(July 9, 2025 at 2:22 pm)TheWhiteMarten Wrote: The original Zionists were secular, so doubtful.
It's true. Zionism has an interesting history.
Theodor Herzl was an atheist. He proposed building a Jewish state somewhere, but it didn't necessarily have to be in Palestine. People proposed buying up a large part of South America or maybe Africa and making it a Jewish homeland.
Many early supporters of Zionism were antisemites. Antisemitic Germans, for example, thought it would be a good idea to get the Jews out of Germany and send them to "where they belong."
There's always been a religious side to it, or religious people who participate, but that's far from all it is.
Recently Sam Harris (remember him?) has shown that he's a passionate Zionist, who is willing to say that religion isn't all bad, if it involves Israel.
As usual, it's pretty clear that a lot of the horror in the world that gets blamed on religion is political, economic, and, above all, ideological.
