Talking Politics without Losing Friends

On April 9, Israel heads to the polls for its next election. While Israelis work to keep up with the emergence of new political parties and alliances, here in America we are watching with anticipation, curiosity, and often…anxiety. Israeli politics, much like our own American politics, bri…

Getting Past Avoidance

By: Naomi Bilmes, Jewish Studies Educator, Gann Academy​

Recently, a colleague asked me, "Do you know anyone in the community who has right-leaning views on Israel who would be willing to be part of a panel?"

I thought for a moment. I had one suggestion. When my colleague pressed me for …

Some Thoughts on CJP’s CommUNITY Dialogue on Israel’s 70th Anniversary

By: David Sachs, CommUNITY Israel Dialogue workshop participant, Temple Israel Natick​

On this 70th anniversary of the State of Israel, our Jewish community is experiencing two realities:

• Israel is facing rapidly growing threats to its existence from Iran and its sponsored proxies, Ham…

A Workshop for Actual Conversations

By: Josh Berman, Boston University sophomore and President of BU Students for Israel

Last month, I was invited to participate in a workshop run by Resetting the Table as part of CJP’s CommUNITY Israel Dialogue at the Boston University Hillel. This was one of the most beneficial workshops …

Demonstrating Agreeable Disagreement

Two opinionated experts model constructive dialogue

Columnists J.J. Goldberg and Jonathan Tobin have made distinguished careers out of expressing opinions on a wide variety of issues, and they are almost always on opposite sides of the political/ideological spectrum. Goldberg, a liberal, co…