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Explore every episode of the podcast Unpacking Israeli History
Dive into the complete episode list for Unpacking Israeli History. Each episode is cataloged with detailed descriptions, making it easy to find and explore specific topics. Keep track of all episodes from your favorite podcast and never miss a moment of insightful content.
| Title | Pub. Date | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What Would Rav Kook Think of Religious Zionism Today? | 01 Oct 2026 | 00:58:48 | |
In the third and final episode of our series on religious Zionism, Noam Weissman explores how every major debate within religious Zionism, from West Bank settlements and the Haredi draft to the relationship between faith, ethics, and nationalism, leads back to Rav Abraham Isaac Kook.
Noam is joined by scholar Yehudah Mirsky, author of Rav Kook: Mystic in a Time of Revolution, to discuss the mystic, chief rabbi, and foundational thinker whose complex legacy continues to shape Israeli religious and political life.
This episode is sponsored by Jewish Lives, a prize-winning series of biographies from Yale University Press. To learn more about Rav Kook's life, identity, and legacy, you should check out Rav Kook: Mystic in a Time of Revolution by Yehudah Mirsky at www.jewishlives.org and you can use the special promo code KOOKPOD to get 30% off.
If you want to sponsor an episode of Unpacking Israeli History email noam@unpacked.media. Connect with Noam on Istragram at Noamlweissman_. And check out our episodes on Youtube.
This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
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For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Borderlines with That Semite
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| The Fight for the Soul of Religious Zionism | 30 Sep 2026 | 01:01:20 | |
UPDATED: In part 2 of his series on Religious Zionism, Noam traces a movement as it moves from the sidelines to the center of Israeli life, and asks what happens when religious certainty collides with political reality. The story moves through the founding of Gush Emunim, the theological rupture of Oslo, the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin, and the earthquake of the 2005 Gaza disengagement. It ends by examining where the movement stands today. This is a story about land, redemption, and the danger of being too certain you know God's plan.
Here is a link to sources.
Special thanks to Yair Ettinger, author of Frayed, for his help with this episode.
This episode is sponsored in memory of Leo M. Bernstein. Thank you to The Bernstein Foundation for their generous support and partnership.
If you want to sponsor an episode of Unpacking Israeli History email noam@unpacked.media. Connect with Noam on Istragram at Noamlweissman_. And check out our episodes on Youtube.
This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Borderlines with That Semite
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| What Actually is Religious Zionism? | 22 Sep 2026 | 00:51:36 | |
In Part 1 of our series on Religious Zionism, Noam Weissman traces how Jewish longing for Zion evolved into a religious movement that reshaped Zionism. From early rabbinic thinkers to Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook, the founding of Israel, and the Six-Day War, this is the story of how religion and Zionism became intertwined. What happens when a dream of redemption collides with the realities of a modern Jewish state, and what does that mean for Israel today?
Here is a link to sources.
Special thanks to Yair Ettinger, author of Frayed, for his help with this episode.
This episode is sponsored in memory of Leo M. Bernstein. Thank you to The Bernstein Foundation for their generous support and partnership.
If you want to sponsor an episode of Unpacking Israeli History email noam@unpacked.media. Connect with Noam on Istragram at Noamlweissman_. And check out our episodes on Youtube.
This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Borderlines with That Semite
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Don’t Leave Zionism to the Extremists – with Yossi Klein Halevi | 15 Sep 2026 | 00:50:35 | |
What does it mean to be a Zionist? Yossi Klein Halevi has asked, and lived that question in radically different ways. He tells Noam Weissman about his journey from the Jewish Defense League and the Zionist right to the settler movement and political center, and explains how his views on Israel, the Palestinians, democracy, and Jewish identity have evolved.
Yossi Klein Halevi
If you like this podcast, you’ll love SAPIR, the quarterly journal of ideas edited by Bret Stephens. Subscribe for FREE at sapirjournal.org/noam.
If you want to sponsor an episode of Unpacking Israeli History email noam@unpacked.media. Connect with Noam on Istragram at Noamlweissman_. And check out our episodes on Youtube.
This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Borderlines with That Semite
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Tel Hai: Rethinking Israel's Founding Myth | 08 Sep 2026 | 00:52:20 | |
Tel Hai is a small historic site in the Galilee where, in 1920, a tense standoff between Jewish farmers and Arab fighters erupted into a deadly firefight. Among the dead was Joseph Trumpeldor, a one-armed war hero already legendary before Tel Hai. Within days, the battle became one of the founding myths of the State of Israel, immortalized by Trumpeldor's famous last words and a national narrative of sacrifice. Noam Weissman unpacks what actually happened at Tel Hai, how the myth was built and fought over, and why Yitzhak Rabin once stood at the same site decades later to argue for a very different lesson.
Here's a link to sources:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1KM3OSK0ta4wil7xZRfrqOSckWczq14H4guRYCEOSgeg/edit?usp=sharing
Check out Noamlweissman_.
This episode is sponsored in memory of the very special Melvin S. and Blanche E. Bernstein. If you want to sponsor an episode of Unpacking Israeli History email noam@unpacked.media. It's also sponsored by, and made in partnership with, Jewish National Fund-USA.
Since 1901, Jewish National Fund-USA has strengthened the land and people of Israel through bold initiatives that secure the country’s North and South. By preserving heritage sites like Tel Hai Courtyard, Jewish National Fund-USA invests in Israel’s future, driving tourism, generating jobs, and helping communities thrive. Find more information about visiting Tel Hai Courtyard and other parts of Israel below. You belong in Israel.
