Shmuel Sackett
Encyclopedia
Shmuel Sackett is a religious Zionist
leader. He co-founded both the Zo Artzeinu
and Manhigut Yehudit
("Jewish Leadership") political movements in Israel
.
During the 1990s Zo Artzeinu
opposed the Oslo Accords
through civil disobedience
.
Sackett was born in the United States
and studied at Touro College
in New York
. He was educated in both Talmud
ic scholarship and secular academic subjects. He had been involved in Jewish youth work and in Jewish educational outreach to secular Jews, some of whom became baal teshuva
s ("returnees to Judaism
") under his tutelage. He worked in Wall Street
's Financial District before making Aliyah
to Israel and settling in the West Bank
in 1990.
Sackett had been a member of the JDL in the 1970s and a loyal follower of Kach
leader Rabbi
Meir Kahane
in the United States. Sackett eventually followed Kahane to Israel where he joined Kach, and later, Kahane Chai. And became the director of Kahane Chai. He co-founded Zo Artzeinu
with Moshe Feiglin
in 1993.
While Sackett was a close friend of Kahane's son, Rabbi Binyamin Ze'ev Kahane
, he disagreed with the younger Kahane's tactics. Sackett and Feiglin shared some of Meir Kahane's goals, such as creating a more Jewish and secure Israel (and, like Kahane, advocated the "transfer" of Arabs outside the country), but wished to achieve them via nonviolent methods.
In 1998, Sackett co-founded Manhigut Yehudit
with long-time partner Moshe Feiglin. Sackett presently works as Manhigut's International Director. He has residences in both Woodmere, New York
and Karnei Shomron
, a Jewish settlement
in the West Bank
. He is married, with six children.
Religious Zionism
Religious Zionism is an ideology that combines Zionism and Jewish religious faith...
leader. He co-founded both the Zo Artzeinu
Zo Artzeinu
Zo Artzeinu was a political protest movement created and led by Moshe Feiglin and Shmuel Sackett in Israel to block Israeli land concessions to the Arabs in the early 1990s, especially the Oslo Accords...
and Manhigut Yehudit
Manhigut Yehudit
Manhigut Yehudit is a movement started by Moshe Feiglin and Shmuel Sackett to lead the State of Israel with, in their words, "authentic Jewish values." This has been widely interpreted, both by Manhigut supporters and outside observers, as closer to Orthodox Judaism but without a Galut or Exile...
("Jewish Leadership") political movements in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
.
During the 1990s Zo Artzeinu
Zo Artzeinu
Zo Artzeinu was a political protest movement created and led by Moshe Feiglin and Shmuel Sackett in Israel to block Israeli land concessions to the Arabs in the early 1990s, especially the Oslo Accords...
opposed the Oslo Accords
Oslo Accords
The Oslo Accords, officially called the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements or Declaration of Principles , was an attempt to resolve the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli conflict...
through civil disobedience
Civil disobedience
Civil disobedience is the active, professed refusal to obey certain laws, demands, and commands of a government, or of an occupying international power. Civil disobedience is commonly, though not always, defined as being nonviolent resistance. It is one form of civil resistance...
.
Sackett was born in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and studied at Touro College
Touro College
Touro College is a sponsored independent institution of higher and professional education, in New York City, New York, United States. Founded by Dr. Bernard Lander, the College was established primarily to enrich the Jewish heritage, and to serve the larger American community...
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. He was educated in both Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
ic scholarship and secular academic subjects. He had been involved in Jewish youth work and in Jewish educational outreach to secular Jews, some of whom became baal teshuva
Baal teshuva
Baal teshuva or ba'al teshuvah , sometimes abbreviated to BT, is a term referring to a Jew who turns to embrace Orthodox Judaism. Baal teshuva literally means, "repentant", i.e., one who has repented or "returned" to God...
s ("returnees to Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
") under his tutelage. He worked in Wall Street
Wall Street
Wall Street refers to the financial district of New York City, named after and centered on the eight-block-long street running from Broadway to South Street on the East River in Lower Manhattan. Over time, the term has become a metonym for the financial markets of the United States as a whole, or...
's Financial District before making Aliyah
Aliyah
Aliyah is the immigration of Jews to the Land of Israel . It is a basic tenet of Zionist ideology. The opposite action, emigration from Israel, is referred to as yerida . The return to the Holy Land has been a Jewish aspiration since the Babylonian exile...
to Israel and settling in the West Bank
West Bank
The West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
in 1990.
Sackett had been a member of the JDL in the 1970s and a loyal follower of Kach
Kach
Kach is town and union council of the Ziarat District in the Balochistan province of Pakistan. It is located at 30°26'2N 67°19'27E and has an altitude of 2020m ....
leader Rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
Meir Kahane
Meir Kahane
Martin David Kahane , also known as Meir Kahane , was an American-Israeli rabbi and ultra-nationalist writer and political figure. He was an ordained Orthodox rabbi and later served as a member of the Israeli Knesset...
in the United States. Sackett eventually followed Kahane to Israel where he joined Kach, and later, Kahane Chai. And became the director of Kahane Chai. He co-founded Zo Artzeinu
Zo Artzeinu
Zo Artzeinu was a political protest movement created and led by Moshe Feiglin and Shmuel Sackett in Israel to block Israeli land concessions to the Arabs in the early 1990s, especially the Oslo Accords...
with Moshe Feiglin
Moshe Feiglin
Moshe Zalman Feiglin is an Israeli politician, head of the Manhigut Yehudit faction of the Likud party in Israel...
in 1993.
While Sackett was a close friend of Kahane's son, Rabbi Binyamin Ze'ev Kahane
Binyamin Ze'ev Kahane
Binyamin Ze'ev Kahane was a rabbi and the son of Rabbi Meir Kahane.Born in New York City, he emigrated to Israel with his family at the age of four, in 1971...
, he disagreed with the younger Kahane's tactics. Sackett and Feiglin shared some of Meir Kahane's goals, such as creating a more Jewish and secure Israel (and, like Kahane, advocated the "transfer" of Arabs outside the country), but wished to achieve them via nonviolent methods.
In 1998, Sackett co-founded Manhigut Yehudit
Manhigut Yehudit
Manhigut Yehudit is a movement started by Moshe Feiglin and Shmuel Sackett to lead the State of Israel with, in their words, "authentic Jewish values." This has been widely interpreted, both by Manhigut supporters and outside observers, as closer to Orthodox Judaism but without a Galut or Exile...
with long-time partner Moshe Feiglin. Sackett presently works as Manhigut's International Director. He has residences in both Woodmere, New York
Woodmere, New York
Woodmere is a hamlet in Nassau County, New York, United States. The population was 17,121 at the 2010 census.Woodmere is one of the Long Island communities known as the Five Towns, which is usually said to comprise the villages of Lawrence and Cedarhurst, the hamlets of Woodmere and Inwood, and...
and Karnei Shomron
Karnei Shomron
Karnei Shomron is an Israeli settlement and local council established in 1977 in the northwestern West Bank, east of Kfar Sava. It is north-east of Tel Aviv and north of Jerusalem. In 2006, the population of Karnei Shomron was 6,300...
, a Jewish settlement
Israeli settlement
An Israeli settlement is a Jewish civilian community built on land that was captured by Israel from Jordan, Egypt, and Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War and is considered occupied territory by the international community. Such settlements currently exist in the West Bank...
in the West Bank
West Bank
The West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
. He is married, with six children.