The Holy and the Broken
When dehumanisation and destruction become the norm, the cycle must be broken
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Praise for The Holy and the Broken
Leading voices in peace, journalism, and literature
Elhanan Miller
Fathom
At a time when Israelis, and indeed Jews worldwide, have never been more cynical and pessimistic about the future, The Holy and the Broken offers readers a glimmer of hope. For those seeking both an insightful look back to the past and a hopeful look to the future, Flescher’s book is a worthwhile read.
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Daniel Gordis
Israel From the Inside
Who in their right mind thinks that anything better than low-scale-war-for-eternity is even remotely possible? Who reads books about peace? And who writes them?
It turns out that very thoughtful people write books about the possibility of peace, even the need for peace, even today. And, it struck me, it is precisely the fact that peace now seems like such a fairy tale, so utterly unrealistic, that it’s so far removed from any conversations that any of us ever have, that we owe it to ourselves and to this land to hear those who have managed to hold on to hope much better than many of us have.
I think the people who most need to read The Holy and the Broken are the people who least want to read this book. I mean that quite seriously. Because we are so locked into this narrative of endless suffering and horror that it’s really hard to think about an alternate reality, but we need to be (myself included) defibrillated and shocked into thinking about what we thought about 20 years ago when we were more optimistic about peace and while we may not agree on what change should happen, we both agree that something needs to shift and if this book gets us to think differently about the need of change I think it will do wonders for the world in which we live.
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Kylie Moore-Gilbert
Australian Writer and Academic
The Holy and the Broken offers a rare glimmer of hope for those who are heartbroken by two years of devastating war in which far too many innocents have perished. Perhaps even more, however, this book was written for readers who have hardened their hearts behind absolutist and uncompromising positions, in which anything less than the expulsion or eradication of the other side is unacceptable. While Flescher achieves his objective of comforting the troubled, it remains to be seen whether his radical message of coexistence and compromise will trouble those long comfortable in their entrenched and deeply held views on the conflict.
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Ruth Ebenstein
Writer, Peace/Health activist, Public Speaker, Historian, Mom/Stepmom
One of the last chapters of The Holy and the Broken concludes with moving letters penned to an imaginary Jewish Israeli teenager and an imaginary Palestinian teenager. Flescher labored on some 40 drafts to get these missives right.
And herein lies one of the secrets of this book. An earnest and deeply curious author, Flescher genuinely seeks balance. He truly wants to reach the teens, Israelis and Palestinians.
No matter how close or far you see peace, it is important that this book was written and published now. Flescher is holding on to hope and a vision of peace. If we avoid the conversation, it is hard to imagine how we will get there at all.
James Button
The Jewish Independent
Even if one sees the Palestinian catastrophe as incomparably worse than the Israeli one, anybody serious about a resolution of this conflict has to reckon with the torments of both peoples. It’s a strategic necessity as much as a moral one. Peace will come when both sides not only see the other but see that the other sees them. This is a crucial insight from The Holy and the Broken.
Seven months after October 7, Kids4Peace restarted: “the youth returned enthusiastically, albeit in smaller numbers than before.” It’s a joyous moment in the book. We’ll need many more of these kids, and many Ittay Fleschers, on the day, if it ever comes, when these two peoples finally turn their faces towards peace.
Tess Woods
Australian Author
I was grief stricken after the horrors of Oct 7 2023 followed by the horrors of Israel’s response on Gaza. As an Arab with Palestinian roots I felt isolated from my own community because of my belief in a shared land being the only way forward. Then a friend pointed me in the direction of From Yarra River to the Mediterranean Sea podcast and I discovered Ittay Flescher and Hannah Baker.
From the first episode of the podcast I was comforted by their humanity, intellect and inherent kindness. After listening to a few episodes I emailed Ittay to say how moved I was to hear a podcast that spoke of peace instead of vengeance.
In Ittay’s reply, he told me he was writing a book based around his experiences of the Israel/Palestine conflict and I asked if I could see the first chapter. I was blown away by Ittay’s beautiful and raw writing and just knew his words had to be published and read widely.
So I forwarded on his manuscript to my dear friend, publisher Mary Rennie at HarperCollins Australia. Mary felt the same way I did about what Ittay had to say in his manuscript as did the rest of the acquisitions team at HarperCollins.
