Explorez tous les épisodes du podcast Jewish Crossroads: Jewish Identity in Times of Crisis
| Titre | Date | Durée | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yair Lapid on Mamdani and the Shifting Landscape of U.S.-Israel Relations | 13 Nov 2025 | 00:35:28 | |
In the season premiere of Jewish Crossroads, journalist Tamar Ish-Shalom sits down with opposition leader and former prime minister Yair Lapid for a candid conversation about the shifting landscape of Israel–U.S. relations. Lapid voices concern over the election of New York City’s new mayor, Zohrahn Mamdani, whom he accuses of applying double standards toward Israel and the Jewish people. The episode also revisits the impact of October 7 on American Jewry and sets the stage for the season’s wider exploration of political change, identity, and the evolving ties between Israel and the United States. Join us for a conversation that will make you stop, think, and maybe even rethink. | |||
| “MAGA leftist”, Batya Ungar-Sargon on Jew-Hatred | 21 Sep 2025 | 00:40:56 | |
In this episode, Tamar Ish Shalom sits down with journalist and commentator Batya Ungar-Sargon, whose journey from progressive to outspoken critic of “woke” culture has made her one of the most provocative voices in American political discourse. Batya is the author of two books (a third on Jews and the left is in the works) – Bad News: How Woke Media Is Undermining Democracy and Second Class: How the Elites Betrayed America's Working Men and Women. She calls herself a “MAGA leftist” and an enthusiastic supporter of Donald Trump, while at the same time insisting that the voices of ordinary Americans be part of the national conversation. Agree or disagree with her, Batya challenges assumptions about media, politics, and democracy itself. Tamar and Batya discuss her unlikely trajectory, the blind spots of American elites, and why talking about class is so often avoided. Join us for a conversation that will make you stop, think, and maybe even rethink. If you’d like to be in touch with us, contact: jewishcrossroadspod@gmail.com | |||
| Former Obama Speechwriter Tackles Antisemitism | 19 Apr 2025 | 00:42:41 | |
In this episode of Jewish Crossroads, we sit down with Sarah Hurwitz—former chief speechwriter for First Lady Michelle Obama and senior speechwriter for President Barack Obama—to discuss her upcoming book, As a Jew: Reclaiming Our Story from Those Who Blame, Shame, and Try to Erase Us. Sarah opens up about how a personal breakup sparked an unexpected intellectual and emotional journey into Judaism—not through traditional religious practice, but through a deep engagement with Jewish texts, history, and ideas. She challenges the concept of “cultural Judaism,” advocating instead for a more informed, substantive connection to Jewish heritage. We also delve into how centuries of antisemitism have shaped Jewish self-perception, and hear Sarah’s candid and deeply disappointed reflections on how her alma mater, Harvard University, has responded to recent events. If you would like to be in touch with us contact: jewishcrossroadspod@gmail.com Tamar on X: https://x.com/tamarishshalom | |||
| Special Pesach Episode with Rachel Goldberg-Polin | 06 Apr 2025 | 00:53:28 | |
This special episode of Jewish Crossroads is released ahead of Passover — the holiday of freedom. But for 59 Israeli families, true freedom still feels painfully out of reach. Tamar speaks with Rachel Goldberg-Polin, the American-Israeli mother of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was kidnapped and murdered by Hamas. Rachel has become one of the most powerful and persistent voices in the global campaign to bring the remaining hostages home. In this conversation, we discuss her grief, the moral clarity that sustains her, and the strength she’s found in prayer, in community, and in her son’s own words — shared in captivity to help others survive. Rachel speaks with honesty about Hersh’s life and death, while continuing to fight for those still living in darkness. She challenges the government’s refusal to act, honors the voices of the diaspora, and asks us all: What kind of people will we be in this moment? If you would like to be in touch with us contact: jewishcrossroadspod@gmail.com Tamar on X: https://x.com/tamarishshalom | |||
| Why Progressives Failed The Test of October 7 with Joshua Leifer | 25 Mar 2025 | 01:00:06 | |
