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Mission:


To envision the potential role of the Jewish individual and collective in order to reinstill a sense of purpose in the next generation of the Jewish people.

Goals of the Creative Zionist Circle:


    To catalyze a rethinking of the intra- and inter-national affairs of the Jewish people, moving beyond the particular politics engulfing the State of Israel.
    To redefine the term 'Zionism,' in order to make it relevant and accessible to a generation taught to understand the world through a pluralistic, post-modern paradigm.
    To empower Jews from all frequencies of the ideological spectrum to explore and debate the long-term questions affecting the Jewish people.


Fundamental Assumptions:


1. The Jewish people, Am Israel, is a unique and organic collective entity with a long and complex history of cooperative action and common goals.

2. The Diaspora will not disappear, and thereby should be conceived as an equal partner in the future of the Jewish people, and an integral part of the Jewish people's internal dialogue.

3. Now that the foundation for the Jewish state has been set, Zionism can move beyond the borders of the State of Israel, and concern itself with the future of the collective Jewish People.

4. Creative ideas have the ability to shape human destiny.

5. A rethinking of Zionism is in order to generate new ideas to heal the wounds within Israel, close the distance between the Diaspora and the Jewish State, and challenge the next generation of Jews to take ownership over their future.

6. We therefore define Zionism as the movement which inspires the Jewish People to define their role in the world and realize their potential.

Leadership:

    The Creative Zionist Circle will be lead by a core of individuals, each of which will be responsible for the different aspects of its activities.
    Other members will be recruited and encouraged to take responsibility in the different aspects of the endeavor.


Methodology:


We will take a four-layered approach in order aiming to reflect and therefore engage individuals with various desired levels of involvement. Each of the four approaches will be interdependent and mutually beneficial, feeding new ideas and fostering creativity.

1. Zionist Circles.
A bimonthly meeting of young adults, ages 18-30, to be held in various venues in the New York City area.
The Circle will facilitate new thoughts on Zionism through engaging texts, speakers, arts, debate and a structured forum for participants to workshop their ideas.

2. OnZion.org Online Journal
An online magazine accepting short submissions pertaining to the future of Zionism and the Jewish People produced in, or with the help of the Zionist Circles.
Submissions can be in essay form, prose, poetry, art or music.
The website will provide a physical face to the larger community, communicate news concerning the group, and encourage increased participation through providing access to those not physically close to present Zionist Circles.

3. Creative Zionist Journal
Whereas the website will provide short articles and quick explorations of ideas, the journal will facilitate a forum for in-depth visions.
The journal will shy away from academic prose, favoring instead a more journalistic and literary approach, thereby making it more accessible to the general, non-academic readership, and the younger generation.
The journal will initially be a quarterly.
Overall topics for the journal will be decided by the editorial staff, and could range from the future of the Jewish people as a minority in the Diaspora to the future of Judaism as a religion in the Jewish State.

4. Book on the future of Zionism by the Creative Zionist Circle Core.
The most in-depth of the four-layers, the book will be written by the dedicated members, and sets out to provide a north star for the new generation of the Jewish people, and present visions of the future to the present establishment.
Intended date for publication will be Winter 2004.

Conclusion


As youths who grew up in the United States, we know how hard it is to break through the wall of apathy and think about issues larger than ones own. We believe, however, that this is because students of our generation were never given ownership over their future, leaving it instead to Jewish institutional establishments. This has resulted in a whole generation of young Jewish adults who have not been encouraged to think creatively about the future of the Jewish people. Creative Zionist Circles, therefore, address this vacuum of ideas and involvement, and through taking the abovementioned four-layered approach, we hope to reinvigorate the next generation of Jewish leadership, motivating them to get involved in addressing those issues facing the Jewish people.