APRIL 25 • 2024 | 25

be approached so that what-
ever opinions students have, 
they are loved and support-
ed. 
“Within these conversa-
tions, we challenge people 
to feel a little uncomfortable 
but always with the assur-
ance that they feel they are 
loved,” Hartman said. 
Hartman said it is import-
ant to listen to those with 
whom you disagree and 
challenge one another. This 
has been a hallmark for the 
institute within an Israeli 
society that was coming to a 
boiling point in the months 
before Oct. 7, Hartman said. 
Hartman’s most recent 
book is Who Are the Jews—
And Who Can We Become? 
(2023, Jewish Publication 
Society). Hartman said the 
book is an attempt to coax 
individual Jews to craft their 
own stories while at the 
same time keeping in mind 
the collective history of the 
Jewish people. 

A ‘SHARED STORY’
“Jews have different polit-
ical, geographic, gender 
and ideological differenc-
es,” Hartman said. “When 
I claim that Jewish people 
can have a shared story, 
it is founded on the belief 
that all those differences do 
not undermine the shared 
story. And like a big family, 

there are times when some 
members of that big Jewish 
family are going to aggravate 
you, but you don’t walk away 
from them.” 
He continued: “In order 
to embrace our collective 
identity, we cannot approach 
it in a denominational way, 
as one does when choosing a 
synagogue. And if you don’t 
like that synagogue, you can 
always leave and find anoth-
er one.”
But that is not the case 
with Israeli society and the 
nation of Israel, he stressed. 
“We are a country, and 
you can’t tell anyone (you 
disagree with religiously 
or politically) to leave,” 
Hartman said. “That to me 
is the meaning of Zionism. 
A nation is made up of all its 
pieces of society, so no one 
is left out. And as an edu-
cator, I feel I am obligated 
to build a society that sees 
everyone, where everyone 
feels seen, they have room 
to grow, and where everyone 
has room to make mistakes.”
Hartman also discussed 
the controversy of draft-
ing Haredi Israelis into 
the Israel Defense Forces. 
He said many combat sol-
diers would not want to 
go into active combat with 
them, plus the fact that 
many Israelis do not regard 
Haredim as good soldiers 

because of their rigid beliefs 
in gender roles. 
But within the reality 
of Oct. 7, Israeli society 
is acknowledging that it 
needs a bigger army to 
defend its southern and 
northern borders. On that 
note, Hartman expressed his 
skepticism that the northern 
border with Lebanon 
can be brought back to 
normal. Tens of thousands 
of Israelis displaced from 
northern towns and cities 
are still uncertain when 
they can safely return and 
remain internally displaced 
refugees.
“The northern border 
cannot be secured with 
remotely monitored 
security cameras,” Hartman 
explained. “We are going 
to need constantly manned 
surveillance, and we don’t 
have enough (troops), so 
maybe the Haredim can 
play a role in a surveillance 
security capacity to free 
up other soldiers for more 
active combat roles, but one 
thing we know is we cannot 
force Haredim into military 
service.” 
 Hartman also acknow-
ledged that half of the 
nation of Israel lives in 
diaspora communities such 
as those in North America, 
who are facing their own 
challenges with the rise of 
antisemitism. 
“This dialogue is a very 
challenging situation as well 
and since Oct. 7, it is going 
to take even more work. But 
as more Israelis are noticing, 
(the Jewish Diaspora) stood 
with Israel in a way that 
inspired us. We felt less 
alone when we needed you 
and you have been there,” he 
said. 

Teen Fellows 

Rebecca Starr, director of Regional Programs for the 
Shalom Hartman Institute of North America, gave a 
special mention to about a dozen teens in the audience 
who were participants in this year’s Hartman Teen 
Fellowship. 
The Fellowship is an opportunity for North American 
Jewish high school students to delve into the Israel/
Diaspora relationship and build Jewish leadership 
skills. Applications are now being accepted for Fall 
2024. For more information, go to shalomhartman.org/
teenfellowship. 

Free Webinars 
for Michiganders 
Dealing with 
Financial Trauma 

Gesher Human Services 
will be holding two free 
online webinars in May to 
address financial trauma, the 
emotional and psychological 
distress caused by negative 
financial experiences that 
significantly impact an 
individual’s well-being. 
The two-part webinar will 
discuss how trauma can be 
due to overwhelming debt or 
job loss, or due to generational 
financial hardships or 
behaviors with money. 
Financial Trauma: Impacts 
and Behaviors – Part 1 will be 
held on May 3 at 1 p.m.; and 
Part 2 will be held on May 
17 at 1 p.m. The programs 
are free, and participants are 
not required to attend both 
programs. 
 “
Anxiety, depression and 
other mental health issues 
can arise because of financial 
trauma, and this can lead to 
physical symptoms such as 
panic attacks, headaches and 
chest pain,” said Financial 
Education Manager Laltsha 
Cunningham. 
“In some cases, people do 
need to see a therapist, social 
worker or other professional, 
but learning how to handle 
money and changing financial 
behaviors can also help to 
break the cycle of financial 
trauma.”
To register for the free 
program, call (248) 233-4299, 
email financialhelp@geshermi.
org or go to the events page at 
geshermi.org. 

