Drawing upon 3,000 years of Jewish intellectual thought, we produce big ideas to meet contemporary challenges, ensuring Judaism is a compelling force for good.
A response to today's article in JTA: We believe that if companies decide to refuse the business of Jewish organizations because they have a relationship with Israel, they should be accountable to that reputation publicly and transparently. Full statement:
Big Duck is a Brooklyn-based marketing firm with a history of working with Jewish organizations. It declined to work with the Shalom Hartman Institute over its ties to Israel.
We’re making a big bet on teens & young adults! Wellspring is our investment in the future of Jewish leadership- activating 1k Jews 15-25yrs & their educators. Read
@YehudaKurtzer
's vision behind Wellspring in
@eJPhil
& partner w /us on a Jewish future!
Israeli public intellectual & Hartman Senior Fellow Micah Goodman and American social psychologist
@JonHaidt
unpack their theories on why liberal society is falling apart & offer their take on how faith & ethics can be part of putting it back together.
We need to be talking about power.
In Israel we have the dignity of hard power, says Donniel Hartman, but we need to learn from the ways American Jews use soft power.
#HartmanSummer
#WhyIsrael
#AspirationalZionism
"Zionism and Power" Full Video:
On this 50th episode, Donniel Hartman &
@YKleinHalevi
ask: Does Israel’s existence make
#American
ambivalence irrelevant? Is the meaning & inspiration that it once offered American
#Jews
no longer important? Does
#Israel
Still Matter?
#ForHeavensSakePod
Micah Goodman &
@JonHaidt
explore how
#faith
&
#ethics
contribute to healing a society broken by
#technology
. Inspired by Micah's 's essay 'Our Technology Sickness & How to Heal It', intellectual heavyweights unpack theories on liberal society's demise.
The Shalom Hartman Institute mourns the death of Major Yinon Fleischman z”l, an educator and history teacher at Hartman’s Charles E. Smith High School for Boys in Jerusalem, who was killed in the line of duty.
May his memory be a blessing.
Israel is a place that allows the Jewish people to shape their own story after the Holocaust, relates
@YKleinHalevi
, rather than just being a people who were victimized by the Holocaust.
#HartmanSummer
Welcome to the conversation.
Full Video :
In this episode, Yehuda Kurtzer speaks to
@CochavElkayam
, Chair of Israel’s Civil Commission on Oct. 7 Crimes by Hamas Against Women and Children, about the struggle for international recognition of these crimes.
#unitedagainstrape
#MeTooUNlessURaJew
Elana Stein Hain tells us that Judaism itself is less rich without Jews living autonomously in Israel. The covenant between God & the Jewish people includes the promise of Jews continually returning to this land.
#HartmanSummer
Watch the full video here:
Thursday, February 16, at 1PM ET. How should American Jews approach their relationship with Israel?
@mijalbitton
,
@ScholemTzadak
and Daniel May discuss different approaches to nurturing connections between North American Jews and Israel. Join them live:
Do you have big questions about complex Jewish issues & enjoys intellectual discovery?
Apply to become a Hartman Teen Fellow & reserve your seat at the most important table for future Jewish leadership. Open to 10 -12 graders. Application closes Sep. 7
Donniel Hartman &
@YKleinHalevi
discuss how Israel’s Arab-Palestinian minority has been scrutinized & even punished for mourning kin in Gaza, & how Jewish Israelis might have sympathy for the complicated dual loyalty their fellow citizens need to hold.
For many, the operation at Shifa represents the evil nature of our enemy; for critics, Shifa reflects everything wrong w/ Israel. Donniel Hartman &
@YKleinHalevi
discuss risks & consequences of adhering to moral principles while fighting an immoral enemy.
Zionism as Loyalty? A strong commitment to the State of Israel embodies a relationship to Jews in the past & Jews in the present that in itself is a moral good, or ne’emanut, teaches
@mijalbitton
. Welcome to the conversation.
#HartmanSummer
Full Video:
NEVER AGAIN IS NOW
"How dare terror sympathizers and Hamas supporters come to this great city of New York? How dare students across universities threaten and terrorize Jewish students?" asks Hartman fellow
@MijalBitton
at a speech at
#NYU
Our message to NYU and our communities is clear: we are strong, we are not afraid, we are outraged by supporters of terror and we join with good people everywhere to fight back!
