Thus the Hebrew culture was reduced to a mere theological system. We lived in a Roman environment, that is, in an environment which draws its strength from ancient Rome, whose program was the state, practical civilization, wars, conquests, revolts, political reorganization, etc. In such an environment with its peculiar culture, there was no room for the ancient Jewish culture based on ethical teachings, which, in order to be able to maintain its existence, was compelled to confine itself within the walls of the synagogue. In short, it is not only impossible to create new cultural values in the Diaspora but even to continue the thread of the ancient Hebrew idea, in essence an idea of civilization. In exile, more so in Roman exile, there was no past and no future for Judaism. Ancient Judaism was a historic and not a literary phenomenon; hence, since it has been the destiny of the Jewish people for the past two thousand years _to exist_, and not to live a normal national life, it is even unable to preserve the memories of a historic past. Then came Zionism. The nationalistic trend in history has influenced the Jewish people too. Zionism came not from the East, but from the West--from the centre of modern nationalism. Modern nationalism, unlike that of ancient peoples, is not a cultural nationalism; modern nationalism is nationalism in the sense of civilization and can be understood only in connection with the industrial revolution and the colonial expansion of the great nations. Zionism could not have come from the East; for the East is politically and industrially not sufficiently developed to produce a movement which is both national and civilizing.