Read complete books and articles on: Zionism

Zionism - modern political movement for reconstituting a Jewish national state in Palestine.

Early Years

Zionism - modern political movement for reconstituting a Jewish national state in Palestine.

Early Years

The rise of the Zionist movement in the late 19th cent. was influenced by nationalist currents in Europe, as well as by the secularization of Jewish life in Eastern Europe, which led many assimilated Jewish intellectuals to seek a new basis for a Jewish national life. One such individual was Theodor Herzl, a Viennese journalist who wrote The Jewish State (1896), calling for the formation of a Jewish nation state as a solution to the Diaspora and to anti-Semitism. In 1897 Herzl called the first World Zionist Congress at Basel, which brought together diverse proto-Zionist groups into one movement. The meeting helped found Zionist organizations in most countries with large Jewish populations.

The first issue to split the Zionist movement was whether Palestine was essential to a Jewish state. A majority of the delegates to the 1903 congress felt that it was essential and rejected the British offer of a homeland in Uganda. The opposition, the Territorialists led by Israel Zangwill, withdrew on the grounds that an immediate refuge for persecuted Jews was needed. Within the Zionist movement a broad range of perspectives developed, ranging from a synthesis of nationalism with traditional Jewish Orthodoxy (in the Mizrahi movement, founded 1902) to various combinations of Zionism with utopian and Marxist socialism.

The Balfour Declaration and Settlement in Palestine

After Herzl's death, the Zionist movement came under the leadership of Chaim Weizmann, who sought to reconcile the "practical" wing of the movement, which sought to further Jewish settlement in Palestine, and its "political" wing, which stressed the establishment of a Jewish state. Weizmann obtained few concessions from the Turkish sultan, who ruled Palestine; however, in 1917, Great Britain, then at war with Turkey, issued the Balfour Declaration (see Balfour, Arthur James), which promised to help establish a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine. Great Britain was given a mandate of Palestine in 1920 by the League of Nations, in part to implement the Balfour Declaration.

Jewish colonization vastly increased in the early years of the mandate (see Palestine for the period up to 1948), but soon the British limited their interpretation of the declaration in the face of Arab pressure. There were disputes in the Zionist movement on how to counter the British position. The right-wing Revisionists, led by Vladimir Jabotinsky, favored large-scale immigration to Palestine to force the creation of a Jewish state. The most conciliatory faction was the General Zionists (representing the original national organizations), who generally remained friendly to Great Britain.

Since the Holocaust and Founding of Israel

After World War II the Zionist movement intensified its activities. The sufferings of the European Jews at the hands of the Germans demanded the opening of a refuge; the stiffening opposition of the Arabs increased the urgency. At this time the World Zionist Congress was divided, the Revisionists demanding all Palestine and the General Zionists reluctantly accepting the United Nations plan to partition Palestine (see Israel). After the Jewish state was proclaimed (May 14, 1948), the Zionist movement was forced to reevaluate its goals.

Against those who argued that the simple expression of support for Israel was sufficient for affiliation, the movement's 1968 Jerusalem Program defined the goal of personal migration to Israel as a requirement for membership. However, most Jews in the United States and other Western democracies seemed content to support the Zionist movement as a means of supporting Israel, without any personal commitment to living there. The Zionist movement today facilitates migration to Israel and supports Jewish cultural and educational activities in the diaspora.

Bibliography

See C. Weizmann, Trial and Error (1949, repr. 1972); I. Cohen, A Short History of Zionism (1951); B. Halpern, The Idea of the Jewish State (2d ed. 1969); W. Laqueur, A History of Zionism (1972); S. Avineri, The Making of Modern Zionism (1984); D. Vital, The Origins of Zionism (1980), Zionism: The Formative Years (1982), and Zionism: The Crucial Phase (1987); B. Morris, Righteous Victims (rev. ed. 2001).

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12 of the Best Books and Articles on: Zionism

as selected by Questia librarians

1.

Zionism and the Creation of a New Society » Read Now
by Ben Halpern, Jehuda Reinharz. 298 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, History, Entire Library

Israel is a modern state whose institutions were clearly shaped by an ideological movement. The declaration of independence in 1948 was an immediate expression of the fundamental Zionist idea: it gave effect to a plan advocated by organized Zionists since the 1880s for solving the Jewish Problem...
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Israel is a modern state whose institutions were clearly shaped by an ideological movement. The declaration of independence in 1948 was an immediate expression of the fundamental Zionist idea: it gave effect to a plan advocated by organized Zionists since the 1880s for solving the Jewish Problem. Thus, major Israeli political institutions, such as the party structure, embody principles and practices that were followed in the World Zionist Organization. In this respect, Israel is similar to other new states whose political institutions directly derive from the nationalist movements that won their independence. History and social structure are inseparably joined; the contemporary social problems of the new state are clearly rooted in its history, while the shape of its future is being decided by the very policies through which it is trying to solve these problems. At the same time, there are many unique aspects to the birth of Israel. The problem to be solved by acquiring sovereignty in Israel (and establishing a free Jewish society there) was the problem of a people living in exile. The first stage, therefore, was to return to the people a homeland to which they were intimately attached, not only in their dreams but in the minute details of their ways of life. This important book studies the birth of the State of Israel and analyzes the elaborately articulated and variegated ideological principles of the Zionist movement that led to that birth. It examines conflicting pre-state ideals and the social structure that emerged in Palestine's Jewish community during the Mandate period. In particular, Zionism and the Creation of a New Society reflects upon Israel's existence as both a state and a social structure--a place conceived before its birth as a means of solving a particular social malady: the modern Jewish Problem. Jehuda Reinharz and the late Ben Halpern carefully trace the development of the Zionist idea from its earliest expressions up to the eve of World War II, setting their study against a broad background of political and social development throughout Europe and the Middle East.
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2.

