For Heaven's Sake

The criminalization of Israel is becoming a mainstay for growing parts of the progressive American Jewish discourse. Many liberal American Jews accuse Israel of apartheid, even ethnic cleansing and genocide, against Palestinians. For Jews on the right, there is an ever-growing sentiment that Israel has lost the democratic liberal camp and with it the next generation of American Jews. In the first of two episodes on this topic, Donniel Hartman, Yossi Klein Halevi, and Elana Stein Hain explore why the discourse has become so toxic and confront the urgent challenge of a moral, nuanced, and diverse Israel conversation, within and between Israel and North America.

What are we to make of Israel, a country that one moment finds itself caught in a war with Hamas and then just a week later forms a governing coalition with an Arab Islamist party? And what are we to make of Israel's law against Palestinian family reunification within the state of Israel—is this an act of discrimination, or a necessary self-protection against the Palestinian demand of a "right of return?" In this episode, Donniel Hartman, Yossi Klein Halevi, and Elana Stein Hain discuss what it means to live in a country that contains these contradictions and the ways in which religion can help heal the wounds between Muslims and Jews.  

Almost overlooked in the dramatic political changes of the last two weeks is an historic moment in Israeli history: Naftali Bennett is the first Orthodox prime minister of Israel. Not everyone in the religious Zionist community is thrilled. Some accuse Bennett of betraying religious Zionism through his preference for political pluralism over an exclusively right-wing coalition. In this episode, Donniel Hartman, Yossi Klein Halevi, and Elana Stein Hain explore how Bennett's so-called betrayal opens up tantalizing questions about the direction of religious Zionism and for Israeli Jewish society as a whole.

Unexpectedly, after one of the most traumatic periods in recent Israeli history, many Israelis are feeling hopeful. But beyond replacing a longstanding prime minister, what, exactly, can this strange and unwieldy "government of change" really change? In this episode, Donniel Hartman, Yossi Klein Halevi, and Elana Stein Hain discuss whether and how the new coalition can begin healing Israel's political and religious divisions, and they share their hopes for a new era of dialogue within Israel and between Israeli and Diaspora Jews.

Of all the concerns about the Jewish future, many of us took at least one aspect of Jewish life for granted: the safety and well-being of American Jewry. But now antisemitism is back at the center of the American Jewish agenda. The recent conflict in Gaza has been the pretext for physical assaults against Jews in New York and Los Angeles and elsewhere around the country. Synagogues have been vandalized. Some American Jews are afraid to display Jewish symbols publicly.In this episode, Donniel Hartman, Yossi Klein Halevi, and Elana Stein Hain discuss a responsible Jewish approach toward contending with vulnerability and power.

This is not Israel’s first war with Gaza, but this time it feels different. World opinion and American opinion have been more vocal in its criticism of Israel and support for Palestinians, and many Americans, especially on the left, have lost patience with Israel. In today’s special episode, Donniel Hartman, Yossi Klein Halevi, and Elana Stein Hain talk about where we go from here, and whether it’s possible for Israel to be a moral voice while it continues to fight asymmetrical wars.

Gaza, going for another round. Riots by Arab Israelis, the burning of synagogues, Jewish and Arab lynch mobs roaming the streets, and the seeming end of hope for a new era of coexistence between Israel's citizens. How did we get here? Where do we go next? In this special episode of the podcast, Donniel Hartman, Yossi Klein Halevi, and Elana Stein Hain check in with each other and talk about how one can respond to a moment like this.

The debate around the 2015 Iran nuclear deal was one of the most acrimonious in recent American Jewish history. Since then, much has changed in both America and the Middle East. The Trump administration suspended the deal and reinstituted massive sanctions against Iran; now, the Biden administration seems intent on returning to the deal. In this episode, Donniel Hartman, Yossi Klein Halevi, and Elana Stein Hain discuss how the Jewish community can reopen the debate with greater civility and mutual respect, and explore what Jewish tradition teaches us about navigating our most intractable disagreements.

What is the connection between Yom Hashoah, Yom Hazikaron, and Yom Ha'atzmaut? Why do we mark these Israeli holidays in this order, and what does it feel like to move between them? In this very personal episode, Donniel Hartman, Yossi Klein Halevi, and Elana Stein Hain discuss their own experiences of Israel’s “high holidays” and the annual national experience of moving, in the space of a few hours, from a day of mourning to a night of celebration.

As the dust settles from Israel's fourth election in two years, the direction of the country's political movements has evolved and changed in ways worthy of reflection and evaluation. In the first part of this special, two-part election series, Donniel Hartman and Yossi Klein Halevi define and discuss Israel's political center and its right wing as two 'tribes' shaping the national discourse.