TEXTing

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.

 

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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.

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Read Masua Sagiv's "Reclaiming Mamlakhtiyut: The Road to an Inclusive Israeli Identity" from Sources: A Journal of Jewish Ideas.

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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.

 

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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.

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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.

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