What did the Zionists want when they proclaimed a publicly secured homeland in Palestine for Jews at their first congress in 1897: a Jewish state, as envisioned by Theodor Herzl? A spiritual center? The discussions about the form of the new community, the role of religion, and the status of the predominantly Arab local population were controversial. The Zionists and their intra-Jewish opponents never reached a unified position. To this day, many questions remain unresolved - only the central demand for political sovereignty was fulfilled with the founding of the state in 1948. The study examines whether Zionism has achieved its goals or whether it has become obsolete after the establishment of the state.