Tzionut Value: Tzionut The mountain where the Temple stood in Jerusalem was called Tzion. Tzion became another name for Israel. By 210 c.e. very few Jews lived in the land of Israel. Jews went into exile and were spread around the world. Immediately there was a desire to return. The Passover seder ends with the words, “Next year in Jerusalem.� In the siddur (prayer book) we find all kinds of calls for the return to Jerusalem, Tzion and Israel. These are all religious wishes. Even though there has been a new state of Israel since 1948, these wishes are still among the wishes we make in our prayers. Sound the shofar. Lift up the banner to bring our exiles together and assemble us from the four corners of the earth. Blessed are You, Eternal, who gathers the dispersed of our people Israel. Siddur, Amidah In the late 1800s a political movement for the establishment of a new Jewish homeland in Palestine was started. Now that there is a State of Israel, Tzionut, Zionism, is about supporting and sustaining Israel. It is about making sure that there will always be an Israel.
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