In the fall of 2021, Einat Wilf introduced early Zionist thought to a group of students at Georgetown University. The goal was to explore the arguments for and against a Jewish state by studying writers from the past century across identities, such as Jewish, Christian, Arab, and Soviet. The results were surprising: Students found that these old texts resonated powerfully in their own lives?especially the critique of Jewish life in exile, the nature of opposition to Zionism, and the hope for a renewed dignity that sovereignty could bring to Jews the world over. One student said the course was worth "dozens of hours of therapy."

In this astute work, leading expert Wilf walks readers through each session, including its readings and the students' responses to long-ago thinkers whose words ushered in the world's first Jewish sovereign homeland in two thousand years.

This book is ideal for educators, students, and anyone looking to make sense of Zionism, Israel, and anti-Zionism today, and those who hope for a prosperous, proud Jewish future.