The Zionist Idea: A Historical Analysis and Reader » Read Now
by Arthur Hertzberg. 656 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, History, Entire Library

A classic since its initial publication in 1959, The Zionist Idea is an anthology of writings by the leading thinkers of the Zionist movement, including Theodor Herzl, Ahad Ha-Am, Martin Buber, Louis Brandeis, Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook, Judah Magnes, Max Nordau, Mordecai Kaplan, Vladimir Jabotinsky, Chaim Weizmann, and David Ben-Gurion.
3.

History of Zionism: A Handbook and Dictionary » Read Now
by Hershel Edelheit, Abfaham J. Edelheit. 653 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, History, Entire Library

This two-part volume deals with the emergence of Zionism from its earliest precursors to the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. Part One includes a general review of Zionist history based on both primary & secondary sources & examines key historiographical issues raised by studying modern...
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This two-part volume deals with the emergence of Zionism from its earliest precursors to the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. Part One includes a general review of Zionist history based on both primary & secondary sources & examines key historiographical issues raised by studying modern Jewish nationalism. Part Two, the dictionary, provides an alphabetical listing of phrases, organizations, & other significant terms related to Zionism. Major entries include a general overview & tabular data of all material given over to quantification or graphic presentation.
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4.

Theodor Herzl: Founder of Political Zionism » Read Now
by Israel Cohen. 399 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, History, Entire Library

...THEODOR HERZL FOUNDER OF POLITICAL ZIONISM -2- THEODOR HERZL FOUNDER OF POLITICAL ZIONISM by ISRAEL COHEN New York THOMAS...Badeni -- Public meeting in Vienna -- Organizing...
5.

The Making of Modern Zionism: The Intellectual Origins of the Jewish State » Read Now
by Shlomo Avineri. 242 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, History, Entire Library
6.

Parallels Meet: Religion and Nationalism in the Early Zionist Movement (1882-1904) » Read Now
by Ehud Luz, Lenn J. Schramm. 368 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, History, Entire Library

The marriage of traditional Judaism and Zionism was never easy and today it remains greatly troubled. In his absorbing account Ehud Luz tells the story of the conflict that arose between religionists and secularists.
7.

Prelude to Israel: An Analysis of Zionist Diplomacy, 1897-1947 » Read Now
by Alan R. Taylor. 120 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, History, Entire Library

...believed that the most important policy requirement of political Zionism was point two of his original formula--the acquisition of...finances of the Porte and also the...
8.

Futurizing the Jews: Alternative Futures for Meaningful Jewish Existence in the 21st Century (Chap. 2 "The Triumph of Zionism" and Chap. 3 "Zionism in the Twenty-First Century") » Read Now
by Tsvi Bisk, Moshe Dror, Gad Yaacobi. 260 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, History, Entire Library
9.

The Jewish State: The Struggle for Israel's Soul » Read Now
by Yoram Hazony. 436 pgs.

Collections: History, Entire Library

Focuses on imaginative kosher recipes that are simple to prepare, low fat and health conscious: the recipes explore the wide range of possibilities in kosher cookery from simple lunches to elegant dinner menus. Features a section on Kosher wines. Helen Nash is an established and popular cookery...
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Focuses on imaginative kosher recipes that are simple to prepare, low fat and health conscious: the recipes explore the wide range of possibilities in kosher cookery from simple lunches to elegant dinner menus. Features a section on Kosher wines. Helen Nash is an established and popular cookery writer. She has studied with famous chefs Michael Field and Lydie Marshall. She lives in New York City.
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10.

Jewish Emancipation and Self-Emancipation » Read Now
by Jacob Katz. 184 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, History, Entire Library
11.

Anti-Semitism and Zionism: Selected Marxist Writings » Read Now
by Daniel Rubin. 242 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, History, Entire Library

Clarifies what is required to more effectively combat anti-Semitism, as well as to secure a just peace in the Middle East. Includes discussion of the historical background as of 1987, and the ideology of Zionism.
12.

Jews against Zionism: The American Council for Judaism, 1942-1948 » Read Now
by Thomas A. Kolsky. 269 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, History, Entire Library

...Jews Against Zionism The American Council for Judaism...THOMAS A. KOLSKY Jews Against Zionism The American Council for Judaism...Data Kolsky, Thomas A. Jews against...