Find your Jewish National Fund-USA tour or mission: https://www.jnf.org/travel/?utm_source=partner_opendor&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=boruchin&utm_content=ep4_tel_hai_courtyard
Educators can explore Israel on Jewish National Fund-USA's special mission: https://www.jnf.org/travel/tour/index/educators-mission-to-israel-2026?utm_source=partner_opendor&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=boruchin&utm_content=ep4_tel_hai_courtyard
Jewish National Fund-USA's Alexander Muss High School in Israel offers semester, summer, and mini-mester academic experiences for North American teens.
Find out more: https://www.amhsi.org/?utm_source=partner_opendor&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=boruchin&utm_content=ep4_tel_hai_courtyard
Learn more about the Jewish National Fund-USA's work preserving heritage sites in Israel: https://www.jnf.org/our-work/heritage-site-preservation?utm_source=partner_opendor&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=boruchin&utm_content=ep4_tel_hai_courtyard
Check out our episodes on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Borderlines with That Semite
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Special Crossover: Can Israelis And Palestinians Ever Live In Peace? With Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib | 03 Sep 2026 | 01:04:55 | |
Will the war ever truly come to an end? Can two populations with so much pain find common ground? Or is the hurt too deep, too vast to overcome? There are no questions more urgent than these, and there is no better guest to wonder with than Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib, a Palestinian activist and author of Hamas And Its Two Million Hostages.
In this special crossover episode originally aired on Wondering Jews, Ahmed shares with Noam his own own tragic story of loss, why he holds Hamas responsible for the plight of the Palestinian people, and what Israel--and the world at large--can do to truly bring about peace.
Follow Noam on Instagram: noamlweissman_
Check out our episodes on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Borderlines with That Semite
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Good Jews Only? Confronting New York Magazine's Habibi City Story | 01 Sep 2026 | 00:33:56 | |
Noam Weissman unpacks the firestorm around New York Magazine’s "Habibi City" issue and traces the deeper historical pattern behind it: the demand that Jews prove they belong by disavowing Zionism, Israel, and sometimes each other. From Poland’s 1968 “anti-Zionist” purge to today’s SWANA purity tests, this episode is about the seductive pull of belonging, and the old politics of exclusion dressed up in today’s language of identity, justice, and solidarity.
Here's a link to sources.
Follow Noam on Instagram: noamlweissman_
https://www.instagram.com/noamlweissman_/
Check out our episodes on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Borderlines with That Semite
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Durban 2001: How Zionism Became a Dirty Word | 25 Aug 2026 | 01:03:50 | |
In August 2001, Jewish delegates arrived at the UN World Conference Against Racism in Durban expecting to fight bigotry. Instead they walked into what Tom Lantos called the most sickening display of hatred for Jews since the Nazi period. Noam traces how Durban revived "Zionism is racism," seeded the modern BDS movement, and still shapes how the world sees Jews and Israel today, closing with Rabbi Jonathan Sacks and his question of whether the Jewish people are alone or simply apart.
Here's a link to sources.
Follow Noam on Instagram: noamlweissman_
This episode is sponsored by Andrea & Larry Gill. If you want to sponsor an episode of Unpacking Israeli History, or to be in touch, email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out our episodes on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Borderlines with That Semite
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Why Israeli Elections Never Produce a Clear Winner | 18 Aug 2026 | 01:04:58 | |
How do Israeli elections actually work? Israelis don't vote directly for prime minister, no party has ever won a majority, and a party with just a handful of Knesset seats can sometimes hold the keys to government.
Noam Weissman sits down with former Knesset member Rachel Azaria to unpack coalition building, the 3.25% electoral threshold, the power of Haredi and Arab parties, and why Israeli politics can look so confusing from an American perspective. They also explore the biggest divides shaping Israel's next government, and what to watch as the 2026 election approaches.
If you like this podcast, you’ll love SAPIR, the quarterly journal of ideas edited by Bret Stephens. Subscribe for FREE at sapirjournal.org/noam.
Follow Noam on Instagram: noamlweissman_
Check out our episodes on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Borderlines with That Semite
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Live from Camp Tel Yehudah: Teens Talk Antisemitism, Identity, and Israel | 13 Aug 2026 | 00:39:58 | |
What do Jewish teens really think about Israel? Noam Weissman takes the podcast to Camp Tel Yehudah for a special live episode, exploring Israel, October 7, Jewish identity, and the future of peace. Their answers might surprise you.
Listen to this raw, honest conversation about Israeli history, Jewish identity, and the questions shaping the next generation of Jewish leaders.
This episode of Unpacking Israeli History is sponsored by the Marcus Foundation. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out our episodes on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
If you like this podcast, you’ll love SAPIR. Subscribe for free at sapirjournal.org/noam
-------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Israel's Eurovision story: Boos, ballads, and breaking up with Europe (Part 2) | 11 Aug 2026 | 00:40:42 | |
A little Israeli boy from a poor Yemenite family grew up, transitioned, and became the most scandalous, fabulous Eurovision winner in history: meet Dana International. In part 2 of our Eurovision series, the story continues through PingPong's Syrian-boyfriend fever dream, Netta's chicken-noise feminist anthem, and the raw, post-October 7th performances of Eden Golan, Yuval Raphael, and Noam Bettan. Even with low jury scores and boycotts, Israeli songs keep winning the public's heart. Eurovision was never about the trophy. It's about the power to sing your own story, boos and all.
Unpacking Israeli History is hosted by Noam Weissman. It's produced by Rivky Stern. This episode was written by Adi Elbaz and edited by Rob Pera.
Special thanks to Tzvi Joffre for researching the episode.
Click here for links and sources:
Watch: Teapacks - Push The Button (LIVE) | Israel | Semi-Final | Eurovision 2007 (mentioned in the episode).
