“This isn’t the first time that [Donniel] Hartman has expressed unusual views uncharacteristic of the population he belongs to – commitment to democratic values, universal morals and even – as hopeless and naive as it may sound – a vision of peace” writes journalist Ronen Tal of Haaretz after a lengthy conversation with Donniel Hartman. In an interview that appeared in Haaretz’s Gallery magazine, Donniel shares important perspectives on a range of issues facing Israeli society today.

Below are a few highlights of Hartman’s perspectives and a link to read the full conversation.

“There [is] a profound ethical struggle taking place over our identity, and there’s a silent public, that’s so immersed in fear that it’s afraid to participate in this discussion. October 7 froze the liberal discussion, and one of the ways to bring it back is by means of the Jewish discussion. The State of Israel is a Jewish state, and liberalism that is severed from Judaism won’t catch on here. We think that there’s a contradiction between a Jewish state and a democratic state; I believe that a state that’s less democratic is less Jewish.”

“For me, secular Judaism is just as authentic as Orthodox Judaism. There are many ways to worship God and many ways of being committed to tradition. I’ve built a Judaism of my own, the other researchers whom we train [at the Hartman Institute] are committed to building their own Judaism. Here women get called up to the Torah and there are gender studies that the boys learn too. I didn’t want the girls to be in the 21st century while the boys remained in the Middle Ages.”

“Religion is a moral thing not based on what’s written, but based on how you read and interpret what’s written.”

“Did we return to the land in order to be the masters of another nation? I know, large percentages of the Palestinians hate us, large percentages support terror, I’m committed to the security of the Jewish people and a defensive war is morally right. At the same time, I wonder whether Gaza will be a catalyst for a different discussion.”

“A just peace is to agree that both you and I have rights, and that we can talk about a reality in which both of our rights will be realized and the two peoples will live in two states side by side in peace and security.”

Read the full conversation with Donniel Hartman in Gallery magazine from Haaretz