Trauma, and in particular the Holocaust, survival and glory, and in particular the establishment of the State of Israel and its defense are central in Israeli culture. It was suggested that despite major changes in Israeli Jewish society through the years, conflict-supporting beliefs and emotions of fear and hatred have remained dominant and continue to obstruct possible peaceful resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict (Bar-Tal et al., 2010). Rightfully or not, the notion that the world is out to get the Jews seems to have become part of the Israeli social unconscious.
The Dutch
As regarding religion, 48% of the population of the Netherlands is Christian (of various denominations), 42% is non-religious, 6% is Muslim, and 4% adheres to another religion (Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek, 2009). In 2010, about 20% of the population of the Netherlands consisted of first or second generation immigrants, a little over half of these originating in non-Western countries (Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek, 2011). The percentage of immigrants in the Netherlands is expected to continue its slow rise (Verbond van Verzekeraars, 2010).