This episode is sponsored by Friedkin Philanthropies and the Koret Foundation, and is inspired by ISRAEL 21c If you want to sponsor an episode of Unpacking Israeli History, or if you just want to say what’s up, email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out our episodes on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
If you like this podcast, you’ll love SAPIR. Subscribe for free at sapirjournal.org/noam
-------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Israel's Eurovision story: How a Middle Eastern country crashed Europe's biggest party (Part 1) | 01 Aug 2026 | 00:30:59 | |
Why does Israel compete in Eurovision if it's not even in Europe? In Part 1, Noam Weissman unpacks how Israel went from Eurovision newcomer to music powerhouse, exploring the songs, stars, and surprising moments that put the Jewish state on Europe's biggest stage. It's a story of glitter, geopolitics, and Israeli identity. And the biggest Eurovision moment was still to come.
Unpacking Israeli History is hosted by Noam Weissman. It's produced by Rivky Stern. This episode was written by Adi Elbaz and edited by Rob Pera.
Special thanks to Tzvi Joffre for researching the episode.
Click here for links and sources:
Link to Munich Olympics: When terrorism won (mentioned in the episode).
Links and sources:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ndVmuFXPBltSDIId47xG_1sRajQ3iMnThBmOyUdrBAo/edit?usp=sharing
This episode is sponsored by Friedkin Philanthropies and the Koret Foundation, and is inspired by ISRAEL 21c If you want to sponsor an episode of Unpacking Israeli History, or if you just want to say what’s up, email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out our episodes on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
If you like this podcast, you’ll love SAPIR. Subscribe for free at sapirjournal.org/noam
-------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Live from Camp Lavi: Teens Take on Israel's Toughest Moments | 28 Jul 2026 | 00:43:44 | |
It's summer. Where else do you want to be? Sleepaway camp, obviously.
Unpacking Israeli History packed its bags and went to camp. Noam Weissman fielded questions from hundreds of Jewish teens at Camp Lavi, in a live show like no other. Real questions from real campers on the moments in Israeli history that spark the fiercest debates: the Altalena Affair, the Entebbe rescue, Zionism, where criticism of Israel crosses into antisemitism, and the moral weight of war.
Listen to this raw, honest conversation about Israeli history, Jewish identity, and the questions shaping the next generation of Jewish leaders.
This episode of Unpacking Israeli History is sponsored by the Marcus Foundation. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out our episodes on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Israel Open Mic: Is the Palestinian flag Illegal in Israel? | 21 Jul 2026 | 00:35:32 | |
A man is detained over a kippah bearing both the Israeli and Palestinian flags. Was it legal? Noam unpacks the surprising history of the Palestinian flag, why Israel once banned it, and why it remains one of the country's most contested symbols.
Here are pictures of Alex Sinclair's kippah:
https://www.timesofisrael.com/keeping-his-head-educator-detained-for-dual-israeli-palestinian-flag-kippa-dons-replacement/
Check out our episode Oslo: The Peace That Wasn't https://unpacked.media/oslo-the-peace-that-wasnt-2/
Here's a link to sources: https://docs.google.com/document/d/17R5PM2yXabVEqMKD465pAxKSGVxNINXPwzDLUFWg3VQ/edit?usp=sharing
This episode is sponsored by Karen and Mark Holzberg in recognition of the important work OpenDor Media’s ConnectEd program is doing with independent private schools. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out our episodes on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Should We Retire the Word ‘Zionism’? With Haviv Rettig Gur | 14 Jul 2026 | 01:01:55 | |
Noam sits down with Haviv Rettig Gur in Jerusalem to unpack why Israel feels like a tinderbox, whether it's time to retire the word "Zionism," the debate over Palestinian identity, and what the future holds for the US Israel alliance. Fresh off three intense days traveling the country, from the Gaza border to Jerusalem's Old City, Haviv challenges assumptions on the left and the right, offering a provocative look at where Israel is headed.
This episode of Unpacking Israeli History is sponsored by Andrea & Larry Gill and is in memory of Leo M. Bernstein. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out our episodes on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| 50 Years Since Entebbe: Operation Thunderbolt | 07 Jul 2026 | 00:33:42 | |
Fifty years ago, Air France Flight 139 took off from Tel Aviv on the morning of June 27, 1976. No one could have suspected that the soon-to-be-hijacked flight was about to lead to one of the world's most daring and risky rescue missions. To mark 50 years since the raid, we're bringing back one of our favorite episodes: Noam unpacks Operation Thunderbolt, Israel's secret operation to rescue the hostages at Entebbe, and asks whether this story has enduring lessons for us today.
This episode is generously sponsored by Marci and Alex S. Kaufman. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out our episodes on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Nas Daily: The Identity Crisis October 7 Forced Me to Face | 30 Jun 2026 | 01:17:06 | |
Does identity define us or limit us? Noam searches for answers with Nuseir Yassin, better known as internet personality Nas Daily.
Nas Daily, has 68 million followers and a media company reaching 300 million people a month. He is also Israeli and Arab, and the world keeps telling him to pick one. This is not a political episode. It's a conversation about identity, belonging, and what it costs to hold complicated truths.
This episode is dedicated in memory of Armand Lindenbaum, the grandson of Rav Avigdor Amiel, by his wife, Jean, and children, Felice, Amiel, and Ariel Lindenbaum-Sebag. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out our episodes on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| The Battle for Jerusalem: Ammunition Hill | 23 Jun 2026 | 01:04:55 | |
In June 1967, Israeli paratroopers fought one of the Six Day War's bloodiest battles to reunify Jerusalem. Ammunition Hill, a fortified Jordanian stronghold carved into the limestone hills of East Jerusalem, became the key to the Old City. What followed was four hours of chaos, courage, and carnage in a maze of narrow trenches. This episode unpacks the battle, its heroes, and the complicated legacy of a city reunified.
