Perfect Jewish Parents

What does it mean to celebrate Hanukkah when Israel is at war and at a time of rising antisemitism across the globe? Hanukkah is the first Jewish holiday since the tragic attack during Simchat Torah on October 7th. Joshua Ladon and Masua Sagiv welcome Mishael Zion, founder of Kehillat Klausner in Jerusalem and research fellow at Hartman's Kogod Research Center, to explore what stories we are telli...

Public discourse about Israel and Gaza is peppered with ideological language. Young people are engaging with a world where complex, academic, and historically significant terms such as Zionism, colonialization, and apartheid have been overly simplified and reduced to polarizing social media memes. Tomer Persico, research fellow at the Hartman Institute in Jerusalem and Rubenstein fellow at Reichma...

As the Israel-Hamas war continues and we grapple with the implications and trauma of October 7, parents, caregivers, and educators are fielding increasingly complex questions from children and students. Hosts Joshua Ladon and Masua Sagiv are joined by Elana Stein Hain, Rosh Beit Midrash and Senior Fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute, and co-host of the award-winning podcast For Heaven's Sake. T...

The repercussions of the brutal attack by Hamas and ongoing war in Israel weigh heavily on young North American Jews. Online and on campus, some paint recent events in stark black and white, while others demand context and complexity in the face of evil. As Jewish students struggle with grief and pain, they’re exploring their connections to the Jewish people and grappling with how to respond to di...

The ongoing war with Hamas has flooded our communities with grief, sorrow, and anger. In a series of special episodes, Perfect Jewish Parents hosts Masua Sagiv and Joshua Ladon explore the core questions and values these difficult moments illuminate so that parents, caregivers, and educators can navigate complex conversations with young people and meet this important moment. This is Perfect Jewish...

What role do books and ritual objects play in cultivating a Jewish home? How do you tell if a Jewish book—for kids or adults—is any good? David Zvi Kalman, Director of New Media for the Shalom Hartman Institute, co-producer of Perfect Jewish Parents, and owner of Print-O-Craft Press joins hosts Joshua Ladon and Masua Sagiv for the final episode of the season. They discuss the idea of “Jewish books...

Does religion play a role in educational achievement and social fulfillment? Ilana M. Horwitz (Ph. D., Stanford University) author of God Grades, and Graduation: Religion’s Surprising Impact on Academic Success, joins Perfect Jewish Parents hosts, Masua Sagiv and Joshua Ladon, to reflect on the ways Judaism impacts academic success, the connection between religion and community, and her academic w...

There are different paths to creating and raising a Jewish family and often fertility struggles are hidden and historically stigmatized. Elana Frank, CEO and founder, of the Jewish Fertility Foundation and host of the popular fertility podcast, Fruitful and Multiplying, joins Perfect Jewish Parents hosts, Masua Sagiv and Joshua Ladon, to discuss challenging the standard narrative of how to create...

Israel can be a source of great joy but also the subject of tough conversations that either inflame passions or are so daunting that we avoid them altogether. Scholar, teacher educator, and educational consultant Sivan Zakai, the Sara S. Lee Associate Professor of Jewish Education at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, joins hosts Masua Sagiv and Joshua Ladon to explore how and...

Feeling a sense of connection to the Jewish people can be a powerful inheritance, and it can spark questions, frustration or disappointment. What does it mean for us to be connected to, and maybe even responsible for, people in other countries who we don’t know and with whom we might not agree? Tal Becker (Senior Fellow, Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem and Legal Adviser of the Israeli Minist...

What are the unique challenges in being a first generation, interfaith family? Annie Zean Dunbar is a researcher, educator, social worker, and artist. She joins co-hosts Masua Sagiv and Joshua Ladon to discuss the decision to raise her child Jewishly and how her experience as an immigrant informs her family values.

Introducing children to the Holocaust is an important part of both Jewish and non-Jewish education, but the way that it's explained varies widely among communities. In this episode Morgan Blum Schneider, Director of JFCS Holocaust Center joins Perfect Jewish Parents hosts Masua Sagiv and Joshua Ladon to discuss how we talk about the Holocaust in our homes, what Shoah education in the post-survivor...

When your child asks, "Is God real" or "Am I dreaming my entire life?"-- is it ok not to have the "right" answer? Scott Hershovitz is the Thomas G. and Mabel Long Professor of Law and a professor of philosophy at the University of Michigan and author of Nasty, Brutish, and Short: Adventures in Philosophy with Kids. This father of two joins Perfect Jewish Parents co-hosts Masua Sagiv and Joshua Lad...

Raising kids Jewishly adds a layer of responsibility and opportunity to all of the other demands of parenting as parents navigate a wide set of choices about everything from the songs they play during holidays to how they talk to their kids about the Holocaust and antisemitism. For many parents, these aren't just responsibilities; they're a Jewish practice in and of themselves as they aim to suppo...