Israel and a Jewish Monarchy

Recently, there was celebrated the anniversary of the founding of the State of Israel, an historic event in more ways than the obvious. Where else has there ever been a nation, without land, scattered across the globe that was able to survive for more than a thousand years only to reestablish itself as a sovereign nation-state once again? If there are other examples, I cannot recall them. Like almost every other nation on earth, Israel was once a monarchy and an extremely influential one at that. The tradition of "sacred monarchy" for Christians, for example, comes more from the ancient Jewish kings than almost any other source. What about today? There are still Jewish monarchists who want to see the Kingdom of Israel restored along with the rest of their ancient traditions. I cannot help but feel that part of the reason they are given so little attention in the western media is because of the implications for other religions. When it comes to the Holy Land, the slightest twitch is enough to upset the world. However, they do exist and have been hard at work for many years trying to revive the Davidic monarchy of the Old Testament. The most prominent Israeli monarchist is Rabbi Yosef Dayan, recognized by most as the closest living blood heir of King David and thus most likely candidate for the throne. He is the founder and leader of the monarchist organization Malchut-Yisra'el. In 2005 the Jerusalem Post commented on the efforts to recall the Sanhedrin to proclaim a king. Efforts to revive the Sanhedrin are not new, but they seem more lasting in recent years and focus on such projects as a full restoration of traditional Jewish government, law, the House of David and the Temple. Rabbi Yosef Dayan is a member of the restored Sanhedrin.