The Exile of the Jews that we will learn about in this unit is a communal trauma—a painful national event that undermined the identity and culture of a whole people group. These sorts of mass traumas can have effects that echo through history in powerful ways. Think over your own knowledge of history. Can you think of any other events, in the recent or distant past, that would count as a “communal trauma” for a people group? What are they? What effects have these events had on that people group or others?