Episode notes
Early in 2023, Benjamin Netanyahu’s newly elected government announced its intention to embark on sweeping reforms to the country’s judicial system. The announcement was soon met with the biggest wave of popular protests in the nation’s history, dividing Israel like few issues before. But what did the reform actually propose? What were its architects trying to achieve? And what, precisely, did its detractors find objectionable? In this episode, we hear directly from the thinkers, lawmakers, and activists behind the overhaul, including the people who spent years developing the ideas that…
Podcast
Tablet Studios
Tablet Magazine · Devotional & Spiritual · English
From weekly series examining unique angles on Jews’ place in the world, to inquiries into the details of Jewish text and tradition, Tablet Studios podcasts bring you insight and inspiration for the modern-day Jew. Our shows include How to Be a Jew, Unorthodox, Rootless, Re-Form, and more to come.
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17 Jul 2026 · 58 min
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As part of our coverage of the Battle for Israel's Soul, we're going to be sharing the full interviews we did while prepping the series. Most of these will be for subscribers only, but this first one with Yaniv Rosnai is available here for all. If you'd like to join us and subscribe today to access all of the full interviews, please visit tabletmag.com/subscribe and use coupon code judicial for a $100 discount off any subscription. In this installment, Leela is speaking with Yaniv Rosnai. Rosnai is a full professor and vice dean at the Harry Rozner Law School and co-director at the…
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E3 · 9 Jun 2026 · 32 min
Episode Three: The War at Home
By the summer of 2023, it was clear that judicial reform was never really the story: The real battle was over Israel’s identity. And that battle touched on the deepest fears and disagreements Israelis were too busy surviving to address ever since the nation’s inception. Can an Israel occupied by a religious majority remain recognizable to the nation’s secular elites? Can its institutions be reformed to better reflect the will of the country’s democratically elected majority? And can Israelis resolve all of these deep and difficult quarrels and still remain one people? Learn more about your…
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E1 · 9 Jun 2026 · 31 min
Episode One: Vienna Waits for You
The real fight tearing Israel apart these days isn’t against Hamas, Hezbollah, or even Iran. It’s a struggle to answer some very urgent—and very old—questions, the same questions that haunted Zionism’s founding fathers more than a century ago. Should Israel be a state for the Jews, the thoroughly modernized Vienna on the Mediterranean imagined by Theodor Herzl? Or a Jewish State, a vision championed by many of Zionism’s more traditional and religious followers? In this episode, we trace the roots of a conflict that long predates Benjamin Netanyahu, the Supreme Court, or the protests of 2023,…
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5 Jun 2026 · 1 min
The Battle for Israel's Soul - Coming June 9th
Early 2023 was a good time in Israel. The attack of October 7 was months in the future, and Israelis were enjoying a period of peace and prosperity. The economy was booming. The country came out fourth in the ranking of the world's happiest nations. You'd expect Israelis to sit back and celebrate their good fortune. Instead, they took to the streets en masse, sending the country into a tailspin that now, three years later, only grows stronger. The catalyst for these protests was an attempt by Bibi Netanyahu's government to reform the country's judicial system, but, very soon, it became clear…
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E22 · 29 May 2025 · 24 min
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E21 · 14 May 2025 · 34 min
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E20 · 7 May 2025 · 28 min
How to Be a Jew … Like Israel's Most Famous Female Architect
Ada Karmi-Melamede is an architect who has designed famous buildings across Israel, including the Supreme Court building and the gateway to Ben Gurion airport. Her daughter, filmmaker Yael Melamede, talks to us about her new film, ADA: My Mother the Architect, which is a heartfelt investigation of Ada’s work, philosophical approach, and her relationships with her family. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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