What is Zionism?
October 28, 2011
Zionism is the Jewish national movement of rebirth and renewal in the land of Israel – the historical birthplace of the Jewish people. The yearning to return to Zion, the biblical term for both the Land of Israel and Jerusalem, has been the cornerstone of Jewish religious life since the Jewish exile from the land two thousand years ago, and is embedded in Jewish prayer, ritual, literature and culture.
Modern Zionism emerged in the late 19th century in response to the violent persecution of Jews in Eastern Europe, anti-Semitism in Western Europe. Modern Zionism fused the ancient Jewish biblical and historical ties to the ancestral homeland with the modern concept of nationalism into a vision of establishing a modern Jewish state in the land of Israel.
The “father” of modern Zionism, Austrian journalist Theodor Herzl, consolidated various strands of Zionist thought into an organized political movement, advocating for international recognition of a “Jewish state” and encouraging Jewish immigration to build the land.
Today, decades after the actual founding of a Jewish state, Zionism continues to be the guiding nationalist movement of the majority of Jews around the world who believe in, support and identify with the State of Israel. Zionism, the national aspiration of the Jewish people to a homeland, is to the Jewish people what the liberation movements of Africa and Asia have been to their peoples.
History has demonstrated the need to ensure Jewish security through such a homeland. The re-establishment of Jewish independence in Israel, after centuries of struggle to overcome foreign conquest and exile, is a vindication of the fundamental concepts of the equality of nations and of self-determination. To question the Jewish people’s right to national existence and freedom is not only to deny to the Jewish people the right accorded to every other people on this globe, but it is also to deny the central precepts of the United Nations.
Similar posts
-
Israel: Working Toward a COVID19-Free Future
January 14, 2021With two million Israelis having already received the first dose of COVID19 vaccine, Israel continue...
-
The UN's Eternal Hypocrisy on Israel
December 15, 2020Opinion: United Nations General Assembly last week passed 7 anti-Israel resolutions on the ver...
-
New Israeli Method to Predict Who is at Risk for Suicide
December 14, 2020Researchers at Technion and the Hebrew University have developed tools to recognize early warning ...
-
AOC ‘Dream Cabinet’ Would Be A Nightmare For Israel
December 14, 2020The New York congresswoman’s supporters want to see Israel-haters like Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar ...
-
Trump Announces Israel, Sudan To Normalize Ties
December 14, 2020US President Donald Trump announced third peace deal between the Jewish state and an Arab country ...
-
Trump, Israel, UAE Announce Historic Peace Deal
December 11, 2020Agreement is the product of lengthy negotiations between Washington, Jerusalem and Abu Dhabi. As par...
-
Israelis Send Their Support To The People Of Lebanon
December 11, 2020Israelis send their best wishes to their neighbors to the north, the Lebanese people after the tragi...
-
Israeli-Made Flying Cars May Be Floating Into Our Future
December 11, 2020Yavneh-based Urban Aeronautics is developing its CityHawk to be a kind of Uber of the air, startin...
Don’t worry udge! I checked the nbumer of votes after reading anon’s comment, and there weren’t even that many total votes in the whole category. Besides, you can vote again every three days, so if you’re feeling inadequate… 😉