Cincinnatus Nation

The Calling of Cincinnatus from the Plow by Brumidi in U.S. Capitol Room H-144 (Architect of the Capitol)

Last Friday night--Kabbalat Shabbat--at Jaffa’s Zichron Baruch synagogue was much like any other. Standing at the pulpit, dressed in white, was the internationally renowned singer Akiva Turgeman.  Popularly known only by his first name, Akiva has conquered millions of young hearts both at home and abroad. His last performance at Madison Square Garden sold out. Raised in Dimona, the southern development city that his grandparents helped found and where his father runs the major Yeshiva, Akiva is one of twelve children and has five of his own. His rendition of the prayers were hauntingly beautiful—as always. But in one glaring respect, this night was different. Slung over Akiva’s shoulder while he sang the Kaddish was an IDF-issue Tavor TAR-21 rifle.

Akiva, a veteran of the Golani infantry brigade and a reservist in the infantry, has been serving for weeks on the Northern border under Hezbollah rocketfire. Five of his brothers are also currently in uniform, several of them fighting in Gaza. Where in the world would a celebrated artist be leading religious services, providing for an expansive household, and risking his life daily to defend his country?

Akiva, more extraordinary still, is not the exception. Already on the first day of the war, on October 7th, celebrated stage and movie actor Yadin Gellman, the son of Canadian and American parents and an officer in the ultra elite Sayeret Matkal unit, was seriously wounded rescuing hostages at Kibbutz Be’eri. Last week, star singer and Fauda actor Idan Amedi was critically injured while serving as a combat engineer reservist in the Gaza Strip.

The wounding of these celebrities certainly saddened but by no means surprised Israelis. They were just two of the 360,000 reservists called up for active duty in the Gaza War. Together with Israel’s standing army of around 170,000, nearly 6% of the population is now in uniform. That is the equivalent, in per capita terms, of close to 20 million Americans—more than the number of American GI’s who served in World War II. 

These Israelis came from every possible place, profession, and segment of Israeli society. And that was only the soldiers.

In the first weeks of the war more than 60% of all Israelis were contributing monetarily or manually to the war effort. Their activities included providing vital equipment and hot meals to the troops, housing and feeding the tens of thousands of residents from southern and northern border areas rendered homeless by the fighting, embracing and advocating for the families of hostages, and defending Israel in the press and social media. Thousands of Israelis volunteered for community security units and for emergency medical services. Israel's blood banks filled to capacity. Never before in history, perhaps, has an entire society so spontaneously and simultaneously rallied to its nation’s defense.

Israelis are the modern embodiment of the foundational Roman myth of Cincinnatus. Born around 519 BCE, Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus was a wealthy farmer who wanted only to work the land but was repeatedly called upon by the Republic to return to his role as general and defend the state. Cincinnatus’s story deeply influenced the Founding Fathers of the United States, among them George Washington, who were compelled to leave their plows to pick up swords. For that reason, a mural of Cincinnatus decorates the ceiling of the House Appropriations Committee in Congress. The descendants of Revolutionary War officers are still listed in the Society of Cincinnati.

The Cincinnatus myth, though never cited as such, was deeply ingrained in Zionism. It is the ethos of the pre-state pioneers who left their kibbutzim and moshavim to enlist in the Palmach and the Etzel, of Ben-Gurion, Moshe Dayan, Hannah Szenesh and Ariel Sharon, our founding farmer-fighters. But while the Cincinnatus model has largely fallen out of fashion in the United States, particularly among the educated elite, In Israel it has remained a national reality.

Reservists returning to Israel Oct 11, 2023 via @emilykschrader on X/Twitter

Most reserve units reported a 100% response to the call-up and, in several cases, 150%. Reservists from around the world reported for duty and many veterans long past fighting age once again donned a uniform. Countless fields lay fallow, and myriad classrooms, production lines, and computer docks stand empty because farmers, teachers, students, workers, and engineers have all gone off to war. They’ve done so willingly for more than three months now with scarcely registering a complaint. They’ve left their families, their livelihoods, and their civilian lives for the longest stints of continuous combat that any Israeli soldier has experienced since our War of Independence. Some reserve units have even protested their early demobilization. Modern Cincinnati indeed. 

Yet even more remarkable than an entire society achieving Cincinnatus status is the fact that it did so on its own without the instructions or even guidance of the state. While the people of Israel acted instantly and efficiently on October 7th and afterward, the state simply failed to function. 

Whether in delivering troops in time to defend border communities, caring for bereaved and hostage families, and housing the displaced, the state was a no-show. The government which suffered from a serious legitimacy deficiency before the war, in its wake could scarcely claim the confidence of Israel’s citizens.

If never before in history has such a high percentage of the population volunteered their time, energy, resources and blood in wartime, certainly never before has a population done so all on its own without a state structure. One might even posit that Israelis are fighting not at the behest of their government, but despite it. 

Unlike many countries which have weak societies but strong institutions, many of Israel’s governing institutions are notoriously weak while Israeli society may well be the world’s most resilient. A common lament among Israelis today is that we lack the government and state we deserve.

Israel’s war against Hamas is likely to continue for several months at least and may be followed by an even more desperate clash with Hezbollah. Whenever peace is restored, however, the real struggle will begin. Israelis must elect a government and build a state that defends them at all times and shelters them when necessary, that commands respect not just in Israel but throughout the world. Needed will be another Cincinnatus who can leave her or his plow for the sword of sovereignty and lead with responsibility and dignity. Our nation of Cincinnati deserves nothing less.

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