When Joshua Leifer’s book Tablets Shattered was released, it was clear he wasn’t pulling any punches. A fierce critique of the Jewish establishment, a personal reckoning with American Jewish identity, and a progressive take on Israel that refuses easy answers – the book was bound to provoke strong reactions. But no one expected his Brooklyn launch event to be canceled at the last minute because his guest, a Reform rabbi, was a Zionist. In this episode, Leifer joins Tamarto unpack that surreal moment and the deeper tensions it exposed. With sharp insight and unflinching honesty, he delves into the struggles of being a progressive Jew in today’s polarized environment, the moral test of October 7th, and why he believes many of his progressive allies failed it – leading him to reassess his affiliations while holding firm to his core political beliefs. | |||
| Jewish Philanthropy After October 7 | 09 Mar 2025 | 00:36:19 | |
Julie Platt, a prominent leader in the American Jewish community, currently serves as Chair of the Jewish Federations of North America. Following the tumultuous congressional hearings and the subsequent resignations of the President and Chair of the University of Pennsylvania, Platt was appointed as the institution’s interim Chair. In our latest podcast, she discusses the critical importance of maintaining a Jewish presence in key positions: “Either you have a seat at the table, or you’re on the menu.” Platt shares her experience of being inundated with hate mail after accepting the interim role and reflects on the weight of leadership in turbulent times. She also unveils an unexpected Jewish connection in Wicked – the beloved musical and film produced by her husband, Marc Platt. Beneath its dazzling spectacle lies a deeper resonance, one intertwined with Jewish history and identity in ways most audiences never realize. Additionally, Platt expresses her deep disappointment with many Hollywood stars following October 7, but also highlights those whose unwavering support profoundly moved her. We examine the extraordinary mobilization of Jewish federations in support of Israel after October 7 and the emergence of new philanthropists – individuals who hadn’t previously donated to Jewish or Israeli causes but have now stepped up to the plate. Join Tamar for an incisive conversation with a woman whose tireless dedication continues to inspire the community. If you would like to be in touch with us contact: jewishcrossroadspod@gmail.com Tamar on X: https://x.com/tamarishshalom | |||
| Antisemitism as Cultural Sadism with Professor Susannah Heschel | 23 Feb 2025 | 00:51:00 | |
For the past 16 months, U.S. campuses have been rocked by protests, encampments, and confrontations, with university leaders often struggling – or outright failing – to respond. But one Ivy League school took a different path, leading to a different outcome. Dartmouth stands out for something rare: a sense of hope. If you would like to be in touch with us contact: jewishcrossroadspod@gmail.com Tamar on X: https://x.com/tamarishshalom | |||
| Why Are Young Jews Turning Away from Israel? Rabbi Ammi Hirsch on the Crisis of Jewish Identity | 09 Feb 2025 | 00:48:24 | |
It’s not every day that a Yom Kippur sermon goes viral—but Rabbi Ammi Hirsch’s did. His powerful message struck a nerve across generations: Why are so many young Jews distancing themselves from Israel? Have we raised a generation so committed to Tikkun Olam—repairing the world—that they’ve forgotten Kol Yisrael Arevim Zeh lazeh—that all Jews are responsible for one another? If you would like to be in touch with us contact: jewishcrossroadspod@gmail.com Tamar on X: https://x.com/tamarishshalom Rabbi Ammi Hirsch: https://x.com/ammihirsch/ | |||
| Nicole Krauss: Writing, Identity, and the Struggle to Speak After October 7th | 26 Jan 2025 | 00:55:05 | |
Nicole Krauss is one of the most brilliant and influential American writers of our time. In an intimate and thought-provoking conversation with Tamar Ish Shalom, she opens up about the challenge of finding the right words for the open letter she wrote to the Israeli public after October 7th. She shares her deep concerns about whether, in today’s literary climate, it will still be possible to publish books that explore Jewish identity and Israel—and why a young Nicole Krauss wouldn’t stand a chance in today’s world. In this compelling discussion, Krauss delves into the prophetic dimension of one of her novels, which depicts the daily reality of missile attacks in Tel Aviv before October 7th, and examines the profound self-denial ingrained in Israeli society. She reflects on why the Jewish American characters in her books are repeatedly drawn to Israel and explores the deep urge to break free from the ‘Jewish chains’—the constraints we, as Jews, have been taught to impose upon ourselves. Krauss also shares a personal dilemma as a mother: what should she say to her eldest son, who traveled to Paris wearing a bracelet with Jewish symbols? | |||
