SOW 42 - Religion and Politics with Rabbi Brad Hirschfield

Rabbi Brad Hirschfield is the President of CLAL–The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership. He's a blogger at the Washington Post's "On Faith" column and Co-founder and Executive Editor of TheWisdomDaily.com. He has been ranked three years in a row in Newsweek as one of America's "50 Most Influential Rabbis."   Rabbi Hirschfield talk about religion in politics and why it is so important for politicians to be religiously affiliated. He thinks so many politicians are faking religion. Rabbi Hirschfield thinks politicians' religious views affect their political decisions, as evidenced by Mayor Bill De Blasio rough start as Mayor of New York City.    Rabbi Hirschfield finishes the conversation by discussing the difference between true religion and real religion.   Find out more about Rabbi Brad Hirschfield at www.bradhirschfield.com.    Visit CLAL–The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership at www.clal.org.   Acclaimed commentator on the role of religion in America, Rabbi Brad Hirschfield is vice president of CLAL-The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, a leadership training institute, think tank, and resource center. Recognized as a leading advocate for religious pluralism, he was a speaker at the Fes Festival of World Sacred Music and Colloquium in Morocco and a panelist at the 2004 Parliament of the World's Religions in Barcelona. His involvement at the latter event was featured in the critically praised documentary, "Freaks Like Me," which explores our fear of the "other."     Currently, Rabbi Hirschfield is filming an 18-part series, "Building Bridges: Abrahamic Perspectives on the World Today," which he conceived for Bridges Television (American Muslim TV Network) for fall 2006. He is also co-producing a film on religious fanaticism in America, "The Believers." A popular media analyst, Hirschfield has been on ABC-TV's "Nightline UpClose" (the only rabbi ever featured), PBS-TV's "Frontline" and "Religion & Ethics Newsweekly," CNN, MTV, Court TV, NPR, and is frequently quoted in the press. A popular speaker, he has appeared at the Aspen Institute, the Washington National Cathedral, the Islamic Society of North America, and many universities and religious institutes. Co-author of "Embracing Life & Facing Death: A Jewish Guide to Palliative Care" (CLAL, 2003), he is completing a book on the challenge of Holocaust memory in the 21st century. Learn More About Brad Hirschfield Visit the "Freaks Like Me" (DVD)