Your Daily Phil: Tit-for-tat or more than that?
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In today’s edition of Your Daily Phil, we report on the renewal of the conflict between Iran and Israel last night, and spotlight a new initiative by the Pardes Institute exploring key phrases from the Declaration of Independence that are rooted in Jewish texts. We feature an opinion piece by T’ruah’s Rabbi Jill Jacobs responding to a recent opinion piece in eJewishPhilanthropy criticizing her organization’s decision to feature New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani as a speaker at its gala last week, and a piece by Michal Cohen about the evolving role Jewish philanthropy can play in northern Israel. Also in this issue: Rabbi Jeffrey Salkin, Heidi Gantwerk, David Rubenstein and Caryn Zucker.
Today’s Your Daily Phil was curated by eJP Managing Editor Judah Ari Gross, Opinion Editor Rachel Kohn and Israel Editor Justin Hayet. Have a tip? Email us here.
What We’re Watching
We’re closely monitoring the situation in Israel and the rest of the Middle East after Iran fired a barrage of missiles at Israel last night, sparking a fresh round of fighting. More on this below.
Later today, Bar-Ilan University will host the second annual Cherrick Family Lecture, examining how the teachings of the late Chief Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks and the biblical Burning Bush story provide a blueprint for modern moral leadership.
Rachel Goldberg-Polin and Jon Polin will be the keynote speakers at tonight’s annual Rabin lecture hosted by Washington Hebrew Congregation and the Milton Gottesman Jewish Day School.
What You Should Know
A QUICK WORD WITH EJP’S JUDAH ARI GROSS
Like an unfortunately well-oiled machine, the State of Israel entered “war mode” on Sunday night and Monday morning as Iran fired waves of ballistic missiles at the country’s North and Center, sending millions of people rushing to bomb shelters — provided they had one they could reach in time.
After the first barrage on Sunday night, the Education Ministry and IDF Home Front Command ordered all educational institutions closed until further notice. Hospitals across the country entered “emergency mode,” releasing non-critical patients home and moving the rest to protected areas — generally underground parking garages that can be converted to hospital.
For Israelis — and everyone else in the region — the main question on their mind is how long this round of fighting will last. Is this a brief tit-for-tat or the start of a new round of all-out, multifront war?
Read the rest of ‘What You Should Know’ here.
News
TEXTUAL ANALYSIS
‘Talmud of America’: Pardes parses Declaration of Independence like a Jewish text
Normally, the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies teaches students to examine Jewish texts, but Rabbi Leon Morris, president of Pardes, decided to direct the institution’s analytical skills toward a different meaningful text: the Declaration of Independence. Yesterday, Pardes announced the publication of Talmud of America, a collection of Pardes faculty commentaries on phrases from the Declaration rooted in Jewish texts, reports eJewishPhilanthropy’s Jay Deitcher.
Going deeper: “We really wanted to give the American Jewish community a birthday gift,” Morris told eJP. “We didn’t want to produce something parve, that just showed that all of the ideas that are in the Declaration of Independence, we actually had them in the Torah first. We wanted it to be more sophisticated, more interesting and more filled with tension.”
Opinion
T’RUAH RESPONDS
Jewish New Yorkers should not boycott Mamdani
“Right now, New York Jews are afraid for our safety. We have the choice of retreating further and further into isolation, or reaching out and building relationships with those who have the power to make change. I choose relationship,” writes Rabbi Jill Jacobs, CEO of T’ruah, in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy defending the organization’s decision to feature New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani as a speaker at its annual gala last week after facing criticism for the move in eJewishPhilanthropy (“Can a Zionist organization embrace anti-Zionism?”, June 5).
Face-to-face: “The mayor does not need T’ruah to give him a platform. New Yorkers can access his words on social media or the evening news any day of the week. This was a unique opportunity for him to speak directly to a room full of rabbis and other Jewish community members, and to respond to our concerns.”
THE PATH AHEAD
Making recovery real: Philanthropy’s next opportunity in Israel’s North
“Over the past three years, funders have been deeply engaged in Israel’s North,” writes Michal Cohen, CEO of the Rashi Foundation, in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy. “We did not do this because philanthropy is meant to replace government. We did it because the needs were immediate, the challenges were immense and the people of the North could not wait.”
A major development: “Now, after months of advocacy and procedure, the Israeli government has approved a NIS 5.6 billion ($1.95 billion) recovery and growth plan for the North. … The question is no longer how much money will be invested in the North. It is whether that money will actually change reality there by creating stronger communities, better educational outcomes and economic growth. Philanthropy can help answer that question in three ways.”
