I mentioned in my column yesterday about the IDF soldiers who refused to enter an APC with a female paramedic that Israel is in desperate need of a moderate religious leadership. Was Rabbi Menachem Froman, z’l, “moderate”? That depends. But that he was out of the box, and a model of something very different, is beyond question.
Froman (1945–2013) was one of the most enigmatic, iconoclastic, and visionary figures in modern Israeli history. A founding pioneer of the Gush Emunim settlement movement and the long-time chief rabbi of the mixed religious-secular city of Tekoa in the Judean Hills, Froman defied every conventional political category in the Middle East. Deeply anchored in Hasidic mysticism and the teachings of Rav Kook, he viewed the Israeli-Palestinian struggle not as a secular conflict over real estate, but as a holy clash that required a deeply religious resolution. Driven by an unwavering belief in human divinity, he aroused fury when he spent decades building personal, spiritual, and diplomatic ties with Muslim clerics, PLO leaders, and figures within Hamas, arguing that true reconciliation could only spring from mutual reverence for the sacred land and its God.
Today, we speak with the author of a new, fascinating biography of Froman.
Mordy Miller is an Assistant Professor at the Ben-Gurion Research Institute for the Study of Israel and Zionism, where he teaches in the International MA Program in Israel Studies at the Sde Boker Campus. His research explores the intersection of theology and politics in contemporary Israel, with particular attention to Kabbalah, messianism, and the role of digital media in shaping religious and political discourse.
He received his BA with distinction in Philosophy and Jewish Thought from Shalem College, his MA from the Hebrew University as a Mandel Excellence Fellow, and his PhD from Ben-Gurion University. During his doctoral studies he was a Kreitman Fellow and an Open University Fellow.
He has held postdoctoral fellowships at Brandeis University and Ben-Gurion University, and has taught at Shalem College, Ono Academic College, Gratz College, and at Ben-Gurion University’s Eilat campus. He is currently a Research Fellow at the Schocken Institute.
His recent book on Rabbi Menachem Froman, published by Yediot Books, received the Mifal HaPais Award. He is currently completing two academic books on Kabbalah and contemporary Israeli thought.
His work has appeared in leading journals, including the Journal of the American Academy of Religion and Harvard Theological Review. He lives in Lehavim with his wife and two children.
The link at the top of this posting will take free subscribers to an excerpted portion of today’s conversation.
For paid subscribers, the link at the top will take you to the full conversation; below, paid subscribers will also find a transcript for those who prefer to read, as always.
With Rosh Hashanah just a week and a half away, a reminder that during the holiday season, we will be on a slightly reduced schedule Weekly podcasts for paid subscribers will of course continue to appear on schedule, but other content will be reduced as many of us devote time to preparing for and welcoming the New Year, which we pray will bring much better tidings to Israel, our region and the world at large.
