Stamps: December '96
100 Years HaShiloah Periodical
 

Issue: December 1996
Designer: D. Goldberg
Size: 40mm x 25.7mm
Plate #: 299
Sheet of 15 stamps
Tabs: 5
Printers: Government Printers
Printing Method: offset
 

sher Zvi Ginzburg, later known by the pen name Ahad Ha'am, was born in the Ukrainian village of Skvira, grew up in a Hassidic home, and received a religious Jewish upbringing. In 1884, he settled in Odessa and joined the Hibat Zion movement. Five years later he established his reputation within the organization with the publication of his controversial article, "This is Not The Way."

In the article, Ahad Ha'am attacked the movement, laying down guidelines for an ideological alternative that was later to be coined "Cultural Zionism." As Hibat Zion gained popularity, he became one of its central speakers. In 1889, he established a secret order within the movement called Bnei Moshe (The Sons of Moses).

Then, in 1891, Ahad Ha'am visited the Land of lsrael for the first time. Upon his return, he published a very critical review, "Truth From the Land of lsrael," in which he sharply criticized the policies of the new Jewish settlement in lsrael. Calling for a reconsideration of the social, economic and cultural infrastructure, the article inspired serious debate.

When Herzl established the World Zionist Organization in 1897, Ahad Ha'am became his greatest foe, doubting Herzl's ability to realize his ideas and criticizing his actions as the leader of the World Zionist Organization.

In 1907, Ahad Ha'am left Odessa for London. During the First World War he was close to Chaim Weizmann, supporting the activities which resulted in the Balfour Declaration. In 1922, he emigrated to the Land of Israel and resided in Tel Aviv until his death in 1927.

Considered one of the founding fathers of Zionist ideology, Ahad Ha'am believed that the solution to the Jewish problem must come in stages. In contrast to Herzl and Pinsker, who believed that the Jewish problem should be resolved in a single stage (that is, by establishing a Jewish state), Ahad Ha'am believed that the Zionist leaders should focus first on "training the nation's hearts for statehood." In a series of explosive articles published in the Hebrew press, he argued that the proper role of Zionism was to educate the Jews about their national identity. Jewishness had evolved, he argued, from a religion dictating a national way of life in the Land of lsrael into a series of religious obligations in which the national element had been repressed. Only after the Jews believed that they were a nation like all other nations, he wrote, would they truly desire to establish their own state. Accordingly, the Land of lsrael would host a cultural center that would lead the national training of the Jews. Only after undergoing this training period would the Jews establish a state.

Together with his political and journalistic activities, Ahad Ha'am was also at the center of the Jewish literary world. A leading member of the nationalist school of literature, he was opposed to the school represented by Bardechevsky, which believed in combining Jewish with international literature.

The pinnacle of Ahad Ha'am's literary career was his post as editor of the periodical Ha-Shilo'ah. In the first issue, published in Berlin in 1898, he articulated the periodical's mission: to "know ourselves, understand our lives, and prepare wisely for our future." As the first day cover quotes: "We direct our hearts to the entire nation, that they may find nourishment for their souls and other necessities in this periodical, to close the gaps and rebuild from the ruins." The stamp also shows the periodical's masthead: "Monthly Periodical for Science, Literature and Other Vital Issues."

Over time, Ha-Shilo'ah became the most important Hebrew language periodical, publishing works by such leading Hebrew authors and poets as Mendele Mocher Sfarim (Mendele the Book Vendor), Brenner, Bialik, Fichman and Agnon. Since Ahad Ha'am regarded his literary and national activities as indivisible, he sought to recruit these and other contributors to Ha-Shilo'ah for his political causes.

In 1902, Ahad Ha'am was replaced as editor by Yosef Klauzner, but his followers continued to practise his ways until 1926, the year that the presses ran the final issue of Ha-Shilo'ah.

Dr. Yossi Goldstein Haifa University