Zionism is not a Consequence of the Holocaust
A pernicious argument which prevails amongst some Israel haters is that Zionism emanated from the aftermath of a Nazi Holocaust for which Palestinians were forced to pay the price. European Jews should have been awarded land from post-World War II Germany to form their state, and not in Palestine to which they have no rights. This conveniently one sided view – seen soley through the prism of the Holocaust – ignores a whole host of historical truths.
Zionism, the movement advocating for the return of the Jewish people to their ancestral homeland in ancient Israel and the re-establishment of a Jewish state, did not originate in the late 19th century, although its political realization was formalised in this period. The modern State of Israel came into being in 1948, but prior to this, there were various attempts by Jews – religious, messianic, and proto-nationalists – who sought to restore Jewish sovereignty in the land.
After the destruction of the Second Temple in 70CE and the following Bar Kokhba revolt in 135CE which followed, many Jews were dispersed from Judea. Even so, the desire to return to the land formed a core part of Jewish religious practice and identification. Liturgical prayers such as “Next year in Jerusalem” were faithfully recited by Jews during Pesach and Yom Kippur highlighting an ongoing spiritual connection to Zion.
An early attempt by Jews to make a physical return to the Land of Israel occurred during the Middle Ages. In the 12th century, the Sephardic physician, poet and philosopher Judah Ha-Levi left his comfortable life in Al Andalus (modern day Spain) to make aliyah in a long and perilous journey to the Land of Israel where he hoped to live out his final days. In his celebrated philosophical treatise known as the Kuzari, Ha-Levi argues that the divine presence is most palpable in the Land of Israel. Although his decision to make aliyah was a personal one, the example set by Judah Ha-Levi served as an inspiration for generations of Jews.
Following the mass expulsions of Jews from Spain and Portugal in the 16th century there was a resurgence of messianic Zionism. The cities of Safed, Tiberias, Hebron and Jerusalem witnessed the return of many Jews from the Ottoman Empire keen to settle and facilitate the redemption. A flourishing centre of Kabbalistic thought soon became established in Safed. One of Safed’s most prominent mystics, Rabbi Isaac Luria (1534-1572), is known today as the father of modern Kabbalah.
One of most dramatic messianic episodes in Jewish history occurred during the 17th century with the rise of Shabtai Tzvi (1626 -1676), a charismatic figure who claimed to be the Jewish Messiah and whose messianic movement spread across Jewish communities in Europe and the Middle East. Shabtai Tzvi sparked widespread expectations of the imminent restoration of Jews to their ancient homeland which at the time was part of the Ottoman Empire ruled by Sultan Mehmed IV. Although the movement was ultimately a failure – Tzvi converted to Islam under pressure from the Ottoman court in 1666 – its zeal revealed a deep rooted wish for redemption and return.
In the 18th and early 19th centuries, more practical forms of proto-Zionism emerged. The disciples of the Vilna Gaon (1720- 1797) – a leading rabbinic authority in Lithuania – began settling in Safed, Jerusalem and the surrounding, often undeveloped areas. Their intent was that of pious settlement in order to hasten the coming of the messiah.
During his Middle Eastern Campaign in the spring of 1799, Napoleon Bonaparte is said to have issued a “Proclamation to the Jews”, calling upon them as the “rightful heirs of Palestine” to establish a state. Bonaparte, who was seeking to undermine British influence in India and expanding French imperial reach, attempted to elicit support for his campaign by tapping into the growing messianic longings among some Jewish communities which he was hoping would stir Jewish uprisings in the Ottoman Empire. Napoleon Bonaparte became the first modern leader to support the reconstitution of a Jewish state in Palestine and his ideas found resonance with a number of Jewish thinkers such as Yehuda Alkalai (1798–1878), a Sephardic rabbi in the Balkans who began to encourage Jews to migrate to Palestine in the 1830s.
Towards the end of 19th century, amidst rising European nationalism and growing antisemitism, modern political Zionism began to take shape. Thinkers like Moses Hess and Leo Pinsker wrote of the need for Jewish nationhood, while the Lovers of Zion (Hovevei Tzion) groups in Eastern Europe promoted an agricultural colonization in Palestine based on socialist ideals. These early settlers, hailing mainly from Russia and Romania, laid the groundwork for what would later become the Kibbutz Movement.
The festival of Shavuot Jews are celebrating today commemorates the Bikkurim (first fruits) of the harvest festival in the Land of Israel brought to the First and Second Temples as an expression of thanks to God for the sustenance they provided. The Bikkurim were brought from the seven species for which the land is renowned for: wheat, barley, figs, pomegranates, grapes, olives, and dates.
Thus, we see that ideas and efforts of Jewish return to the ancient Land of Israel had deep historical roots, combining religious devotion, messianic yearning, and emerging political consciousness. These early expressions of Zionism existed long before the rise of Hitler and the Holocaust, and created the foundation upon which Theodor Herzl and later political Zionists would build upon.
