Aaron David Gordon

Aaron David Gordon was a self-educated Jewish thinker, educator, and activist who became the spiritual force behind practical Zionism and Labor Zionism. He was influenced by Leo Tolstoy and other philosophers, and developed his own ideas of ethical and existential Zionism, which he called the religion of labor. He believed that the Jewish people had to reconnect with the land of Israel through physical work and agriculture, and that this would also uplift them spiritually and morally. He also advocated for a direct and personal experience of God, nature, and humanity, rather than a mediated and abstract one. He moved to Ottoman Palestine in 1904, when he was 48 years old, and worked as a hired agricultural hand, while writing his philosophy at night. He founded and led Hapoel Hatzair (The Young Worker), a non-Marxist Zionist movement that attracted many young pioneers. He lived in various settlements and kibbutzim, and was revered by his followers for his humility and dedication. He died of throat cancer in 1922, at the age of 66, in Kvutzat Degania, the first kibbutz in Israel. His writings and legacy inspired generations of Zionists and Israeli leaders, and he is considered one of the founding fathers of the State of Israel.