Resources and Articles by Mordechai Beck

The Rise and Fall of the Builders of Zion Bulletin:  Finchley Cowboys
Our movement's bulletins discussed anything and everything -from nuclear disarmament and ethical relativism to the future of religion and, of course, Zionism. [Full article...]
Artistic Expressions > Literature
Zionism
Zionism > Zionism and the Diaspora

Treasure Trove:  The Bible Lands Museum, Jerusalem
The Bible Lands Museum contains a wealth of ancient artifacts. Mordechai Beck introduces us to the collection and the man behind it. [Full article...]
Museums and Memorials

Fact or Fabrication:  The King Jehoash Inscription
If there were any lingering doubts about the national significance of archaeological discoveries in Israel, they would have surely been dispelled last month with the announcement of the finding of a stone inscription purported to be from the 9th century BCE, and thus of Biblical vintage. [Full article...]
Jewish History > @ Beginnings of time - 70: Biblical Age

Nature, Religion, Belief and Civilization:  The City and Tel of Dan
The Dan river generally conjures up images of refreshing water and green foilage. This geographical location can also teach us about historical clashes of belief and civilization. Mordechai Beck explains in the following article. [Full article...]
Israel > Places of Israel

Part 2:  Jaffa Today
As we mentioned in the previous article, the city of Jaffa sits on layers of history. As with all modern restorations, the real issue for planners and local municipalities is what items to retain and what to discard for historical reasons as well as for the tourists. In addition, it is important to retain some sense of continuity between the old and new. What follows is an attempt to show how the authorities have tried to create a balance between these various dimensions of the city, even as the city itself expands and develops. [Full article...]
Israel > Places of Israel
Museums and Memorials

Part 1:  The Magic of Jaffa
As this short excerpt demonstrates, the city of Jaffa has had a long and varied history. Like the rest of the country, it was open to all the various civilizations that swept back and forth through this area for the purposes of trade, international communication or conquest. Had today’s city council wished it, the entire area of Jaffa would be one vast excavation – so numerous are its findings! [Full article...]
Israel > Places of Israel
Museums and Memorials

Places of Israel:  Acre - Past and Future - Part II
In the second part of Mordechai Beck's look at the history of Acre, he takes a look at the city from Crusader times up until the modern State of Israel. [Full article...]
Israel > Places of Israel

Places of Israel:  Acre - Past and Future - Part I
Until recently, Acre was known to Israelis for its yearly Fringe Theatre Festival as well as its way above average unemployment figures. For much of the past year or so, visitors to this city of around 45,000 people, would findhistory, tradition, culture, the whiff of ancient civilizations, the authentic touch. themselves walking through near deserted streets and empty lanes and squares that constitute much of the picturesque walled old city and adjacent ancient port. [Full article...]
Israel > Places of Israel

Places of Israel:  The Enigma of Masada
For years, Massada has served the State of Israel as a sombre symbol of perseverance and heroism. Towering 450 metres above the south-western rim of the Dead Sea, the flat-topped limestone mountain offers a spectacular piece of real estate that has drawn kings and conquerors, idealists, dreamers, and people on the run. The two most obvious historical associations still in evidence today -- are those of King Herod I and the Sicari. [Full article...]
Israel > Places of Israel
Jewish History > 0070 - 0600: Talmudic Age

Places of Israel:  Jerusalem
Jerusalem is always with us. Even if you are a stranger, Jerusalem is not strange to you. To walk its streets is to acknowledge the generations that have walked here beforehand -- if not physically, then in other, less tangible ways. The place is familiar because it is a city you yourself carry around with you wherever you are going -- a boundless Jerusalem that finds its bounds here, a timeless city that is caught inside these walls. [Full article...]
Israel > Jerusalem