Neville, I’ve been thinking about something – i don’t think believing that the return of many jews to eretz yisroel being part of the geulah is zionism and/or inherently treif.
It’s when they mix the state up in it that it gets to be a problem; the state being a harbinger for moshiach is baseless, but the fact that jews returned(not all of whom came b’issur – only declaring the state was totally assur) could be kibutz golios – just like koresh was not moshiach or a vehicle for him… He was a goy.
Zionism is the identification of jews as a nation state by virtue of more than the torah, and an incorporation of political statehood, language, and land into our identity.
I don’t think it’s zionistic to think that the return of jews is a sign of moshiachs arrival. It’s zionistic to think that a prohibited, secular and anti Torah state in itself has redemptive powers, because again you’re saying that something outside the torah has Jewish value.
I personally don’t hold of it and the gedolim said it’s not true, but i don’t think such a shitah in and of itself makes someone zionistic