Though crucial elements of a nationalist revival were in place before Theodor Herzl decided in 1895 to devote his life to creating a Jewish state, there is little doubt that without this singular figure such a state would not have been established. In this episode, Dr. Polisar focuses on how Herzl founded the Zionist movement; he served simultaneously as the man of ideas who developed the vision and plans for a Jewish state, as the institution-builder who created an international movement capable of acting effectively during and after his lifetime, and as the chief diplomat who paved the way for the decision of the world’s leading powers, a decade and a half after his death, to establish a Jewish home in Palestine.

Supplemental Materials:

• "The Mystery of Theodor Herzl" by Rick Richman. 
• "Theodor Herzl: The Birth of Political Zionism"—an online course taught by Daniel Polisar. 

Not long after the Napoleon-inspired Sanhedrin had declared the end of Jewish nationalism, small but growing numbers of Jews around the world embarked on three separate efforts that laid the foundation for creating a modern state in the ancient homeland: reviving Hebrew as a language for addressing contemporary issues and for daily living; developing the case for the idea of re-establishing a Jewish state in the land of Israel; and bringing about the settling of the land by Jewish pioneers. This episode describes these activities and the figures who led them from the early 19th century until the middle of its final decade.

Supplemental Materials:

• "How America's Idealism Drained Its Jews of Their Resilience" by Daniel Gordis. 
• "How a Founding Socialist Inspired Karl Marx, and Then Went on to Herald the State of Israel" by Asael Abelman. 

In 1807, Napoleon Bonaparte brought about the convening of a Sanhedrin—the supreme decision-making body of the Jewish people—which declared that the Jews possessed a shared religion but were no longer a nation with political aspirations. Coming after nearly two millennia of Exile, this proclamation seemed to signal the end of the age-old dream of re-establishing a Jewish state. Yet a century and a half later Israel was established as the national state of the Jewish people and today it is a robust democracy, an economic success story, a regional powerhouse, and a leading actor on the world stage. In the first episode, Dr. Polisar lays out the main puzzle this podcast will address: How did the Jews overcome seemingly impossible odds to establish a state whose accomplishments are routinely described as miraculous by even the most secular of people?

Supplemental Materials: 

• "What 'Bonaparte Visiting the Plague-Stricken in Jaffa' Teaches About Our Own Plague-Stricken Time" by Martin Kramer.

Before Adam Smith wrote The Wealth of Nations and made his name as an economist, he wrote The Theory of Moral Sentiments, a work of moral philosophy. For Smith, these two subjects informed each other in crucial ways. Economics was not always a siloed discipline, as we often see it today.

In this week's episode, Ari discusses moral philosophy and economics with James Otteson, in particular the interdisciplinary nature of these subjects. Is capitalism a moral system? How much should we take morality into consideration when making economic decisions?

James R. Otteson, the John T. Ryan Jr. Professor of Business Ethics in the Mendoza College of Business at the University of Notre Dame.

Learn more about the course:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/cv1j9ww7iog4xzu/Ethics%20and%20Economics%20%28Otteson%29%20-%20Reader.pdf?dl=0

1967 was a decisive—perhaps the decisive—year in Israel’s history. The results of the Six Day War reunited the state of Israel with the land of Israel, returned Jerusalem to Jewish sovereignty for the first time in two millennia, dealt a decisive defeat to the rejectionist pan-Arab world, spawned the U.S.-Israel alliance, ultimately paved the path for peace with two of Israel’s neighbors, and gripped the world.

But was it decisive? What exactly did it decide? 1967 issues form the core difference—not the role of the state, nor the economy—between right and left in Israel. After more than a half-century, Israelis, Americans, and many others continue to see Israel through the lens of 1967.

In this episode, Ari discusses these questions with Gabriel Scheinmann. They trace the origins of current issues to their proper roots so as to better understand the challenges and choices facing Israel's leaders and people. Perhaps 1967 wasn't nearly as decisive as we all believe.

Dr. Gabriel Scheinmann is the director of the Alexander Hamilton Society, an independent, non-partisan, not-for-profit membership organization dedicated to promoting constructive debate on contemporary issues in foreign, economic, and national security policy.

Learn more about the course here:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/r7mhfypv71pt9yj/The%20Legacy%20of%201967.pdf?dl=0

How might religious Jews best influence the broader world by propagating the set of ideas that constitutes Judaism as well as setting an example through their commitment to a religious life? Which elements of traditional Judaism can be appreciated from a secular or Christian point of view? Which resist translation? What happens when Jewish and non-Jewish ideas or practices collide irreconcilably?

