Episodios

  • Good for America, Good for the Jews? – with Dahlia Lithwick

    Good for America, Good for the Jews? – with Dahlia Lithwick
    Sep 29 2025
    Democracy promises to guarantee freedom and equality for all, yet Jews seem to be increasingly vulnerable in America today. How should Jews respond when they feel democracy is not showing up for them? On this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and Slate Senior Editor Dahlia Lithwick turn to Rabbi Moses Feinstein’s 1984 letter on voting and Rabbi Lauren Holtzblatt’s eulogy for Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to probe the relationship between Jews and American democracy, especially in moments when the promise of democracy feels unfulfilled or even threatened. We are grateful to Micah Philanthropies and to the Walder Charitable Fund for their generous support of TEXTing. Episode Source Sheet Watch the video version of this episode ⁠here⁠. You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more. JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS
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    29 m
  • Navigating Peoplehood and Humanity in a Hostile World - with Dyonna Ginsburg

    Navigating Peoplehood and Humanity in a Hostile World - with Dyonna Ginsburg
    Sep 15 2025
    Nearly two years after October 7 and more than 700 days of war, many Jews enter this High Holiday season with trepidation, facing what feels like an increasingly hostile world. In this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and OLAM CEO Dyonna Ginsburg turn to Rav Kook’s “Fourfold Song” to explore how Jews can navigate competing commitments of caring for their own communities and for the wider world. We are grateful to Micah Philanthropies and to the Walder Charitable Fund for their generous support of TEXTing. Episode Source Sheet Watch the video version of this episode ⁠here. Read here OLAM’s research on Jewish practitioners of humanitarian aid. You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more. JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS
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    27 m
  • Torah and Politics: The Jewish-American Right - with Mark Gottlieb

    Torah and Politics: The Jewish-American Right - with Mark Gottlieb
    Aug 1 2025
    Over a quarter of American Jews identifty as Republican, and nearly a third voted for Donald Trump in 2024. Whether this is an expression of their conservative values, their concern for Israel, or some combination of the two, Jews on the right now face a dilemma with the Trump administration and its trespasses on democracy. In the fourth episode of this special series of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and Mark Gottlieb, Chief Education Officer at Tikvah, look to Talmudic and other sources on navigating the tension of conflicting commandments to unpack immigration reform, antisemitism, and the cognitive dissonance Jewish conservatives are experiencing during Trump’s second term. We are grateful to the Walder Charitable Fund and Micah Philanthropies for their generous support of TEXTing. ⁠ Episode Source Sheet You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more. JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS
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    40 m
  • Guilt by Identification: Jewish Pride in a Hostile Environment – with Daniel Held

    Guilt by Identification: Jewish Pride in a Hostile Environment – with Daniel Held
    Jul 25 2025
    Faced with rising antisemitism and anti-Zionism, many Jews are confronting difficult choices when they find themselves outside of Jewish spaces: conceal their identity, or risk harassment, and in some cases, violence. In this episode, Elana Stein Hain and Daniel Held, Chief Program Officer at UJA Federation of Greater Toronto, turn to the Talmud to grapple with Jewish identity and Jewish pride in a hostile environment. How can we engage with moral complexity as proud Jews, and how do we model this for our children? We are grateful to the Walder Charitable Fund and Micah Philanthropies for their generous support of TEXTing. Episode Source Sheet Watch the video version of this episode ⁠here⁠. JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS
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    35 m
  • Uncomfortable Gratitude: Deliverance from a Flawed Source – with Tamara Mann Tweel

    Uncomfortable Gratitude: Deliverance from a Flawed Source – with Tamara Mann Tweel
    Jul 18 2025
    How do we respond with gratitude toward someone whose values and policies we otherwise oppose? In this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain is joined by civic educator and Hartman research fellow Tamara Mann Tweel to explore what Jewish tradition can teach us about uncomfortable gratitude, the cognitive dissonance created when someone we find morally troubling takes an action we support, and how we can respond when deliverance comes from a flawed source. Episode Source Sheet Watch the video version of this episode ⁠here⁠. You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more. JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS
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    36 m
  • Allyship at the Edge: Navigating Difference – with Jacob Feinspan

    Allyship at the Edge: Navigating Difference – with Jacob Feinspan
    Jul 11 2025
    How can we stay true to our Jewish commitments while remaining active in movements that don’t always want us there? In this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain sits down with Jacob Feinspan, Executive Director of Jews United for Justice, to explore the complex dilemmas raised by the increased normalization of anti-Zionism and antisemitism. Drawing on Maimonides' teachings about friendship, they tackle the nature of coalitions, navigating discomfort and acknowledging red lines, and how to foster relationships when we disagree. Episode Source Sheet Watch the video version of this episode here. You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more. JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS
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    31 m
  • Know Thy Enemy

    Know Thy Enemy
    Dec 19 2024
    As we recall the miraculous story of the Maccabean victory this year, the ongoing Israel-Hamas war highlights challenging questions of national and individual identity. How do we see ourselves in relation to our enemy in times of conflict? In this episode of TEXTing, Elana Stein Hain and Christine Hayes study a text from Bereshit Rabbah about how we compare ourselves to our enemies and discuss how those comparisons influence who we are and who we imagine ourselves to be in war. Episode Source Sheet You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more. JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS
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    39 m
  • A Guide to Jealousy

    A Guide to Jealousy
    Dec 2 2024
    In a world that is so connected through technology, we are inundated with highly curated images of other peoples’ seemingly perfect lives. Many of us feel jealous of these imagined realities. In this episode, Elana Stein Hain and Leora Batnitzky discuss a text from Deuteronomy Rabbah 9:9 to help us understand where jealousy comes from and how to manage it. Episode Source Sheet You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more. JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS
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    32 m