Maimonides Fund Scholar in Residence and Downtown Minyan Rosh Kehillah Mijal Bitton crystalized the despairing unity felt by Jews around the world on October 7 in her essay “That Pain You’re Feeling Is Peoplehood” published on November 1, 2023. After the brutal attacks in southern Israel, “many of us — thousands of miles away — cried out in visceral pain,” wrote Bitton. “This is what Jewish peoplehood feels like.”

Mijal Bitton joined SAPIR Institute Director Chanan Weissman for a conversation on how Jewish peoplehood has evolved in the year since October 7. Prior to listening to this conversation, we encourage you to revisit Bitton’s essay and reflect on how things have changed in the last year.

This is the first of three conversations in SAPIR’s virtual ‘One Year Later’ series, where we revisit our ideas and presumptions following the tragic events on October 7.