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Zionism Is About Love
Noa Argamani, a rescued hostage embraces her father, Yakov Argamani, after the military said that Israeli forces have rescued four hostages alive from the central Gaza Strip, in Ramat Gan, Israel, in this handout image obtained by Reuters on June 8, 2024. Photos: Israeli Army/Handout via REUTERS
By Matthew Schultz
JNS.org – Rabbi Shai Held’s latest book Judaism Is About Love: Recovering the Heart of Jewish Life is the culmination of a career spent correcting a great misconception, namely that “Christianity is the religion of love” while “Judaism is the religion of law.”
“My aim is to tell the story of Jewish theology, ethics, and spirituality through the lens of love,” Held writes, “and thereby to restore the heart—in both senses of the word—of Judaism to its rightful place.”
A similar point could be made about Zionism. Over the past year, anti-Israel protesters have been working to transform the word “Zionist” into a slur. “Zionism” is equated with racism, colonialism and even terrorism. To be a Zionist is to be accused of supporting genocide.
In response, Jews have tried to push our own definition, insisting that Zionism is simply the belief that Jews have the right to self-determination in their ancient homeland.
It’s not a bad strategy or a bad definition, but this dry political formulation fails to capture why so many Jews around the world feel such a deep connection to Israel.
Before Theodor Herzl’s day, Zionists were known as Chovevei Tzion, “lovers of Zion.” Their Zionism was rooted primarily in a profound love of place. In many ways, it is a better term. An “ism” or an ideology lives in the head, but love is unbounded and experienced by the mind, the heart, the spirit and the senses.
We love Israel because we love the scent of rosemary in Jerusalem and night-blooming jasmine in Tel Aviv. We love Israel because we love the feel of Hebrew on our lips and the particular way a cucumber tastes here. We love Israel because of the kindness of the people, the beauty of winding streets and the watchful gaze of the stray cats.
The nature of this love is somewhat mysterious to me. Do we love Israel because it is beautiful? Or is it beautiful because we love it? Would we feel this way about any Jewish state in the promised land simply because it is the realization of an ancient dream? Or is there truly something different about this place—some indefinable magic—that accounts for the effect that this country has on people?
It’s impossible to know for sure, but I often wonder what the state of Zionism would be like if Israel were different: If the cities were dreary and lifeless; if the food was bland; if the people were less beautiful and charming; if it all felt like a hot, stultifying, cultureless shtetl instead of a vibrant, innovative, Hebrew civilization.
The history of Israel’s founding is a story of unlikely successes. Despite great odds, a dead language was revived, seven foreign armies were defeated and a nation was built. We rarely stop to consider, however, the most unlikely success of all—not that they built a Jewish state, but that they built one so very lovable.
Today, the main emotions we might be feeling as we read headlines about Israel are sorrow, dread, frustration or even anger at Israel’s enemies. But if we are wondering what we can do for Israel from afar in this great moment of uncertainty, the answer is simple: We must cultivate the love at the heart of our connection to Israel.
We can cook an Israeli recipe, read an Israeli poet or put on a favorite Israeli record. Such acts seem small or even kitschy responses to the intensity of this moment, but they are not.
The love of the Chovevei Tzion built Israel.
The love of the Jewish people now will help to protect it.
Originally published by Jewish Journal.
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Washington Warns UK, France Against Recognizing Palestinian Statehood
Britain’s Foreign Secretary David Lammy leaves Downing Street, following the results of the election, in London, Britain, July 5, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Toby Melville
i24 News – The United States has warned the UK and France not to unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state at a UN conference scheduled for June 17 in New York, the Middle East Eye reported Tuesday.
France and Saudi Arabia will co-host this conference on the two-state solution, with Paris reportedly preparing to unilaterally recognize Palestine. France is also pressuring London to follow this path, according to sources from the British Foreign Office.
French media reports indicate that French authorities believe they have the agreement of the British government. Meanwhile, Arab states are encouraging this move, measuring the success of the conference by the recognitions obtained.
