in a bus bombing" instead of "suicide bomber kills seven" a certain media bias is implied.

According to BaRZeL vice president Tova Smith '05, Spiro devoted a large portion of the presentation to the issue of Israel as a religious value to Jews worldwide.

"There is a lot of religious justification of the state of Israel, but it shouldn't be only effective for Jews," Smith said. "It should also be effective for anyone taking a religious stance on the issue."

Spiro talked about the Jewish settlement of Israel over 3,000 years ago and the various kingdoms that took power in that region in the coming centuries-like the Ottoman Empire and the various Arab representations that came and went.

According to Spiro, his main message was the need for Jews to take an affirmative stance for their land and for their right to the land.

"There is a saying 'when Jews don't make kiddush [the blessing over wine to greet the Sabbath], gentiles make havdallah [the ceremony performed at the conclusion of the Sabbath],'" Spiro said. "If Jews don't fill the world with values from God, then the world will be filled with something else that will first attack the Jews themselves."

To prevent these foreign elements from attacking the Jews, Shapiro concluded his talk with guidelines of how to stay informed and active in the pro-Israel cause.

"We must be proud of being Jewish and of what we've done in the world," Spiro said. "Also we must get our act together and, although it sounds metaphysical, we must think about how anything we [as Jews] do impacts how the world treats us."

Kandel agreed with this point, adding that focusing on the Jewish aspect of Israel is central to analyzing the Israel-Arab conflict and in taking a side on the issue.

"If you take religion out of the argument, it is like having a car with no engine-it looks like a car, but really lacks what is most important in one."

Kandel said that BaRZeL's primary mission is to educate about the Jewish connection to the land of Israel through all of its religious aspects and that Spiro's presentation expressed this goal well.

"At BaRZel, we want to educate about the Jewish connection to the land of Israel and to discuss religious aspects of Israel," Kandel said. "Rabbi Spiro's presentation expressed the goal of our organization because it really explained the Jewish view of Israel very well.