| Jewish Courage in the Face of Antisemitism | 12 Jan 2025 | 00:42:21 | |
Rabbi David Wolpe, one of the most influential rabbis in the U.S., a brilliant and fascinating thinker, made headlines this year after stepping down from Harvard’s antisemitism advisory group, realizing their vital recommendations would go unheeded. | |||
| Biden, Harris, and the Middle East: Behind the Scenes with Ilan Goldenberg | 24 Aug 2025 | 00:52:36 | |
In this episode of Jewish Crossroads, Tamar is joined by Ilan Goldenberg, Senior Vice President and Chief Policy Officer at J Street. Goldenberg served in both the Obama and Biden administrations and has a profound understanding of Israel, the Middle East, and the American Jewish community. His perspective is shaped not just by his years in policy, but by a personal biography that bridges worlds. | |||
| First Female Orthodox Rabbi Tackles Antisemitism Post-October 7th | 27 Jul 2025 | 00:46:40 | |
In this episode of Jewish Crossroads, Tamar sits down with Rabbi Sara Hurwitz — trailblazer, teacher, and one of the most courageous voices reshaping the boundaries of modern Orthodoxy. From a young age, Rabbi Hurwitz felt called to public service in the world of Torah, but there was no roadmap for a woman to walk this path. In 2009, her ordination by Rabbi Avi Weiss and Rabbi Daniel Sperber marked a historic and controversial turning point, igniting debate across the Orthodox world. Yet Rabbi Hurwitz’s story is not one of confrontation, but of transformation. | |||
| The Voice That Rose After October 7 – Dr. Mijal Bitton | 13 Jul 2025 | 00:30:55 | |
In this episode of Jewish Crossroads, Tamar speaks with Dr. Mijal Bitton — scholar, spiritual leader, and one of the clearest voices to cut through the fog of antisemitism after October 7. In the wake of atrocity, as places that once stood for justice went silent, Dr. Bitton stood up. Her words — fierce, unsparing, heartbroken — echoed across a shaken Jewish world. This conversation explores what it means to fight for Jewish dignity in an era of erasure — to call out hatred without flinching. It is a discussion of faith, identity, memory, and what it means to lead when the cost of silence is too high. But Dr. Bitton’s power doesn’t spring only from moral courage. It comes from depth. As a Latina Sephardic Orthodox woman, as a scholar of American Jewish life, and as a leader rooted in both tradition and the city streets of contemporary America, she offers a lens unlike any other. | |||
| Iranians After War, "The Soul of a Society" with Roya Hakakian | 29 Jun 2025 | 00:53:42 | |
In this episode of Jewish Crossroads, Tamar speaks with Roya Hakakian, the acclaimed Jewish Iranian-American writer, journalist, and poet. While the headlines say "ceasefire," nothing truly feels at rest. Tensions between Israel and the Iranian regime remain thick in the air, and the deeper currents shaping the region are still in motion. That’s why Roya is the perfect guest. With the insight of someone who lived through Iran’s revolution and exile, she offers a perspective that goes beyond geopolitics. Roya doesn’t just analyze events, she gives voice to the people living through them – to questions of identity, memory, and truth. This conversation is essential if you want to understand not just the facts on the ground in Iran, but the soul of a society. If you’d like to be in touch with us, contact: jewishcrossroadspod@gmail.com | |||
| Settler-colonialism with Adam Kirsch | 24 Jun 2025 | 00:32:27 | |
In the latest episode of Jewish Crossroads, Tamar sits down with acclaimed writer Adam Kirsch to unpack the most important concept you've probably never fully understood: settler colonialism. From campus encampments to the terror attack on embassy staff in D.C., and even the shocking celebration of October 7th by some academics — this is the lens that explains it all. Kirsch offers one of the clearest, most incisive explanations of the ideology fueling today’s most alarming movements. If you want to make sense of this moment, don’t miss this essential conversation. If you’d like to be in touch with us, contact: jewishcrossroadspod@gmail.com | |||
| Dan Senor, Call Me Back | 03 Jun 2025 | 00:55:32 | |
