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In the 1890s, against the backdrop of France's Dreyfus trial, an assimilated Jew and accomplished journalist known for his witty, urbane writing developed a concept for a renewed Jewish state.

Budapest-born Theodor Herzl's vision for a homeland where Jews would be safe from anti-Semitism became an obsession that many believe contributed to his early death at age 44 in 1904.

When the First Zionist Convention met 100 years ago, some 204 delegates from 19 countries traveled to Basel, Switzerland, where many small grassroots movements coalesced into a unified political force.

Zionism's 100-year anniversary will be celebrated along with Israel's 49th birthday from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, May 25 at Sharon Meadows in Golden Gate Park. The San Francisco birthday party and picnic will feature a Herzl look-alike contest along with live music and a variety of activities.

At 49, the homeland Herzl envisioned has long outlived him. As Jews around the world look at the modern state, many wonder whether Herzl's ideal is still relevant.

Rabbi Alan Lew of San Francisco's Congregation Beth Sholom noted that when ideas are held up to "the prism of time and reality, they are never as pure.

"The basis of Zionism was that Judaism in the diaspora was ultimately doomed — either through annihilation or assimilation," Lew said. "And our history is one of annihilation and assimilation in the diaspora."

Noting that he has "bet my life on American Judaism," Lew declared that in spite of high assimilation rates, vibrant Jewish communities throughout the diaspora challenge Herzl's prediction of doom.

The other side of the coin is the Jewish future in Israel. "Is Israel a place where Jewish people express their historical mission — or is it just wall-to-wall McDonald's and shopping centers?" he asked. "There is evidence to support both."

Joelle Steefel, who chairs the Jewish Community Federation's overseas committee, voiced optimism about Herzl's legacy. "The fact is that Israel exists," she said. "So the dreamholders did their job."

Steefel, who recently returned from a trip to Israel, said Jewish communities there and in the United States are facing similar issues. She cites young people who think of themselves in nationalistic terms rather than identifying with their religious traditions.

"Israel is the cultural well from which we draw. Through our overseas program, we look to cross-fertilization."

Shlomi Ravid, an Israeli who heads the JCF's Israel Center, concurred. "We use the same language, but there is an evolving Zionist dream," he said.

Israel is "a safe state where Jews can express the rites of citizenship…In that sense, [the dream] has been achieved and fulfilled. And we have a place where Jews can turn to in time of trouble or just come if they want.

"This has been proven with the recent aliyah of Russians and Ethiopians."

On the other hand, he said, "in the sense of creating a more just state that stresses tikkun olam [repairing the world] and that is good to its neighbors and its minorities, we still have a way to go."

According to Rabbi Brian Lurie, executive director of the Jewish Museum San Francisco, Herzl's ideal of a safe haven for Jews has been realized. Israel is still "a tough neighborhood. But Jews can come from anywhere," he said, noting that 750,000 Jews from the former Soviet Union have been absorbed over the last five years.

Lurie pointed out a second vision: that of Asher Zvi Ginsberg, known as Ahad Ha-am.

"Ahad Ha-am looked to the Jewish state as being a Jewish soul. This has not been achieved. It's still terribly relevant.

"The issue of Jewish identity and Jewish peoplehood," he said, "will become the key issues of the next century."