What Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks’ State of the Jewish World Teaches Us Today

In this special cross-posted conversation with AJC’s People of the Pod, Dr. Tanya White speaks with AJC’s Director of Jewish Communal Partnerships, Meggie Wyschogrod Fredman and Sacks Legacy Global Chief Executive, Joanna Benarroch to explore the enduring relevance of Rabbi Sacks’ reflections on the state of the Jewish world. Drawing on his essays, speeches, and vision for global Jewish leadership, this discussion delves into the challenges and hopes that continue to shape Jewish identity and responsibility today.

Note: This is an appendix episode and not part of the main Books and Beyond podcast series.

Books and Beyond: The Rabbi Sacks Podcast

This is the recording of our Books and Beyond: The Rabbi Sacks Podcast launch event, dr. Tanya White in conversation with Lord Daniel Finkelstein and Gila Sacks about Rabbi Sacks ideas in todays post 07/10 world.

Note: This is an appendix episode and not part of the main Books and Beyond podcast series

Books and Beyond: The Rabbi Sacks Podcast

In this final episode of the series, Dr. Tanya White moves beyond the book, Morality, to engage with two guests offering unique perspectives on the book’s relevance and legacy. Framed as the “application” of Rabbi Sacks’ big ideas to today’s global challenges, the episode explores how Morality speaks directly to the crises of our time. 

Books and Beyond: The Rabbi Sacks Podcast

Dr. Tanya White and Rabbi Dr. Samuel Lebens engage in an enlightening conversation on the fourth and final book of the series, Morality (which we have termed “The Application”). They explore the book’s context, structure, and themes, delving into the nature of freedom in today’s Western liberal democracies, the challenge of fostering moral commitment to a collective “we” in an age of radical individualism, and whether religion can serve as a force for good in a divided world. Their discussion addresses pressing societal challenges and seeks answers through the lens of Rabbi Sacks’ profound ideas in Morality.

Books and Beyond: The Rabbi Sacks Podcast

 In this second episode on Future Tense, Dr. Tanya White moves beyond the book to examine how its themes address the urgent challenge of antisemitism today. She is joined by award-winning author Dara Horn (People Love Dead Jews) and Michal Cotler-Wunsh, Israel’s Special Envoy for Combating Antisemitism, in a fiery yet thought-provoking conversation that tackles pressing issues facing the Jewish world. Dara advocates for a Jewish narrative that frames antisemitism as a form of affirmative identity, while Michal aligns with Rabbi Sacks’ forward-looking vision, emphasizing a Judaism defined by more than external opposition. This episode invites listeners to engage with both sides of this critical debate and gain fresh insights from two leading voices in the Jewish community.

This episode has been generously sponsored in memory of Anita and Alvin Caplin (Avraham Aaron Hakohen ben Moshe Nisan Hakohen v’Devorah and Chana Perl bat Malkah Zisel v’David)

Books and Beyond: The Rabbi Sacks Podcast

Dr. Tanya White and Dr. Mijal Bitton delve into the second book in the series, Future Tense (what we have termed “The Narrative”), in a thought-provoking conversation that examines its context, structure, and central themes. They explore the critical question of which Jewish narrative to embrace and grapple with the current challenge of antisemitism.

Their discussion addresses the book’s relevance in a post-07/10 world, where an outward-facing, engaged Judaism may seem increasingly fraught. They reflect on Rabbi Sacks’ optimism for a forward-looking narrative and invite listeners to reflect on what it means to build a confident, outward-looking Jewish identity in the face of unprecedented challenges.

This episode has been generously sponsored in memory of Anita and Alvin Caplin (Avrham Aaron Hakohen ben Moshe Nisan Hakohen v’Devorah and Chana perl bat Malkah Zisel V’David)

Books and Beyond: The Rabbi Sacks Podcast

In this second episode exploring A Letter in the Scroll, Dr. Tanya White delves beyond the book to examine how its themes resonate with the pressing challenges of Jewish identity in a post-7/10 world. Joining her are three esteemed Jewish leaders - Sivan Rahav Meir, Natan Sharansky, and Rabbi Dr. Meir Soloveichik - who reflect on how Rabbi Sacks’ profound ideas can guide us through this unprecedented historical moment.

