Identity/Crisis

What does it mean to defend liberal democracy in a world shaped by power, domination, and moral compromise? In this episode of Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer speaks with Washington Post columnist and author of The Case for American Power, Shadi Hamid, about whether liberal societies can wield power without betraying their own ideals. From Trump’s approach to Venezuela to the war in Gaza, their co...

Who pays the price for identifying antisemitism? In this episode of Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer speaks with journalist and Canadaland host Jesse Brown about his recent series What Is Happening Here and his decision to investigate the rise of anti-Zionism and antisemitism in Canada. Together, they examine why media and political institutions have struggled to respond and what it costs to name t...

Why have universities become flashpoints for broader cultural and political battles and what can higher education do to repair a fractured public sphere? In a conversation recorded live at the Vilna Shul in Boston, Yehuda Kurtzer and Harvard president Alan Garber reflect on leadership in a moment of crisis—exploring free speech and protest, institutional neutrality, and the rise of antisemitism on...

How do ideas travel—and what happens when they cross borders? In this episode of Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer sits down with author and historian Adam Ferziger to explore how liberal and moderate forms of Judaism, forged in North America, took root in Israel and helped shape a distinctly Israeli religious center. Drawing on Ferziger's new book Agents of Change, the conversation examines educati...

This episode was originally released on December 24, 2024   The relegation of Hanukkah merchandise to a tiny corner of the grocery aisle can cause Jews to feel excluded or marginalized by the Christmas holiday season. But the impact of Jews on the history and culture of secularized Christmas is deeper than you might think. In this exciting Yuletide episode of Identity/Crisis, host Yehuda Kurtzer a...

What does it take to rebuild Jewish community after two years of trauma and division? On this special episode of Identity/Crisis, Senior Editor Claire Sufrin turns the tables and interviews Yehuda Kurtzer about his article in the newest issue of Sources: A Journal of Jewish Ideas, where he unpacks why communities need clearer values and a renewed ethic of care to move beyond crisis. Their conversa...

What does it take for Black–Jewish partnerships to flourish in a moment of rising fear, political polarization, and mutual misunderstanding? On this episode of Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer and scholar Terrence Johnson discuss the stories we carry — about vulnerability, power, Israel, America, and identity — and why they often fail to translate across racial lines. Together, they explore how dem...

This episode was originally released on Tuesday, November 26th, 2024   This political moment may cause American Jews to ask: “Where have we seen this before?”   In this episode recorded live in NYC, Yehuda Kurtzer challenges the impulse to reach backwards for old frameworks to describe our current situation, and instead offers a vision for a new era in American-Jewish politics – one shaped by a cu...

Why are conspiracy theories about Jews surging in the American mainstream — and why are so many young Americans embracing them? In this episode of Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer and Yair Rosenberg, staff writer at The Atlantic, unpack how Tucker Carlson’s platforming of Nick Fuentes reveals a broader ecosystem of digital extremism and populist politics that increasingly places Jews at the center...

What’s next for Israel’s democracy after years of polarization, war, and political stagnation? In this episode of Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer talks with Tani Frank, Director of the Center for Judaism and State Policy at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem, about Israel’s rapidly changing political landscape ahead of the 2026 elections. They discuss Benjamin Netanyahu’s enduring power, th...

Thirty years after the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin, Yehuda Kurtzer speaks with Yossi Beilin, one of the architects of the Oslo Accords, about the night that changed Israel forever. Together they revisit Rabin’s legacy, the rise of extremism that followed, and ask: what will it take to revive the hope of peace?   We're grateful to the Charles H. Revson Foundation for supporting the Shalom Hartma...

What does Zohran Mamdani’s rise reveal about the shifting power, politics, and identity of New York City’s Jews?  As New York stands on the verge of electing its first anti-Zionist mayor, on Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer and political strategist Howard Wolfson explore what happens when the Jewish community, who once defined New York’s political center of gravity, finds itself on the outside look...

