עורית Hebrew, Zionism, and Identity

Hebrew is one of the two official languages in Israel. It is the language of the Jews, the holy language, and the ONLY "dead" language in the world to be resurrected as a spoken language. It is also inherently Zionist. When the first immigrants started coming to Israel, Eliezer Ben-Yehuda was one of the proponents of Hebrew instruction in school, and apparently it was to help make a distinction between Israel and the Diaspora.

I learned basic Hebrew in Hebrew School growing up, mainly the letters and enough to be able to read prayers during services, though the transliteration was the most helpful. For a long time, I could say I read Hebrew, but I didn't know what I was reading (still don't most of the time). Over the years, prayer books having English and transliteration became more important and I frequently only knew prayers well enough to follow along with the transliteration, singing the tune by memory and getting help with the words from transliteration.

As I've grown older and started to explore Judaism more, Hebrew has become more important for me to know and to understand. Modern Hebrew is different from Classical Hebrew, but I feel that it will be helpful regardless. Since coming to Israel, I started thinking about the political implications of speaking Hebrew, and I've started to learn more about Zionism. Zionism defined by the Oxford Dictionary as "a movement for (originally) the re-establishment and (now) the development and protection of a Jewish nation in what is now Israel." The definition on Wikipedia states, "Zionism is a form of nationalism of Jews and Jewish culture that supports a Jewish nation state in territory defined as the Land of Israel. Zionism supports Jews upholding their Jewish identity and opposes the assimilation of Jews into other societies and has advocated the return of Jews to Israel as a means for Jews to be liberated from anti-Semitic discrimination, exclusion, and persecution that has occurred in other societies." I'm slowly learning about Zionism and its controversies. I spoke recently with a friend about opposition to Zionism on the basis of how problematic nationalism is, but I also have spoken with people about the importance of maintaining Jewish identity and culture(s). For me personally, I know my Jewish identity is very important to who I am as a person, and I want Judaism to be a source of strength and community for myself and my future family. However, I don't think that it is a problem for Jews to live in the Diaspora, and in fact, I think it is beneficial for the both us Jews and the world. Israel has its place in the world, but so do Jews living in the United States, Argentina, Australia, and South Africa.

Throughout my time here in Israel, I think I will be learning more and more about Zionism and figuring out my own beliefs on the topic. It is controversial and it is not perfect. My knowledge of written and spoken Hebrew may be political, but it also contributes to my Jewish identity. Essentially, a question I hope to continue to explore is, what are the political implications of being Jewish and maintaining an outwardly Jewish identity in this world, both in Israel and in the Diaspora (another political term)?