Loving Israel When Israel Disappoints You: Yossi Klein Halevi on Zionism, Criticism, and Hope

For many Jews who care deeply about Israel, the past few years have created a painful tension. We know that Israel is routinely judged unfairly, that much of the criticism directed against it ignores the extraordinary circumstances it faces, that many charges leveled against Israel are absolutely false and libelous, and that some of its loudest critics are interested not in changing Israel, but in delegitimizing it altogether. Context matters, and Israel cannot be judged honestly without taking that context seriously.

At the same time, loving Israel does not require us to pretend that Israel always gets everything right, or that every criticism is necessarily unfair. So how do we hold those truths together? How do we defend Israel against accusations that are false or distorted, while remaining willing to confront genuine failures when they occur? And how do we acknowledge disappointment without allowing that disappointment to undermine our commitment to Zionism itself?

Yossi Klein Halevi has spent a lifetime thinking about Israel, Zionism, Jewish identity, and the divisions within Israeli society. In this conversation, we discuss that difficult balancing act, the crisis some Diaspora Jews are experiencing in their relationship with Israel, the changing face of Religious Zionism, and whether a deeply divided Israel can recover a shared sense of purpose and a compelling vision for its future.

And for members of Orthodox Conundrum Commentary: Yossi reflects on what decades of interfaith dialogue have taught him about his own Judaism. He explains how encountering deeply committed Christians and Muslims changed the way he approaches prayer, religious practice, and his relationship with God.