As this article is written, outside in the street, not two hundred yards away, police and auxiliary crews are cleaning up the debris from a blast in a Jerusalem cafe. The street is full of soldiers and police who are out in full force. All who pass by notice the damage; it can’t be avoided. They also take note of the soldiers and the police.

But, whereas the specific site of the bomb blast is a novelty – yesterday this was a familiar landmark full of people taking a brief break from their daily routine; today it is a gaping hole in the wall, sealed off by police tape – the soldiers and police are not. Today, their numbers are greater than usual because of the circumstances - but the fact of their presence is totally familiar.

In Israel, they are all taken for granted. Perhaps, a tourist new to Israel will be surprised or impressed by the presence of so many soldiers or police, almost all of them Jewish - but Israelis take it very much in their stride.

Moreover, it is so obvious to Israelis: if attacked, we defend ourselves. We have one of the most sophisticated fighting forces in the world; most eighteen-year-old Israelis serve between two and three years in the defence forces.

Why should anyone be surprised? Response to attack is a familiar equation, one that most Israelils became accustomed to many years ago, and it sounds very natural as it rolls off the tongue.

But this should really not be taken for granted; it should really not come so naturally to the mind and lips. The reason is clear: when one speaks of Jewish fighters, soldiers, arms and power, it is easy to forget that the Jewish world has been witnessing a revolution. The fact that the revolutionary nature of the presence of young Jewish soldiers and police is no longer noticed or remarked upon demonstrates how successful the entire revolution has been.

In order to appreciate this, one needs to spend some time reflecting on the significance of these images. That is the purpose of this introduction.