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Why I Am Not a Zionist (But Christians Should Be)
By David Klinghoffer / May 28, 2007
The Jewish community has been energetic lately in disciplining Jews who say the wrong thing about Israel. In January, the American Jewish Committee branded Jewish leftwing Israel critics as inciters of antisemitism. Meanwhile, when the Jewish anti-Zionists of Neturei Karta sent representatives to meet with Iran’s notorious president, Jews of all persuasions howled in outrage at the ultra-Orthodox eccentrics. Then there is Alan Dershowitz, with his tireless crusade against anti-Israel professor Norman Finkelstein.
And so it goes. I’m taking a bit of a risk, then, in admitting here that—precisely because I’m an Orthodox Jew—I am not a Zionist.
This is the first time I’ve said this publicly, and it may surprise readers familiar with my books or other writing. I call the Jewish community to a more traditional understanding of Judaism, and I remind Jews not to take for granted the friendship of conservative Christians, not least because of their support and love for the state of Israel.
And yet the truth is I believe that Zionism, in making a pedestrian and foreign 19th-century-style nationalism so central to contemporary Jewish culture, has caused us to neglect the higher mission God has in mind for us. If we are ever to take that mission seriously, we must be honest about Zionism and the deleterious effects it has had on Jewish life.
Zealous pro-Israel partisans will say that now is the worst time to make such a confession. A bitter struggle among pundits and activists is being waged about pro-Israel lobbying. If Jews do anything other than cheer for the Jewish state and decry her critics, couldn’t this weaken America’s support?
No. Republicans are Israel’s best friends, and this is not because of Jewish influence. It is because of Christian Zionism in the Evangelical community. I believe that Christian Zionism stands on firmer theological ground than Jewish Zionism, and I doubt that Jewish debate about Israel will change what President Bush and his fellow Evangelicals believe. So why not be frank about Zionism?
Religious Zionists invest sanctity not only in the land of Israel, a cardinal principle of Judaism that I embrace, but also in the idea of a Jewish-led state. But I don’t see any holiness in Jews squabbling and voting in a Knesset that happens to sit on top of the Holy Land.
I am not an anti-Zionist, however, but simply a non-Zionist. If my son Ezra, when he grows up, were to join the Israeli army to protect its citizens, I would be proud. For better or worse, about half of world Jewry lives in Israel. Obviously, their safety is of great concern.
For Jews, though, this practical concern somehow gets translated into a spiritual obligation. I remember 
the atmosphere that accompanied the yearly Israel Day Parade when I lived on New York’s Upper West Side. In shul, we were solemnly urged to attend the event as if it were a religious commandment. I recall overhearing a conversation at the Jewish Theological Seminary. Conservative rabbinical students were comparing how many of their comrades had attended, versus how many of the “Orthos.” Everything about this—counting heads at a silly parade, as though chanting nationalist slogans and waving flags were sacred Jewish acts—struck me as mundane and demoralizing.
Today, religious Jews seem mostly in agreement about Israel’s spiritual significance, but this has not historically been the case. In fact, a debate about religious Zionism goes back to the mid–19th century, decades before secular Zionism was championed by Theodor Herzl.
The intellectual and religious originator of Modern Orthodoxy, Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, argued that Jews have a “mission” to humanity. He stressed the Jewish role as “patriots” in their adopted home countries, contributing to the spiritual and physical welfare of their neighbors.
This is the famous idea of tikun olam, repairing the world. In the traditional understanding, tikun olam means acting to lead humanity toward a deeper understanding of God and His laws. Hirsch argued that this is “a God-given destiny which…overshadows the existence of a state.”
The concept is central to Judaism. It is embodied in the famous instruction God gave to the Jews upon their arrival at Mt. Sinai, where they would receive the Ten Commandments: “You shall be to me a kingdom of priests” (Exodus 19:6). Jews are literally intended to minister to the world as priests, teaching and inspiring humanity. Merely to have a state, to be like other peoples, is not our destiny.
This is one important implication of a famous passage in the Talmud (Ketubot 111a). Rabbi Zeira explains there that the Jews are forbidden to ascend to the holy land en masse with the use of force until “it pleases” God.
But how will we know when this pleases Him? When mass migration to Israel is unopposed by other peoples living there.
When will that be? In the time of the Messiah. Or so would have been the standard Jewish response up until the last century or so.
