Nekuda

Nekuda was a Zionist-religious journal founded in 1980 in Ofra, in the Binyamin region. It began as the publication of the Amana movement and developed into one of the most important forums for discussion within Israel's religious-Zionist public. For three decades, the journal addressed Jewish thought, society, politics and national security, bringing questions of faith and tradition into conversation with the changing realities of Israeli life.

From movement publication to public forum

The founding editor of Nekuda was Yisrael Harel. At first, the journal appeared every two months; it later established itself as a monthly publication with a loyal readership and a distinct public voice. Although it emerged from the world of settlement and religious Zionism, it was more than a movement bulletin. Its pages hosted wide-ranging discussion of Jewish identity, public responsibility, religion and state, culture, education, settlement and Israel's security challenges.

Over the years, Nekuda served as a training ground and platform for a generation of religious journalists, writers and intellectuals. Contributors included Uri Orbach, Hagai Segal, Bambi Sheleg, Hayuta Deutsch, Uri Elitzur, Shai Cherka, Elishiv Reichner, Hanoch Daum, Avishai Ivri, Gideon Dokov and Elhanan Nir. Scholars and thinkers, including Professor Shalom Rosenberg, Daniel Shalit and Professor David Henshke, also published in its pages.

Articles that shaped public discussion

The journal's importance was especially visible in its willingness to publish articles that examined the Zionist-religious movement rather than simply affirming its established positions. Rabbi Yoel Bin-Nun's essay "We Failed to Settle in People's Hearts" prompted renewed discussion of the settlement movement's relationship with the wider public and of the limits of influence achieved through settlement alone.

Professor David Henshke's "What Happened to the Lights of Rav Kook?" addressed ideological issues connected with the so-called Underground affair. In "The Best to the Media," Uri Orbach called on the religious public to take a more active part in journalism and communications, contributing to a broader discussion of religious-Zionist participation in public life. Hanoch Daum's "The Georgian-Yarmulke Generation" examined the hilltop-youth phenomenon at an early stage, when it was already raising difficult questions within the religious-Zionist community.

Satire, culture and a broader range of voices

In the mid-1990s, the satirical supplement The Other Cheek was added to the journal's final pages. Its slogan, "There Is No Satire on the Right," signaled an effort to widen the expressive boundaries of right-wing and religious-Zionist journalism. The supplement continued until the end of the decade. Its presence alongside essays on thought, society and public affairs showed that Nekuda sought to be not only an ideological publication, but also a cultural and social journal.

Ownership, final years and merger

In 2004, the journal was acquired by the Hirsch Media communications group, owned by Shlomo Ben-Zvi. Following the acquisition, Uri Elitzur was replaced as editor by Moti Karpel. The change marked a new editorial direction and reflected the journal's changing place within Israel's religious-Zionist media landscape.

In 2010, Nekuda ceased publication and merged with the newspaper Makor Rishon. The independent journal thereby came to an end, but many of the writers, subjects and arguments it had nurtured continued in other publications and public forums.

Why Nekuda belongs in Moreshet

Nekuda merits inclusion because it was a significant journalistic and intellectual institution in the history of Israeli religious Zionism. It gave a platform to a generation of journalists and thinkers, published essays that influenced discussion of settlement, media and religious-national identity, and documented from within the changes experienced by this sector of Israeli society over three decades.

Moreshet and Moreshet.com preserve the stories of people, works and institutions that have shaped Jewish and Israeli life. Remembering Nekuda matters not only because of the journal's own history, but because it shows how an ideas-driven publication can build a community of writers, raise difficult questions and connect Jewish tradition with active participation in Israeli society.