Our featured guests:

Sivan Rahav Meir is an Israeli journalist and television and radio news reporter. In March 2024 we distributed a booklet compiled by Sivan called “To Be A Jew”. It consisted of short extracts from Rabbi Sacks’ writings, matched with topical real-life anecdotes from Sivan, published in both Hebrew and English.

Rabbi Meir Soloveichik is the senior rabbi of Congregation Shearith Israel in Manhattan, as well as director of the Zahava and Moshael Straus Center for Torah and Western Thought at Yeshiva University. 

Natan Sharansky is one of the world's most famous former Soviet refuseniks and an Israeli politician, author and human rights activist. He is also the Chair of The Rabbi Sacks Legacy's Global Advisory Board.

Joanna Benarroch is Global CEO of The Rabbi Sacks Legacy. She had the honour of working closely with Rabbi Sacks for over 20 years.

A BRIEF OVERVIEW

Twenty years since A Letter in the Scroll was first published, this book continues to act as a crucial voice in the conversation of what it means to have faith, to be a Jew, and to build a better world.

Written originally as a wedding gift to his son and daughter-in-law, this is Rabbi Sacks’ personal answer to the question, ‘Why Am I A Jew?’, and his response is a testimony to the enduring strength of his religion.

Tracing the revolutionary series of philosophical and theological ideas that Judaism created - from covenant to sabbath to formal education—and showing us how they remain compellingly relevant in our time, Sacks portrays Jewish identity as an honour as well as a duty.

In a way that is both timely and timeless, Rabbi Jonathan Sacks questions how, in the face of such adversity, has Judaism remained and flourished, making a mark on human history out of all proportion to its numbers? And how, in this speedily changing world, can it continue to do so?

A Letter in the Scroll was also published under the title Radical Then, Radical Now.

Books and Beyond: The Rabbi Sacks Podcast

Diving into an engaging conversation between host Dr Tanya White and YU Dr Erica Brown, this carefully crafted narrative episode features Rabbi Sacks’ voice alongside reflections from contemporary voices who challenge and expand upon his teachings.

It's an immersive experience for listeners ready to engage deeply with questions of Jewish identity, adversity and resilience, morality, community, and the intersection of faith and modernity, beginning with A Letter in the Scroll (published as Radical Then, Radical Now in the UK

This new podcast series, Books and Beyond, invites you to explore the timeless, transformative ideas of Rabbi Jonathan Sacks in a compelling new way. Hosted by Dr. Tanya White, this eight-episode series explores four of Rabbi Sacks most celebrated books combining in-depth discussions with a feature-documentary style, making Rabbi Sacks’ wisdom accessible, dynamic, and relevant.

A BRIEF OVERVIEW

Twenty years since A Letter in the Scroll was first published, this book continues to act as a crucial voice in the conversation of what it means to have faith, to be a Jew, and to build a better world.

In a way that is both timely and timeless, Rabbi Jonathan Sacks asks how, in the face of such adversity, has Judaism remained and flourished, making a mark on human history out of all proportion to its numbers? And how, in this speedily changing world, can it continue to do so?

If a single letter in a Torah scroll is damaged, missing, or incorrectly drawn, then a Torah scroll is considered invalid. We can understand the Jewish people by seeing them as a living Torah scroll. Every individual Jew represents a letter within it, for every individual is considered a crucial part of the people, without whom the entire religion would suffer. Rabbi Sacks uses this metaphor to make a passionate argument for why we must understand the importance of our heritage, our Jewish purpose, and our role in continuing the chain of Jewish generations. Never has a book more eloquently expressed the joys of being a Jew.

This is the story of one man’s hope for the future - a future in which the next generation, his children and ours, will happily embrace the beauty of the world’s oldest religion.

A Letter in the Scroll was also published under the title Radical Then, Radical Now.

Dr Erica Brown is the Vice Provost for Values and Leadership at Yeshiva University and the founding director of its Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks-Herenstein Center for Values and Leadership.

Books and Beyond: The Rabbi Sacks Podcast