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A half baked thread on Judaism and Zionism that I have been mulling for a while and hope at some point to fully flesh out in long form writing.
As some of you may know, I have not always been another boring college educated White liberal and observant-ish Jew.
Like a lot of Jews from the former Soviet Union (FSU), I started off mostly secular, with some engagement with Chabad growing up, like a lot of FSU Jews do.
Like a lot of Jews from the former Soviet Union (FSU), I started off mostly secular, with some engagement with Chabad growing up, like a lot of FSU Jews do.
In secular life, my Zionism was my expression of my Jewish identity. I don't know Torah, but I can out-Jew any Jew on supporting Israel! I thought.
I am a Zionist now, but my Zionism is very different now in a life that is rooted in the Jewish community and the Jewish calendar.
I am a Zionist now, but my Zionism is very different now in a life that is rooted in the Jewish community and the Jewish calendar.
For many non-observant Jews of all backgrounds, Israel and Zionism act as a kind of flashpoint. You can be the most Zionist Jew ever! You can also be a fiercely anti-Zionist Jew.
There are arguments for both that are not rooted in identity, but this is not that thread.
There are arguments for both that are not rooted in identity, but this is not that thread.
What I have in mind when discussing Zionism or anti-Zionism here is as a kind of expression of Jewish identity, one that operates independently or even at odds with Judaism the religion.
I have it in mind because I used to use Zionism this way! But then I fell in with kiruv groups, studied a lot of Torah, and went to a yeshiva in Jerusalem.
This was a critical point in my journey to Judaism, because it was when I began adopting kashrut and Shabbat into my life.
This was a critical point in my journey to Judaism, because it was when I began adopting kashrut and Shabbat into my life.
I will leave out the details deliberately, but I had a deeply negative experience at the yeshiva that basically boiled down to if I didn't check liberal politics at the door, I couldn't be observant.
The natural human reaction is to buy into the false framing you're given.
The natural human reaction is to buy into the false framing you're given.
To this day I'm surprised that as a very unconfident 19-year-old I had the wherewithal to reject what they were selling. I loved Shabbat. I loved studying and arguing over text. I didn't want to choose between my politics and my burgeoning adoration for the religion. So I didn't.
I bring this all up because I know a lot of secular Jews who have flirted with the religion and encountered gatekeepers.
I have seen that natural human response of believing someone who is loudly and authoritatively telling them that it's all or nothing, and choosing nothing.
I have seen that natural human response of believing someone who is loudly and authoritatively telling them that it's all or nothing, and choosing nothing.
Many of these folks are proud Jews. They want Jewish identity. They yearn to express themselves *as Jews.* Some may not even be familiar with the concept of Jewish community, and so may not even be aware how beautiful, stressful, moving, and annoying it is to be a part of one.
So, whether consciously or unconsciously, they reach for Zionism or anti-Zionism because the barriers are lower.
I have not always believed this, but I believe it now with all my heart: no politics, even ones I agree with, can be an adequate substitute for Judaism.
I have not always believed this, but I believe it now with all my heart: no politics, even ones I agree with, can be an adequate substitute for Judaism.
But the burden there is a two way street. We cannot ask Jews to try and put the religion in the place in their hearts where their politics are if we also tell them that, actually, if their politics do not match ours then they can't have the religion.
That's true for Jews of my background who trend right wing and fiercely Zionist with strong familial ties to Israel, and Jews of other backgrounds, including in America a sizable number of the "just Jewish" who trend left and default to Israel-skeptical.
What does that mean when people say things you politically disagree with? Well, it gets messy when first principles smash into the reality of humans. But I'd like to make the small ask of if you are the "observant" one in the conversation, to be an ambassador for the religion.
Be mindful of what the person you're engaging with is truly talking about. Are they really complaining your shul is too pro-Israel or too liberal, or are they saying that they don't feel welcome there?
Ask yourself why a secular Jew would care at all about feeling welcome.
Ask yourself why a secular Jew would care at all about feeling welcome.
(I am saying liberal because I have Russians in mind, not MAGA hat observant Jews who are going to daven whether your shul welcomes them or not)
I encountered a gatekeeper who very nearly derailed me off the path. But I was lucky enough that after him I encountered many more good ambassadors who welcomed me into their homes, their shuls, and their communities. My Judaism and my Zionism are better for it.
Will American leftists and secular Russian-Jewish nationalists all abandon their politics if they can explore Judaism without being chased away? Probably not.
Come as you are, leave as you wish to be. Learn about Judaism in between. Some of you may like what you find.
Come as you are, leave as you wish to be. Learn about Judaism in between. Some of you may like what you find.
