When Gay Love Was Unhappy in Modern Hebrew

Vivian Eden, haaretz.com

Langer image from article

Excerpt:

A new Hebrew anthology of LGBT poetry takes its title from Samuel II,1:26: “Wonderful was thy love to me, passing the love of women,” in David’s lament for Jonathan’s death. ...

Mordechai Jiří (Georgo) Langer, the first modern Hebrew poet in the anthology, ... [a]t 19 ... left his assimilated Jewish home in Prague and joined the Belzer Hasidic court. Returning to Prague after World War I, he became involved in religious Zionism, wrote books including one of poems in Hebrew and became friendly with Max Brod and Franz Kafka, to whom he taught modern Hebrew. In 1939 he fled to Tel Aviv, where he published his second book of poetry and was cold-shouldered by the literary establishment for his religious and erotic preferences. Despite “pinkwashing” in public diplomacy, Israel is still not entirely gay friendly.