"To Build a Pleasant House in Israel:" Building a Household vs. Building a Homeland

Dr. Rachel Rosenthal is a member of the second cohort of North American David Hartman Center Fellows. Rachel's research focuses on the intersection of Talmud and pedagogy. She received her PhD in Rabbinic Literature from the Jewish Theological Seminary, where her dissertation focused on how rabbinic analysis of the case of the stubborn and rebellious son provides models for moral education and development. Rachel is an adjunct assistant professor of Talmud at JTS, where she

“To Build a Pleasant House in Israel:” Building a Household vs. Building a Homeland

Throughout the Torah, settling the land of Israel is the ultimate fulfillment of God’s promise of redemption. As many Jews in the Diaspora know, the promise of the Land of Israel cannot always triumph over the familiarity of one’s home. The rabbis take up the question of what to do when one person in a couple wishes to move to Israel, and the other wishes to remain at home. Does the marriage stay intact? Can anyone force anyone else to move? Rachel Rosenthal explores how to build a vibrant and meaningful Jewish community in the Diaspora that still feels intimately connected to Israel.