Zack Bodner is the President and CEO of the Oshman Family JCC in Palo Alto, CA. He is the author of the recently published Why Do Jewish? A Manifesto for 21st Century Jewish Peoplehood. Learn more at www.whydojewish.com.
Zack Bodner
By Zack Bodner
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Opinion East Coast Jews defined the last century of Jewish life. West Coast Jews have the next
This essay was adapted from a section of the book “Why Do Jewish? A Manifesto for 21st Century Jewish Peoplehood,” published by Gefen Publishing in Nov. 2021. If the last century of Jewish American life was built by the Jews of the East Coast, then it’s quite possible the next hundred years of Jewish life…
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Opinion We are on the precipice of a violent divide. We must embrace those we disagree with.
This essay is part of a collection of essays commemorating the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin. The collection was produced in partnership with BINA: The Jewish Movement for Social Change. As someone who has devoted his entire career to strengthening Jewish Peoplehood, I am deeply troubled by the polarization in our political and religious discourse. The murder…
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Community Jewish peoplehood 4.0 – it’s time to update our operating system
If you were Jewish 200 years ago, it defined everything about you. It defined what you ate, where you lived, how you dressed, what you did for a living, how you spoke, and who you married. But if you are Jewish today, that may be just one piece of your multifaceted identity. At a time…
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Community How a Silicon Valley mindset helped us host an epic Zoom bar mitzvah
“We could play a YouTube version of ‘Adon Olam’ to a really catchy tune!” “We could play personal messages for him from family all over the world!” “We could have an Israeli rock star sing him a song!” These were the “What ifs” that drove the conversation between me and my wife after we decided…
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Opinion In An Era With Two Jewish Centers, We Need A New Zionism
It’s no secret that we Jews are living in divided times. In recent years, more and more American Jews have become frustrated with specific Israeli policies and are defining their entire relationship with Israel by the areas of their disagreement. That has led to more American Jews publicly criticizing Israel, which has led to more…
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