So Should Byzantines Get a State Now?

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By Will

Some Israeli farmers near Jerusalem discovered an archeological gem beneath the dirt -- a Byzantine monastery. Though archaeologists busted in their drawers at the finding, the alert reader, who sent this news item wasn't having it. Samar wrote:

it irks the shit out of me to see that they have an "Israel Antiquities Authority" - which in turn grabs all of the antiques they find on Palestinian land and call them antiques found in Israel. Did I mention that they were 'expanding' their farmland when they found this?

True. The site almost definitely comes from land stolen from Palestinians, considering that 92% of Israel was.

Her critique aside, there is a larger point worth exploring.

The archaeologist working on this site found that after the church was abandoned, it was used for light industry by a non-Christian population. Muslim pottery was found nearby. Now, a Jewish archaeologist is using it towards a master's degree.

What this reminds me of is the fundamental heterogeneity of that area. It is inescapably a place for different peoples and never has there been a long-lasting empire or state for one. The diversity of the demographics is built-in to the ethno-religious currents of the world religions.

In other words, a Jewish state cannot last forever on that land, just as Christian and Muslim states did not. If archaeology can be useful for anything -- and many use it for national myth-making -- it should drive home the point of cultural complexity over time and the need for inclusivity that entails. In short, one land for all the peoples there.

Before zionuts explode at this notion, consider it means as a rejection of Palestinian nationalism, as well. It must be a homeland for the multitude of people feeling attachment to it, whether they be Jewish, Christian, Muslim or none of the above. Israel as it exists today precludes this requisite harmony.

[tarboush tip: Samar]