Amotz Asa-El's 'The Jewish March of Folly' stresses the importance of Jewish unity - interview

Amotz Asa-El's new book, "The Jewish March of Folly," reframes Jewish history by focusing on internal political failures rather than external forces. Asa-El argues that a recurring pattern of civil wars and misguided leadership has repeatedly led to the downfall of Jewish states, a perspective he believes is often overlooked in traditional historical narratives.

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We weren’t taught this in Sunday school. But it’s so vividly told by Flavius Josephus, and the details are so obvious, and no one disputes them.

"We weren’t taught this in Sunday school," Asa-El told The Magazine, referencing the internal strife that plagued Jerusalem as Roman legions advanced. He challenges the common explanations for Jewish catastrophe, such as divine punishment or blaming Gentiles, which he calls the "Zionist 'Sunday school narrative.'" Instead, Asa-El emphasizes the critical role of decisions made by Jewish political leaders themselves.

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There are generally two” conventional explanations... The first is theological: calamity as divine punishment. The second is what he calls the Zionist “Sunday school narrative,” in which “bad things happened to the Jews because of the Gentiles.”

The book draws inspiration from Barbara Tuchman's "The March of Folly," applying its concept of political folly, where a viable alternative exists but is rejected, to Jewish history. Asa-El identifies 12 civil wars spanning roughly 12 centuries of ancient Jewish history, from the Book of Judges to the Roman destruction of Judea. He contends that viewing these conflicts collectively transforms the understanding of the period, revealing a consistent theme of internal conflict.

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We had political leaders in all of those events... and I accuse them of having repeatedly, generation after generation, taken completely misguided policies with fateful results.

Asa-El's analysis suggests that these internal divisions significantly weakened Jewish societies, making them vulnerable to external conquest. He argues that this pattern of "political suicide" has profound implications for contemporary Israel, which he observes is also grappling with deep internal divisions. The book aims to draw lessons from these historical events to inform present-day political discourse and decision-making.

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I say that there is a recurring theme of civil war in ancient Jewish history. During that span of roughly 12 centuries, I found 12 civil wars – in other words, an average of