.
@aantepli
's courageous message captures the challenge he’s posing to his community to face the complexity of
#antisemitism
& inspires us to a reciprocal challenge of fighting hate in our own community -- a fitting message on the day we celebrate the legacy of Dr. King.
#MLKDay
Is it appropriate to call an ancient rabbi a “legendary hottie”? To use “thirst” in the online sense?
@dzkalman
, Hartman's Scholar in Residence and Director of New Media asks (&answers) the tough questions.
#tiktok
#jewishtiktok
@Anzovina
As Israel’s war with Hamas rages on & the anxiety in Israel continues to grow, the Sword of Damocles hangs over the head of every Israeli. Donniel Hartman &
@YKleinHalevi
discuss the impact of this ever-present dread & the onslaught of collective grief.
"Keep your eye on the idea of structural stupidity" -
@JonHaidt
Thanks to
@JonHaidt
for an electric conversation w/ Israeli intellectual Micah Goodman about tech-fueled political polarization in America & Israel. Hear their diagnosis & RX for what ails us.
“Did I lie all this time to myself and to my daughters?” -Tamar Elad-Appelbaum speaking in a recent session for non-Jewish clergy, imploring our moral partners to speak out against the atrocities of the October 7 attack
#MeTooUNlessURaJew
The largest protests in Israeli history forced the coalition gov't to pause its judicial reform. Donniel Hartman,
@YKleinHalevi
& Elana Stein Hain discuss the internal mechanics motivating the gov't & the constraints of politics on the human conscience.
A gunman shot & killed Israeli brothers in Huwara, which was later rampaged by Jewish settlers. Donniel Hartman,
@YKleinHalevi
& Elana Stein Hain talk through the grief, shame & devastation of the week & the broader breakdown of justice in Israeli society.
Sukkot reminds us of the Israelites wandering after their exodus from Egypt & asks us to consider the vulnerability of housing insecurity. As we look toward a week of sitting in our booths,
@YehudaKurtzer
sits down w/
@HannahLebovits
, to discuss.
While we can't exactly call it "light" reading in traditional sense, the Jewish Values & Social Media Roundtable with
@Mottel
, Sara Wolkenfeld, &
@dzkalman
in Sources: A Journal of Jewish Ideas is sure to illuminate your summer reading list.
The latest from
@YKleinHalevi
on how a coalition with Ben-Gvir will unravel Israel's social fabric & destroy Netanyahu's legacy as an economic reformer who secured the country's place among the nations
Yom Yerushalayim was intended to celebrate the Jewish people's transition from destruction to rebirth, yet it is deeply polarizing. On
#ForHeavensSakePod
, Donniel Hartman,
@YKleinHalevi
, & Elana Stein Hain discuss how it might be restored as a day of hope.
For over a month, Hamas has held 240 hostages from 33 different countries. This week, Jon Polin & Rachel Goldberg, the parents of 23-year-old hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, spent time w/
@YehudaKurtzer
talking about their son & their plight as parents of a hostage.
#Bringthemhome
“Each mitzvah is an infinite connection between a person and God that brings revelation into the world” explains
@Mottel
in describing the goals of Chabad's outreach to
@YehudaKurtzer
on
#identitycrisispod
.
Has Chabad outreach has impacted your life and your community? Tell us👇
The revelation at Sinai unites the two big stories of the Jewish people: becoming a people & becoming a people wedded to God. Rabbi, poet, scholar, blogger, & podcaster
@ZoharAtkins
joins
@YehudaKurtzer
for a Shavuot discussion to open your mind & spirit.
How will Israel rebuild & heal once the war is over? What would an end to Hamas mean for Palestinians? Donniel Hartman &
@YKleinHalevi
begin to consider and imagine what the dawning of a new day will look like for the future of Israel & Gaza.
Democratize the study of Torah? Lehrhaus co-founders
@chschwartz
& Joshua Foer join
@YehudaKurtzer
to discuss their hope to redefine public Jewish communal space, what a life of Torah could look like, & the significance of hevruta in Jewish identity.
