For Heaven's Sake

The Law of Return stipulates that any Jew can return to the Jewish homeland and claim immediate Israeli citizenship. Who qualifies as a Jew, under that law, has been a source of contention throughout the history of the state. Netanyahu's newly-formed coalition government may seek to change major aspects of the law, bringing the debate back into the public conversation. On this episode, Donniel Hartman, Yossi Klein Halevi, and Elana Stein Hain maneuver through thought-provoking questions about belonging to the Jewish people. Is Israel the state of the Jewish people or is it the state of Judaism? Who should be defined as Jews? Is Jewishness an ethnicity, a set of religious observances, or both?

In the fallout of Israel's election, Donniel Hartman, Yossi Klein Halevi, 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. In this episode they ask: How do Jews who oppose the values of the coming governing Israeli coalition make themselves heard right now? Can Israel learn from Americans' experience under Trump? Is it possible to build bridges with extremists, and is it possible to separate peoples' ideologies from the candidates they support?

This is a recording of a live event held on November 1, 2022. In the minutes before the election results come in, Donniel Hartman and Yossi Klein Halevi discuss the campaign and then reflect on the right's electoral victory and what it portends for the State of Israel, the future of Zionism, and the Jewish people.

Only two years ago, Netanyahu declared that Itamar Ben Gvir, the most popular leader on the far-right with deep roots in the racist Kahanist movement, wasn’t fit to be a minister. Now, Netanyahu affirms that he would be a part of any future government. Will a coalition with Ben Gvir unravel the social fabric of Israel? Is the threat he represents exaggerated? How should Israeli liberals and moderates respond? Donniel Hartman and Yossi Klein Halevi discuss Israel's upcoming fateful and potentially dangerous election.Register here for Donniel and Yossi's Election Day livestream on Tuesday, Nov 1, 10:30pm Israel / 3:30pm Eastern.

Israeli voters have been stalwart in their political party loyalties and no amount of campaigning seems able to sway them. When voters define themselves by their party, what values are they actually expressing? Donniel Hartman, Yossi Klein Halevi and Elana Stein Hain ask what are the meaningful divisions that we can discern within the parties themselves and is the political divide an expression of ideological, tribal, or cultural divides?

What can public and private observances of Rosh Hashana teach us about the relationship between Jewishness and Israeliness today? Donniel Hartman, Yossi Klein Halevi and Elana Stein Hain explore how the High Holidays are experienced in Israel, what this tells us about the state of Judaism and Jewish identity in the country, and how Israeli observance is different from that of American Jews.

With Israeli elections less than two months away, polls are showing that the Religious Zionist party, a coalition of religious ultra-nationalists and followers of the late, racist Rabbi Meir Kahane, could win as many as 13 seats, making it an indomitable political force. After a summer hiatus, For Heaven's Sake is back with Donniel Hartman, Yossi Klein Halevi, and Elana Stein Hain to ask about the causes of this unprecedented rise in religious fanaticism in Israel?

The ninth day of the Hebrew month of Av (Tisha B'Av) commemorates the destruction of the two Temples and the exile from the land of Israel. It is a day of national reckoning with our collective sins and failures asking us to mourn as a means of preventing future tragedy. How realistic is that expectation? And if Tisha B’Av isn’t working, how do we encourage a culture of collective introspection in our increasingly polarized society? Join Donniel Hartman and Yossi Klein Halevi as they explore whether national sovereignty is a condition for collective penitence and spiritual renewal.

When Haredi men recently attacked American Jews celebrating a Bar Mitzvah at the egalitarian section of the Western Wall, there was little outrage in Israel. When Jews are attacked anywhere in the world, we respond. Why does Israeli society tolerate this kind of antisemitism? Listen to Donniel Hartman, Yossi Klein Halevi and Elana Stein Hain's live recording from Jerusalem as they discuss the roots of Haredi aggression against fellow Jews and the seeming indifference of the Israeli mainstream.

This week, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett dissolved the one-year-old government that he formed (in his words) “l’shem shamayim,” for the sake of heaven, to affirm the unity of the people of Israel. Bennett’s opponents on the right have insisted that they, too, were acting for the sake of Heaven by affirming their deeply held truths. Join Donniel Hartman, Yossi Klein Halevi and Elana Stein Hain in an episode recorded live from Jerusalem as they discuss the balance between truth and love of the Jewish people and ask: when is one required to affirm his or her truth and when is compromise necessary?