In this episode, Tamar reflects on a Friday night dinner that took an unexpected turn — a conversation about how one podcast has become a lifeline for American Jews navigating an era of upheaval. Call Me Back, hosted by Dan Senor, is no longer just a podcast. It’s a ritual, a cultural touchstone, and for many, a new pillar of Jewish identity. Dan Senor joins Tamar to unpack how Call Me Back rose to prominence in the American Jewish world, and why its impact goes far beyond politics or news. It’s about belonging, about searching for clarity in chaos, and about the dialogue between Israel and the Diaspora that now feels more urgent than ever. If you’d like to be in touch with us, contact: jewishcrossroadspod@gmail.com | |||
| The New Jew with Guri Alfi and Moshe Samuels | 18 May 2025 | 00:36:55 | |
In this episode, Tamar sits down with Guri Alfi and Moshe Samuels – the creative minds behind The New Jew, a groundbreaking Israeli documentary series exploring Jewish life in America. Guri, one of Israel’s most beloved comedians, and Moshe, an acclaimed director and producer, aren’t American Jews themselves. But over the last few years, they’ve immersed themselves in the hopes, challenges, and transformations of American Jewry.
This episode was recorded in March 2025, and reflects events and sentiments from that time.* | |||
| What it Means to Lead in a Moment of Profound Crisis with Rabbi Angela Buchdahl | 04 May 2025 | 00:38:44 | |
In this episode of Jewish Crossroads, Tamar sits down with Rabbi Angela Buchdahl – Senior Rabbi of Central Synagogue in New York and one of the most influential spiritual leaders in America today. Rabbi Buchdahl leads one of the largest and most vibrant congregations in the country, but what truly sets her apart is her ability to connect across lines of age, identity, and ideology. With honesty and grace, she tackles some of the most pressing questions facing Jews today: What does it mean to lead in a moment of profound crisis? How do we maintain Jewish unity in a time of growing fragmentation? And what role does faith play in coping with a world that can feel increasingly chaotic – and, at times, hostile? In this wide-ranging conversation, Rabbi Buchdahl opens up about the responsibilities of leadership, the shifting terrain of American Jewish life, and how we can meet this moment with courage, compassion, and clarity. * The episode was recorded in February 2025, and therefore any recent events, such as attacks, align with that timeline. Tamar on X: https://x.com/tamarishshalom | |||
| Benny Gantz on Israeli Security and the Rise of American Isolationism | 07 Dec 2025 | 00:36:20 | |
In this episode of Jewish Crossroads, Tamar Ish-Shalom speaks with Benny Gantz, the former IDF Chief of Staff who entered Israeli politics in 2019 after more than three decades of military service. Gantz has since held several senior government roles, including Minister of Defense, alternate prime minister, and deputy prime minister. Following the October 7 attacks, he and his party joined Israel’s emergency unity government, where he served in the war cabinet until his resignation in June 2024. Together, they discuss whether Donald Trump is good for American Jewry, the state of the U.S.–Israel relationship, and the ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza. Join us for a conversation that will make you stop, think, and maybe even rethink. | |||
| Maya Tevet Dayan on Being Israeli on Campus After October 7 | 11 Jan 2026 | 00:47:23 | |
In this episode of Jewish Crossroads, journalist Tamar Ish Shalom sits down with Maya Tevet Dayan for a deeply reflective conversation. Tevet Dayan is an Israeli poet, writer, and public intellectual, widely regarded as one of the most important voices in contemporary Israeli literature and feminism. A recipient of the Israeli Prime Minister’s Award for Literature, she holds a PhD in Indian philosophy and literature and has taught and lectured at leading universities in Israel and abroad for many years. The conversation unfolds across geographies and states of mind. Tevet Dayan speaks about her time as a visiting poet in the United States in the aftermath of October 7, where she confronted the difficulty, often the impossibility, of translating Israeli grief, fear, and moral clarity in academic and cultural spaces that could feel alienating or dismissive. At the same time, she reflects on an unexpected encounter with Jewish peoplehood in the Diaspora, experienced not as an abstraction but as a living and vulnerable bond. Upon her return to Israel, the questions intensified rather than