Unfortunately, American Jews have mostly abandoned our unique destiny. Today, when we speak as Jews in public forums, it is rarely to apply the insights of our tradition to any of the great problems our nation faces. Much more typically, we discuss Israel, how unfair her critics are, how deserving she is of protection from enemies in her neighborhood, and so on. This is at a time of unprecedented openness in the Christian world to Jews and Jewish wisdom.
As for Jews in Israel, in this post-Holocaust era, just when Gentiles were ready to begin hearing what we have to say, they have retreated to a holy sanctuary where they are cut off, largely irrelevant to any discussion of how the world’s nations should construct their politics and culture. Zionism has tragically distracted us from the historic role of the Jewish people, just when our best opportunity to fulfill that role has presented itself.
Our dereliction of duty doesn’t change the fact that we have a duty. Our mission to the world “forbids us to strive for the reunion or the possession of the land by any but spiritual means,” as Hirsch put it. To return as a people to Israel in the messianic era, called by God, when our mission to uplift others has been accomplished, remains the divine plan.
But why doesn’t any of this concern Christian Zionists? Today, if asked why they seek to protect and defend the Jewish state, and why they see this as a religious obligation, thoughtful Evangelicals point to their straightforward reading of Biblical verses.
When Christian Zionists do this, they find numerous promises made by God to the prophets—on four separate occasions to Abraham alone—about the divine gift to the Jews in the form of the land of Israel. Their plain reading is that these promises still apply in full force.
In his recent book, Standing with Israel: Why Christians Support the Jewish State, David Brog devotes special attention to Genesis 12:3, in which God promises Abraham, the first Jew, “I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you.” Brog, who is Jewish, finds that Christians cite this verse most often in explaining their Zionist commitment. Pat Robertson, Gary Bauer, Richard Land, John Hagee, and Jerry Falwell come back to that verse again and again.
Why are Christian Zionists, who read the Bible so conscientiously, not moved by the Biblical vision of a Jewish mission to the nations? The answer is simple. For Christians, Evangelical or otherwise, the special task of the Jewish people was accomplished two thousand years ago, when we produced the Christian savior.
Traditional Jews and Evangelicals share a commitment to reading the Hebrew Bible with integrity. But Jews do not share the Christian belief that the redemption promised by the Hebrew prophets has already arrived. Christians, unlike Jews, believe that Jews have already accomplished their mission in the world.
We Jews must remember our primary purpose of uplifting the world, not retreating from it. The wonderful irony is that we can do this without for a moment abandoning the Israeli Jews who, however prematurely, are already in residence in the Holy Land.
Even as we rethink our historic mission, America’s Christians will continue to make sure that the world’s greatest nation, our own, stands in defense of Israel. They ask only that we refrain from abusing their friendship too much. The paradox is worth savoring. With their own very different concept of why God put Jews into the world, Christians make it possible for us enact our own understanding—the true understanding, I believe—of the Jewish national purpose.
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I am pro Israelites/ pro Jews but i am against the current state of Israel. It is unbiblical. Before discussing Bible verses first does anyone of you knew how the state of Israel came into being? Perhaps most doesn’t know the truth, history books are very superficial, about 6 million Jews were sacrificed by fellow Jews (Zionist Congress) to obtain sympathy from around the world causing then the British parliament (and the UN) to grant Palestine to the Israelites….(many more about these just do your own homework) Why do i say then that it is unbiblical? Yes a land was promised to Abraham descendants, what are the boundaries? Gen 15:18-19 and that promised was fulfilled 1000 years ago after God made that promised to Abraham during the reign of the 3rd Israelite king, King Solomon 2 Chronicles 9:26.
That land was a gift from God and if you noticed the history of the ancient Isarelites everytime they sinned (Leviticus 18: 24, 28) God puts them to exile and when they repented God is the one making the way for them to be back in their own land ( Jeremiah 29: 10-14). Now consider the state of Israel now was it the work of God or the work of men? I believe that what the author of this page had said that Israel has a mission to the world, and it is true in the end the Jews will be used by God to proclaim about His kingdom Revelation 7:1-8 (New Testament).
What God? Whose God? Who said that?
