The Zionism-Racism Equation

Peace and Conflict Politics

Zionism Racism

Donald Ellis

June 8
It is certainly easy to banty about the word racism. The sting of its acid tongue is hard to avoid especially if you are a white male or a. member of any dominant group. And interestingly, the word has evolved from a liberal cry for freedom and a national homeland to a left-wing cudgel. Originally the Jews were only supposed to assimilate. That was the goal. The notion of Zionism is really little more than a collection of people seeking to establish a culture that represents the language, philosophy, arts, and politics of the particular group. But it turns out that Zionism is an ambiguous and difficult term that at one moment represents freedom and at another is considered a racist ideology.

And imagine for a moment the powerful pull of Zionism. Would you expect someone who had suffered the pain of anti-Semitism, both literally and figuratively, and found refuge in the state of Israel, to disavow Zionism? And, on the contrary, if you are a Palestinian driven from your home in 1948 would you be surprised if they found it to be a regrettable national liberation movement designed to absorb even more land.The first principle leads back to the history of the present state of Israel. Israel is a foundational movement that points back to historical issues concerning the relationship between the political state of Israel and the religious state. This is a complex conversation between Jews and the Torah; In other words, is the Torah consistent with Jewish prayers and practices? The return to Zion is a recurrent theme and, in fact, considered a divine command.

The covenantal relationship with God – including Noah, circumcision, and Sinai– make Jews distinctive and thereby under the umbrella of a moral God.Moreover, many Jewish leaders are secular and argue that Zionism should not be based on theological perspective. It is cultural affinity such as nationalistic politics, religious doctrine, and historical context that determine nationalistic rights. The point of these covenants is that regardless of historical circumstances the relationship between God and the Jews is stable. There is little doubt that the characterization of the Jews as “a light unto the nations” and “the chosen people” results in the perception of a racist attitude for Jews are an elected group who carry the burden of truly understanding the word of god and god’s commandments.

This notion of “the chosen people” has always lent itself to the charge of elitism and the accompanying claims of racism as the Jews put themselves in the position of strictly knowing god’s mind.But the real question concerns the relationship between Zionism and Judaism. If Zionism emphasizes the spiritual relationship between God and the Jewish people, and insists on adherence to the demands of Jewish practices, then Zionism and Judaism are symmetrical. That is, Zionism must retain its consistencies with the Torah, ritualistic practices, and general identity. And although this would not constitute purposeful racism, nor does it necessarily lead to conclusions about the superiority of one group over the other, it does consider the Jews “to be a light unto the nations” and the Zionist thought that accompanies it to be descriptive of Jewish particularity.

It would mean that the Zionist claim to the land of Israel was religiously required. But Zionism is a national political movement that has successfully maintained its identity, even in the Diaspora, and thereby forces the conclusion that Jewish identity can be maintained in a variety of physical locations and therefore is not so reliant on a single place – e.g. the Temple Mount.Additionally, there is a long tradition of Jews living in exile and working to assimilate themselves into the host culture. If this is possible and religiously acceptable than no territorial base is necessary “to be Jewish.” If one’s Judaism is not dependent on a particular host culture and the Jewish community can fulfill all of its religious obligations, then it is possible to be Jewish anywhere. The Jews have always turned to Torah and other texts to guide their lives. This commitment to shared religious values and practices is more defining of “Jewishness” then are claims to territory.In conclusion, it is important to note that the relationship between the land of Israel and Jews is powerful. Centuries of religious practice and ritualistic observances have drawn the two together such that the Zionism – racism binary make it impossible to escape attributions of racism whether one is a Zionist or not.

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