Here are the sources used in this episdoe.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1WIB04rolWgTnfCW-puSaNhXkQzBzS1LxABMU1pEFUKo/edit?usp=sharing
Here are links to the Unpacking Israeli History's 3-Part series on the '67 War.
6 days that Changed Israel Forever: Lead-up to the 1967 War (Part 1)
6 days that Changed Israel Forever: The Middle East at War (Part 2)
6 days that Changed Israel Forever: The Aftermath (Part 3)
This episode is generously sponsored in honor of Dr. Andrew and Marci Spitzer. It is also sponsored by, and made in partnership with, Jewish National Fund-USA.
Since 1901, Jewish National Fund-USA has strengthened the land and people of Israel through bold initiatives that secure the country’s North and South. By preserving heritage sites like Ammunition Hill, Jewish National Fund-USA invests in Israel’s future, driving tourism, generating jobs, and helping communities thrive.Find more information about visiting Ammunition Hill and other parts of Israel below. You belong in Israel. Find your Jewish National Fund-USA tour or mission: https://www.jnf.org/travel/
Educators can explore Israel on Jewish National Fund-USA's special mission: https://www.jnf.org/travel/tour/index/educators-mission-to-israel-2026
Jewish National Fund-USA's Alexander Muss High School in Israel offers semester, summer, and mini-mester academic experiences for North American teens. Find out more: https://www.amhsi.org/
Learn more about the Jewish National Fund-USA's work preserving heritage sites in Israel: https://www.jnf.org/our-work/heritage-site-preservation
To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
-------------------
Check out our episodes on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Yitzhak Rabin: Not the Peacenik You Think He Was (Special Crossover) | 16 Jun 2026 | 01:05:26 | |
Noam Weissman joins Yael Steiner and Jonathan Schwab over at Jewish History Nerds for a special crossover episode on Yitzhak Rabin through the lens of Itamar Rabinovich's Yitzhak Rabin: Soldier, Leader, Statesman from the Jewish Lives series.
Yitzhak Rabin's life is the story of Israel itself. But who was the real Rabin? Two Unpacked shows, three hosts, one conversation you don't want to miss.
Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and watch their latest videos on Spotify. https://open.spotify.com/show/1JrBAblXuVgF7cWF2EgRRz?si=3ecd5b9fb1274b67 .
Check out Jewish History Nerds on Unpacked and YouTube
This episode is sponsored by Jewish Lives, a prize-winning series of biographies from Yale University Press. To learn more about Yitzhak Rabin's life, identity, and legacy, check out Yitzhak Rabin, Soldier Leader Statesman by Itamar Rabinovich at www.jewishlives.org. Use promo code RabinPod for 30 % off. That's R-A-B-I-N-P-O-D.
Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Hezbollah Revisited: The Origins of Iran's Most Powerful Proxy | 09 Jun 2026 | 00:45:02 | |
To understand why Iran and Israel are fighting, you have to understand Hezbollah. Noam Weissman revisits the story of Iran's proxy in Lebanon, which has been causing trouble for Israel since its founding in 1982.
Sources: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1d68bkgIiKIwWRCn75DGaiWry9N3Oi_rPh6-X1fn_i8Q/edit
This episode of Unpacking Israeli History is generously sponsored by Sarala and Danny Turkel. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| The Scandal That Changed Israel Forever: The Rotten Business (Part 2) | 02 Jun 2026 | 00:43:35 | |
In 1954, a group of young Jewish idealists in Egypt were recruited by Israeli intelligence to plant bombs in Western institutions, only to be betrayed by their own double agent handler before the mission even began. Arrests, torture, a show trial, two executions, and a suicide followed. Back in Israel, the fallout was just as devastating: forged documents, cover-ups, and a bitter vendetta between Defense Minister Pinhas Lavon and Prime Minister David Ben Gurion that tore the ruling party apart. This is part two of our series on Israel's most embarrassing intelligence blunder. It reads like fiction. It wasn't.
Here are links to Unpacking Israeli History's 3 Part Series on the Suez Canal Crisis.
Israel's Forgotten War: The Suez Crisis (Part 1)
Combustion: The secret pact that ignited the Suez War (Part 2)
Fallout: How the Suez Crisis rewired the Middle East forever (Part 3)
This episode is sponsored by Tony Felzen in honor of Connor, and by Andrea & Larry Gill. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| The Scandal That Changed Israel Forever: The Lavon Affair (Part 1) | 26 May 2026 | 00:32:39 | |
The scandal that changed Israel forever began with a failed secret operation in Egypt in 1954. Young Egyptian Jews, recruited by Israeli intelligence, were sent on a mission meant to protect the Jewish state. But the operation collapsed in betrayal, arrests, torture, and cover-ups. The fallout shattered public trust, ripped apart Israel’s leadership, and transformed the country’s politics for decades to come. Part 1 sets the stage: the fragile world of Egyptian Jewry, the fear gripping six-year-old Israel, and the catastrophic decisions that doomed a group of young idealists.
Here are links to past episodes about the Mossad:
The Mossad: Three Tales of Assassination
Intelligence Operations That Shaped Israel’s Story with Ronen Bergman, LIVE in Los Angeles
This episode is sponsored by Tony Felzen in honor of Connor, and by Andrea & Larry Gill. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| How to Kill Israeli Self-Criticism | 21 May 2026 | 00:40:18 | |
Israel is no stranger to self-examination. In 1948, Ben-Gurion distributed a poem accusing Israeli soldiers of murder. In 1982, hundreds of thousands demanded accountability after Sabra and Shatila. In 2016, the IDF convicted Elor Azaria. But in a post-October 7 world of delegitimization and libels leveled at the Jewish state, that tradition is under strain. Noam unpacks the controversy around Nicholas Kristof’s New York Times column, explores Israel’s long, remarkable history of holding itself morally accountable, and examines why, in the face of fierce global condemnation, the country has suddenly become ultra-defensive.
