Nativism

Salim Tamari in his article talks about nativism, lunatics, and saints. I was first confused on the topic of the article but then at the end he makes it all clear. One thing really struck me and that was how even a disease such as leprosy became embedded into the peasant culture, particularly the reference to Jesus’s miracle in the bible. Also how the lepers of 1948, Jews and Arabs became separated. His effort by juxtaposing the past cultures of Canaan alongside Palestinian culture was very apparent and evident in drawing a distinction the greater Syrian area (Lebanon and Syria). Lastly I don’t agree as the article mentions that culture is stagnant, I rather think it’s a culmination of past cultures. While a return to antiquity may have it’s benefits, we remain the children of today, of today’s culture and not the past.