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The Americanization of Zionism, 1897-1948. By Naomi W. Cohen. Hanover, NH: Brandeis University Press/University Press of New Engiand, 2003. 304 pp.
Naomi W. Cohen's The Americanization of Zionism, 1897-1948 seeks to demonstrate that American Zionism was shaped by "the needs of Jews in America (as well as in Europe), the stand of the American government, and the demands of American public opinion" (1). It "does not purport to be a synthetic history of American Zionism," but is rather an examination of "certain significant sub-themes" that "flesh out the American/Zionist nexus" (2). Organized in a semi-chronological and thematic fashion, the book is framed by brief introductory and concluding remarks that cast a broad conceptual net and assert a bold thesis. "The results of Zionist activity," Cohen asserts, "ultimately served to modify the identity of the Jewish community" (217). She further argues that "early Zionist efforts at instilling a national consciousness laid the groundwork that permitted Jewish ethnic loyalties to emerge full blown" in late twentieth-century American life, and that "American Jews made use of Zionism to balance their identities as Americans and Jews" (217).
As evidence in this regard, Cohen marshals eight thoughtful case studies, beginning with an examination of The Maccabaean, the official publication of the Federation of American Zionists. She subsequently considers the ideological clash between Reform Judaism and Zionism; responses to Zionism in "the public square" before and after the Arab riots of 192.9; the first attempt to create an American-style Conservative synagogue in Jerusalem; a series of semi-secret negotiations in the 19305 conducted by the American social worker Maurice B. Hexter (representing the American non-Zionist leader Felix Warburg) and Sir John Hope Simpson (representing the British government); the efforts by Zionists to overcome the intransigence of the American State Department during World War II; the activity of the American Jewish Conference; and finally the attitude toward Zionism of Rabbi Louis Finkelstein, the American Conservative theologian and president of the Jewish Theological Seminary.
Although each chapter is soundly organized, the book lacks a coherent methodological frame. The net result is that Cohen's thesis does not rest on a systematic argument, but rather a series of snapshots for which there is no overarching or convincing rationale. Other scholars have already covered much of the...