Imam Abdullah Antepli and
@YehudaKurtzer
discuss the impact of political partisanship on religious communities, moral leadership, the Israel-Palestine conflict, & the importance of
#interfaith
dialogue in creating a just world.
@aantepli
#identitycrisispod
Masua Sagiv, Scholar in Residence of the Shalom Hartman Institute, describes
#Israel
as a place where we can develop a thick Israeli identity that sits alongside our other various identities: Jewish, Muslim, Christian
#AspirationalZionism
Full video:
#Pesach
: The Memories That Shape Us -
Donniel Hartman,
@YKleinHalevi
and Elana Stein Hain share some of their personal memories and explore the ways in which we carry the memories that shape us.
Registration is now open. April 27 & 28 - a virtual * in-person commemoration & conference on Yom HaShoah. We look back in remembrance & interrogate the complex moral issues presented by the war in Ukraine to inspire a Torah of action. NYC & online.
To address what's happening in Israel & unpack the complex & distressing events, we bring you For Heaven's Sake: Israel at War. In this episode, Donniel Hartman &
@YKleinHalevi
discuss their sadness & outrage at the Hamas attack & Israel's nascent war.
Is it time to redefine the role of the rabbi's spouse?
"There's idealism and living a life of meaning. And also scrutiny and feeling suffocated,” explains
@avitalrachel
describing the rewards & challenges of being married to a rabbi. Listen in:
What does it mean to be a part of a global Jewish people? How should young Jews respond to the unique challenges of today? Explore these questions in a yearlong fellowship for 10-12 graders w/ the brightest Jewish minds of today. Application closes 9/14
This week in Jerusalem, we marked a significant milestone in the history of the Shalom Hartman Institute.
Please join us in congratulating
@YehudaKurtzer
& celebrating the future of the Institute as he joins Donniel Hartman as President of the Shalom Hartman Institute.
The Zionist left is reengaging to broaden the establishment’s big tent — and the anti-Zionist left is staying far outside. Read
@YehudaKurtzer
, President of the Shalom Hartman Institute, latest op-ed in the
@JDforward
.
“It is possible to turn to these stories of our past and to assert our own humanity without also dehumanizing the other…. As we mourn this week, we comfort ourselves that our people has seen pieces of this story before.” writes
@YehudaKurtzer
Yuval Kestelman, an Israeli civilian & good Samaritan, was shot & killed by an IDF soldier after shooting a terrorist at a bus stop. Donniel Hartman &
@YKleinHalevi
explore the ethical implications of labeling this incident either an accident or a crime.
Can the acceptance of multiple identities & conflicting narratives paradoxically propel us toward a vision for a shared society? Rana Fahoum, a Palestinian Israeli citizen & the Director of Hartman’s new Center for Shared Society, joins
@YehudaKurtzer
.
“My values are the same. I’m still a liberal Zionist. I still believe all people are created in the image of G-d. I still believe in religious pluralism. I still believe that it’s our mitzvah to pursue peace.” -Donniel Hartman
The Hague will hold hearings brought by S. Africa accusing Israel of genocide. Donniel Hartman &
@YKleinHalevi
discuss the shock on the nation’s psyche, what is at stake & how statements by Netanyahu & his gov. may implicate Israel in this charge.
Donniel Hartman,
@YKleinHalevi
& Elana Stein Hain discuss The Religious Zionist party, a coalition of religious ultra-nationalists & followers of the late
#RacistRabbi
Kahane, & the causes of this unprecedented rise of religious fanaticism in
#Israel
.
On the latest episode of For Heaven’s Sake, Donniel Hartman and Yossi Klein Halevi discuss the so-called “grand bargain” between Israel, the Palestinians, and their neighbors.
Listen here:
Delighted to share that Prof. Alexander Kaye of
@Israel_Studies
is the recipient of the inaugural Leon Charney Book award in Israel Studies for his fascinating book on R. Herzog, The Invention of Jewish Theocracy: The Struggle for Legal Authority in Modern Israel.
