BY ADAM SADINSKY
Three weeks ago, the seven of us arrived at the Shalom Hartman Institute (SHI) here in Jerusalem not knowing quite what to expect. A contingent of three Americans, three Canadians, and an Estonian, we all learned of the internship opportunity in different ways but were equally excited to find out what lay ahead of us. From the moment we started, we realized that we were in a special place under extraordinary leadership, one in which we were expected to learn as much as we worked. Jumping right into the Philosophy Conference, we essentially experienced Hartman 101. Although none of us were at the first Hartman Philosophy Conference in Ste. Agathe thirty years ago and none of us could “picture David Hartman in Greensboro,” what we learned right from the start was that this is a place of ideas, and that if we didn’t have one or couldn’t accept new ones, this was not the place for us.
Nearly every day, we have been exposed to new ideas, sometimes complementing, other times challenging, what we believe and know about Judaism and Zionism. Our learning has taken many forms. Most traditionally it has been in lectures by scholars like Prof. Moshe Halbertal and Dr. Micah Goodman or political figures such as MK Tzipi Livni. We also had a “crash course” in the iEngage philosophy, watching all 9 videos of the iEngage 1.0 series (
Engaging Israel: Foundations for a New Relationship ) in two days. Some of the education has been more experiential, as last week we had the privilege of accompanying the
Community Leadership Program on tiyulim to Israel’s periphery and to learn about King Herod.
In between those incredible experiences and eating generous lunches, possibly the greatest form of learning we have done has been in our work. Each of us is paired with a senior iEngage fellow to help them with research for books and articles on issues pertinent to Israeli society, culture, and politics today. In all of its facets, our experience at SHI has not been the run-of-the-mill internship, but rather an educational opportunity that will have much a much larger impact on developing our personal philosophies on Judaism and Zionism and sharpening our intellect and critical thinking.
Interns
Joshua Freedman
From: Toronto, Ontario
Education: B.A. in Political Science from McGill University
Future plans: Beginning a combined degree in Law and Criminology at the University of Toronto in September
Task at SHI: Copy-editing Yossi Klein Halevi’s upcoming book, Like Dreamers, and helping Yossi develop two courses he is teaching at JTS this year
Fun fact: Josh spends most of his time drinking tea in Yossi’s office
Hanna Metsala
From: Tallinn, Estonia
Education: Undergraduate degree in International Relations from Tallinn University of Technology and Corvinus University of Budapest. Currently completing an M.A. in Security and Diplomacy Studies at Tel Aviv University
Future plans: School of Foreign Service in Estonia
Task at SHI: Aiding Dr. Marcie Lenk on the New Paths: Christians Engaging Israel program
Fun fact: Hanna is getting married in January
Maria Naimark
From: Toronto, Ontario
Education: B.A. (first-class joint honours) in Political Science and Russian Literature from McGill University
Future plans: Beginning a one-year M.A. program in diplomacy at IDC Herzliya in October, followed by law school in Canada or the United States in Fall 2014
Task at SHI: Helping Professor Daniel Statman with research on drones and ethics
Fun fact: Maria loves vegetarian cooking, hot yoga, Bernese Mountain Dogs, and tennis
Isaac (Amichai) Roszler
From: Miami Beach, Florida
Education: B.A. in Judaic Studies and History from New York University
Future plans: Beginning a degree in Law at the University of Pennsylvania in August
Task at SHI: Helping Professor Suzanne Last Stone complete an article about Zionism and law and doing research to transform her lecture “Compromising Justice for the Sake of Peace” into an article
Fun fact: Isaac doesn’t know how to whistle
Adam Sadinsky
From: Ottawa, Ontario
Education: B.A. (first class honors) in Political Science from McGill University
Future plans: Beginning a degree in Law at Queen’s University in September
Task at SHI: Working with Rabbi Dr. Donniel Hartman and Alan Abbey to develop an e-book of Donniel’s past blog posts and a searchable database of sources from past Hartman lectures. Also helping to develop a study guide for Yossi Klein Halevi’s book,
Like Dreamers
Fun fact: During the 2010 Winter Olympics, Adam considered joining the Israeli Bobsled team
Aaron Weinberg
From: Evanston, Illinois
Education: Currently completing a five-year B.A/M.A. majoring in Near Eastern Judaic Studies and Sociology at Brandeis University
Future plans: Beginning an M.A. in Jewish Professional Leadership at the Hornstein School at Brandeis
Task at SHI: Aiding Professor Gil Troy in compiling sources for an updated version of
The Zionist Idea by Arthur Hertzberg
Fun fact: In 2010, Aaron traveled on five continents