Correction: In 2016, Moshe Ya'alon served as Israel's Minister of Defense, not Chief of Staff of the IDF.
This episode is in memory of Leo M. Bernstein. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Real abuse, Reckless Reporting: Haviv Rettig Gur Dissects Kristof's Israel Prison Story | 19 May 2026 | 00:56:51 | |
Journalist Haviv Rettig Gur joins Noam to respond to Nicholas Kristof's New York Times column alleging sexual abuse of Palestinian detainees by Israeli forces. They examine the sourcing, the suspicious timing relative to a major Hamas sexual violence report, and ask the hardest question: how do Jews stay morally serious about real problems within Israeli society when the world holds them to a standard applied to no one else?
Listener note: this episode contains strong language.
Read and listen to Haviv Rettig Gur's response here:
The Paper Trail of Nicholas Kristof’s Smear
Is Nicholas Kristof Right?
The Civil Commission’s Report on Oct 7th Sexual Violence - Silenced NO More
This episode of Unpacking Israeli History is generously sponsored by Andrea and Larry Gill and Jody and Ari Storch. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Masada: The Making of a Myth (Part 2) | 12 May 2026 | 00:51:02 | |
How did an ancient story of mass suicide become the cornerstone of Israeli national identity? In Part 2, Noam traces Masada's unlikely revival, from forgotten footnote to rallying cry in the shadow of the Holocaust. But the story rests on a single source: Josephus, a man who surrendered to Rome and wrote under Roman patronage. That's the power of myth. And Noam explores: should Masada remain a national icon?"
Masada – In the Light of Halakhah by Dov I. Frimer
Ari Shavit, My Promised Land
Yael Zerubavel, Recovered Roots: Collective Memory and the Making of Israeli National Tradition
This episode of Unpacking Israeli History is generously sponsored by the Zalik Foundation Junior Board. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Masada: The Siege That Became a Legend (Part 1) | 05 May 2026 | 00:46:05 | |
A mountaintop. A siege. A mass death that became legend.
But what if the story of Masada isn’t what we think it is?
In this episode, we go back 2,000 years to the final days of the Jewish revolt against Rome, where a group of rebels made a choice that would echo through history. Along the way, we unpack the factions, the violence, and the devastating collapse of Judean society, and we ask a simple but unsettling question:
How much of this story is history, how much is myth, and what does it mean to us, today, as we think about the development of Israeli history?
For more about Josephus, see this episode of Jewish History Nerds.
Herod the Great: Jewish King in a Roman World by By Martin Goodman
This episode of Unpacking Israeli History is generously dedicated by Avi and Debra Naider in loving memory of Ari Deshe . To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Live with Rachel Goldberg-Polin: Grief, Faith and Hersh | 29 Apr 2026 | 01:09:36 | |
When Rachel Goldberg-Polin buried her son Hersh, she heard part of herself go into the ground with him. Recorded live before nearly 1,000 people at Temple Judea in Miami, Rachel joins host Noam Weissman to discuss her new memoir, sharing how writing became a way to survive unbearable grief and asking what it means to keep going when the person who was your whole world is gone. Drawing on Jewish theology, Viktor Frankl, and a prophetic journal entry Hersh wrote as a teenager, Rachel wrestles with how hope and despair can coexist.
When We See You Again, Rachel Goldberg-Polin, Jon Polin
https://whenweseeyouagainbook.com/
Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Franklhttps://www.beacon.org/Mans-Search-for-Meaning-P602.aspx
A Fine Line Searching for Balance Among Mountains by Graham Zimmerman
https://www.mountaineers.org/books/books/a-fine-line-searching-for-balance-among-mountains
This episode was sponsored by Neil and Pam Weissman. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Live from London with Scott Galloway: Why the Jewish People Need Better Storytellers | 28 Apr 2026 | 01:11:56 | |
Scott Galloway is one of the most influential voices in the world. He's a professor, bestselling author, and podcaster with millions of followers. What most people don't know: he's also proudly Jewish. Recorded live in London, Noam sits down with Galloway for a rare, unfiltered conversation about his Jewish awakening after October 7th, why Israel keeps losing the story war, and why he's no longer staying quiet.
Notes on Being a Man by Scott Galloway:
https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Notes-on-Being-a-Man/Scott-Galloway/9781668084359
No Mercy/No Malice Newsletter, May 2023
https://www.profgalloway.com/storytelling/
How to Know a Person: The Art of Seeing Others Deeply and Being Deeply Seen, by David Brooks
https://www.amazon.com/How-Know-Person-Seeing-Others/dp/059323006X
This episode was sponsored by Carol and Adam Reich. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| What Hasan Piker Got Wrong About Einstein and Zionism | 23 Apr 2026 | 00:36:13 | |
Hasan Piker weaponized Albert Einstein on Pod Save America to condemn Zionism. But he left out most of the story. Noam addresses Piker's troubling statements about Einstein by tracing his full relationship with Zionism, exposing how a confident but incomplete portrait collapses under the weight of the full historical record.
The Problem with Hasan Piker's Einstein Story, by Yair Rosenberg:
https://www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/deep-shtetl/
Check out our past episodes of Unpacking Israeli History on topics including Deir Yassin, Hamas, Sabra and Shatila and the Right of Return.
https://unpacked.media/podcast-series/unpacking-israeli-history/
For more on the topic, listen to Jewish History Nerds' recent episode Albert Einstein: Was he a Zionist?
https://unpacked.media/albert-einstein-was-he-a-zionist-part-2/
This episode was sponsored by Travis Terry and Cathy and Barbara Malamut. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Israel's Greatest Paradox with Micah Goodman | 21 Apr 2026 | 01:13:51 | |
Why did Israel's enemies, Sinwar, Khamenei and Nasrallah, all believe Israel was on the verge of collapse? Israeli philosopher Micah Goodman joins Noam to reveal the deep misreading of Israeli society at the heart of that miscalculation. They unpack why Israel's hybrid of radical individualism and fierce collectivism is its greatest strategic asset, and why the world keeps getting it wrong.
