Israel/Palestine

I’m a Christian and my religion is very important to me. When I hear, or read, that someone is Jewish, I naturally assume they are religious Jews.

I know religious Jews born outside of Israel often feel a strong tie to Israel. Generally speaking, how common is that feeling among secular Jews?

I assume the Holocaust would cause non Israeli, secular Jews to feel a special tie to Israel. Is that true? Is it common for secular Jews to feel a special tie to Israel? Or is it more like most of us feel toward the countries from which our ancestors came? The connection is there, but not something we think about much. Since Israel has only existed in its current state since 1948, do secular Jews whose parents were also secular feel differently about Israel?

I also assume that tie to Israel would lessen with each generation without the religious connection. If you are non Israeli and non religious, do you think of yourself as Jewish or only of Jewish ancestry. For example, my ancestors came largely from the UK several centuries ago. I don’t think of my ancestral connection when reading about issues in the U.K.

Being neither Israeli nor Palestinian, I will add that I mean no disrespect with my comments. I apologize in advance if my comments are in any way offensive.