In this episode, Ari addresses these questions with Sarah Rindner. They examine works by authors like S.Y. Agnon, Mendele Mochel Sforim, Cynthia Ozick. What does it mean to write about the Jewish world in Western society?

Sarah Rindner is a writer and educator. She is a regular contributor to the Jewish Review of Books and Mosaic Magazine.

Learn more about the course: https://www.dropbox.com/s/27kcu6j3qe1x7sj/Orthodoxy%20and%20Society.pdf?dl=0

Winston Churchill is known for saving the West from Hitler, yet his earlier years as a politician were more complicated. He was  relatively unpopular during WWI, then became a lone voice against Hitler in the 1930s. During this period of political exile, Churchill devoted the bulk of his energy towards writing Marlborough: His Life and Times, a biography of his illustrious ancestor, John Churchill Marlborough. 

In this episode, Ari discusses with Aaron MacLean how Churchill's writings informed his later political decisions. Marlborough easily could have been the work of an irrelevant ex-cabinet official was, in fact, a final act of contemplative preparation before Churchill’s own heroic phase. How did this investigation of the dilemmas of statesmanship inform Churchill’s own deeds and speeches during WWII? How did the world of the 17th and 18th centuries, driven by questions of dynastic succession and the European balance of power, speak to (or contrast with) the total war of ideologies and nations in which Churchill would wage his struggle?

Aaron MacLean serves as legislative director and foreign policy advisor to Senator Tom Cotton. 

What does it mean to be a Zionist? Given the wide range of figures in the movement throughout history, it's difficult to agree on a single definition. Jews dreamt of Zion for thousands of years, and in the 19th century they began to move from utopianism to realism, from dreams to politics. Some leaders were pragmatic in their thinking, such as Eliezer Ben Yehuda, while others were far more idealist, such as Theodor Herzl. How did these different visions come together to form a state?

In this episode, Ari discusses this range of perspectives with Rachel Fish. What was Zionism, and what should it be in our own times?

Dr. Rachel Fish is founding Executive Director of the Foundation to Combat Anti-Semitism. Fish was most recently Senior Advisor and Resident Scholar of Jewish/Israel Philanthropy at the Paul E. Singer Foundation in New York City.

How has Jewish tradition view sexuality, love, and the family? These topics are particularly relevant today and secular society's views on it are constantly evolving. How has the modern Jewish community's interactions with surrounding cultures and religions affected our perspectives on sexuality and love?

In this episode, Ari speaks with Miriam Krupka on how the Tanakh views these subjects as well as modern thinkers, ranging from Eliezer Berkovits to Joseph Soloveitchik to Leon Kass, and secular figures such as C.S. Lewis.

Miriam Krupka serves as the Dean of Faculty at the Ramaz Upper School in Manhattan, where she teaches Tanakh and Jewish philosophy.

Learn more about this course:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/e7eabclz3o5gvcf/Love%20and%20Intimacy%20in%20Jewish%20Thought%20-%20Reader.pdf?dl=0

Check out our offerings at tikvahfund.org/hs

Under a written Constitution, we are governed by the rule of law, not of men—but this is easier said than done.

In this conversation, Ari discusses with Adam White the role of the Supreme Court and determining constitutionality. Americans rely on the Supreme Court to review laws passed by Congress and state legislatures; most Americans would agree with Chief Justice John Marshall’s famous statement, two centuries ago, that it “is emphatically the province and duty” of the Court “to say what the law is.” Yet there is danger in giving judges too much power over our democratic republic, and thus most Americans would also agree with Abraham Lincoln’s observation, in his first inaugural address, that if national policy on “vital questions affecting the whole people is to be irrevocably fixed by decisions of the Supreme Court,” then “the people will have ceased to be their own rulers, having to that extent practically resigned their Government into the hands of that eminent tribunal.”

How do American statesmen, judges, and scholars define the "rule of law" in American democracy?

Adam White is a research fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution and an assistant professor of law at George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School, where he also directs the law school’s C. Boyden Gray Center for the Study of the Administrative State.

Learn more about the course here:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/zp67k0be9ik7jx7/What%20is%20the%20Rule%20of%20Law%20-%20Reader.pdf?dl=0