Author
@jaymichaelson
joins
@YehudaKurtzer
to discuss, gun control, the second amendment & what it means for American
#Jews
to participate in a political culture that cannot seem to make its citizens safe. Tune into the latest episode
#IdentityCrisisPod
.
Andrew Sullivan, a journalist I deeply respect, has become increasingly critical of Israel. And so I was grateful when he invited me to his podcast, The Dish, to speak about Israel and the Palestinians. The result was hard, painful and deeply rewarding.
Can Faith & Ethics Heal our Fractured, Technology-Soaked Society? Micah Goodman & American social psychologist
@JonHaidt
will unpack their theories on why liberal society is falling apart & offer their take on how to be part of putting it back together.
In her recent
@tabletmag
article, Director of Faculty & Senior Fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute of North America,
@elanasteinhain
, takes an in-depth look at the way religious authorities use precepts from the
#Torah
to justify a culture of silence & complicity.
In a recent sexual abuse case in Israel, some religious leaders misused Torah to justify silence and complicity. Maybe a closer look at the story of David and Batsheva can help us do what’s right rather than defend the worst.
How do we speak realistically about aspirations for a path forward for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? Donniel Hartman,
@YKleinHalevi
& Elana Stein Hain explore why mainstream Israeli society has become disinterested in discussing it & the value of hope.
Jewish Memory and This Moral Moment is a daylong symposium in NYC with electives on Holocaust Comparisons to the Ukraine invasion to the future of Holocaust memory and beyond. Register today. W/
@Jbloeffler
Identity/Crisis Wrapped: From expressing concerns over Israel’s democracy to exploring what characterizes North American Judaism and delving into the devastation of Oct. 7 and the subsequent war,
@yehudakurtzer
reflects on the lessons from 2023.
🎧
Join us for a timely briefing on this consequential moment & the role of North American
#Jews
in securing
#Israel
’s future, featuring Hartman Senior Fellow
@YKleinHalevi
in conversation W/ Sarah hurwitz, author of
@HereAllAlong
. Register today!
#jtwitter
A huge congratulations to
@aantepli
, Hartman's Co-Director of the Muslim Leadership Initiative. We are honored to call you a friend and colleague and to do this work together.
#interfaith
Donniel Hartman,
@YKleinHalevi
, and Elana Stein Hain explore the complexity of the coalition government, the line between civil disobedience and conscientious objection, and how much longer Israel can continue to defy the odds as a fractured society.
After the war is over & the guns are silenced, what of accounting will be needed? Donniel Hartman &
@YKleinHalevi
discuss the discourse shaping & dividing Israeli civil society, their hopes for the future of Gaza, & their vision for a new Middle East.
Understanding the New Antisemitism. The son of a Holocaust survivor,
@YKleinHalevi
speaks from the heart about the uptick in
#antisemitism
in mainstream discourse today and how we can better educate young people in this interview
@looksteinvja
The Israeli Supreme Court struck down the reasonableness clause, a key element in Netanyahu's right-wing government's highly disputed judicial overhaul. Donniel Hartman &
@YKleinHalevi
discuss whether this decision will reignite pre-Oct. 7th disputes.
Thrilled to share that the Identity/Crisis
#podcast
with host,
@YehudaKurtzer
, which delves into the big ideas behind the news from a uniquely
#Jewish
perspective, has made the top 10!
Tune in today to our latest episode & subscribe:
#identitycrisispod
Looking for an addition to your summer reading list ? Sources: A Journal of Jewish Ideas is our print & digital journal where you can find thoughtful essays about issues that matter like, 'The One and the Many, On Comparing the Holocaust' by
@Jbloeffler
.
Announcing the launch of TEXTing with Elana Stein Hain, a podcast that delves deeply into Jewish texts to guide and inspire us as we grapple with the concerns and meaning of this moment.
Listen to the first episode here:
What’s Next for Liberalism in Israel? In the fallout of Israel’s election, Donniel Hartman,
@YKleinHalevi
, and Elana Stein Hain navigate the strangeness of this moment for many in the liberal Jewish camp who are experiencing it as a moment of mourning.
