ABSTRACT
In order to understand the Yishuv’s response to the Nazi threat, it is necessary to understand the context into which Zionist policy must be set. In particular, an understanding of three components is needed to place the Yishuv’s response to the Holocaust in context: the slow evolution of Nazi policy during the 1930s, the response of German Jewry to their own predicament, and the options available to Jewish leaders. Whereas all Zionists agreed on general principles, their goals were open to widely differing interpretations. Disagreements arose primarily over the parties’ interpretation of three basic issues: the nature of the new Jewish society to be created in Palestine; the means and timetable for creating that new society; and the long-term impact on Jewish social, intellectual, and political life. Disagreements on these three issues led to the creation of four blocs of parties: Labor Zionists, General Zionists, Religious Zionists, and Revisionist Zionists.
