Avsnitt
-
What kind of leadership prepares the next generation, and what kind of leadership makes them lose trust? In this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and journalist Maya Sulkin mine Parashat Masei for competing models of leadership through a generation’s journey through the wilderness. Against the modern backdrop of AI, campus movements, and generational divides, they ask: Which of these models can still sustain a community? What would it mean to lead not by promising, controlling, or fighting, but by enabling people to grow?
Episode Source Sheet
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
With antisemitism and anti-Zionism on the rise, are Jews alone in today’s world, or is that belief a powerful myth actively shaping Jewish identity and relationships for the worse? In this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and Rabba Rori Picker Neiss, Senior Vice President of Jewish Council for Public Affairs, read Parashat Balak to explore how questions of power, fear, and vulnerability shape Jewish relationships. Drawing on biblical text, Talmudic insight, and contemporary Jewish experience,
they probe how narratives about allies and enemies are formed, how they can mislead, and what it takes to stay invested in relationships, even when partners tell us what we don’t want to hear and when engagement may carry real risk.
Episode Source Sheet
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
Saknas det avsnitt?
-
Is Israel losing American Jews, or are American Jews losing sight of Israel? Maybe it’s both. In this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and Michael Koplow, Chief Policy Officer of Israel Policy Forum, turn to Parshat Sh’lach and the story of the spies in Numbers 13 to explore why many American Jews today feel overwhelmed, disillusioned, or disconnected from Israel. They unpack how fear, moral conflict, and a sense of powerlessness can erode commitment, and they explore what it would take to sustain a meaningful relationship with the Jewish state—and a shared sense of Jewish peoplehood—in this moment.
Episode Source Sheet
Read Masua Sagiv's "Reclaiming Mamlakhtiyut: The Road to an Inclusive Israeli Identity" from Sources: A Journal of Jewish Ideas.
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
Please take 5 minutes to fill out the TEXTing IRL survey!
What do we mean when we ask for peace, especially in a time of war, rising antisemitism, and deep uncertainty? In this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and Brandeis University professor Yehudah Mirsky explore the meaning of peace in Jewish thought through the priestly blessing in Parashat Naso. Drawing on Torah and contemporary reality, they unpack the difference between “negative” and “positive” peace and the tension between safety, stability, and human flourishing. The result is a more grounded and honest framework for thinking about peace today.
Episode Source Sheet
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
Please take 5 minutes to fill out the TEXTing IRL survey!
This episode was originally released on Monday, September
25, 2025.
Democracy promises to guarantee freedom and equality for all, yet Jews seem to be increasingly vulnerable in America today. How should Jews respond when they feel democracy is not showing up for them? On this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and Slate Senior Editor Dahlia Lithwick turn to Rabbi Moshe Feinstein’s 1984 letter on voting and Rabbi Lauren Holtzblatt’s eulogy for Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to probe the relationship between Jews and American democracy, especially in moments when the promise of democracy feels unfulfilled or even threatened.
Episode Source Sheet
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
Please take 5 minutes to fill out the TEXTing IRL survey!
It’s Jewish memory season, and this week’s parasha, Parashat Emor, focuses on the Jewish holidays that we celebrate today as a recollection of events in our past. But what happens when Jewish memory starts to feel like destiny, and what does it mean for our sense of agency when history seems inevitable? On this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and Hartman Institute President Yehuda Kurtzer examine the power and dangers of historical analogy and the ethical responsibility that comes with reading today’s events through yesterday’s stories. This conversation asks how Jewish memory can inform moral choice without foreclosing it, and how to hold uncertainty without giving up responsibility.
Episode Source Sheet
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
What does it mean to help someone without taking away their dignity, and is it harder — and holier — to give a loan rather than a gift?
On this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain speaks with Rabbi David Rosenn, President and CEO of the Hebrew Free Loan Society, about Jewish ideas of dignity, episodic poverty, and prevention.
They interrogate the Torah’s fixation on interest-free lending and why Jewish tradition insists on seeing the whole person in moments of financial crisis. A provocative and important conversation that begs the question: when (and when isn’t) charity the most ethical form of Jewish giving?
EPISODE SOURCE SHEET
More from this episode:
Hebrew Free Loan Society
Ogen in Israel
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
On Passover, Jews celebrate freedom, but for many this year, the normalization of cruelty toward immigrants in America casts a shadow over that celebration. On this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain speaks with Noah Gottschalk, Chief External Relations Officer at HIAS, about why the Haggadah teaches that the Egyptians first chose cruelty through demonization rather than labor oppression, and what our texts call on us to do in response. Together they explore how fear and dehumanization of immigrants echo ancient patterns and how Jewish values compel us to recognize and defend human dignity today.
Episode Source Sheet
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
When war erupts again and again, how do Israeli families and communities live with constant loss? In this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and Hartman research fellow David Dishon turn to the book of Vayikra and to David’s experience as a bereaved grandparent of a soldier killed in the Israel-Hamas War. Together, they examine how sacrifice shapes grief by transforming loss into enduring presence, and offer a framework for spiritual resilience.
Episode Source Sheet
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
What turns a crowd into a mob, and what does the Torah teach us about moments when communities unravel? In Parashat Ki Tisa, the Israelites form a mob and build the Golden Calf in Moses’s absence. On this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and The Atlantic staff writer Franklin Foer unpack how fear, identity, belonging, and fragile institutions shape collective behavior. Drawing on social theory, campus encampments, and the contrasting leadership models of Moses and Aaron, they consider what keeps communities grounded, what pushes them toward rupture, and why those dynamics feel especially urgent today.
