What 39 years of Religious Zionist focusing on the Land of Israel rather than the People of Israel can do. The Jerusalem Post reports:
After being awarded the Prime Minister's Prize for poetry, Jerusalem poet Eliaz Cohen began a tour of Israel's schools.
At first, he is reluctant to tell his story. He finally agrees, but still refuses to say where the incident happened, saying only that it was a "very 'Zionist,' and elite high school, with a very good, well-educated and dedicated teacher, who was as sad and horrified as I was." Cohen was lecturing on his poetry, which he describes as " Jewish in its perspective and connotations." He alludes to a test of sorts, which he presented to the unknowing high-school students. He read them some of his latest poems…
He then asked the students what they understood from the text. Not one of them understood the metaphors or the cultural-social motives and context.
"I felt awful," he recalls. "These were good kids, well-educated, with high marks, from good 'Israeli' and 'Zionist' families, and not one of them understood. I was very close to some kind of despair - issues like those mentioned in the poem didn't mean anything to those kids. Nothing. No memories, no recall from the past - let alone from the present. As if anything Jewish had been wiped out from their brains."…
This is the failure of Gush Emunim, Rabbi Kahana-Shapira, Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu, Rabbi Tzvi Yehuda Kook and so many more.
The land brought no security. It brought no peace. It did not bring the messiah. But preoccupation with it brought you millions of young Israeli Jews ignorant of their history and estranged from their heritage.
Rabbis, look what you have done to your people.