When Israel Becomes the Whole Story: The Dilemma of a Partial Jewish Identity

On this episode of Don’t Know Much About, Dr. Naya Lekht speaks with Daniel Levine, Rabbi of Orange County Hillel, Lecturer in Jewish Studies at UC Irvine, and host of the Rabbi Daniel Levine YouTube podcast. Drawing on his knowledge of Jewish history, texts, and working with Jewish college students, Daniel examines the trend within the non-Orthodox Jewish community of centering Israel and Zionism as core to Jewish identity, and why this may be problematic. Moving across the arc of American Jewish history, Naya and Daniel conclude by asking whether Jews, in advocating for themselves, should hold themselves to a higher standard, and if doing so inadvertently gives the non-Jewish world permission to expect that same standard from them.Clarifying the complex. Step into my classroom.