Since 1948, the State of Israel has transformed itself from distant long-shot to an amazing success story. In this year-long seminar, we will discover the near-impossible yet extraordinary ideas and leaders behind the earliest triumphs of the Jewish state. This fall, we will look at several challenges the Jewish state faced and overcame during its formative period, the country’s early decades. These challenges were virtually without precedent in the history of nations and in each case Israel turned a daunting task into an opportunity to establish itself as a regional power and the driving force in leading the Jewish people worldwide. This course will include sessions on the 1948 War of Independence, the immigration of Jews from Arab lands, Israel’s development of nuclear weapons and the kidnapping and trial of the top-ranking Nazi Adolf Eichmann.