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Ha’aretz, one of Israel’s leading daily newspapers, published a lengthy profile of Rabbi Dr. Donniel Hartman , President of the Shalom Hartman Institute, and the iEngage Project , on the eve of the Jewish Federations of North America General Assembly, which is being held in Jerusalem, Nov. 10-12, 2013.

 

The article, titled, "Rabbi urges Jews and Israel to drop the ‘near extinction’ narrative," describes Donniel Hartman’s positive outlook on Jewish life in the United States, as well as in Israel, and quotes Donniel as saying the Pew survey of American Jewish life, a widely discussed new report that some have taken as showing a negative future for Jews in the US, is "good news, because it reminds us that we have to work harder" to present a creative, meaningful, and aspirational view of Judaism.

 

The article describes the achievements of iEngage, which is now in hundreds of congregations and Jewish communities across North America, at offering just such a nuanced and reimagined view of Israel and its role in Jewish life.

 

“Now you can conduct a discussion about Israel on a level you’ve never been able to before,” Hartman says. "We talk about building the Israel that you want, not justifying the Israel that is.”

 

The article is available here on the Ha’aretz website.