In this episode of “Promised Land,” a Bulletin miniseries, host Mike Cosper visits Shalom Hotel in Jerusalem to meet with Zionist Jews who have fled their homes after October 7. Digging beneath the facade of popular thought, Cosper explores the roots, identity, and inspiration of Zionism. Interviews with Yossi Klein Halevi, author and former Israeli ambassador to the United Nations Michael Oren, Rabbi Yehiel Poupko, and others paint a fuller picture of Jewish connection to the land of their ancestors—and why this longing often has sparked controversy.

“Promised Land” is a limited series exploring the moral, spiritual, and political challenges presented by the Israel-Hamas war. Host Mike Cosper (The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill ) takes listeners with him to locations across the US, Israel, and Palestine, bringing you into the homes, lives, and stories of people for whom this conflict is their everyday experience.

Related Resources:
Six Days of War: June 1967 and the Making of the Modern Middle East

Listen to More in This Bonus Series:
Making Sense of the Israel-Hamas War
Antisemitism and the Jewish Identity
Hamas and the Laws of War
Terrorism and the Road to War
It’s Complicated

“The Bulletin” is a production of Christianity Today
Executive Produced by Erik Petrik
Produced, Edited, and Mixed by Mike Cosper
Field Recording by Michael Winters
Additional Production by Matt Stevens and Clarissa Moll
Music By Dan Phelps
Additional Music By David LaChance, Jr.
Artwork by Rick Szuecs
Theme Song “On Jordan’s Stormy Banks” performed by Sandra McCracken