Here is a link to Micah Goodman's work:
https://micahgoodman.com/en/books/
Note: This episode was recorded on April 7, 2026, one day before the region reached a fragile ceasefire.
This episode was sponsored by Barbara Sommer & Alan Fisher and Andrea & Larry Gill. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Is Israeli-Palestinian Peace Still Possible? Ittay Flescher Says Yes | 14 Apr 2026 | 00:59:07 | |
Host Noam Weissman sits down with Ittay Flescher, educator and education director at Seeds of Peace in Jerusalem, for an honest conversation about whether Israeli Palestinian peace is still possible after October 7th. Ittay, author of The Holy and the Broken, walks Noam through the major frameworks for resolving the conflict, from the two state solution to his preferred model, a confederation. Noam presses on trust, polling trends, and the enormous risks any peace proposal carries. Ultimately, this is a conversation that grapples with whether hope, in the face of devastating loss on both sides, is naive or necessary.
Resources for readers of The Holy and the Broken, including where to purchase the book, how to read news from multiple sources, and build communities of dialogue and empathy, are available on Ittay's website at:https://www.ittay.au/what-can-i-do
This episode is dedicated in memory of Armand Lindenbaum, the grandson of Rav Avigdor Amiel, by his wife, Jean, and children, Felice, Amiel, and Ariel Lindenbaum-Sebag.
To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Revisiting Osirak: The Airstrike That Shocked the World | 07 Apr 2026 | 00:38:48 | |
We're revisiting one of our most important episodes: the story of Operation Opera, Israel's 1981 surprise airstrike on Iraq's Osirak nuclear reactor, because the questions it raises feel more urgent than ever. As Israel confronts Iran, what do you do about a threat that isn't fully here yet but you believe is coming? Begin faced that exact dilemma, defied the entire world, and established the Begin Doctrine in the process. With Passover approaching, a holiday about the courage to act before it's too late, this one hits differently right now.
Ronen Bergman's Rise and Kill First
Israel’s 2007 submission to the Eurovision competition: Push the Button
Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.
To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Holy Wars and Sacred Ground: Live from Atlanta with Yardena Schwartz | 31 Mar 2026 | 01:07:31 | |
In this special live episode from Atlanta, Noam Weissman sits down with journalist and author Yardena Schwartz to explore two of the most contested places on earth: Al-Aqsa and Hebron. Drawing on Yardena's book Ghosts of a Holy War, they unpack six pivotal but underknown moments in the conflict's history, from the 1903 Kishinev pogrom to the 1977 Mahapach. Along the way, they trace how disinformation, religious identity, and competing claims to sacred ground shaped the crisis we see today.
Please follow Yardena Schwartz's website and learn more about Ghosts of a Holy War.
https://www.yardenaschwartz.com/
https://www.instagram.com/yardenas
Filmed live at The Dupree: www.thedupree.org
Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.
To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media. Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand
.-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Israel Open Mic: What Does the Shekel Reveal About Israel? | 24 Mar 2026 | 00:39:43 | |
A listener question about Israel's currency sends Noam on a fascinating journey through Jewish history. From secretly printing Israel's first bills in New York to battling hyperinflation to the surprising decision to put poets on today's shekel. Four currencies, 78 years, and one remarkable story about what a country's money says about its soul.
Here is a link to Jewish History Nerds: The Roman Coins that Celebrated the Fall of Judea
https://unpacked.media/juda-capta-the-roman-coins-that-celebrated-the-fall-of-judea/
Here is a link to the sources used in this episode:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1fNCJv2670mWNDgHz5JbLEbgT1MqH4v9yr_CgEH2SxDQ/edit?usp=sharing
This episode was generously sponsored by the Zalik Foundation Junior Board. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand
.-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| The Kibbutz Movement : From Frontier Defense to Modern Israel (Part 2) | 17 Mar 2026 | 00:36:52 | |
In Part 2 of our series on the history of the kibbutz, Noam Weissman explores how these communal villages helped shape Israel’s borders, identity, and culture. From frontier defense and the battles of 1948 to privatization and change, the kibbutz movement evolved dramatically, yet its core ethos of community and collective responsibility still endures.
Here is the link to learn more about Kibbutzim:
https://kibbutzvolunteers.org.il/program
Here is a link to sources used in the episode:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1iROxgkVz-65IRT_DVfmBNEfmxaZLh4V4EbDLXHlPeOg/edit?usp=sharing
This episode was generously sponsored by Friedkin Philanthropies and the Koret Foundation, and is inspired by ISRAEL 21c.
To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand
.-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| The Iran War Explained with Haviv Rettig Gur | 12 Mar 2026 | 00:56:10 | |
As war between Israel and Iran intensifies, Noam Weissman sits down with journalist Haviv Rettig Gur to unpack what’s really driving the conflict. Is this about stopping Iran’s nuclear program, American strategy, or Israeli politics? Using a “Pick Your Theory” framework, they examine the biggest explanations, and what this historic moment means for Israel and the Middle East.
This episode of Unpacking Israeli History is generously sponsored in memory of Leo Bernstein and also by Andrea and Larry Gill. If you want to sponsor an episode of Unpacking Israeli History or just say hey, be in touch at noam@unpacked.media.
Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand
.-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| The Kibbutz Movement: Israel’s Radical Social Experiment (Part 1) | 10 Mar 2026 | 00:35:44 | |
What is a kibbutz, and why did it play such an outsized role in Israeli history? In Part 1 of this two-part series, Noam Weissman traces the origins of the kibbutz movement back to Degania, the first kibbutz, founded in 1910 by young Jewish pioneers of the Second Aliyah. He explores the ideals that shaped early kibbutz life—socialism, egalitarianism, collective labor, and a deep connection to the land—along with radical experiments in communal living. This episode examines how the kibbutz helped forge the Zionist “New Jew” and why its legacy still resonates today.
This episode was generously sponsored by Friedkin Philanthropies and the Koret Foundation, and is inspired by ISRAEL 21c.
To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Here is a link to sources used in the episode:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1iROxgkVz-65IRT_DVfmBNEfmxaZLh4V4EbDLXHlPeOg/edit?usp=sharing
Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand
.-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Special Episode: For Such a Time as This: Purim, Persia, and the Iran War | 03 Mar 2026 | 00:26:58 | |
Missiles in the sky. Purim on the calendar.
As Israel confronts Iran, Noam steps back from the headlines and turns to the Book of Esther, a story of genocide threatened, courage summoned, and history reversed at just the right moment.
From ancient Persia to October 7th, Jewish history has followed a pattern: catastrophe, response, rebuilding. This episode is not a news update. It is a reflection on timing, resilience, unity, and what it means to live through history.
Do we respond with sackcloth, or with action?
For such a time as this.
To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand
.-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| What Became of Zionism?: The History of Israel (Part 5 of 5) | 03 Mar 2026 | 00:52:31 | |
In the finale of our five-part series on the Jewish people’s ancient relationship to the Land of Israel, we move into the modern era, when Israel’s deepest challenges emerged not only from its borders but from within its own society. Noam traces the political, social, and moral upheavals that reshaped the country, carrying the story into the tensions of recent decades and the trauma and solidarity of October 7th.
Noam reflects on Zionism as an unfinished project; one that calls for renewed purpose, shared responsibility, and the courage to begin again.
Note: This episode was created before the start of the current conflict with Iran.
This episode of Unpacking Israeli History is generously sponsored by Debra and Avi Naider and Jody and Ari Storch. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand
.-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Emergency Episode: Inside the Attack on Iran with Avi Melamed | 01 Mar 2026 | 00:51:50 | |
In this special episode, Noam Weissman sits down with Middle East expert and former Israeli intelligence official Avi Melamed to unpack the forces driving the Israel–Iran–U.S. confrontation. From the Sunni–Shiite split to Iran’s 1979 Islamic takeover, Avi explains how theology, grievance, and ideology shaped the Islamic Republic. He explores how Tehran’s proxy network, from Hezbollah to the Houthis, turned the Israeli–Palestinian conflict into a driver of regional escalation. They also confront the urgent question: What happens next?
The New York Times article:
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/02/25/opinion/iran-protests-doctors.html
Inside the Middle East:
https://insidethemiddle-east.com/intelligence-experiences-meet-avi-melamed/
This episode is dedicated in memory of Armand Lindenbaum, the grandson of Rav Avigdor Amiel, by his wife, Jean, and children, Felice, Amiel, and Ariel Lindenbaum-Sebag
Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand
.-------------------
Visit jewishlives.org/ to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| When Zionism Became a State: The History of Israel (Part 4 of 5) | 24 Feb 2026 | 00:50:58 | |
The dream came true. And then reality arrived.
In the 4th episode of our epic series tracing the Jewish relationship to the Land of Israel, Zionism shifts from vision to governance as Israel fights to survive. Noam Weissman explores the country’s turbulent early decades, absorbing waves of immigrants, forging a new national identity, and confronting wars that reshaped the region and tested the dream.
This episode of Unpacking Israeli History is generously sponsored by Debra and Avi Naider and Jody and Ari Storch. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand
.-------------------
Visit jewishlives.org/ to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| The Formation of "Modern" Zionism: The History of Israel (Part 3 of 5) | 17 Feb 2026 | 00:51:41 | |
As the modern world takes shape, the Jewish longing for Zion turns political. In Part 3 of this five-part series on the history of Israel, Noam Weissman explores how Zionism becomes a bold answer to an ancient question: what would it mean to go home? By 1948, that question becomes a state, reshaping history.
This episode of Unpacking Israeli History is generously sponsored by Debra and Avi Naider and Jody and Ari Storch. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand
.-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| When Zionism Went Into Exile: The History of Israel (Part 2 of 5) | 10 Feb 2026 | 00:43:56 | |
After the Second Temple falls in 70 CE, the Jewish story shifts from sovereignty to survival--and Zion becomes a memory carried through exile. In Part 2 of this five-part series on the history of Israel, Noam Weissman traces the path from the Bar Kokhba revolt and Rome’s crushing response to the rise of rabbinic Judaism, the Talmud, and the rituals that kept Jerusalem alive in daily Jewish life. From Jewish life under early Islam through the trauma of the Crusades and centuries of persecution, a radical idea quietly takes hold: Zion is not only a direction of prayer, but a destination—first imagined by mystics and dreamers
This episode of Unpacking Israeli History is generously sponsored by Debra and Avi Naider and Jody and Ari Storch. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand
.-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Before Zionism Had A Name: The History of Israel (Part 1 of 5) | 03 Feb 2026 | 00:53:31 | |
Zionism didn’t begin in the 19th century. It didn’t start with pamphlets, politics, or Theodor Herzl. In Episode 1 of a five-part series, Noam Weissman goes back—way back—to uncover the prehistory of an idea, tracing how Zion became more than geography or borders. Long before modern ideology, it was a promise, a memory, and a direction Jews faced even when they were nowhere near it. This isn’t a political argument—it’s the opening chapter of a much older story. And it’s only the beginning.
