TEXTing

When war erupts again and again, how do Israeli families and communities live with constant loss? In this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and Hartman research fellow David Dishon turn to the book of Vayikra and to David’s experience as a bereaved grandparent of a soldier killed in the Israel-Hamas War. Together, they examine how sacrifice shapes grief by transforming loss into enduring presence, and offer a framework for spiritual resilience.

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What turns a crowd into a mob, and what does the Torah teach us about moments when communities unravel? In Parashat Ki Tisa, the Israelites form a mob and build the Golden Calf in Moses’s absence. On this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and The Atlantic staff writer Franklin Foer unpack how fear, identity, belonging, and fragile institutions shape collective behavior. Drawing on social theory, campus encampments, and the contrasting leadership models of Moses and Aaron, they consider what keeps communities grounded, what pushes them toward rupture, and why those dynamics feel especially urgent today.

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In Parashat Terumah, the Israelites are commanded to build the Mishkan (Tabernacle). Why construct something so exquisite and detailed in the middle of a desert? And what can building something so valuable, then and now, teach us about living through uncertainty? In this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and Hartman research fellow Tamara Mann Tweel turn to the rabbinic tradition to explore how building can ground us, offering practices that shape who we become.

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What do we owe the generations that came before us, and what do we want future generations to inherit from us? When do we preserve the past, and when do we break from it? In this episode of TEXTing IRL, Elana Stein Hain and Hartman research fellow Tamara Mann Tweel dig into Parashat Yitro, uncovering how the commandment to honor parents is about more than caretaking; it’s about learning to see the past with weight, reverence, and generosity.

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What happens when the stories we cherish no longer fit the world that we and our kids see? Elana Stein Hain and Hartman research fellow Tamara Mann Tweel turn to Parashat Bo to contend with the challenges of parenting in treacherous times and the power of narrative to create meaning and resilience in an incoherent world.

We are grateful to Micah Philanthropies and the Walder Charitable Trust for their generous support of TEXTing IRL.

Episode Source Sheet

Watch the video version of this episode ⁠here⁠.

You can now sponsor an episode of TEXTing. Click HERE to learn more. 

JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST FOR MORE HARTMAN IDEAS