What are the roots of antisemitism? You say Islam is antisemitic, but aren't the Arabs semitic too? Does not Allah address the Jews as follows: "O Children of Israel! Remember My favour wherewith I favoured you and how I preferred you to (all) creatures. (47) And
guard yourselves against a day when no soul will in aught avail
another, nor will intercession be accepted from it, nor will
compensation be received from it, nor will they be helped. (48) And
(remember) when We did deliver you from Pharaoh's folk, who were
afflicting you with dreadful torment, slaying your sons and sparing
your women: that was a tremendous trial from your Lord. (49) And when We brought you through the sea and rescued you, and drowned the folk of Pharaoh in your sight.(50)" Surah al-Baqara.
But how will we know when this pleases Him? When mass migration to Israel is unopposed by other peoples living there.
Lovely. And I agree.
but i can't tell if you are joking.
 Of all the charges that could be laid at the feet of muslims, idol worship is emphatically not one of them: Islam has stronger strictures against graven images and representations of the divine than any other religion as far as i know.Â
One could make a case that esp. in Palestine, a death cult has arisen which resembles idol worship: posters of 'shaheeds', suicide bombers, plaster the walls of most Palestinian cities, to the exclusion of even advertising, much less positive murals or other art (or even blank space)
but yes, i agree, however crazy it might sound, that doing real animal sacrifices on har ha bayt in a true way would put the world more into balance. And perhaps, hopefully, dissipate or replace that bloodthirsty energy that led to such 'sacrifices' (l'havdil!!)
I’m not saying there’s no rational basis for ANY religious exercise (i.e.: tefillin, prayer, etc.)–it’s clear that some contemplation and depth is necessary to live a fulfilling life, especially in our materialistic culture.
I’m just saying there’s no rational basis for sacrificing animals. If you show me scientific studies linking animal sacrifice to healing the world, improving your relationships, reducing heartburn, etc., then I’ll consider sacrifices something we might want to spend time doing. Good luck with that.
In my view, prayer (if done sincerely), forces us to contemplate our highest and deepest values and instincts. With animal sacrifice you just can’t get over the notion of quid pro quo. I kill an animal, give it to the priests, and in return I get blessings, forgiveness, rain, etc.
Also, I think the evil in the Kohanim/Israel distinction does not depend on whether the priests were considered higher or lower than the Israelis. “Separate but equal” is no excuse for denying people opportunities based on who their father was. I can’t blame the ancient Israelis for doing this–the very notion of equality and civil rights did not really exist back then. But in our day and age there is no excuse.
As for the Temple Mount–I don’t really think it’s productive to list all the grievances and injustices committed by Muslims against Jews and vice-versa over the past 1400 years. I don’t know the history of why the Dome of the Rock was built where it was built but for the sake of argument I will grant you that it was put there for unjust reasons.
But I want to point out that your entire analysis of the Temple Mount situation treats “Muslims” and “Jews” as if they were two indivduals who have been alive for 1400 years. Replace “Muslim” and “Jew” with the names of two individuals, and your argument essentially says “Mike maliciously burned Jake’s temple 1400 years ago; therefore Jake has the right to rebuild Jake’s temple today, regardless of what Mike may have done with the place in the intervening years.”
The problem with this argument is that there is no Mike or Jake. The Dome of the Rock was built by people living 1400 years ago. The Muslims who now pray there and the Jews who want the place back are completely different people. Of course, they still identify themselves as Jews or Muslims–but ultimately they are individuals. And just because some Muslim did something terrible to a Jew way back when does not mean that Jews now have a right to do bad things to Muslims now. (doesn’t the Torah say something about “sins of the fathers”).
Every Muslim individual who prays at the Dome of the Rock and finds spiritual fulfillment there should not be deprived of the right to pray there simply because some Muslims went there for the wrong reasons.
Also–no legal system in the world will recognize a claim to land that has not been occupied for 1200 years. That along should give someone pause before making those sorts of claims.