Episode Source Sheet
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
In Parashat Terumah, the Israelites are commanded to build the Mishkan (Tabernacle). Why construct something so exquisite and detailed in the middle of a desert? And what can building something so valuable, then and now, teach us about living through uncertainty? In this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and Hartman research fellow Tamara Mann Tweel turn to the rabbinic tradition to explore how building can ground us, offering practices that shape who we become.
Episode Source Sheet
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
What do we owe the generations that came before us, and what do we want future generations to inherit from us? When do we preserve the past, and when do we break from it? In this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and Hartman research fellow Tamara Mann Tweel dig into Parashat Yitro, uncovering how the commandment to honor parents is about more than caretaking; it’s about learning to see the past with weight, reverence, and generosity.
Episode Source Sheet
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
What happens when the stories we cherish no longer fit the world that we and our kids see? Elana Stein Hain and Hartman research fellow Tamara Mann Tweel turn to Parashat Bo to contend with the challenges of parenting in treacherous times and the power of narrative to create meaning and resilience in an incoherent world.
We are grateful to Micah Philanthropies and the Walder Charitable Trust for their generous support of TEXTing IRL.
Episode Source Sheet
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
How do we stay invested in Israel when it exhausts and challenges us? In this episode of TEXTing IRL, recorded live at the Shalom Hartman Institute’s Winter Leadership Conference, Elana Stein Hain welcomes Ronit Heyd, Hartman Vice President and Director of the Center for Israeli & Jewish Identity, to read the work of Amos Oz and to discuss why relationships between Israelis and within the Jewish people must be committed: loving, honest, and critical.
We are grateful to Micah Philanthropies and the Walder Charitable Trust for their generous support of TEXTing IRL.
Episode Source Sheet
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
Missed the Winter Leadership Conference? Join us at the Florida Leadership Conference and our flagship Community Leadership Program!
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
From debates over politics, antisemitism, and public representation to disagreements over kugel recipes, Jews are not immune to the profound polarization that characterizes society today. How do Jews relate to each other—and the world—when disagreements run so deep? In this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and Jeremy Burton, CEO of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Boston, examine the growing fractures within Jewish communal life through the lens of Parashat Vayiggash, wrestling with questions of relationship, unity, and advocacy.
We are grateful to Micah Philanthropies and the Walder Charitable Trust for their generous support of TEXTing IRL.
Episode Source Sheet
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
After two-plus years of agony and hardship, what can Judaism teach about the role of faith and the presence of God in times of suffering? In this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and Dani Segal of Mabua: Israeli Beit Midrash mine the lessons of Parashat Vayeshev and Joseph’s descent to Egypt. Drawing on rabbinic interpretations, modern experiences, and stories of soldiers and hostages, they explore how faith can operate as moral clarity and personal motivation during the long and often painful arc of Jewish history.
Episode Source Sheet
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
As the longstanding bipartisan consensus around issues important to Jewish needs seems to collapse in America, many feel that the deck is stacked against the Jewish community. How can Jews advocate for themselves, and what tools should they be using? Elana Stein Hain and community advocacy strategist Stacy Burdett dive into Parashat Vayetze to explore Jacob’s fraught encounters with Lavan and what they reveal about the ethics of Jewish self-advocacy today.
Episode Source Sheet
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
As antisemitism and anti-Zionism rise, many North American Jews have felt less welcome in the countries that they call home. How do we root ourselves deeply in our Jewish identities while remaining engaged in and committed to the broader world? On this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and author Sarah Hurwitz turn to this week’s Torah portion and the concept of the ger toshav—the resident alien—to understand how North American Jews might navigate belonging, identity, faith, and the enduring challenge of embracing Jewish particularism while living in diverse societies.
We are grateful to Micah Philanthropies and to the Walder Charitable Fund for their generous support of TEXTing.
Episode Source Sheet
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
This week, TEXTing IRL is excited to share Hartman’s podcast, Future Tense, where rising Jewish leaders drive conversations with scholars from the Shalom Hartman Institute on the most pressing issues facing their generation.
Many young Jews are taught that they have a responsibility to publicly represent the Jewish people—an expectation that can feel especially heavy during the formative years of personal growth and identity development. In this episode of Future Tense, Elana Stein Hain joins hosts Anna Weiss, Sami Jinich, and Yadid Orlow to explore how to balance the challenges of representation with their own personal development as well as the benefits and challenges of connecting beyond the Jewish community.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS -
Two years after October 7, Jews around the world mark Simchat Torah, finishing and beginning again the reading of the Torah, and thinking about our stories, both ancient and present. How do we tell our stories in a world and to a world that doesn’t seem to want to hear them? On this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and Yoni Appelbaum, deputy executive editor at The Atlantic, study the writings of Rav Soloveitchik, uncovering how the ability to be heard when telling one’s story makes one free, and how listening with empathy and humility allows one to tell the truest and most compelling stories.
We are grateful to the Walder Charitable Fund and Micah Philanthropies for their generous support of TEXTing.
Episode Source Sheet
Watch the video version of this episode here.
You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS - Visa fler