Last week on the Jewish Broadcasting Network, Shalom Hartman Institute presidents Yehuda Kurtzer and Donniel Hartman joined journalist Abigail Pogrebin for a live conversation reflecting on this pivotal moment: the immense Israeli public effort to bring the hostages home, the roles of Trump and Netanyahu in current and future politics, and the dueling priorities of Israeli and American Jews. As th...

At a time of unprecedented leaps in technology and ethical questions about artificial intelligence, one scholar seeks answers from an unlikely source — ancient Jewish wisdom. In this episode of Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer talks with technology guru, Hartman scholar, and founding Identity/Crisis Producer David Zvi Kalman about the religious and ethical dilemmas AI poses for Jewish life — from s...

What is at stake when Holocaust memory fades—or worse, loses its relevance?  This week on Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer speaks with Anita Friedman — daughter of survivors, renowned educator, and executive producer of the new film Among Neighbors — about the future of Holocaust education, the dangers of “Holocaust fatigue,” and how storytelling can help make Holocaust memories relevant for genera...

In this episode of Arc: The Podcast, Mark Oppenheimer sits down with Yehuda Kurtzer to discuss the aesthetics of yarmulkas, the crisis facing clergy-members, and how the war in Israel is changing American Jewry.   You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.  JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS 

What happens when the words we pray clash with the values we hold? Just in time for the High Holidays, this week on Identity/Crisis Yehuda Kurtzer speaks with Ethan Tucker, president of Hadar and co-author of Gender Equality and Prayer in Jewish Law, about what it means to pray ancient words in a world shaped by present fears and political tensions and how we can navigate the frameworks of traditi...

Does Benjamin Netanyahu need Hamas — and even this war —for political survival?  This week on Identity/Crisis, following Israel’s puzzling strike on Hamas leaders in Qatar, Yehuda Kurtzer and Michael Koplow, Chief Policy Officer at Israel Policy Forum, try to get inside Netanyahu’s head and understand the ways in which he and Hamas may be inextricably linked. You can now sponsor an episode of Iden...

What does it mean to reclaim the Jewish story in an era of shame, assimilation, and contested narratives? On this episode of Identity/Crisis, host Yehuda Kurtzer speaks with author Sarah Hurwitz about her new book, As a Jew, her journey from superficial Jewish identity to deeper engagement with Jewish tradition, and why knowledge and countercultural courage may be key to Jewish continuity today. Y...

Who gets to decide someone’s Jewish status, and what happens when that status comes into conflict with someone’s identity? This week on Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer sits down with Christine Hayes, Sterling Professor Emerita of Religious Studies at Yale and Hartman Senior Fellow for a provocative conversation about intermarriage, Jewish adjacency, and the boundaries of community and belonging. C...

This episode was originally released on April 1, 2025 The future of American Judaism is uncertain, some even might 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...

This week, Identity/Crisis is excited to share Hartman’s newest podcast, Future Tense, where rising Jewish leaders drive conversations with scholars from the Shalom Hartman Institute on the most pressing issues facing their generation.   What kind of Jewish future do we want to build – and how do we build something that will last? On this episode of Future Tense, hosts Anna Weiss, Sami Jinich, and...

What happens to the credibility and power of scholarship when practitioners abandon careful methodology in favor of rhetorical certainty? In this special episode of Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer explores the intellectual and ethical responsibilities of scholarship in the face of the Gaza war and asks: how can we confront a horror and feel it deeply, yet stop short of giving that horror a name? Y...

What can Jewish summer camps teach us about building stronger, more inclusive Jewish communities? On this episode of Identity/Crisis, guest host and editor of Sources: A Journal of Jewish Ideas, Claire Sufrin, sits down with Adina Frydman, CEO of Young Judaea Global, to explore how Jewish camps create spaces where North American and Israeli campers live, learn, and wrestle with complex identities...

What does it mean to be “okay” when your community is not? What is the role of an educator in times of moral emergency? And how can we resist turning loyalty into a litmus test for empathy? In this far-reaching and emotionally charged conversation recorded live in Jerusalem, Yehuda Kurtzer and Donniel Hartman reflect on what it means to lead the Hartman Institute in a moment of profound trauma. Fo...