This initiative deeply divides Western allies. If France and the UK were to carry out this recognition, they would become the first G7 nations to take this step, causing a “political earthquake” according to observers, given their historical ties with Israel. The Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer threatened last week to annex parts of the West Bank if this recognition took place, according to a report in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
In the United Kingdom, Foreign Secretary David Lammy publicly opposes unilateral recognition, stating that London would only recognize a Palestinian state when we know that it is going to happen and that it is in view.
However, pressure is mounting within the Labour Party. MP Uma Kumaran, member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, said that the government was elected on a platform that promised to recognize Palestine as a step towards a just and lasting peace. Chris Doyle, director of the Council for Arab-British Understanding, believes that there is no legitimate reason for the United States to interfere in a sovereign decision of recognition, while highlighting the unpredictability of US President Donald Trump on this issue.
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Police, Shin Bet Thwart Suspected Iranian Attempt Perpetrate Terror Attack
A small number of Jewish worshipers pray during the priestly blessing, a traditional prayer which usually attracts thousands of worshipers at the Western Wall on the holiday of Passover during 2020, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Jerusalem’s Old City, April 12, 2020. Photo: Reuters / Ronen Zvulun.
i24 News – The Shin Bet security agency and Israel Police thwarted another Iranian attempt to recruit Israelis, according to a statement on Tuesday, arresting a resident of East Jerusalem for allegedly carrying out missions for the Islamic Republic.
Iranian agents recruited the suspect, who in turn recruited members of his family. He is a resident of the Isawiya neighborhood in his 30s, and is accused of maintaining contact with a hostile foreign entity to harm the state by carrying out a terrorist attack against Jews.
The suspect had already begun perpetrating acts of sabotage and espionage, including collecting intelligence about areas in Jerusalem, including the Western Wall and Mahane Yehuda Market. He also hung signs, burned Israeli army uniforms, and more in exchange for payment totaling thousands of shekels.
He was also charged with planning a terror attack in central Israel, including setting fire to a forest, and was told to transfer weapons to terrorist elements in the West Bank.
The suspect’s sought the help of family members, including his mother. A search at his home revealed sums of cash, a spray can used in some of his activities, airsoft guns, suspected illegal drugs, and more.
His indictment is expected to be filed by the Jerusalem District Attorney’s Office.
The statement said that the case is yet another example of Iranian efforts to recruit Israelis. “We will continue to coordinate efforts to thwart terrorism and terrorist elements, including those operating outside Israel, while attempting to mobilize local elements in order to protect the citizens of the State of Israel,” the Shin Bet and Police said.
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Pro-Russian, Anti-Israeli Hackers Pose Biggest Cybercrime Threats in Germany
German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt holds a chart showing the development of antisemitic crime, during a press conference on Figures for Politically Motivated Crime in the Country, in Berlin, Germany, May 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Lisi Niesner
Cybercrime in Germany rose to a record level last year, driven by hacker attacks from pro-Russian and anti-Israeli groups, the BKA Federal Crime Office reported on Tuesday as the government said it would boost countermeasures to combat it.
“Cybercrime is an increasing threat to our security,” said Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt. “It is getting more aggressive but our counter-strategies are also becoming more professional,” he said.
Some 131,391 cases of cybercrime took place in Germany last year and a further 201,877 cases were committed from abroad or an unknown location, a BKA report said.
The actors behind the hacker attacks on German targets were primarily either pro-Russian or anti-Israeli, said the BKA, adding targets were mostly public and federal institutions.
Ransomware, when criminals copy and encrypt data, is one of the main threats, said the BKA, with 950 companies and institutes reporting cases in 2024.
German digital association Bitkom said damage caused by cyberattacks here totaled 178.6 billion euros ($203.87 billion) last year, some 30.4 billion euros more than in the previous year.
Dobrindt said the government planned to extend the legal capabilities authorities could use to combat cybercrime and set higher security standards for companies.
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