Basics of Zionism

Zionism is a nationalist movement based on the idea that the Jews should have a single homeland. There a several main Zionist visions. These include: Labor/Socialist Zionism, which involved the creation of a Jewish state through the establishment of kibbutzim and an urban proletariat; Religious Zionism, based on Judaism and the religious right of the Jewish people to the land of Israel as well as the idea that salvation would come from such ownership; and Cultural Zionism, focusing on Jewish culture, history, and language.

Background Information

• Definition and Early History – page created by mideastweb.org
• Labor Zionism – from mideastweb.org
• Zionism – Jewish Virtual Library section on Zionism
• The Theory of Zionism – Different Models, from the Jewish Agency

Writings

• Auto-Emancipation – Leon Pinsker’s essay, predating Herzl’s and calling for the same thing (1882)
• This is not the Way – Achad Ha’am’s article criticizing practical Zionism; scroll down to underneath the biography (1889)
• Opening Speech at the First Zionist Congress – Max Nordau (1897)
• The Jewish Problem and the Socialist Jewish State – excerpts from Nachman Syrkin’s article combining non-Marxist socialism and Jewish nationalism (1898)
• The Jewish State – Theodor Herzl’s pamphlet calling for the transfer of Jewish communities to a new state. (1896)
• Our Platform – written by Ber Borochov, this is the platform adopted by the Russian Jewish party Poalei Tziyon. This ideology was also a cornerstone of the movement Hashomer Hatzair (1906)

Books

• Theodore Herzl, OldNewLand(M. Wiener Pub., 1997) – first published 1902, it outlines Herzl’s vision for a Jewish state
• Arthur Hertzberg, The Zionist Idea (Jewish Publication Society of America, 1992) – The introduction gives a good overview of Zionism; also includes important writings

Help Us Build Our Page!

We’re still in the process of building our page, and we’d like to enlist your help. Have you found a useful resource (articles, books, etc.) that’s not here? Please send it to amy@meretzusa.org.