American Jews and Israel: Can the Relationship Be Saved? An Evening with Daniel Gordis and Thomas Friedman SOLD OUT

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Relations between the American and Israeli Jewish communities are at their nadir. Most blame Israel’s handling of the conflict with the Palestinians, its attitude toward non-Orthodox Judaism and the Jewish state’s dismissive view of American Jews in general—although some suggest that American Jews have become so caught up in the new progressivism that they’ve become more sympathetic to Israel’s enemies than to the Jewish state.

But these explanations, Daniel Gordis argues, miss the real causes of the divide. In his new book, We Stand Divided: The Rift Between American Jews and Israel, Gordis claims that even before Israel was created, the two communities’ dreams for a Jewish future had little in common, and that the breach cannot be healed without serious discussion of their profoundly different purposes and moral commitments.

On the occasion of the publication of his book, Gordis will engage in a frank discussion with Thomas Friedman, the triple Pulitzer Prize–winning New York Times columnist, who has long argued that Israel doesn’t give American Jews the respect we deserve.

Presented by the Jewish Week Media Group and the UJA-Federation of NY.