After 600 days, is the appetite for continuing the war with Hamas waning among its supporters? This week on Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer sits down with Tal Becker, Shalom Hartman Institute Vice President and former Legal Adviser of the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to discuss war strategy, moral obligation, and the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza.   Our Identity/Crisis listener survey closes Friday, May 30! Don’t miss this chance to share your thoughts and help us make your favorite podcast even better! Take 5 minutes to complete our brief survey. You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.  JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS 

What does moral courage look like in an age of rising antisemitism and political polarization? In this episode of Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer is joined by longtime ADL leader and Holocaust survivor Abe Foxman for a raw, intergenerational conversation about fear, leadership, and the dangers of silence.   Identity/Crisis listeners we want to hear from you! Please take 5 minutes to complete this brief survey before May 30. Your confidential responses will help us make your favorite podcast even better!   You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.  JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS 

What can a small Jewish community in Omaha, Nebraska teach us about power, memory, and belonging? In this special monologue episode of Identity/Crisis recorded on the road in the American heartland, Yehuda Kurtzer reflects, in four acts, on his Midwest travels and what he learned about the quiet strength — and quiet fears — shaping Jewish life today.    Identity/Crisis listeners we want to hear from you! Please take 5 minutes to complete this brief survey before May 30, 2025. Your confidential responses will help us make your favorite podcast even better!  You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.   JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS  

What does it mean to care for the sick—not just medically, but morally and spiritually? In this episode of Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer invites Sara Labaton, Director of Teaching and Learning at the Shalom Hartman Institute of North America, to share her essay, Permission and Obligation: A Jewish Paradigm for Care, from the Spring issue of Sources: A Journal of Jewish Ideas. Drawing from personal experience and Jewish texts, Sara explores the complexities of caregiving and examines the role of doctors, patients, and the community in the healing process. You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.  JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS 

What does it mean to keep singing when the world is broken? In this special Yom Ha’atzmaut episode of Identity/Crisis, host Yehuda Kurtzer sits down with Moti Zeira — biographer of legendary Israeli musician Naomi Shemer and a leading voice in Israeli cultural renewal — to explore how music carries the weight of memory, protest, and hope.   You can listen to our playlist of songs by Naomi Shemer HERE   You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.  JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS   

Who gets to tell the stories of the past, and what influence do they have on the story of the present and the future? This week marks the 80th anniversary of the end of the Holocaust. In advance of Yom HaShoah, host Yehuda Kurtzer sits down with Dani Dayan, Chairman of Yad Vashem, to discuss the ways in which memory is political, how reflections of the past implicate the present, and the future of holocaust remembrance when there are no more living survivors to share their stories. You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.  JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS 

Identity/Crisis will be taking a break this week and will return the Tuesday after Passover.

Take a great story from the past, add an obligation to live that story as though you’re in it, multiply by the complexities of your closest relationships, add wine, subtract food, and you have a seder – good luck.   This week on Identity/Crisis, host Yehuda Kurtzer and Dara Horn, author of One Little Goat: A Passover Catastrophe, get us ready for Passover with a robust conversation on monotheism as a stand against tyranny, scapegoats, and what Horn sees as the overriding and abiding message of the holiday: hope.  You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.     JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS  

The future of American Judaism is uncertain, some might even say at risk. In this special episode, recorded live at the Jewish Funders Network Conference in Nashville, Yehuda Kurtzer, Franklin Foer, and Sarah Hurwitz engage in a dynamic discussion about what ails American Judaism, why we fear change, and what we want to strengthen and preserve for the future.     This live Identity/Crisis episode was made possible by Schusterman Family Philanthropies, Crown Family Philanthropies and the Jim Joseph Foundation, featuring theme music by SoCalled and additional music by Distant Cousins.    You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.     JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS  

During times of war, when fear and self-preservation are front of mind, how do we make room for ethics? On this episode of Identity/Crisis, guest host Claire Sufrin, editor of Sources: A Journal of Jewish Ideas, sits down with Donniel Hartman, President of the Shalom Hartman Institute, to discuss the importance of morality in the Jewish tradition and how ethics should inform our choices. Keep an eye out for Donniel Hartman’s article in the Spring 2025 issue of Sources: A Journal of Jewish Ideas about Jewish ethics in theory and practice.   You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more. 