And now, a year or so later, I’ve had the honour of holding Ittay’s debut book The Holy and the Broken in my hands and reading it in full.
Now more than ever, while the horrors in Palestine continue to rage with no end in sight, is the time that Ittay’s hopeful message of peace and how it is attainable needs to be heard. But this book is so much more than a cry for peace. It’s a nuanced and objective look at the history of one of the most complex and longstanding conflicts of our time.
It’s a book that’s full of stirring human stories and it’s also a portrait of Ittay’s life from being a teacher in Melbourne to becoming a leading peacemaker in Jerusalem. It’s profoundly empathetic, utterly compelling, informative, heartbreaking and healing all at once.
A must read for anyone who prays for the day we’ll see peace in the Holy Land and an even more important read for those who don’t.
Dr. Anne Sarzin
Australian Academic
Dreams are enshrined in the biblical literature of Jewish people; our patriarch Jacob dreamed of a ladder with angels ascending and descending, generating over thousands of years a multiplicity of interpretations. Jacob’s angels were emissaries of God, bringing divine light from above and also demonstrating it is possible for our better angels to ascend to great heights.
Ittay Flescher, the Israeli-Australian author of The Holy and the Broken, also dreams of a pathway traversing the Holy Land, a potential road for peace leading Palestinians and Israelis through a landscape shared in harmony and safety. Who wouldn’t applaud such a dream if it were to be fulfilled in an ideal world?
This book will have its enthusiastic supporters as well as its antagonistic critics; it will stir controversy, trigger arguments and, potentially, generate new perspectives on old conflicts. If any or all of these responses
illuminate future pathways to peace, the author will have succeeded in his mission.
Denise Newton
Author
The most moving section of the book for me was found in the two letters the author wrote to future Israeli and Palestinian teenagers, which come towards the end of the book. They beautifully encapsulate his vision for what the land he holds so dear could be like, ‘when there is peace.’
If, like me, you have been at a loss as to how to think about or discuss the Palestinian/Israeli conflict, or wish there was an alternative to the black-and-white rhetoric of much of the public debate on the issue, I urge you to read this book. It offers another perspective and a welcome glimmer of hope on an otherwise very dark horizon.
Hannah Rozenblat
Jerusalem Post
What comes across consistently throughout the book is the author’s sincerity and willingness to grapple with difficult issues and tough questions, bringing nuance to a complex subject. His quest for a better future for Israel is based on both personal experience and thorough knowledge of his subject.
Flescher’s is a voice of compassion and humanity, as he portrays the way October 7 and the ensuing war triggered memories of historic traumas for both Jews and Palestinians, of the Holocaust and the Nakba, of loss and displacement.
Rabbi Ralph Genende
Interfaith and community liaison at AIJAC
You can dismiss Ittay Flescher as a hopeless dreamer or embrace him as a prophet of hope, but in either case, if you engage with his efforts as recorded in The Holy and the Broken, you are likely to come away better informed about the collective trauma of Israelis and Palestinians, and the search for small and important possibilities for healing and humanity in a world broken by war and polarisation.
This book provides the sliver of light that Leonard Cohen sought, a hint and a hope of the opportunity to reconcile and embrace amidst the mess and the brokenness
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Rabbi Marc Katz
Temple Ner Tamid
"Flescher has hope. While his answer to the conflict may not speak to all readers— he advocates for a confederacy where people can live in Palestine or Israel but vote with their respective religions — his path to get there will. Flescher speaks passionately about the need for women’s voices in the peace conversation, about changing the narratives in our textbooks, and about journalists paying much more attention to the language they use to frame the conflict.
The book crescendos with two imagined letters, one to an Israeli child and one to a Palestinian. The letters echo with love and care. They also convey the spirit of the previous two hundred-plus pages. Flescher believes in peace because he believes in people. His work at Kids4Peace has shown him that we can change, we can listen, and we can grow. His wish now is to see what he saw in microcosm at Kids4Peace for his beloved nation as a whole."
Ron Kornish
The Jerusalem Report
"This informative and inspiring book should be read by all people who care
about the future of Israel and Palestine, especially by scholars and students who are
interested in peacemaking and peacebuilding in our region. It can serve to rekindle
some hope and remind us all of the power of education to transform lives."
Another way is possible
What has happened in the past must not be a recipe for the future
