Meryl Yourish clears the air about the potential, past and present, for a tolerant, democratic Iraq. The prevailing view that Saddam was the root of all evil in Iraq is not consistant with the historical record.
In mentioning the long and rich history of the Jewish community in Iraq, Meryl has reminded me of another detail that's often forgotten. When Jews (and others) speak of "the Talmud" in casual conversation, the compilation they're usually referring to is more properly known as "the Babylonian Talmud. That's because Babylonia, as a prominent center of the Jewish world for more than a dozen centuries, was the home of the sages who produced that august work or, to be more precise, the commentaries (gemara) that make up the vast bulk of it. But it's also because that work must be distinguished from another -- the "Jerusalem Talmud" (also called the "Palestinian Talmud"). The latter work is less complete and, in light of its integral connection in many respects with life in the Land of Israel, large parts of it came to have less and less relevance for Jews living in the Diaspora. Nevertheless, it's still studied today.
What may be surprising to some is that a vibrant Jewish community had existed in Babylonia since the First Exile in the sixth century B.C.E. This community grew and prospered, eventually becoming the recognized global center of Jewish life and authority. For centuries, it shared this authority with the Palestinian academy, but in the sixth, seventh or eighth century (depending upon whose account you read), power gradually shifted completely to Babylonia. There it remained until, following challenges by the Karaite sect and the ascendancy of the Jewish communities in Spain and Germany, it gradually withered away in power and prestige. Its singular authoratative work, however, remains to this day the legal, spiritual and ethical guide for observant Jews the world over.
The Jewish community in Babylonia, although off center stage, continued to flourish until the early 20th century. What happened then is a story that was repeated throughout the Arab world. The increasingly organized immigration of Jews into the area known as Palestine, their settlement and agricultural work and their growing autonomy there in the absence of any other indiginous authority enraged those who believed that the homelessness of the Jews was God's special stigma for their refusal to accept the prophecy of Muhammed. On a more pragmatic level, it also threatened to disrupt the homogeneity of Muslim domination of the entire region. The Jews in modern Babylonia (now called Iraq) as in so many other Arab countries, became personae non gratae.
More about this, some additional implications of Naqba Day and the renewed reign of terror in Israel shortly.
