By: Amichay Findling, Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor
The Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor is proud to provide the Ann Arbor area community with a variety of opportunities for deep and nuanced learning about Israel. Recently, the Federation hosted an Israel educator in town to engage the community. Coming up on January 12 is another exciting opportunity. Please see additional details at the bottom of this article about a brunch engagement focusing on Jewish-Arab relations in Israel, and a kick-off event for the upcoming Community Israel trip, planned for the winter break of 2025-26.
Alex Sinclair
Alex Sinclair is an Author and an Israel-educator, holding positions as Chief Content Officer at “Educating for Impact”, and an adjunct lecturer at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He has written and spoken widely on Jewish education, Israel-Diaspora relations, and Israeli politics, in both academic and popular contexts. He has worked or consulted for many of the finest Jewish educational and communal institutions in North America, Europe and Israel.
The Jewish community in greater Ann Arbor was fortunate to host Sinclair for a long and content-packed weekend during his early November lecture tour across North America. During his 4 days’ stay in southeast Michigan, he held several speaking engagements across Ann Arbor, sponsored by a collaboration of the Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor, Temple Beth Emeth, Beth Israel Congregation, and Michigan Hillel.
Sinclair started his local tour at Temple Beth Emeth, where he spoke during and following the Friday night Shabbat service. The topic of discussion was “Engaging with Israel in the age of Smotrich and Ben Gvir.” Sinclair tackled the difficult issue of maintaining loving relationships with a country that develops an ever-increasing ideological rift between itself and many in the diaspora. How can Americans continue supporting a State that is governed by radical supremacists and clerical ministers, while promoting liberal values at home?
Sinclair’s proposal to this rift is adopting a view of dissidence, rather than separating ourselves from the only Jewish nation in the world. As dissidents, we are patriots, we love Israel but strongly oppose its current policies. We support Israelis while criticizing their government. Following his lecture, a spirited Q&A session took place, which lasted much longer than expected. Sinclair also offered his books for sale to follow up on the conversation, and they sold out!
The next day, Sinclair visited Beth Israel Congregation (BIC) and engaged congregants there. Jerry Sorokin, Executive Director of BIC, shared his reflections on the event:
“Alex Sinclair delivered the D’var Torah at Beth Israel’s Shabbat morning service and then spoke again in the afternoon. In the D’var Torah, he related the well-known story of the binding of Isaac to contemporary controversies in Israel. In the afternoon talk, he challenged people to understand the impact of their formative experiences with Israel on how they interpret the current situation. Putting that context into the conversation helps to explain the generational divide in views about Israel. He raised questions about how to be supportive of Israel while actively criticizing ongoing government policies and military actions. His provocative comments generated questions and vigorous debate.”
On Alex Sinclair’s final day in Ann Arbor, a group of local Jewish professionals had lunch with him at Jewish Family Services of Washtenaw County. Osnat Gafni-Papas, the Jewish Federation’s Life & Legacy Manager, attended the luncheon and reported:
“Due to the intimate nature of the gathering, we were able to delve into a deep discussion about the differences between the younger and the older generations’ relationships with Israel. To be able to hear others describe their perspectives on their first exposure to the state of Israel and how it shaped their vision of Israel was eye-opening. Though this conversation leant itself to vulnerability on our part, Alex found a way to weave our stories into the lessons he has learned through his research and teachings that felt validating. I found our time with him was very engaging and gave me a deeper understanding of the complexities that the role of Israel plays in our individual Jewish journeys.”
Sinclair’s visit concluded at Michigan Hillel, where he dined and conversed with a select group of student leaders. In this discussion, he returned to the topic of his first presentation – how to engage with Israel while it is governed by extremists, but at this unique campus engagement, emphasis was put on the situation of Jewish students and organizations facing intensified anti-Israeli and antisemitic propaganda on a daily basis.
Sarah Shapin, a native of Grand Rapids, MI is in the UM class of 2027. She attended this engagement and shared the following reflections:
“It was enlightening to learn more about Israel’s political landscape from a more moderate perspective and gain insight on inner Israeli conflicts with current leaders. Coming out of the event, I found myself more curious about Israeli internal politics, now having a deeper understanding that the potential resolutions to conflicts between Israel and its neighboring countries aren’t so straightforward, and that the means of reaching those goals aren’t so clear from a multitude of angles. Getting to exchange ideas with and learn from Alex Sinclair and my peers through exchange of perspectives and proposals was an excellent opportunity, and I look forward to discussions such as this in the future.”
During this four-events-in-four-days visit in Ann Arbor, more than 100 community members participated in in-depth, nuanced discussions about present-day Israel and the challenges that Israel-loving American Jews are facing.
For those who missed the engagements, or anyone who participated and wants more, Sinclair’s books are available for purchase online, including his informative book, Loving the Real Israel—An Educational Agenda for Liberal Zionism, and his latest novel, Perfect Enemy. The latter is an exciting and suspenseful thriller that poses uncomfortable questions about trauma and revenge, the desire for peace, religious extremism, and the schisms of the Middle East.
Continue the conversation on January 12
There are more opportunities to engage in in-depth learning about Israel coming up, with two events on Sunday, Jan. 12.
First, at 10am, the Federation invites the community to its new Israel education series, which explores Jewish-Arab relations in Israeli society since October 7th. The first event of the series will be an in-person/virtual hybrid brunch and lecture with Dr. Arik Cheshin about Jews and Arabs at the University of Haifa. Dr. Cheshin is a visiting Professor in the University of Michigan Department of Psychology. His home institution is the University of Haifa, and his research focuses on emotions in organizations. Among Israeli higher education institutions, the University of Haifa in northern Israel has the highest percentage (41%) of Arab Israeli students, making it fertile ground for a shared civil society.
Later that same day (4pm on January 12 in the new Hebrew Day School library at the JCC), all are invited to learn about greater Ann Arbor’s Community Trip to Israel in December 2025. Come learn more about the itinerary and hear what excites our community’s leaders about the trip.
For more information, visit JewishAnnArbor.org/Events or contact Federation’s Israel and Overseas Program Manager Amichay Findling at amichay@jewishannarbor.org.