Mazel tov and mabruk to
@aantepli
Co-Director of Muslim Leadership Initiative at Hartman Institute and an inspiration to all of us.
#interfaith
#intergroup
Saturday night’s rallies drew thousands of supporters, including our hosts, Donniel Hartman,
@YKleinHalevi
& Elana Stein Hain. They discuss the reasonableness standard and, if amended, its far-reaching implications for the future of Israeli democracy.
Friedman is Co-Director of the institute's Muslim Leadership Initiative w/
@YKleinHalevi
&
@aantepli
. In the wake of the hostage situation in
#Colleyville
, she shares how
@aantepli
's leadership is a model for the
#Jewish
community in combating hate.
Our scholar-in-residence in the Bay Area has just signed a publishing deal with Yedioth for a book about the principle of God's image and its central place in shaping the world in which we live, from ancient times to modern times. Congrats.
אני שמח לבשר שחתמתי על חוזה להוצאת ספר עם הוצאת ידיעות ספרים. הספר יעסוק בעקרון צלם אלוהים ובמקומו המרכזי בעיצוב העולם בו אנו חיים, מהעת העתיקה ועד זמננו. אמור לצאת בקיץ הבא בע"ה.
.
@HIASrefugees
is the oldest organization in the world dedicated to refugees.
@MarkJHetfield
, President & CEO, of the global refugee agency will be presenting at Jewish Memory and This Moral Moment conference.
There is still time to register!
With Rosh Hashana right around the corner,
@YehudaKurtzer
sat down with
@RabbiWolpe
of
@SinaiTemple
in Los Angeles, to discuss the art of writing a rabbi’s sermon. Together, they get to the very heart of what it means to have a rabbi and be a rabbi.
The Jewish community is mobilizing in support of nearly 200K Jews of the Ukraine.
@NKKaufman
consultant & former CEO of
@NCJW
& Roman Shmulenson, ED of
@COJECO_NY
join
@YehudaKurtzer
to discuss the historic pains of Ukrainian nationalism & antisemitism.
.
@roripn
, Director of
#JCRC
in St. Louis & Hartman Rabbinic Fellow, is a leader in the fight against abortion bans & anti-LGBTQ legislation in Missouri. She joins
@YehudaKurtzer
to discuss how we might show up for abortion rights as Americans & as Jews.
In the wake of Amnesty International’s report declaring Israel an Apartheid state, what is the “right” response? Listen to Donniel Hartman,
@YKleinHalevi
, and Elana Stein Hain in this important episode of the For Heaven’s Sake Podcast.
As Israel’s new reality of unfathomable horror begins to set in, many took comfort in the latest speech by US President Biden, in which he called the Hamas attack “pure evil.” Donniel Hartman &
@YKleinHalevi
explore what it means to confront evil.
"I was a bit naive” about being a rebbetzin, explains
@avitalrachel
describing the emotional labor that defines her "second career" as a rabbi’s spouse. Tune in to the complexity of this role with two accomplished, professional women.
#invisiblelabor
The crisis in Ukraine is impacting the way we think about the place of Israel in the world. Join Donniel Hartman,
@YKleinHalevi
& Elana Stein Hain as they discuss the crisis in Ukraine & Israel’s place in the world on this episode of
#ForHeavensSakePod
.
"Fast information is junk information" - Micah Goodman
American & Israeli societies are both struggling with political polarization caused by technology, but the results are not the same. Listen to
@JonHaidt
& Micah Goodman analyze these two societies.
Donniel Hartman &
@YKleinHalevi
ask if they, as Israelis, can listen to slogans such as “From the River to the Sea, Palestine Will Be Free" & hateful rhetoric from critics & consider an almost impossible question – what, if anything, can we learn from them?
The
#Megillah
is a handbook for how to find God through obscurity.If you look towards each other, you can make out those whispers of God speaking through silence & the collective action of the Jewish people.-
@DBashIdeas
on this week's
#identitycrisispod
with
@YehudaKurtzer
Micah Goodman &
@JonHaidt
“share a deep concern that things are going to hell in liberal democracies.” Their conversation is one part diagnosis & one part prescription. Find out what “structural stupidity” & “slow information” have in common.
Watch Here: