While most Israelis now reject the notion of ceding land, our further advancement requires the construction of a new ideological paradigm.Following nearly a year of war since the Hamas attacks on Simḥat Torah of last year, Yehuda HaKohen is joined by Rav Gavriel Reiss to discuss how Israeli society has changed during the war and what limitation sti…

What are the values pushing some Jewish students to call for an end to Israel's current war?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by Columbia University student organizer Aharon Dardik, who spent his formative years in a Judean/West Bank Jewish community but now calls for a ceasefire as Israel fights on multiple fronts.…

Could students of postcolonial studies benefit from examining the Zionist movement as an example of both settler-colonialism & national liberation?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by Professor Derek Penslar for a conversation about the unique relationship between Ashkenazi Jews, Orientalism, anti-Semitism, Zionism, colonialism & postcolonialism.The two als…

Is there a uniquely Jewish balance one can strike between tribal rootedness & universalism?After hosting Rav Gavriel Reiss in Phoenix, Rav Shmuely Yanklowitz of the Valley Beit Midrash joins Rav Yehuda HaKohen for a follow up conversation on the need to create a critical mass of young Jewish organizers able to show up for other oppressed and margin…

The most pressing challenges of our time demand a deeper embrace of our unique identities & a principled rejection of shallow political thinking.Rav Gavriel Reiss addresses the Valley Beit Midrash in Arizona & discusses the need to move away from the "two-state" paradigm in favor of an approach based more on the very real identities & realities on …

Rav Gavriel Reiss shares his personal journey from life as an assimilated Jew growing up on the outskirts of Los Angeles to creating facts on the ground in southern Judea.Av Vision Magazine

Can Israel truly receive a fair trial according to the moral standards of the West if Western civilization is fundamentally rooted in a Christian worldview?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by Professor Jeremy England to discuss his recent piece, Live by the Law or Die on the Cross, and the extent to which Israel could hope to survive and thrive as a Jewish…

After years of branding Israel as a 'Western nation' closely allied to the United States, the campus-based pro-Israel advocacy organizations shouldn't be surprised when Israel is perceived by many students as a settler-colony.Yehuda HaKohen is joined by Vision student organizer Sharon Levy to analyze why the mainstream pro-Israel advocacy organizat…

Why do the children of Israel celebrate the seventh night of Pesaḥ (referred to by Rav Sa’adya Gaon as "Ḥag HaShmada" – the “Festival of Destruction”)? Yehuda HaKohen teaches that in addition to commemorating the smashing of Egypt’s military at the Sea of Reeds, the 21st of Nisan also marks something more significant to Israel’s development – the c…

What was the ancient Egyptian worldview that humanity required liberation from?Ahead of the festival of Israel's freedom, Yehuda HaKohen shares his thoughts on the Egyptian ideology & true educational purpose of the ten plagues.Av Vision Magazine

Did the US intelligence community intentionally deceive Israel's leadership regarding the likelihood of being attacked on Yom Kippur of 5734 (1973)?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by former NSA Mideast intelligence analyst Bruce Brill to discuss his new book Deceit of an Ally: A Memoir of Military Anti-Semitism, NSA's Secret Jew Room and Yom Kippur Treach…

As the Biden administration schemes to remove Netanyahu from office, the prime minister's domestic political needs have aligned with exposing the toxicity of the US-Israel relationship.Yehuda HaKohen is joined by Vision organizer Aryeh Shapiro for a discussion on Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's defiant wartime posture towards the United States.…

If different societies have different concepts of freedom, what does freedom mean to Israel?Ahead of the anniversary of Leḥi (Fighters for the Freedom of Israel) leader Natan Yellin-Mor's passing, Yehuda HaKohen is joined by a Vision affiliated "Anonymous Soldier" to discuss the need for political education within Israel's national-religious camp.…

What does it mean to engage Yishmael from a place of power? Can a stronger Jewish identity help Israel to better communicate with the Islamic world?Lizzy Oziel & Yehuda HaKohen are joined by Inon Kehati of the Home movement to discuss his new book aimed at communicating Israel's story to the Muslim world.The three also discuss the importance of def…

Is Washington's aggressive push for partition inadvertently strengthening Binyamin Netanyahu & increasing the Israeli public's desire for freedom?Lizzy Oziel & Yehuda HaKohen discuss how the Biden administration's efforts to push Israel back to a two-state paradigm have actually backfired against American interests in the Semitic region.The two als…

Now that westernization has lost its grip on society, is Israel returning to the ethos of the Zionist era or advancing to a new stage of national development?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by Rav Gavriel Reiss to discuss the meaning and potential ramifications of the mentality shift that's taken place within Israeli society since the Hamas attacks of Sim…

The story of Israel's judicial reform battles from the perspective of one of the initiative's main architects.Member of Knesset Simḥa Rothman (Religious Zionism) joins Yehuda HaKohen for a discussion on the Supreme Court's recent move to strike down the government's cancelation of the "reasonableness" clause that has historically been used by the c…

Has the current Gaza War created better conditions for Israel to move towards military self-sufficiency and free ourselves from the United States?Lizzy Oziel & Yehuda HaKohen are joined by "Prisoner of Zion" Jonathan Pollard to discuss Israel's looming battle over identity and the extent to which the people of Israel have begun to recognize the dan…

Washington is demanding that Jerusalem present a plan for Gaza following the war against Hamas. But would unveiling such a plan be helpful right now?Lizzy Oziel & Yehuda HaKohen record a special Ḥanukah episode to discuss whether or not Israel should submit to US demands for a "day after" the war plan.In response to Jerusalem's stated requirements …

What does it really mean to be a Maccabi today?Following a special announcement, Lizzy Oziel & Yehuda HaKohen talk about some of the deeper themes surrounding Ḥanukah and how they continuously repeat themselves throughout Israel's history. The two also discuss the dangerous psychological ramifications of Israelis celebrating the 1947 UN partition p…

How does the current conflict between Israel & Hamas in Gaza concern Hezbollah, Iran, the US empire, Saudi Arabia, China, Russia & the hostages?As Israel's army pivots from areal strikes to a ground assault on northern Gaza, Lizzy Oziel & Yehuda HaKohen are joined by former United States diplomat and CIA case officer Ariel Avidar to analyze Israel'…

Israel & Israel advocacy organizations have adopted messages that unwittingly strengthen anti-Israel narratives.As Israel sends soldiers into Gaza to fight Hamas, Lizzy Oziel & Yehuda HaKohen discuss the challenges and benefits of understanding the narrative of the Other during war.The two also discuss the failure of the hasbara industry's efforts …

Can the crises surrounding the current war with Hamas help Israel grow beyond Western ideological paradigms & realize our true potential on the world stage?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by Rav Gavriel Reiss - a founder of the movement who created a farm in southern Judea to actualize Vision ideals.The two discuss how this war exposed Western civilizatio…

The only way to stop further conflicts with Hamas is for Israel to acknowledge the mistake of leaving Gaza & formulate a visionary strategy for return.As Israel reels from the horrific Hamas attacks of Simḥat Torah & finds itself fighting a new war on multiple fronts, Lizzy Oziel & Yehuda HaKohen are joined by Shai Hershel to discuss the situation.…

How should we understand the recent attacks on Yom Kippur services by Tel Aviv protestors?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by Shanna Fuld of Tribe TLV to discuss the disruptions and their implications for Israeli society.Av Vision Magazine

Do current tensions in Israeli society indicate a need to separate into a new Israeli state & a Judean state?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by Nitzan Amit of the Israeli Separation Movement that seeks to copy the Biblical model of dividing the country into a new Israeli state (Yosef) and a Judean state (Yehuda).…

Can Gen Z Jews - detached from the traumatic experiences of previous generations - engage in more nuanced conversations about Israel?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by McKenna Bates, director of Israel engagement at the Towson University Hillel, to discuss the challenges of teaching a multilayered understanding of Israeli society to a generation accustome…

How much space can Israel's westernized ruling class make for the growing majority of Israelis who champion a different vision for the country?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by Paul Gross - an organizer in the protest movement against Israeli judicial reforms - to discuss the different perspectives driving supporters and opponents of the government’s leg…

Israel isn't the only country where the Americans orchestrate anti-government protests but it might be the only country where the US-backed faction is called 'the left' (despite being the bourgeoisie).Yehuda HaKohen shares his thoughts on the re-intensification of Israel's judicial reform debate and plays a deleted conversation with Aryeh Shapiro f…

What can we say we've learned about Jewish liberation from 100 episodes of The Next Stage?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by Vision movement organizers Lizzy Oziel, Aryeh Shapiro & Shai Hershel for the 100th episode of The Next Stage podcast to discuss the need for a post-Zionist Jewish liberation movement and to outline some of its objectives.…

Should the word 'Zionist' be used to refer to all of history's many Jewish liberation movements or should the term be more narrowly limited to the actual Zionist movement?Does it really make a difference?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by conservative neo-Zionist media personality Adam Scott Bellos for a multi-layered discussion on whether or not the Jewi…

It's important that the Jewish people engage our Torah through the ideological lens of Israel's cherished prophets & sages. In a special pre-Shavuot bonus episode of The Next Stage, Yehuda HaKohen addresses several misconceptions regarding Israel's Torah that have resulted from the many layers of colonization that the Jewish people experienced in e…

What is the Torah that Israel received on Shavuot & what must Jews do in order to properly receive it?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by Rav David Samson to discuss what it means for the Jewish people to prepare to receive the Torah.Av Vision Magazine

Is there a model for a Jewish state that could work for Palestinians? Can Jews and Muslims become partners in achieving our respective missions?Yehuda HaKohen shares a recording of a Clash and Mash podcast episode in which he's interviewed by diaspora Palestinian activist Anas Salah.Av Vision Magazine

Can the current societal tensions tearing Israeli society apart help inspire a much needed conversation about the future of the country?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by [neo-?]Zionist political researcher Samuel Hyde to discuss the protests against judicial reform, the future status of the West Bank, the need for a national postcolonial conversation and…

Can the State of Israel create new governmental structures that allow its various socio-political tribes to live together?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by Ariel Beery, who's been participating in recent protests against Israeli judicial reforms and puts forward the narrative that's been driving the protests. The two also discuss Beery's recent piece on …

If concerns surrounding judicial reforms are about human rights & civil liberties, why are the weakest sectors of society supporting the reforms while Israel's elites & security agencies oppose them?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by attorney Tehila Gimpel for a deep dive into the backstory of Israel's Basic Laws as a quasi-constitution, on Aharon Barak's…

Where does Israel's historic arch foe come from?What are its foundational beliefs?Who can best be identified as Amalek in modern times when examined through the lens of Jewish historiography?The original Amalek was the grandson of Esav. Our sages identify Esav as the progenitor of Western civilization (not necessarily biologically but certainly in …

What might the Jewish attack on Huwara reveal about the trajectory of Israeli-Palestinian relations?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by Jerusalem educator Shammai Siskind for a discussion on how the recent Jewish attack on the Palestinian village of Huwara should be understood beyond the headlines.Av Vision Magazine

What can Tu B'Shvat teach us about formulating a new vision for Jewish liberation & the reborn nation of Israel's critical role on the international stage?Yehuda HaKohen shares a recording of a Tu B'Shvat seder he led in Phoenix Arizona at the Valley Beit Midrash.Av Vision Magazine

'Prisoner of Zion' Jonathan Pollard discusses the state of the Jewish people's subjugation to the US and the steps Israel must take in order to attain freedom.Yehuda HaKohen and Pollard discuss his personal story, the US-Israel relationship, American anti-Semitism, Israeli judicial reforms, the Iranian nuclear threat, the inferiority complexes of I…

Is the formation of Israel's new 'extremist' government a revolutionary moment with potential for positive change or does it signal Zionism's demise (or both)?Rabbis Yehuda HaKohen and Mike Feuer debate the pros and cons of Israel's new "extremist" governing coalition under Binyamin Netanyahu (Likud).…

The tension between Israel's 'Jewish' & 'democratic' features should force us to become more of both.Lizzy Oziel & Yehuda HaKohen record a special Ḥanukah episode to address some inaccurate positions attributed to Yehuda by neo-Zionist journalist Samuel Hyde.The two also clarify some misconceptions surrounding the Vision movement and discuss what m…

How can non-Ḥaredi feminists best show up for women in Ḥaredi Jewish communities? Lizzy Oziel & Yehuda HaKohen are joined by Postcolonial Hebrew Feminist theorist Sharona eshet-Kohen to discuss a recent Haaretz op-ed by Yehudis Fletcher on issues confront women in Ḥaredi Jewish communities.Lizzy & Yehuda also discuss the potential political ramific…

Do Jewish crusaders against anti-Semitism unwittingly contribute to systemic anti-Semitism in ways they aren't aware of?Yehuda is joined by Vision organizer Lizzy Oziel to discuss her recent piece on how the "anti-anti-Semitism" crowd often falls into the trap of strengthening anti-Semitism as a system of oppression.…

What can the Jewish people learn about our own liberation movement and current state policies by examining violence and its various manifestations.Rabbis Mike Feuer and Yehuda HaKohen discuss the healing role that violence played in Zionist thought and the structural violence that manifests today in various Israeli policies.…

How is Israel's current election cycle antagonizing contradictions within the national-religious sector?Yehuda HaKohen is joined by Jerusalem educator Shammai Siskind for a discussion on what Israel's upcoming elections mean within the context of broader societal shifts.Av Vision Magazine

Can Ayelet Shaked convince voters to see past her involvement in the plutocratic Bennett-Lapid coalition?Jeremy Sultan - director of the Yamina Knesset faction & candidate on the Bayit Yehudi list for Knesset - joins Yehuda HaKohen to defend the outgoing coalition & discuss what sectors of Israeli society could potentially vote for Shaked in the up…

Can Jewish women be empowered in such a way that originates from a Hebrew worldview, preserves the Jewish people's value system and seeks solutions through Israel's unique cultural/historical lens?Yehuda HaKohen shares a class taught by Sharona eshet-Kohen on the ATID online leadership program introducing her approach to postcolonial Hebrew Feminis…

Can social media be a forum for high level conversations around Jewish identity & liberation?Yirmiyahu Danzig joins Yehuda HaKohen to discuss the difficulties of using social media to teach Jews about the need for decolonization without sacrificing intellectual depth (can we avoid reducing the conversation to a caricaturish form of Israel advocacy?…