- Sydney’s Masada College is one of many Jewish schools in Australia promoting ties to Israel (Screenshot via YouTube). What is it about the Australian Jewish community, Australian Jewish “faith” schools and Israel? Jewish schools in Australia display a deeply embedded attachment to Israel, uncritically placing devotion to the nation in their curricula. Israel is another country, with its own raison d’être , decidedly blood-soaked.
The young Israel had been created out of settler colonialism and terrorism in a country with a majority Indigenous non-Jewish population. Australian Jewish families are Australian with a long history. A significant number of Australian Jewish families are descendants of refugees and survivors of a Hitler-overrun Europe, the Holocaust and a devastated European terrain post-War.
Some Australian Jewish individuals or families have subsequently migrated to Israel. The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (undated) has estimated that 10-12,000 Australians live in Israel (this figure would pre-date October 2023). The Australian Jewish population, depending on classification, is estimated at at least 100,000.
The numbers have been enhanced by the migration of Jewish families from South Africa and the Soviet Union/Russia. These families have consciously decided that residency in Australia is preferable to residency in the supposed Jewish “homeland”. There are an estimated 11,000 Israeli-born people (mostly Jewish) residing in Au.