Worthy Reads
Tents and Hyphens: In the Religion News Service, Jeffrey Salkin defends the Re-CHARGING Reform Judaism resolution that called upon Hebrew Union College to require rabbinical candidates to commit to Reform Zionism. “Reform Judaism is not alone in this battle of ideas. It is true in every non-Orthodox movement in American Judaism — over the meaning of Zionism, anti-Zionism and antizionism. It is a large, exhausting conversation about how wide our tents should be open. This will be the struggle of our time — and smart, good people are engaged in it… Yisrael means struggle. That is what we Jews do. And we do it so well.” [RNS]
Beyond WhatsApp: In the San Diego Jewish World, Jewish Federation of San Diego’s Heidi Gantwerk shares how the federation’s “Gesher” exchange program recently brought a leadership delegation from Sha’ar HaNegev in southern Israel to California to deepen cross-border ties and community resilience strategies. “When they left, there were tears on both sides. To be so engaged with Israelis doing such critical work to build resilience, not in the abstract or over WhatsApp but face to face, and to learn from one another replenished and strengthened us for all we face in our day-to-day lives… Nourishment for the soul.” [SDJewishWorld]
Analysis Paralysis: In his Substack “Moneyball Judaism,” Rabbi Joshua Rabin observes that the challenges facing Jewish organizations do not revolve solely around strategy or finances, but also around performance. “Last week, we explored the concepts of fight-or-flight and tend-and-befriend, and how the activation of our defense instincts can, over time, diminish our energy to perform. This week, we will examine what happens when we have the energy to perform at a high level but use it inefficiently. … Strategic plans, committees, retreats, and brainstorming sessions can all be valuable tools. But when poorly managed, they can become (expensive) substitutes for action rather than catalysts for it.” [MoneyballJudaism]
Staying the Course: On his eponymous Substack, neuroscientist and “Making Sense” podcast host Sam Harris defends his support for Israel. “I’m not interested in exploring all the ways that Israel has missed the mark… because none of these failings, however grave, will alter my sense that (1) the ethical difference between Israel and her enemies remains vast, and (2) the global preoccupation with the Jewish state, as though it were the worst villain among nations, is contemptible, being the product of perennial lies and delusions.” [SamHarris]
Major Gifts
The Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art in Kansas City secured a $1 million donation from the Stanley J. Bushman Foundation to establish a permanent endowment dedicated to local youth arts education…
Bloomberg Philanthropies has pledged $90 million for a national effort to encourage Americans to become electricians, mechanics and other technicians…
The European Union awarded €3.5 million ($4 million) to support a new international research consortium at Hebrew University to investigate how a global rise in anonymous court rulings affects media transparency and public trust…
Art collector Yigal Gross has gifted a rare 1863 Thomas Nast emancipation print to the Teaneck Public Library seeking to foster local cultural unity following divisive community debates over historical memorials…
Transitions
Cora Neumann has been named international director of the Jewish National Fund’s World Zionist Village…
Darrin Goldin was hired by the Dallas Jewish Community Foundation as its senior philanthropy officer…
The Jewish Bar Association of New Jersey inducted Avi D. Kelin as the organization’s president. Heather Weine Brochin, David H. Stein, Sasha Pezenik, Jason Navarino, Jacob P. Davidson and Cory Rothbort were all sworn in as new board members…
Word on the Street
An Arab Israeli terrorist killed one person, Haim Kalomiti, and injured five others yesterday in a shooting spree in the central Israeli town of Kochav Yair…
The Bank of Israel purchased approximately $800 million in May in an effort to stem the growing strength of the shekel; the move came as some Israel-based companies and NGOs have been forced to downsize as a result of the currency’s appreciating value against a weakening dollar…
Toronto’s annual Walk With Israel drew a record 60,000 marchers yesterday…
The Forward examines how Iran is using encrypted networks and cryptocurrency to recruit local actors for low-cost proxy plots and cyberattacks against Jewish targets and institutions in the West…
French Israeli billionaire philanthropist Patrick Drahi has agreed to sell telecom operator SFR to a major consortium for $23.5 billion…
The New York Times Magazine profiles Steven Spielberg’s recent move to New York City as he approaches 80, highlighting how he uses filmmaking — including his upcoming thriller “Disclosure Day” — as a therapeutic tool to process his childhood experiences…
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky approached billionaire Roman Abramovich in a failed attempt to broker a face-to-face peace summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin…
Philanthropists Renee and Lester Crown finalized the sale of their 6,200-square-foot Water Tower Place condominium in Chicago for $5.5 million…
