PART lI. OPINIONS

Assyrian Progression: West or East

The " Assyrian Question" is as unique phenomenon as the "Jewish Question". And the world history apparently has known no other nation, which like Assyrians or Jews might have been shaped in a time of its continuous struggle for revival. The path of both nations in the history is full of parallels indeed. The only exception is Jud phobia, which has long become a notorious thing and may show up in almost every place in the world. In case of Assyrians God had its mercy on them. As a result, Assyrians have never experienced such a primitive fanatical thing as ethno phobia, but however the " Assyrian Question" is still beyond the international agenda. Mass Assyrian persecution, as a rule, would happen in those regions where primitive marginal people with slump economy were not able to support their own living. Instead, they tried to make the use of labor productivity of Eastern Christians who enjoyed a higher welfare at the time. A good reminder of this situation might be D. Linn's film "Lawrence of Arabia" that describes the so-called "Arab liberation wars" where Arab "patriots" could do nothing else but plunder peaceful villages.

In terms of religion and ethos the path of the Jews brought them to the idea of Zionism. This path has given Jews many a positive moment, which can be used by Assyrians at present as they have largely been scattered in this century .The current situation for Assyrians is similar to that for Jews prior to the First Forum of Zionists which was held in Basel in 1897. If Assyrians make correct estimation of positive and negative actions of the Zionist movement, this similarity may determine the course of events. For this purpose we must know well what actions we should take in order to seek positive signs in the Assyrian national movement. Dr. Gabriele Jonan (Germany) is confident that the persecution of Assyrians in 1914 to 1918 was no other than a holocaust so she actively supports Assyrianism based on the Zionist principle. One should agree with this opinion that the international recognition of this genocide as holocaust might help the dispersed nation to restore its legitimate right to its own lands the people had to abandon as they fled to escape from massacre.

According to Russian publications the role of the Jewish community in the Russian society has always been very important, as Jews have been highly represented in the political and cultural structures of the Russian establishment. However there are different opinions of the Jewish influence and their role in the Russian history .For one thing, this notorious anti-Semitic theory of the "Jewish plot" which accuses Jews of all troubles of the Russian people, for another thing, Zionists think Jews are the victims of unjust persecution as well as safeguards of spiritual and cultural values in Russia.

The analysis of the historical mission of Jews in Russia shows two antagonistic trends determined by the inner duality of Jews, or by two "organizations" or two centers of the historical reflection inside this unique ethos. This conception is largely sustained in works of Jewish authors (publicists, philosophers, historians) like Jacob Bromberg, Mikhail Agursky, etc. They all came out with the idea of antagonism of two Jews groups, "Easterners" and "Westerners". The first group is characterized by mysticism, religious fanaticism, self -sacrifice, and deep contempt for the material world, commerce and rational- ism. This group, as a matter of fact, gave radical orthodox Jews, ardent revolutionaries, Marxists and communists as well. This paradoxical orthodox-Marxist type of the Jewish fundamentalism resulted from the Eastern mystic-irrational psychology. Its counterpart is a group of rationalistic Jews, bourgeoisie, who are not interested in religion, but seem to take care of business and nothing else trying to make life more rational. This group also includes both religious rationalists who follow the traditions of Talmud free from mystics and workers of "Khaskala" or the Jewish Enlightenment who work for Jewish assimilation with progressive peoples of the Western World. Therefore each group falls into certain religious and secular levels, namely, the religious level for "Easterners" is orthodoxy, Khasidism, Sabbataism and Kabbala, whereas the secular level is Marxism, socialism and even bolshevism. On the other hand, the "Westerners" worship the rationalism of Talmud along with liberal democracy and enlightened humanism.

The exodus of Assyrians disclosed both positive and negative sides of this historical event. For one thing, the exodus and dispersion brought about the rise of national self-consciousness and the stimulus for inception of the national movement. F or another thing, the worm of assimilation keeps eating thousands of Assyrian families on all continents living only scarps in the bright packages of the western civilization. The permanent level of dispersion in 1918 still stays the same now. The dispersion has taken over in more countries and continents like Northern Europe, Latin America, Northern Africa, Australia and New Zealand, and brought about a more considerable disintegration of the Assyrian nation. We have already spoken of the role of the national mentality. At this phase, it is hard to believe that dispersed Assyrian communities could understand and back up Assyrians surrounded by Muslims and, if so, they were certainly raised in totally different moral principles. Even in the Middle East it actually is difficult to find any common psychological feature between Assyrians raised in the Arab surrounding and Assyrians who descended from the most ancient and most powerful Persian civilization.

In the absence of mutual understanding that is so typical of many Assyrian national and political organizations and yet in the presence of several Christian confessions in one rather small nation, one should see the fact of disintegration of one ethos into a multitude of spiritual and psycho-social groups. This uncertain multitude can be seen only at first sight. But if one takes a better look at things Assyrian activists do (1 mean passionate), he will find them saturated with the idea of national revival. This way he also will see that all the differences among Assyrians still bear on the difference between "Westerners" and "Easterners". "Easterners" think that the national self- identification stems from the fanatical belief in the Messiahn role of their own people, as well as, in its formative role in the civilization and Christianity. Apologists of the Eastern trend usually tend to have a target and work towards leftist or radical ideas. They, as a rule, made the core of communist and socialist parties or squads of fanatical guerrillas in the Middle East. In Stalin' s Russia they all had to face purges or repressions after all. Their steadfastness and inability to compromise still make a negative impact on national consolidation and formation of the national front. . However one should have to admit that it is their firm stance that might well is the ground for the national movement and safeguard of national preservation. For "Westerners" the only values are rationalism and evolution in terms of liberal democracy. This adherence of "Westerners" might take them far beyond the basic national values, morality and spirituality, and, as a result, beyond the idea of national revival and restoration of the grandeur that once was lost in the history. Liberal ideas and humanism of the West will leave no future for the Assyrians because in the case of welfare and assimilation it is easy for people to come to terms with what they have.

Considering many a negative aspect of the "Eastern" path it no doubt is a more favorable conception as it looks. For this path might as well urge Assyrians to stand up for their own national rights for this purpose "Easterners" should find the possibility to learn rationalism and compromise in order to bring all nation around the idea of national revival. Unfortunately "Easterners" are still too far from this synergy with their counterparts, namely with "Westerners".

S. G. Osipov