receded. Tevet Dayan recounts a harrowing night spent sheltering at her father’s home as an Iranian missile landed nearby, an experience that sharpened her thinking about safety, home, exile, and what it means to remain rooted when instability becomes a permanent condition. This episode weaves poetry and philosophy with lived experience, tracing how language, identity, and belonging are reshaped in moments when history presses in on the most intimate spaces of life. If you’d like to be in touch with us, contact: jewishcrossroadspod@gmail.com Maya Tevet Dayan website: https://www.mayatevetdayan.com/en/ Maya Tevet Dayan Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/maya_tevet_dayan/ | |||
| Dr. Einat Wilf on Arab Zionism as the Only True Path to Peace | 21 Dec 2025 | 00:43:23 | |
In this episode of Jewish Crossroads, journalist Tamar Ish Shalom sits down with Dr. Einat Wilf for a wide-ranging and intellectually bracing conversation. Dr. Wilf is a thinker, historian, former Knesset member, one of Israel’s most incisive public intellectuals. She is the author of several books, including The War of Return (with Dr. Adi Schwartz). In recent years, Wilf has undergone a significant ideological evolution, emerging as a leading voice challenging long-held assumptions about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, international diplomacy, and Israel’s strategic choices. In this discussion, Wilf talks about her continued public work through writing and advocacy, and her latest move: the founding of a new political party, Oz, aimed at reshaping Israel’s political future. | |||
| Jonah Platt on Hollywood and Being Jewish after October 7 | 08 Feb 2026 | 00:47:48 | |
In this episode of Jewish Crossroads, Tamar Ish Shalom sits down with Jonah Platt, one of the most striking Jewish voices to emerge in American public life in the years since October 7. Platt was well known long before this moment as a producer, writer, and cultural commentator, and as the son of legendary Hollywood producer Marc Platt and Jewish communal leader Julie Platt. Over the past few years, however, he has undergone a visible and consequential transformation. Through his podcast Being Jewish, Platt has become an unapologetic Jewish voice deeply engaged with the moral and emotional stakes of Jewish life right now. Together, they turn to the present and a reckoning in American Jewish life. How should this moment be understood? What kind of leadership is being asked for now? And what responsibilities come with finding one’s voice when silence no longer feels possible? If you’d like to be in touch with us, contact: jewishcrossroadspod@gmail.com Tamar on X: https://x.com/tamarishshalom | |||
| Yair Golan on the Future of Israel | 19 Jan 2026 | 00:43:50 | |
In this episode of Jewish Crossroads, journalist Tamar Ish Shalom sits down with Yair Golan, former IDF major general and one of the most prominent figures on Israel’s political left. Golan reflects on a life shaped by decades of military service, including his role as deputy chief of staff of the IDF, and on his transition from the world of security into Israeli politics, where he now serves as leader of the Democrats Party. The conversation turns personal as Golan recounts the morning of October 7, when he drove south and joined efforts to rescue young people fleeing the attack near the Nova Music Festival. From the battlefield to the Knesset, this episode traces the moral and strategic questions that animate Golan’s public life: the limits of power, the responsibilities of leadership, and the tension between security, democracy, and conscience in a country living under permanent pressure. Known for his blunt language and willingness to provoke uncomfortable debates, Golan speaks candidly about Israel’s present crisis and the choices he believes will determine its future. If you’d like to be in touch with us, contact: jewishcrossroadspod@gmail.com | |||
| Matti Friedman on How the Media Works Against Israel | 22 Feb 2026 | 00:51:30 | |
In this episode of Jewish Crossroads, Tamar Ish Shalom sits down with Matti Friedman, one of the most perceptive and nuanced voices writing about Israel, war, and Jewish identity today. An Insider’s Guide to the Most Important Story on Earth. Read here: | |||
| Ultra Orthodox Integration and The State of Israel | 19 Apr 2026 | 00:47:24 | |
In this episode of Jewish Crossroads, Tamar Ish Shalom sits down with Rabbi Menachem Bombach, one of the most consequential voices to emerge from within Israel’s ultra-Orthodox world. | |||
