18 Questions, 40 Mystics

Rabbanit Rachelle Fraenkel has expectations from humanity. It made October 7's horror all the more terrifying. The religious figure and educator has been a voice of faith, hope, and strength for Israel and the Jewish People since her own teenaged son, Naftali, Hashem yikkom damo , was abducted and killed with Eyal Yifrach and Gilad Shaer by Hamas terrorists in 2014. Rachelle has lived, grappled, t...

In Gadi Taub's eyes, Israel is hardly a democracy — "it's a juristocracy." The historian, activist, and public intellectual believes that there are many forces at play that threaten the Jewish state: progressivism, elitism, and Western ideals. Formerly on the left himself, Gadi is one of Israel's most popular conservative thinkers.  Gadi co-hosts Tablet's  Israel Update podcast and his own Hebrew...

Bullying isn't always a bad thing, Efraim Inbar says. In a tough neighborhood like the Middle East, sometimes it's necessary. President of the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security and head of Shalem College’s program on Strategy, Diplomacy, and National Security, he speaks as a veteran Israeli political scientist and national security. In his view, Israel must be tough to stay alive—and i...

You cannot separate Israel’s democratic and Jewish identity, Ronit says. The two are interdependent in the Jewish state. Ronit Heyd is an Israeli social leader and activist who spent over 20 years leading initiatives dealing with Israel’s intimate and domestic issues—those outsiders often overlook because of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict’s large shadow. Previously leading the New Israel Fund’s...

The Israeli government’s draft of Haredi men is no simple matter—but Yehoshua Pfeffer has some ideas for moving forward. Rabbi Yehoshua Pfeffer is a Haredi social thinker and activist intimately involved in Haredi affairs. He heads the Iyun Institute—which operates programs and publications in the Haredi space—is the founding editor of Tzarich Iyun journal, and serves on the executive board of Net...

After Auschwitz, Anita Shapira says, Jews understood the necessity of power—and the necessity of statehood. A leading Israeli historian and author, she is professor emerita of Jewish History at Tel Aviv University and founder of the Yitzhak Rabin Center. When Anita Shapira speaks, her words are informed by acute expertise of Israeli and Jewish history—as evidenced by her many accolades and awards,...

No news outlet is utterly reliable these days, David Horovitz says. You always need one eyebrow raised. The founding editor of Time of Israel — with tens of millions of monthly readers, and ranked as the world’s fastest-growing news site in October and November — has worked in journalism for over 40 years, previously editing The Jerusalem Post and The Jerusalem Report . His days and nights are con...

Israel's fight against Hamas, Sivan Rahav-Meir says, is preventing another Oct. 7—and another Sept. 11. The Israeli religious journalist — voted Israel’s most popular media personality — grew up secular and part of the Israel left’s “Peace Now” movement, but she’s not quite there anymore. Now a journalist for Israel TV news, a columnist for Yediot Aharonot newspaper, and host of a weekly radio sho...

To Rabbi Yakov Nagen, the Jewish-Muslim fraternity will be the major breakthrough of the 21st century. This Religious Zionist rabbi is at the forefront of interfaith dialogue and peace work in Israel between Judaism, Islam, and Eastern Religions. The director of Ohr Torah Stone’s Blickle Institute for Interfaith Dialogue and its Beit Midrash for Judaism and Humanity, he is a passionate voice for u...

If you want to understand Israel, then you need to know Benny Morris. Prof. Benny Morris is a leading Israeli historian who revolutionized the field of Israeli history by digging into the government’s declassified archives in the ‘80s, ushering in the era of “New Historians” who challenged traditional views of Israel’s history. After peace talks failed and the Second Intifada began in the early 20...

18 Questions, 40 Israeli Thinkers is a new podcast by 18Forty interviewing Israel's leading voices to explore critical questions on Zionism, the Israel-Hamas War, democracy, morality, Judaism, peace, Israel’s future, and so much more. Every Monday, we introduce you to fresh perspectives and challenging ideas about Israel that you won’t find anywhere. Join us on our journey as we pose 18 pressing q...