During Passover, a friend asked me to recommend one book that explains why someone should be a Zionist. The nuance of the question can easily be missed: There are many very good books I could recommend to someone who wants to understand Israeli history or to get advice on how to defend against lies about the Jewish state and people.
No one in our time is going to become a Zionist by reading Theodor Herzl, construed as the modern-day movement’s founding father. So the question is an important one, as Zionism is increasingly misunderstood.
In fact, a survey conducted by the Jewish Federations of North America revealed that just 37% of American Jews stated that they identified as Zionists. Another 15% said that they were anti-Zionist/non-Zionist. A huge 48% of those surveyed, it can be surmised, are pro-Israel but not Zionists, and I would argue that a big reason for this is that we have allowed Zionism to become a dirty word.
There’s no good reason for any Jew who is pro-Israel to resist using the term Zionist to describe themselves. Zionism is a team sport, and the object of the game remains what it has always been: the saving of Jewish lives.
But what recent book conveys that? One published in 2025 came to mind right away, and unfortunately, it has caught the attention of far too few American Jews. Rabbi Tuly Weisz wrote Universal Zionism: The Movement Powering Today’s Jewish-Christian Alliance. Born and raised in Ohio, he later served as the rabbi of an Orthodox synagogue there. He and his young family moved to Israel in 2011. His viewpoint is at once fresh and original, yet anchored in Jewish tradition and traditional Zionism.
The book is divided into four specific parts. In his substantial introduction, Weisz shares his personal story and prepares his readers for what is to come later by grounding his ideas with his thoughts about what happened after the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Here, Weisz writes, “What proved even more shocking than the Oct. 7 attacks was the global response that began on Oct. 8.” But even in that section of the book, he displays an amazing faith and positivity that “God has made an eternal promise never to abandon Israel.”
The two middle sections of the book lead me to recommend the work so strongly. In “Political Zionism” and “Religious Zionism,” Weisz provides a very solid review of these two wings that comprise mainstream Zionism. From Herzl to Rav Kook, from the Balfour Declaration to the 1967 Six-Day War—and nearly every other important event and figure—he introduces his readers to the basics of Zionism.
In the final section, Weisz explains his conception of “Universal Zionism.” He invites Christians into the Zionist movement and writes, “At the heart of Universal Zionism lies a simple but radical proposition: the Bible still means what it says about the Land of Israel. Jews and Christians who take Scripture seriously must support complete Jewish sovereignty over the ... biblical heartland of Judea and Samaria ... .”
He goes further, writing, “Imagine churches and synagogues in every city becoming centers for Israel education ... .” Weisz seems to see his “Universal Zionism” idea as especially necessary after Oct. 7 and writes, “over time it became painfully clear: to Hamas, the real battlefield is in the global court of opinion.”
On this point, it is hard to argue with Weisz. When nearly half of American Jews must be more than just a little mystified by the word Zionism, there’s something wrong. Very wrong.
Far too many American Jews have a strong emotional attachment to Israel, but don’t want to call themselves Zionist or be labeled by the term.
The longing by Jews for the Land of Israel was found through the dispersion for nearly 2,000 years. It drew Jews from every corner of the world to resettle our ancient homeland. This includes a common religion, a shared history and a consciousness of a bitter exile, filled with violence and oppression.
And yet, this is what makes the Zionist movement so polarizing and makes many American Jews uncomfortable. The task of the hour is to better explain the movement’s history and link to the present day—and to be proud of it and exhibit that pride to the world.