The South Florida Sun Sentinel examines the effects of local aging philanthropists making large donations to area hospitals…
The rapper Ye performed for nearly 40,000 fans in Arnhem, The Netherlands, even as other European countries and venues have cancelled his concerts due to his antisemitic rhetoric…
John Lithgow won a Tony Award for his portrayal of Roald Dahl in Mark Rosenblatt’s “Giant,” which focuses on the author’s antisemitic comments in the early 1980s…
A California appeals court is permitting the Kars4Kids charity jingle to remain on the air while the organization appeals a ruling that found it had deceived donors by omitting its religious ties in its advertisements…
American Israeli UC Davis professor Amir Kol resigned from the city’s Human Relations Commission citing a hostile environment and systemic minimization of antisemitism during his two-year tenure…
Carlyle Group co-founder and philanthropist David Rubenstein married Caryn Zucker at a weekend ceremony with Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts and Rabbi Stuart Weinblatt officiating…
Axios spotlights growing concerns among Jewish Democratic officials and political staffers over growing antisemitism — and its acceptance — within the party…
The Boulder, Colo., Jewish community unveiled a plaque during the Boulder Jewish Film Festival paying tribute to the victims of last year’s antisemitic firebombing targeting a hostage-awareness rally, in which one woman was killed…
Israeli singer Yishai Levi, known for his contributions to Mizrahi music, died on Saturday at 63…
Peter H. Wells, who led the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton from 1978 to 2005 and oversaw major initiatives like the resettlement of Soviet Jews, died last Wednesday at 86…
Pic of the Day
Nurses and hospital workers move a patient to an underground room this morning at Rabin Medical Center, also known as Beilinson Hospital, in Petah Tikva, central Israel, as Iran and its proxies fire barrages of missiles at the country.
“Beilinson’s teams are well-trained in the sharp transition from routine to emergency under fire, having done so three times within a year,” Dr. Erez Barenboim, director of the hospital, said in a statement. “The goal is to bring to a minimum the damage to the treatment process. We are prepared and ready for whatever mission is demanded.”
Birthdays
Hedge fund founder and manager, founder of the Paloma Funds, Selwyn Donald Sussman turns 80…
Hebrew University mathematics professor emeritus and 2005 Nobel Prize laureate in economics, Robert Aumann turns 96… Guru of alternative, holistic and integrative medicine, Dr. Andrew Weil turns 84… Detective novelist, best known for creating the character of V.I. Warshawski, Sara Paretsky turns 79… Founder and CEO of Sitrick and Company, one of the most prominent crisis management firms in the U.S., Michael Sitrick… Classical pianist, teacher and performer at the Juilliard School and winner of several Grammy Awards, he is the child of Holocaust survivors, Emanuel Ax turns 77… Former member of Knesset from the Zionist Union and Labor parties, now a professor emeritus at Ben-Gurion University, Yosef “Yossi” Yona turns 73… Barbara Jaffe Panken… Senior advisor at Bloomfield Hills, Mich.-based O2 Investment Partners, Robert Harris “Rob” Orley… Journalist, stand-up comedian, author, cartoonist and blogger, Aaron Freeman turns 70… CEO of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau, Stacy Ritter turns 66… AVP for campaign at the Jewish United Fund of Metropolitan Chicago, Patti Frazin… Moscow-born, living in the U.S. since 1976, he is a major figure in the Russian energy sector and co-founder and chairman of the Genesis Prize Foundation, Stan Polovets turns 63… Israel’s state comptroller and ombudsman, Matanyahu Englman turns 60… Winner of many Emmy and SAG awards, star of the long-running TV series “The Good Wife,” Julianna Margulies turns 60… Actor, screenwriter and producer, Dan Futterman turns 59… Former congresswoman (D-AZ), she is a survivor of an assassination attempt near Tucson in 2011, Gabrielle Giffords turns 56… Actor who starred in USA Network’s “Royal Pains,” he also co-wrote and created the CBS series “9JKL,” Mark Feuerstein turns 55… Former executive director at Consulate Health Care in New Port Richey, Fla., Daniel Frenden… Inaugural executive director of American Friends of IDF Widows and Orphans, Daniel Elbaum… Former deputy chief of staff for Charlie Baker when he was governor of Massachusetts, Michael Emanuel Vallarelli… Lead organizer at LA Voice, a multiracial multifaith community organization, Suzy Stone… Businesswoman, art collector and editor, founder of the Garage Museum of Contemporary Art, Dasha Zhukova turns 45… Fourth-generation supermarket executive at Klein’s ShopRite of Maryland, Marshall Klein… Corporate litigation partner in the Wilmington office of Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor, Daniel Kirshenbaum… Three-time Tony Award-winning theatrical producer, he is the co-founder at Folk Media Group, Eric J. Kuhn turns 39… CEO of BZ Media and the Bnai Zion Foundation, Rabbi Ari Lamm… Offensive tackle in the NFL for nine seasons until he retired in 2022, his Hebrew name is “Mendel,” Mitchell Schwartz turns 37…
