Agents of Change: American Jews and the Transformation of Israeli Judaism

The rise of moderate Orthodox Judaism in Israel and the key role of Americans in its emergence

The conservative ultra-Orthodox and redemptive "Kook" camps hold sway over religious matters in Israel. Yet from the mid-1960s to the early 1980s, a small cadre of American immigrants arrived in Israel and established or led a range of educational institutions that trained thousands of advanced students and laid the ideological foundations for an Israeli moderate religious stream. In Agents of Change, Adam S. Ferziger highlights the parts played by these Americans in promoting the rise of a transnational community of moderate Jewish Orthodoxy.

Analyzing the novel outlooks that have found expression in central areas of debates, from women’s engagements in religious and public life and approaches to the gay and lesbian community to interactions with non-Orthodox denominations and attitudes toward academic Jewish studies, Ferziger illuminates both shifting religious dynamics in Israel as a result of this rise in moderate Orthodoxy, as well as the changing relationship between Israeli and American Judaisms, challenging current understandings which see the Jewish communities of the two nations as drifting apart. Though a minority in Israel, this vocal Orthodox community with a more moderate take on key issues is significant in potentially paving the way for social change. Increasingly, their influence is being felt. Shedding light on the impact of American migration in forming a burgeoning moderate religious direction in Israeli life that has challenged the hegemony of the long dominant direction within Religious Zionism, Agents of Change offers a fresh perspective on the multifaceted collaboration of ideas and practices that exists between Israel and America.

Facebook reviews:

Josh Cohen:

Recently, I have been recommending this book to anyone who'll listen! Inspired by Barnaby Nemko and his book-packed linkedin feed, I thought I'd share some of my thoughts...

"Agents of Change" by Adam S. Ferziger traces the stories of eight North American leaders and visionaries who have reshaped Israel’s religious life, particularly in what he calls the "IsMO" (Israeli Moderate Orthodoxy) space. Through portraits of figures like Rav Aharon Lichtenstein and Rabbanit Chana Henkin, Prof. Ferziger explores how outsiders became architects of an entire religious culture.

It's academically rigorous and meticulously researched, but beautifully readable. It's genuinely exciting to read if you care about Jewish leadership and community-building.

Two thoughts have really stuck with me as I've been working my way through the book.

As an oleh chadash, a word that gets thrown around a lot in my circle is "integration." There seems to be a never-ending mission to become truly Israeli (whatever that means in such a diverse country less than 80 years old), without much consideration of into which sector of Israeli society one might want to integrate or why there's such an inherent value to integration in the first place. (Not that integration isn't valuable, just that it's worth asking why before treating it as an end in itself).

But, no matter how elite the IDF unit you draft into, how long you live here or how good your Hebrew, an Oleh will never be "fully Israeli". No matter how hard I try, I will never truly escape the first half of my hyphenated British-Israeli identity.

And, in part thanks to Ferziger, that's something I've made peace with.

So many of the extraordinary people, my role models, who built my corner of Israeli Dati Leumi culture weren't "fully Israeli" either. They came from somewhere else and brought their strengths with them, making their hyphenated identity a strength, not a liability.

The second thought I've been dwelling on is education as a medium for change. To paraphrase Prof. Ferziger on a panel and when he very kindly sat down for a coffee with me recently, these institutions aren't just worth studying because they exist, but because they're educational institutions, building leadership!

As I continue to explore what my chelek - my role - in this corner of the Jewish world looks like, I'm growing increasingly fascinated by and convinced of the case that, while politics, activism and advocacy all have their place, it is education that is the most effective medium for lasting, meaningful change.

Publisher:

NYU Press

Pages:

472

Date Published:

2025-07-29