Unidentified protester with an anti-Israel and capitalism protest sign on November 15, 2014 in Brisbane, Australia.

Suddenly, it seems that everyone has phobias — or, rather, are under suspicion of having them.

I’m not talking about well-established psychiatric maladies like agoraphobia. I’m talking about the “new” phobias. There’s homophobia — an irrational hatred/fear of GLBT people.There’s Islamophobia — an unreasonable hatred/fear of Islam and its adherents.

It’s time to add a new phobia to the list. It’s called Zion-phobia — an irrational hatred of the Jewish State — to the extent that the hater wishes that Israel simply did not exist.

It’s the hottest fad phobia in the world today.

Why are so many people “Zion-phobic?”

1. They don’t like Jews or Judaism. Bigots will never like anything that Jews have ever done, or ever will do. As much as I dislike the cliche: “Haters gonna hate.” And, in fact, dislike of Israel and dislike of Jews and Judaism now walk hand in hand — in Europe, and on college campuses where Jewish students have been intimidated regarding their pro-Israel sentiments.

2. They love America, and Israel is not America. Right-winger Pat Buchanan referred to American Jews as “Israel’s amen corner.” But this argument is getting pretty long in the tooth. Why? Because most of Israel’s critics come from the Left, and the Left couldn’t care less that Israel is not America.

3. They dislike America, and Israel is aligned with America. This is the radical Leftist/Third World critique of Israel. It is rare to find anyone who dislikes America who likes Israel.

4. They don’t believe in nation-states. As John Lennon once sang: “”Imagine there’s no countries; it’s easy if you try.”

But, why try? With the exception of the United States and Canada (outside of Quebec), most countries are nation-states which enshrine the narrative of a particular nationality. The challenge is to make sure that minority rights are fully protected.

That’s why the Israeli intellectual, Amos Oz, refuses to surrender the idea of a Jewish state. He knows what statelessness did to the Jews:

“The Jewish people has already staged a long running one-man show of that sort. No one joined us; no one copied the model the Jews were forced to sustain for two thousand years, the model of a civilization without the ‘tools of statehood.’ For me this drama ended with the murder of Europe’s Jews by Hitler.”

You want to get rid of all states? Fine. Just don’t ask Israel to be first in line.

5. They believe in nation-states, but not those that privilege a particular religion.  But look at how many European flags have a cross in them. Look at how many Muslim countries there are. Um, how about Christmas and Easter in an officially secular America?

You want countries with no official religion? Fine. Let’s go in alphabetical order. Let’s start with, oh, Albania – and then, when Ireland is finished de-Catholicizing itself, since Israel would be next alphabetically, at that point it can jump into the conversation as well. But, again — why should Israel be first in line?

6. Jews should not have power. When Jews were weak, particularly after the Holocaust, Europe loved them. When Israel was young, the Left loved it as well. Israel was a plucky demonstration of what socialism could accomplish. But when Jews actually demonstrated power, the love affair ended.

There are people who love Jews or Judaism, but only when it is powerless. They expect Jews to be angelic figures, floating above the strains and stresses of history, and they become disappointed when Jews actually act like normal people.

What kind of love is that?

7. The creation of Israel was bloody and violent. Yes, indeed. But, have you noticed how other countries have come into existence? History is not the flip side of a Peter, Paul and Mary album.

Am I saying that Israel is above criticism? Hardly.

For many Jews, criticizing Israel’s policies is a labor of love. It is a powerful way of saying that Israel should aspire to be even more than it is. It is a way of saying that Israel should do everything possible to model Jewish ideas and values. That’s not only legitimate; it is necessary.

We’re not talking about legitimate critique. We are talking about something deeper.

My friend and colleague, Rabbi Jacob Herber, asks: “The obsessive/compulsive criticism of Israel is unlike any other critique made against any other country. Like America, Israel is an imperfect, western, liberal democracy. Like America, Israel struggles with economic disparities. Like America, Israel struggles with racial/ethnic and religious divisions. And yet, Israel is criticized more than any other country in the world. Why is that?”

Why, indeed? If the only country that you criticize is Israel; if you detect yourself experiencing a savage glee in criticizing Israel; if you condemn Israeli policies in the West Bank and find that the proverbial “cat’s got your tongue” when it comes to Palestinian-cide in Syria; if you believe that the only country that should be dismantled because of its many flaws is Israel…

You might actually have Zion-phobia.