Adam Ferziger: Agents of Change [Israel & Diaspora II 4/4]

About this episode

The episode features a discussion with historian Adam Ferziger on the influence of American Jews on Israeli Judaism.

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast , we talk to Adam Ferziger, a historian of modern Jewish movements, about how American Jews have helped shape the evolution of Israeli Judaism. In this episode we discuss: —Why are Jewish religious boundaries in Israel often “more porous” than those in America? —Why did McDonald’s succeed in Israel while Starbucks failed? —What can Israelis take from the thick communal culture of American Judaism? Tune in to hear a conversation about Religious Zionism, American aliyah , and the emergence of a distinctly Israeli Judaism shaped by sovereignty, Hebrew culture, and modern religious life. Interview begins at 9:32. Professor Adam S. Ferziger is a historian of modern Jewish religious movements and responses to secularization. He holds the Samson Raphael Hirsch Chair at Bar-Ilan University and is a senior associate at the Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies. He is the author of several influential books, including Beyond Sectarianism: The Realignment of American Orthodox Judaism, winner of the National Jewish Book Award. References: “ Orthodoxy in American Jewish Life ” by Charles S. Liebman Beyond Sectarianism: The Realignment of American…

People in this episode

Host: 18Forty

Guest: Adam Ferziger

Topics covered

• Israeli Judaism
• American Judaism
• Religious Zionism
• Jewish religious boundaries
• Cultural exchange
• Modern Jewish movements

Keywords

• Israeli Judaism
• American Jews
• Religious Zionism
• Jewish movements
• cultural exchange
• secularization

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Bar-Ilan University, Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies

Books & works: Beyond Sectarianism: The Realignment of American Orthodox Judaism, Agents of Change: American Jews and the Transformation of Israeli Judaism, The Israeli Century: How the Zionist Revolution Changed History and Reinvented Judaism

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