In his shmuessen on the Sefira period, HaRav Shimshon Pincus zt"l quotes a saying which he heard from HaRav Lis, who in turn, heard it from HaRav S. Greineman spoken in the name of the Chofetz Chaim, and actually printed in the work of the Chofetz Chaim on the Torah.
It was when the Chofetz Chaim was asked how it could be that renowned talmidei chachomim and rabbonim fell under the spell of Zionism. How could they not have understood that the Zionists were determined to create a state of heresy?
The Chofetz Chaim explained that Chazal said that while Chazal say that the gentiles have intelligence, so how could they have [been so foolish and] worshiped idols of wood and stone?
Rashi in Parshas Voeschanon (Devorim 4:19) explains that Hashem did not prevent the nations from being misled into worshiping idols. "He allowed them to slip into foolishness in order to deny them Olam Haba."
The Chofetz Chaim illustrated this through a parable: If one seeks to clamp two planks together, this can only be done if they are both smooth and neither has anything jutting out. If there is a bump on one, one can, however, still saw down the projection or, alternately, make place for it by creating a hole to fit the projection in the other plank. Once put together, from the outside, both planks seem altogether smooth and whole, while in truth, neither of them is normal since they both had to undergo treatment to make them join together.
In the real world, everyone knows that idolatry is like a plank with the jutting wood but Hashem smooths the idolaters with words. It is like they have a hole in their brain into which the projection fits so well that the aberration appears to be normal. And this is true about the question of Zionism that he was asked.
HaRav Pincus elaborated: There are all kinds of holes in the head, some of which transform a person into a flawed man while not tampering with his entire essence. But sometimes, this hole is located in a place which renders him treif and causes him to be altogether unfit in his very essence.
"There exist people who are seemingly healthy, who pray and study but circulate with all kinds of holes or gaps in their heads, i.e., problematic notions or character traits.
"This opens for us a new aperture in making a personal accounting which is demanded of us... A person can possibly be fine and correct in many areas, while being a 'nothing' in other areas because of the holes in his head! The period of Sefira is designed to correct this and cause a person to work upon himself throughout the seven weeks of introspection in order to transform himself in something whole and smooth, to stop up those holes and be perfect in his service of Hashem."
