The Ben-Gurion–Blaustein 'Understanding' as a Historiographical Yardstick

The significance long assigned to the Ben-Gurion–Blaustein agreement as exemplifying the relationship between Israeli and American Jews makes the 'understanding' a useful historiographical yardstick. I shall demonstrate that the reticence of Ben-Gurion and Blaustein to discuss the cultural and religious exchange between the communities is generally mirrored in research about the relationship between the Jews of Israel and America. Like Ben-Gurion and Blaustein, researchers have concentrated on the institutional and political activities of the two societies while largely overlooking the deeper level of acquaintance between them and their cultural and religious meeting points. I shall conclude by noting how an emphasis on their cultural and religious exchanges might contribute to future research on the relationship, and inform and nuance recent perceptions of its decline.