“Learning is but an adjunct to ourselves ……” William Shakespeare.

Menachem and Leah Gottesman’s passion is the Jerusalem high school Meled where they transform the lives of youths- and their families – via Menachem’s (PhD Ed) groundbreaking educational work. They talk with Eve about the importance of recognizing the individual’s potential, informal education, unconditional love, non judgement and teachers as mentors. No kid wants to fail, but without warm environments in school and the home that build self worth, dignity and respect many teens become ‘at risk’ and lose their way. Faith is themselves can be a precursor to faith in Hashem, too. After a devastating week in Israel of terrorism Eve wonders if this system can be applied to the Muslim schools or if there are too many cultural and religious pressures to make a real change. “Not at Risk- Education as a Work of Heart’ is the Gottesman’s new book, and we send prayers from the bottom of all our hearts to those affected by last week’s tragedies.

Paula Stern is Founder and CEO of Write Point, an Israeli company which trains people for a career in technical writing. She speaks with Eve about the challenges and unknowns of Aliya that ultimately shaped both her professional and personal life. In her blog ‘A Soldier’s Mother’ she eloquently described her own sons’ army service and connected with many other English speaking parents who were on the same emotional roller coaster of pride and panic, caring and consternation. In Israel we create different types of communities to cope and thrive in a very dynamic reality, interspersed with occasional normalcy. For immigrants without the natural language skills and cultural framework the needs are different, and Paula has filled a niche that for many has made all the difference.

Makor Rishon Journalist Sara Haetzni Cohen was incubated in a family steeped in Israel activism, including grandfather and former Member of Knesset Elyakim and dad Boaz. She speaks with Eve about My Israel, the on-line Israeli advocacy site that she heads. Over 2 years of investigating and interviewing various personalities on Alternatives to a 2 State Solution led to the upcoming conference that she’s organized on the topic called New Thinking on an Old Conflict. It will be held at the Begin Center on November 29th, the 71st anniversary of the partition plan that led to the birth of the modern state of Israel. This impressive young mother created a fertile environment for thinking out of the box and taking the initiative to proudly advance Israel’s future while protecting our interests and core values. Not child’s play.

Eve free thinks her impressions of events and experiences she’s had during the last month. Many of us behave in ways that contradict our beliefs and then make excuses for not fulfilling our own expectations. Are most of us hypocrites doing our best? And what’s truth and control anyhow? Should we judge each person and action on its own or does generalizing make us feel more righteous? Fitting philosophy into sports, politics and gun control. Many questions, few answers, but let’s keep on winging it, with a prayer.

Eve, while in New York, spoke with her beloved uncle, German born Rabbi Yitzchak Sladowsky, about his many decades in the American rabbinate in the post WWII era.  What has changed in Modern Orthodoxy since the mid 20th century?  How do we keep faith in times of crisis?   He relates a few of his experiences on the conversion committee and thoughts on how some of the issues we have today might be solved.   His eclectic mentors included Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik (the ‘Rav”) and Herman Wouk (the author).  Rabbi Sladowsky’s sensitivity and sense of humor  have only deepened with the years and his advice is still sought from congregants and relatives alike.  Until 120.

Eve is in Florida as part of her speaking tour for the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA) on the topic of the media (mis)reporting on Israel.  She speaks with retired educator and historian Paul Shaviv after her Shabbat scholar in residence at the Palm Beach synagogue, just before heading back north to the colder climes of DC, Philadelphia and New York.   While Eve doesn’t see eye to eye with Paul on some essentially political issues, (note to many Americans- you can have a respectful disagreement….) he raises some interesting, thought provoking points. Their conversational digressions include ideas on Israel and Diaspora Jews and the miscommunications inherent in the relationship as well as the rise of anti-Semitism especially in his native England.  The gist, though, is that education is at a major crossroads across all spheres, public and private, and a crisis looms large for everyone if it isn’t figured out, and soon.

Dr. Ari Greenspan has traveled the world looking for people who claim Jewish ancestry, in Africa and further beyond.  He speaks with Eve about some of his wilder adventures and his very esoteric Judaica, collected from places one would never associate with Jewish life.  What does all this mean?  Is this the ingathering of the exiles in a way we never anticipated, or a search for God via Biblical truths that are not necessary ‘Jewish’?

This interview will give the phrase what ‘being a member the Jewish tribe’ a whole new meaning.

Dr. Zhenia Fleisher (yes, mother of ) tells Eve personal stories of her childhood in the USSR, her aliya, marriage, love of the Sinai desert and gradual deep attachment to her faith in addition to her heritage.  A brilliant chemist (that will be another show or two) and long-time Zionist from when and where pro-Israel activism wasn’t so simple (to say the least), this cultured and gracious lady gives us a glimpse into the impact of the 6 Day War from behind the Iron Curtain.  Come to think of it, Yishai is the son of. Listen in. You’ll be left wanting more, too.

Eve wonders who decides what morality is and how we fight for a better world. The cruel murders last week in an “island of co-existence’ have again shaken her hope that mankind is inherently good.  Can we be suspicious without being racist?  The modern state of Israel is definitely an improvement over the last round of independence 2000+ years ago, but our enemies from without and within are challenging us daily.