I also would point out that I’m probably in the middle of the sprectrum on the Palestinian/Israel question and certainly do NOT blame Israel for all the problems there. I’m not trying to make a political argument about the Middle East here. I’m just saying that it is barbaric to treat groups of people as if they do not consist of individuals. It took Europe thousands of years to recognize this basic notion, on which all of modernity is based. The root of the problems in the Middle East stems from people’s inability to adopt that notion there.
londonyid, do you then agree we should do sacrifices?
 i agree with those who have pointed out, via the first-person clues etc, that klinghoffer is accepting american identity, refusing to admit he's in exile.
anonymous– good points. arguably the temple hierarchy was more of servitude than of 'higher' caste– priests couldn't own land, so they received food (via sacrifices etc.) but that was their payment for maintenance of ritual and of being the teachers of the people.Â
'outdated magical thinking'– you don't KNOW that prayer or ritual (or sacrifice) DOESN'T have any effect. Plenty of evidence points to there being a 'method to the madness', even scientifically. Wrapping tefillin corresponds to acupuncture points, which have proven medical value. Positive prayer and words has been shown to 'imprint' water with beautiful crystal patterns, while negative epithets can imprint water with messes or no crystals.Â
The sacrifices are necessary but not sufficient towards restoring balance in the world (or addressing the imbalances of a specific penitent, sinner, or sin.) They are part of a process of identifying, understanding, and atoning for ways in which we through our imperfections cause the world to be out of balance, and the process as a whole can be likened to 12-step. You can't skip steps– and the sacrifices are important steps.
As for the temple/dome of the rock, the muslims didn't just 'happen' to build there. They knowingly, deliberately, sought to replace, overlay, bury the Jewish story under their retelling of it, and take over and destroy our holiest place. They did that in the very specific context of Mohammed's anger at the Jews for not recognizing his prophecy; in the context of expelling all Jews from Arabia (where at one point we were one-fourth of the pop.) and forcing conversion or second-class status (or death) on Jews throughout the middle east. It wasn't nice and it isn't nice, it's utterly disrespectful, and it continues to this day with the Muslim Waqf excavating under the temple mount specifically to eradicate and destroy archaeological proof of Jewish past there, in violation of international agreements.Â
You saying we should consider the possibility of bloodshed is like saying hm, maybe we shouldn't try to arrest mobsters or terrorists because they might shoot back. It allows the bully to always have his way.Â
Mr Klinghoffer feels that Zionism has made “a pedestrian and foreign 19th-century-style nationalism so central to contemporary Jewish culture”. To make his point, he relies on Samson Raphael Hirsch who claimed that Jews should be “patriots” in their adopted home countries. Well, wouldn’t it be obvious that such a sense of patriotism is also a 19th century legacy? As Yehuda points out in his above observation, Mr Klinghoffer refers to the American nation as “our own”, in the first person. Surely, this is not the traditional, “orthodox” perspective of the Jews – who are a nation in their own right: u-mi ke-’ammekha Yisrael goy ehad ba-aretz – “Who is like Your people Israel, a unique nation in the world” (see I Chr 17:21 and the Jewish prayerbook)! In other words, Mr Klinghoffer identifies with the American nation (as Rabbi Hirsch identified with the German nation), breaking with the traditional Jewish thinking of our being a separate nation called Israel (in the Land of Israel or in the Galut). He’s an American (core identity) whose religion is (orthodox) Judaism. In this respect, the “orthodox” perspective of Mr Klinghoffer is no different than the 19th century Reform outlook that also defined itself as “Germans (or Americans) of the Mosaic faith”. Zionism has always been the legacy of those Jews whose core identity has been Jewish.
No shit! Jews need a Jewish homeland to survive – Chuckle, I am a Deist, raised the the Episcopal faith!
Anonymous bbq
If Hashem asked us to bring sacrifices, then it is a Chok to do exactly as asked. If you argue that we have grown out of sacrifices (I know, Rambam has made this argument, but then he was a hellenist), you can just as well argue that we may grow out of keeping taharat hamischpacha, kashrut, shabbes and all the rest. Of course the non-orthodox make this argument too, but it doesn’t fit an orthodox person. After all, all shomrim mitzvos start their schachris prayers by going through the Thora, Mischna and Gemara portions on the sacrifices.
By the way, since Klinghofer has mentioned the German Jewish philosophers, why shouldn’t we include in the discussion what could be the reasons that Hashem let this branch of anti-Zionist Jewish thought perish? Since they kept the daily mitzvos, it was surely not because they didn’t keep these mitzvos? But what about their violent slander against the Land? Isn’t that the reason the entire male Jewish population between 20-60 perished after Exodus too, with just 2 exceptions?