How do you prepare your children for becoming citizens of the Jewish people? On this episode of Identity/Crisis, recorded just ahead of their third child’s bat mitzvah, host Yehuda Kurtzer is joined by his wife and hevruta Stephanie Ives to discuss the ways you can and can’t transmit your approach to Judaism to your children. You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.  JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS 

Identity/Crisis will be taking a break this week and will return the Tuesday after Purim.

During an increasingly sensitive time for American Jews, how can we critically examine our own communities in ways that don’t feel disloyal? On this episode of Identity/Crisis recorded in front of a live audience, Yehuda Kurtzer sits down with Joshua Leifer, author of Tablets Shattered: The End of an American Jewish Century and the Future of Jewish Life, who wrestled with this question while critiquing communities to which he feels deeply loyal. You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.  JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS 

What does it mean to lead the American Jewish community during this divisive moment? This week on Identity/Crisis, Ted Deutch, CEO of the American Jewish Committee, joins host Yehuda Kurtzer to discuss the challenges of leading effectively and persuasively in the face of antisemitism, deep partisan divides, and a society focused on social media-driven discourse.    You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.     JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS  

During wartime, it is especially hard to see the humanity in others. On this episode of Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer speaks with Hartman Kogod Research Center fellow and Land for All co-director Rula Hardal about the challenges of building a shared society between  Israeli Jews and Palestinian citizens of Israel. They discuss how to transform the discourse into one of political imagination for a better future for everyone between the river and the sea. You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.  JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS 

Throughout the Israel-Hamas War, many have shunned the idea of neutrality. For the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), neutrality is one of the most essential tools for humanitarian aid. On this episode of Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer sits down with ICRC legal advisor, Noa Schreuer to discuss the pragmatic applications of neutrality and the challenges the ICRC faces during times of conflict. You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.  JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS 

Aner Shapira z"l, Hersh Goldberg-Polin z"l, Ariel Reich z"l, Shahar Friedman z"l, Dvir Barzani z"l, Ben Zussman z"l, Oriya Ayimalk Goshen z"l, Almkan Tarfe z"l, Rabbi Avi Goldberg z"l, Yuval Shoham z"l, Yinon Fleishman z"l. These names, of men lost in the last 15 months of war, are known to many – but for Jeremy Stavisky, longtime educator and former principal at Himmelfarb High School in Jerusalem, they were his students, his colleagues, and in the case of Yinon Fleishman, his son-in-law.   This week on Identity/Crisis, Stavisky opens up to host Yehuda Kurtzer about the ways this national crisis has impacted his life, his family, and the Himmelfarb community — where, even in the shadow of grief, the work of educating towards life must go on. You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.  JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS 

What do we gain and what do we lose when we attribute so much to one specific moment – like the October 7 attack in 2023, or the 1929 Hebron massacre? In a fascinating and difficult conversation about her new book, Ghosts of a Holy War: The 1929 Massacre in Palestine That Ignited the Arab-Israeli Conflict, guest Yardena Schwartz and host Yehuda Kurtzer discuss the roots of the century long conflict, their implications today and how they shape the future of the region. This episode of Identity/Crisis was recorded in front of a live audience as part of Salon@475, a series of in-person events at the Shalom Hartman Institute in New York. You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.  JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS 

As we enter the first year of a new yet familiar U.S. presidency, American Jews are reflecting on their relationship with governance and power structures as individuals and as a collective. On this episode of Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer is joined by Jonathan Sarna, professor of American Jewish History and Director of the Schusterman Center for Israel Studies at Brandeis University. They discuss the historical relationship of Jews to people in power and explore how history can guide us through this new era.