Jewish Heroism Project

We tell stories to make sense of our lives, to give them meaning and direction, and the more challenging life is - the harder it is to craft a believable plot. The Sages taught us that “in every generation one is obligated to regard themselves as though they personally had gone out from Egypt,” and they gave us the Passover Haggadah as the guide to doing that. This is in an exploration of the Hagg...

Sometimes you have to speak from the heart. Here are a few thoughts, or really feelings, about our current situation. There is a tremendous potential in every crisis, the question is - can we see beyond the horizon?

Historians may argue about whether one person can shift the course of history, but everyone agrees that a hero can change the world. Here is the story of Eli Cohen, hero of Israel.

The Jewish Story is narrative therapy for a nation, but how can it also serve each of us in our quest to be actors in our lives instead of objects? Listen in to this great Purim Torah, an exploration of what the conversation between Mordecai and Esther can teach us about owning our own story.

The present is always built on the ruins of the past, the only real question is - how do we integrate this reality into our identity? This episode looks at the begins of a shift in Israeli identity in the early 60s, together with the emergence of a new national consciousness among the Arabs in Israel and abroad.

Old politicians never die, they just fade away. The era of Ben Gurion ended in 1963 and it appeared that his replacement, Levi Eshkol, could not live up to his legacy. This episode introduces a new mode of leadership for the State of Israel, and is the first step on the road to telling the tale of the Six Day War.

Why stop once with a good thing? Here is another interlude answering listener questions on Israel as a Jewish State. Hold out to the end hear what Rav Mike thinks about 'Free Palestine' t-shirts.

Sometimes you just have to let loose, so here is a rant in response to some listener questions. It touches on the Trump Plan, the current political crisis and even sea level. Most of all this is about the tension between revolution and redemption.

For a few brief weeks, it looked like 1968 would be a revolution in America on par with 1967 in Israel. This episode explores the role of radical Jews in trying to push America toward the birth of a new society.

At the Sixties progressed they became more intense. In particular, the tone of the civil rights movement shifted from integration to separation and from evolution to revolution. This episode will explore the impact of these shifts on the 'grand alliance' between Jews and African Americans. shedding light on both past and present.

If we want to access the invitation which this day extends, then we need to know what we are fasting for. Here is a brief exploration of the three elements which make up the Tenth of Tevet. photo by Alex Proimos from Sydney, Australia

1964 was the Freedom Summer in America, and it saw a wave of white, Jewish volunteers leaving the comfort of their suburban existence to fight the battle against racism in the rural south. This episode explores the suburban cultural vacuum which many of them were fleeing and asks whether they went South as Jews, human beings or both.

Here is a live interlude from Rav Mike - his annual class in memory of his father, Charles Feuer ob'm. It is an exploration of the Hannukah light as it has been gradually released through the challenges of history, theology and personal experience.

The 1960s were a revolutionary period in American history, and since the Jews were so deeply involved it is a turning point in the Jewish Story as well. This episode begins our slow march toward 1967 with a look at how the twin spirits of prophecy and pragmatism moved Jewish leadership during the Civil Rights movement.

In the first decade of the state, Prime Minister Ben Gurion was haunted by one thought - that a second holocaust could come at the hands of Israel's enemies. In order to stave off this fear he relentlessly pursued nuclear weapons. The question is whether this pushed destruction off or brought it closer?

No matter where you turn, it seems that democracy is in crisis. Here is an interview with Rav Mike which touches on the global situation as well as what is happening in the state of Israel. The question at hand is - whither democracy?

Sometimes in life, and in history, it is time to step back and reflect. I have seen five rounds of conflict since I moved to Israel, all of them inconclusive. For me this raises the question - war, what is it good for? photo from: https://www.flickr.com/photos/105105658@N03/30502660157

The Holocaust was so dark and vast that the Jews struggled to integrate it into their consciousness, despite the hundreds of thousands of survivors in their midst. One of the turning points in even addressing this issue was the capture and trial of Adolf Eichmann, architect of the Final Solution. He was taken and tried, but was it for justice, vengeance or education? https://www.flickr.com/photos/...

The memory of the the Holocaust is dark and traumatic enough that it threatens to overwhelm even the light of the present. Here is the first part of an exploration of Holocaust memory in Israel's open decade, as seen through the lens of one of the darker stories of the early state - the Kastner affair.

Life offers so few opportunities to stop and reflect that we need to seize every chance. What better time to look back at the questions with which we began this season than in Israel's tenth year. Here is an episode which once again takes a look at questions which drive the three dimensions of the Jewish Story. illustration license - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode

Sukkot is a time to sit in the Sukkah and reflect, so here are a few thoughts from my Sukkah. This is an exploration of what it means for the state of Israel to be a kingdom and and it what means to be a client state. picture from https://www.flickr.com/photos/adforce1/2462794123

The High Holy Days are also know as the Days of Awe which can be awesome, or awful. Here is a look at how to tie the work of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot together into an approach to building a world whose horizon is big enough to hold our dreams.

The Sinai campaign was many things - a preemptive strike against Israel's enemies, the last gasp of colonialism in the Middle East and a complete failure of international law. This episode explores the 1956 war from all these angles.

The clock is counting down toward the 1956 Sinai Campaign. Before we can tell that story the threads of the Cold War, infiltration and post-colonial politics have to come together.

The 1950's were a formative time in Israeli history. The Cold War was getting hot, internal politics were volatile, and the it seemed as if the War of Independence had not quite ended. To Israel's leaders, there was nothing more important than maintaining a strong posture, even though this may have meant that they were marching steadily toward another war.