Identity/Crisis

Latest Episodes:

Rabin, Oslo, and the Road Not Taken — with Yossi Beilin Nov 04, 2025

Show notes

Thirty years after the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin, Yehuda Kurtzer speaks with Yossi Beilin, one of the architects of the Oslo Accords, about the night that changed Israel forever. Together they revisit Rabin’s legacy, the rise of extremism that followed, and ask: what will it take to revive the hope of peace?

We're grateful to the Charles H. Revson Foundation for supporting the Shalom Hartman Institute's digital work, including Identity/Crisis.

You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.

Learn more about Hartman’s Hevruta Gap-Year Program HERE

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The Jewish Paradoxes of Zohran Mamdani — with Howard Wolfson Oct 28, 2025

Show notes

What does Zohran Mamdani’s rise reveal about the shifting power, politics, and identity of New York City’s Jews?

As New York stands on the verge of electing its first anti-Zionist mayor, on Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer and political strategist Howard Wolfson explore what happens when the Jewish community, who once defined New York’s political center of gravity, finds itself on the outside looking in.

We're grateful to the Charles H. Revson Foundation for supporting the Shalom Hartman Institute's digital work, including Identity/Crisis.

You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.

JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS

Live with Abigail Pogrebin: Holding Hope During a Fragile Peace Oct 21, 2025

Show notes

Last week on the Jewish Broadcasting Network, Shalom Hartman Institute presidents Yehuda Kurtzer and Donniel Hartman joined journalist Abigail Pogrebin for a live conversation reflecting on this pivotal moment: the immense Israeli public effort to bring the hostages home, the roles of Trump and Netanyahu in current and future politics, and the dueling priorities of Israeli and American Jews. As the ceasefire went into effect and all remaining living hostages and some of the fallen returned to Israel, Yehuda and Donniel celebrated with cautious optimism and offered a hopeful vision for reconstructing Jewish life.

We're grateful to the Charles H. Revson Foundation for supporting the Shalom Hartman Institute's digital work, including Identity/Crisis.

Staying Human in the Age of AI — with David Zvi Kalman Oct 13, 2025

Show notes

At a time of unprecedented leaps in technology and ethical questions about artificial intelligence, one scholar seeks answers from an unlikely source — ancient Jewish wisdom.

In this episode of Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer talks with technology guru, Hartman scholar, and founding Identity/Crisis Producer David Zvi Kalman about the religious and ethical dilemmas AI poses for Jewish life — from sermons written by bots to the erosion of truth and authority. This thoughtful conversation is for anyone wondering whether Judaism can move fast enough to meet technology’s challenges while preserving the core Jewish value of human dignity.

You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.

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Fighting Holocaust Fatigue — with Anita Friedman Oct 06, 2025

Show notes

What is at stake when Holocaust memory fades—or worse, loses its relevance?

This week on Identity/Crisis, Yehuda Kurtzer speaks with Anita Friedman — daughter of survivors, renowned educator, and executive producer of the new film Among Neighbors — about the future of Holocaust education, the dangers of “Holocaust fatigue,” and how storytelling can help make Holocaust memories relevant for generations to come.

Learn more and register for our Winter Leadership Conference HERE.

You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.

JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS

Yehuda Kurtzer on Arc: The Podcast Sep 30, 2025

Show notes

In this episode of Arc: The Podcast, Mark Oppenheimer sits down with Yehuda Kurtzer to discuss the aesthetics of yarmulkas, the crisis facing clergy-members, and how the war in Israel is changing American Jewry.

You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.

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God as King in an Age of Authoritarianism – with Ethan Tucker Sep 22, 2025

Show notes

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

You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.
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What is Netanyahu Doing? with Michael Koplow Sep 16, 2025

Show notes

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

You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.
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The Unapologetic Jewish Story — with Sarah Hurwitz Sep 09, 2025

Show notes

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

You can listen to more from Sarah Hurwitz on Ark Media's Call Me Back podcast HERE

If you loved listening to Sarah Hurwitz and want to find out which books shaped her Jewish identity, you can listen to Sarah on The Five Books Podcast. You can also check out Yehuda's guest episode! Spoiler alert: Yehuda and Sarah were shaped by one of the same books, tune in to find out which one…

Learn more about the Hartman Teen Fellowship ⁠⁠HERE.⁠⁠

You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click ⁠⁠HERE⁠⁠ to learn more. ⁠⁠⁠

⁠JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS ⁠

Non-Jewish in the Shadow of the Synagogue — with Christine Hayes Sep 02, 2025

Show notes

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

Check out Yehuda’s substack HERE

Learn more about Hartman’s Hevruta Gap-Year Program HERE

Learn more about the Edward Fein Winter Student Seminar HERE

You can now sponsor an episode of Identity/Crisis. Click HERE to learn more.
JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS

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