A Facebook story from a cousin stopped me in my tracks this week.

The story described a growing secular Jewish anti-Zionist movement, particularly among younger Jews in North America and Europe. It argued that increasing numbers of Jews no longer view Zionism as central to their identity and are distancing themselves from the idea of a Jewish state.

I sat staring at the screen for a few moments.

Not because I was surprised that Jews disagree. We always have.

Not because criticism of Israel is illegitimate. It is not.

I was saddened because the post seemed to reflect a growing disconnect from something that lies at the very core of my Jewish identity.

For me, Zionism is not a political party.

It is not a government.

It is not Netanyahu, Trump, Biden, or any other leader.

Zionism is the story of a people who prayed for two thousand years to return home.

It is the story of Jews who endured expulsions, pogroms, persecution, and the Holocaust, yet never abandoned hope.

It is the story of Hebrew becoming a living language once again.

It is the story of Jewish sovereignty restored in the Land of Israel.

Most importantly, it is the story of purpose.

As I reflected on that Facebook story, I found myself thinking about this week’s Parsha Balak.

Because Balak also looked at Israel and failed to understand what he was seeing.

Balak looked at Israel and saw a threat.

He did not see a people returning to their homeland.

He did not see a covenant.

He did not see a nation carrying a moral and spiritual mission.

The irony is that the Israelites were not seeking conflict with Moab. Yet Balak became obsessed with them. He mobilised political influence, financial resources, and spiritual power to stop them.

Three thousand years later, the pattern feels strangely familiar.

The world’s only Jewish state occupies an extraordinary place in the world’s imagination. Jews comprise less than two-tenths of one percent of humanity, yet Israel receives an amount of attention, criticism, and obsession wildly disproportionate to its size.

International institutions focus on Israel.

University campuses mobilize around Israel.

Media outlets scrutinize Israel.

And Israel’s enemies devote enormous resources to its........

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