| Roya Hakakian on Iran’s Uncertain Future | 24 Mar 2026 | 00:42:19 | |
In this episode of Jewish Crossroads, Tamar Ish Shalom sits down with Iranian-American author and journalist Roya Hakakian, a leading voice on Iran, exile, and the lived experience of life under the Islamic Republic. Born into a Jewish family in Tehran, Hakakian left Iran at 19 in the years following the revolution, carrying with her both the memory of a vanished world and a deep understanding of the regime that replaced it. Her work, spanning memoir, journalism, and political analysis, has consistently illuminated the human realities behind Iran’s ideological machinery, tracing not only the repression within the country but also the broader influence of the regime beyond its borders. Moving between past and present, personal memory and political reality, they explore how the current war reshapes our understanding of Iran’s trajectory. What has changed in the regime’s position, and what has not? How should we interpret the possibility of internal transformation? And what does it mean to speak about Iran not only as a geopolitical actor, but as a society still struggling under the weight of its rulers? If you’d like to be in touch with us, contact: jewishcrossroadspod@gmail.com | |||
| Jon Polin on Hersh, Grief and Hope | 03 May 2026 | 00:57:27 | |
In this episode of Jewish Crossroads, Tamar Ish Shalom sits down with Jon Polin, a man who never sought the public eye, but was thrust into it by unimaginable circumstances. Together with his wife, Rachel Goldberg-Polin, Jon became one of the most recognizable voices of the hostage crisis after their son, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, was kidnapped on October 7 and held in Gaza by Hamas for 328 days. Over that time, they carried his story across continents and audiences, becoming for many the human face of a national trauma. Even after Hersh was murdered and laid to rest in Israel, their role did not end. Jon continues to speak with a rare combination of moral clarity and compassion, resisting the pull toward hatred while refusing to look away from the hardest questions. Now in the United States alongside Rachel’s new book, When We See You Again, they reflect on grief, love, and the enduring fight to bring the remaining hostages home. In a conversation that moves between the personal and the political, they ask what it means to hold onto humanity in the face of loss. How does one live with such absence? And what does moral responsibility demand in a moment that resists easy answers? If you’d like to be in touch with us, contact: jewishcrossroadspod@gmail.com Tamar on X: https://x.com/tamarishshalom | |||
| Shmuel Rosner, Why Am I A Jew? | 31 May 2026 | 00:45:17 | |
In this episode of Jewish Crossroads, Tamar Ish Shalom sits down with Shmuel Rosner, one of Israel’s most thoughtful and wide-ranging public intellectuals. A researcher at the Jewish People Policy Institute (JPPI), Rosner is also a columnist, editor, publisher, and longtime observer of Israeli society, American Jewry, and the evolving relationship between them. In an age of hot takes and fleeting headlines, he has built a career on careful analysis, intellectual curiosity, and a commitment to understanding complexity. As the editor and owner of the Madad Project, Rosner oversees extensive survey research that tracks the attitudes of Israelis and American Jews, providing a unique window into the concerns, hopes, and divisions shaping Jewish life today. He is also the founder of the nonfiction imprint The Hedgehog and the Fox, and the author of numerous books, including the recently published English edition of Why Am I a Jew? Their conversation ranges across questions of Jewish identity, belonging, and continuity. What does it mean to be Jewish in the twenty-first century? How are Israeli and American Jewish experiences diverging, and where do they still intersect? What can survey data tell us about the deeper cultural and moral currents shaping Jewish communities? Drawing on a lifetime of research, writing, and reflection, Rosner offers insights that move beyond politics toward the larger questions of peoplehood, meaning, and the future of the Jewish story. If you'd like to be in touch with us, contact: jewishcrossroadspod@gmail.com Tamar on X: https://x.com/tamarishshalom Tamar on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tamarishshalom/ JPPI on X: https://x.com/JewishPolicy JPPI on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jewishpeoplepolicyinstitute/ | |||