18 Questions, 40 Mystics3 Feb 2025

Chuck Freilich: 'Netanyahu needs to step down or be voted out'

Hamas is already beginning to rebuild, Chuck Freilich says, because Israel lacks a post-war vision for Gaza.
An Israeli national security expert, Chuck is a senior fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies and has taught at elite American universities like Harvard, NYU, and Columbia. He has spent extensive time in Israel's national security establishment.
The author of three books on Israel—Zion’s Dilemmas: How Israel Makes National Security Policy, Israeli National Security: A New Strategy for an Era of Change, and Israel and the Cyber Threat: How the Startup Nation Became a Global Cyber Power—Chuck specializes in Mideast policymaking, US-Israel relations, and national security.
Now, he joins Sruli Fruchter to answer 18 questions on Israel, including the ceasefire deal, hostage negotiations, and Hamas' rule in Gaza.
This interview was held on Jan. 27.
Here are our 18 questions:

As an Israeli, and as a Jew, how are you feeling at this moment in Israeli history?
What has been Israel’s greatest success and greatest mistake in its war against Hamas?
How do you think Hamas views the outcome and aftermath of October 7—was it a success, in their eyes?
What do you look for in deciding which Knesset party to vote for?
Which is more important for Israel: Judaism or democracy?
Should Israel treat its Jewish and non-Jewish citizens the same?
What role should the Israeli government have in religious matters?
Now that Israel already exists, what is the purpose of Zionism?
Is opposing Zionism inherently antisemitic?
Is the IDF the world’s most moral army?
If you were making the case for Israel, where would you begin?
Can questioning the actions of Israel’s government and army — even in the context of this war — be a valid form of love and patriotism?
What do you think is the most legitimate criticism leveled against Israel today?
Do you think peace between Israelis and Palestinians will happen within your lifetime?
What should happen with Gaza and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict after the war?
Is Israel properly handling the Iranian threat?
Where do you identify on Israel’s political and religious spectrum, and do you have friends on the “other side”?
Do you have more hope or fear for Israel and the Jewish People?

Det här avsnittet är hämtat från ett öppet RSS-flöde och publiceras inte av Podme. Det kan innehålla reklam.

Avsnitt(79)

Zvi Leshem: 'Modernity in general was a movement that was anti-mystical'

As director of the Gershom Scholem Collection for Kabbalah and Hasidism at the National Library of Israel, Rabbi Dr. Zvi Leshem dedicates much of his time to the study of Jewish mysticism. He believes...

18 Maj 35min

Devori Nussbaum: 'I see God as this one coherent frequency of truth'

For Devori Nussbaum, Jewish mysticism is the study of the soul behind the psyche, a transformative framework that integrates the profound spiritual truths of Chasidut [Hasidism] with insights of psych...

11 Maj 36min

Simon Jacobson: 'The music of Judaism is what I’m looking for, not just the mechanics'

Rabbi Simon Jacobson describes his childhood years as being shaped by his nature of being a “skeptic and a seeker.” As he grew older, he began to study other traditions, eventually returning to a deep...

4 Maj 46min

Jeremy Tibbetts: 'Being a spiritual seeker is not in vogue'

For Rabbi Jeremy Tibbetts, Jewish mysticism is all about turning inwards: both individually and religiously. While he did not grow up Orthodox, Rabbi Jeremy was exposed to Hasidic teachings for the fi...

20 Apr 37min

Yehudis Golshevsky: 'The root of all prophecy is spiritual imagination'

For Rebbetzin Yehudis Golshevsky, Jewish mysticism is a living tradition, one that influences daily life and decision-making. She emphasizes the importance of loving-kindness and Jewish mysticism’s pr...

13 Apr 51min

Shlomo Katz: 'Today's idol worship is self-persecution'

To Rabbi Shlomo Katz, the song of Torah is the most natural gateway into Jewish mysticism. A spiritual disciple of Shlomo Carlebach, Rabbi Shlomo believes that our greatest challenge today is that we ...

30 Mars 42min

Tonia Chazanow: 'Every soul has a story'

Tonia Chazanow believes everyone deserves to have access to Jewish mysticism because it is a tool through which each person can discover and understand the divinity in their own life and help others f...

23 Mars 26min

Daniel Rowe: 'It's very easy to either idolatrize God or just misuse mystical teachings'

Rabbi Daniel Rowe sees Jewish mysticism as a path to deepen one’s relationship with God. He connects Jewish mysticism to the deeper dimensions of the Torah, viewing it as a unifying principle that int...

16 Mars 1h 1min