This episode of Unpacking Israeli History is generously sponsored by Debra and Avi Naider and Jody and Ari Storch. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand
.-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| IsraAid After October 7: An Unprecedented Humanitarian Mission in Israel and Gaza (Part 2) | 27 Jan 2026 | 00:38:39 | |
In Part 2 of this two-part Unpacking Israeli History series on Israeli humanitarian aid, Noam Weissman follows IsraAid as it responds to the trauma and displacement inside Israel after October 7—building emergency schools, delivering psychological first aid, and supporting devastated communities. Then the story turns to an unprecedented chapter: IsraAid quietly helping facilitate aid and essential services for civilians in Gaza, navigating Israeli security concerns, international NGO bureaucracy, and the moral complexity of war. It’s a revealing look at Israeli civil society at work—and what it means to try to save lives when politics can’t.
Here are sources used for this episode:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Zx3FMR5-i_LU68qikZXnhU-8lOkV2jAspDU5Fyix2PE/edit?tab=t.byua9hckht
This episode was generously sponsored by Friedkin Philanthropies and the Koret Foundation, and is inspired by ISRAEL 21c.
To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand
.-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Why Does Israel Rush into Disaster Zones? IsraAid and Soft Diplomacy (Part 1) | 20 Jan 2026 | 00:54:45 | |
After October 7, stories about Israeli humanitarian aid can sound like hasbara—a Hebrew term for public diplomacy or advocacy meant to improve Israel’s image. So in Part 1 of this two-part series, Noam Weissman asks a harder question: why does Israel keep rushing into disaster zones, often at real risk and with little strategic payoff? The episode traces Israel’s early “soft diplomacy” under Ben-Gurion and Golda Meir, then turns to IsraAid, Israel’s leading humanitarian NGO, through its work in drought-stricken Kenya and a daring evacuation during Afghanistan’s 2021 collapse. Next week, the story continues when Noam explores what happens when Israeli aid enters Gaza—and the moral and societal tensions that follow.
Here are sources used for this episode:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Zx3FMR5-i_LU68qikZXnhU-8lOkV2jAspDU5Fyix2PE/edit?tab=t.byua9hckht
This episode was generously sponsored by Friedkin Philanthropies and the Koret Foundation, and is inspired by ISRAEL 21c.
To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand
.-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Hard Conversations About Israel: 4 Real-Life Case Studies with Toba Hellerstein (Part 2) | 13 Jan 2026 | 01:10:20 | |
In this follow-up conversation, Noam Weissman and emotional attunement expert Toba Hellerstein move from theory to practice—using real-world case studies to explore how people are actually talking about Israel right now. Drawing on listener emails and educator questions, they tackle common scenarios like responding to social media posts about “ending the occupation,” navigating influential podcasts, addressing concerns about Gaza without triggering antisemitic labels, and supporting Jewish students under campus pressure. The focus isn’t on winning arguments, but on emotional regulation, trust, and creating space for nuance in conversations where people are really asking: am I safe, do I belong, and do I matter?
Here's a link to Part 1:
Facts vs. Feelings: Rethinking how we talk about Israel with Toba Hellerstein
https://sapirjournal.org/authors/toba-hellerstein/
This episode is in memory of Leo Bernstein. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check us out on Youtube. This podcast was brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Israel Open Mic: What Does “Israel’s Right to Exist” Mean? | 06 Jan 2026 | 00:34:58 | |
In this Open Mic episode, Noam responds to a listener, Aviva's question: what does it even mean to say “Israel has a right to exist”—and who gets to decide that “right”? Noam argues that the debate is really about Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state. He makes the case that the more urgent conversation is about how Israel exists, not whether it exists. The episode uses the 2025 NYC mayoral debate as a jumping-off point to explore Jewish peoplehood, modern self-determination, and double standards.
This episode is generously sponsored by Debra and Avi Naider and Andrea & Larry Gill.
To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check us out on Youtube. This podcast was brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
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For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Ma'alot Revisited: When Terrorists Came for the Children | 30 Dec 2025 | 00:31:28 | |
Noam revisits one of the most devastating episodes in Israeli history—the 1974 Ma’alot school hostage massacre—and explains why, after October 7, this story feels more urgent and unbearable than ever. What began as a joyful field trip marking Israel’s 26th birthday—over a hundred religious high school students exploring northern Israel—turned into a nightmare when three Palestinian terrorists crossed in from Lebanon. This episode tells the story of Ma’alot in all its horror and bloodshed, but also in its defiance and resilience—a reminder that even in the darkest moments, every hour of life matters.
This episode was generously sponsored by Pam and Neil Weissman. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
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For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
| Intelligence Operations that Shaped Israel’s Story with Ronen Bergman, LIVE in LA | 23 Dec 2025 | 00:55:54 | |
How do you get people who don’t talk to talk? In this special live Unpacking Israeli History, Noam Weissman sits down with Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist and Israeli intelligence expert Ronen Bergman (author of Rise and Kill First) for a smart, funny, and deeply human look at the Mossad, Shin Bet, and Israel’s security establishment. Recorded in front of a packed audience at Sinai Temple in Los Angeles, Bergman explains how he persuaded hundreds of operatives to open up, why secrecy and ego can be dangerous, and why he believes Israel’s real “secret weapon” is democracy and accountability. Then, the discussion turns to the hardest question of all—how October 7 happened—through the lens of misread signals, misallocated attention, and hubris. It's a conversation that’s messy, meaningful, and genuinely accessible.
Ronen Bermgan writes for the New York Times and Yedioth Ahronoth.
He is the author of Rise and Kill First The Secret History of Israel's Targeted Assassinations
To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast was brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
-------------------
For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold
Wondering Jews | |||
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