With regards to the 3 vows in Ketubot based on “I make you swear, o daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles and by the hinds of the field, do not wake or rouse love until it is wished (Song of Songs 2:7, 3:5, 8:4).” An outsider could of course hold the opinion that a lot of talmudic discussion is trial and error. For example, revolts against Romans didn’t work at all, ergo stop hoping for a Jewish state.
Nothing could be further than that. It is clear from the statements of Rabbi Yose in the name of Rabbi Hannina, that the nations of the world made a promise to Hashem not to persecute Jews too harshly. Vice versa, once they do persecute Jews too harshly, these 3 vows will be voided. In fact, this is exactly what happened.
The entire world conspired in the Shoah, be it Americans through people like FDR, British who opened no outlets or inlets for our people to flee, Poles, Swiss, Russians, and don’t forget the German rotzchim, of course. Thus, the entire world has broken that promise and voided the vows that blocked the erection of the Jewish state.
anonymous, do you eat meat?
 Do you participate in the taking of the animal's life that you eat? Have you ever?
 I submit that people who eat meat without being in touch with the full cycles of life and death that meat comes from–including that moment when life is taken from the animal– are contributing to making the world dangerously out of balance. Yes, we should be directly in touch with the true meaning of taking an animal's life for our sustenance; and not only in touch with it, present at that moment, but it should be done "be shem shamayim"– it should be done in a sacred way. Do you really think the world, and you personally, are better off eating massive amounts of meat slaughtered impersonally in industrial processing centers, rather than having the deaths of those animals play a direct role deeply connected to our belief system and place in the world?
Judaism is ALL about throwing big roasted-meat barbecue parties for our friends and loved ones. That could be argued to be our central ritual throughout history, via several forms. More than half the mitzvot relate directly to sacrifices. Something about that life and death moment, the way it's done and happens, is considered by our religion to be incredibly important with respect to setting the world in balance, and to restoring balance after various sins or problems. One could even argue that every day that goes by since '67 that we ARE here in the land, yet not doing sacrifices nor anything else on har ha bayt, the world gets MORE out of balance. Yer damn straight I think we should go back to animal sacrifice– and I think the burden of proof should be on those who think we shouldn't, and they should have to re-justify it every single day that goes by.
couldn’t have said it better than portnoy.
you seem like a man of torah— we are promised a great nation. just like avraham’s journey, it is our obligation to use tools from Gd to do so.
you won’t be able to focus on religious aspects of judaism if israel does not survive. your religious life will be threatened.
your jewish army is fighting as we speak. try and remember why.
“So… are you saying they’re contemptible or not?”
No Craig, I am saying that without a country of their own they are not in a position to defend themselves.
I am also saying that if Jews didn’t have a country of their own they would probably be even worse off given the realities of antisemitism.
Now, what are you saying? Is your point that of this matters?
“Take that, gypsies. Seriously, is that cool, considering you were “just like” them?” JewcyCraig
From the BBC:
“Gypsies are ‘Europe’s most hated’
Gypsies are the most hated minority in Europe despite centuries of persecution and the Holocaust, it has been claimed.
Up to half-a-million were killed by the Nazis – but their plight is often forgotten and they remain “demonised”.
The comments were made by Dr James Smith of the National Holocaust Centre, where a conference on the treatment of gypsies and travellers is being held.
It is hoped the event will help promote greater understanding of both the gypsy and traveller communities in the UK….”
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4486245.stm
Those who fantasize a world without a Jewish State as the answer need to think about the fate of another Statelss minority.
Take that, gypsies. Seriously, is that cool, considering you were "just like" them?
“I STILL don’t see how putting us all in one place has made us any “safer.”"1
That’s because you are blind.
As bad as things may look today they would be a lot worse without the Jewish State.
Anyone who believes that Islamicist antisemitism would not exist without israel they are either ignorant or blind.
Islamicism is the child of among other things western fascism and antisemitism is an article of faith in this evil ideology.
Besides, no matter with either leftist Jews or ultra religious Jews think, without Israel Western antisemitism would never have subsided as it did after 1948. The fact that nations have to deal with a Jewish country has shaped the post world war 2 view of Jews for over half a century. Prior to that the Jews were just like the Gypses, a contemptible people without a country.
The enemies of Israel and the Jewish people, like evil Kapo David, will vanish into obscurity and Israel will continue to thrive and survive. If you are against Israel you are against GOD!
simply kaka
I STILL don’t see how putting us all in one place has made us any “safer.”
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