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Picking a new rabbi? A new novel about a church shows how
(JTA) — About a decade ago, I served on my synagogue’s rabbinic search committee. Normally I am allergic to any activity at which minutes will be taken, but it was a great experience, thanks to the care and intelligence that my fellow committee members brought to the process. Flush with satisfaction for a job well done and probably a little full of ourselves, we even imagined other synagogues might learn from our example. We spoke about putting together a seminar, or perhaps a how-to book.
No one, I recall, suggested turning the experience into a novel.
That’s why I’m not Michelle Huneven, who this year published a novel about a church’s search for a new minister. I’ve been recommending it to anyone who wants to understand shul politics, or wants reassurance that Jews are just like everybody else, no more and no less.
“Search” is narrated by Dana, a 50-something restaurant critic, former seminarian and once-active congregant at a Unitarian Universalist church in Arroyo, California, who is recruited to the search committee when the current pastor announces plans to retire. The book tracks the search process from in-house focus groups to Skype interviews with applicants to the finalists’ “candidating week” — what you and I might call “auditions.”
Despite an unlikely premise for a mainstream novel, ”Search” is a smart, funny and enlightening book about contemporary religion, especially of the liberal, undogmatic variety that is typical of Unitarian Universalism and, well, much of non-Orthodox Judaism. It’s a worthy companion to “The New Rabbi,” Stephen Fried’s 2002 nonfiction book about a Philadelphia-area synagogue and its own search.
Huneven captures the impossible nature of a clergy person’s job, and especially the unrealistic expectation of congregations that want their spiritual leader to be all things to all people. Trying to narrow down what they are looking for, members of the search committee call out qualifications:
“‘Sermons with more spiritual depth and intellectual content,’ said Charlotte.
“‘Someone with an efficient, organized management style,’ said Belinda.”
Wonders Dana: “Who didn’t want a warm presence with a progressive social conscience, the management skills of a corporate CEO, and the work-life boundaries of a New Age life coach?”
As the Conservative movement’s Rabbinical Assembly warns in its manual for search committees, searches founder “not because of a dearth of qualified candidates but because the congregation’s expectations of rabbinic candidates is unrealistic.”
Regular synagogue-goers will recognize the tensions in the novel between the older members and the newcomers, between boomers and millennials, between theists and humanists. At one point, the assistant minister remembers when a midweek service led by a student intern began attracting a core of people who weren’t showing up on Sundays.
“You can’t have two congregations, no matter how small one is,” she explains. “It sets up a potential schism.”
Clergy searches are fraught because nearly every congregant regards themself as the rabbi’s boss. On the flip side, members grow attached to longtime rabbis, even when they outlast their changing congregations. In “Search,” the senior minister has been with the church for eight years, but remains under the shadow of his beloved predecessor, who had served for 28 years. (I was married by the “new rabbi” at my wife’s family’s synagogue, who at that point had been on the job for about 20 years.)
“Search” isn’t a satire, exactly, but Huneven has fun with the political and social winds that are blowing through liberal denominations. Some of the congregants are set on hiring a woman after almost four decades of male leadership. “But we can’t say that explicitly,” Dana warns. Another character is angling to be the head of the national church association, “though it’s not such a clear shot for straight white guys these days,” says a church consultant.
Unitarian Universalist, or UU, churches are also staunchly secular, which means the clergy don’t have to express a belief in God, let alone Jesus or a strict theology. That brings with it the paradox of choice: “Our ministers can be gay, trans, Buddhist, atheist, any race, or same-sex adoptive parents with mixed-race families. You name it,” says a member of the committee. “That’s the future. Everybody’s in.”
I would guess that a lot of liberal synagogues would love to be as open and diverse as that, but bump up against the reality that, despite a growing number of Jews by choice and Jews of color, synagogues tend to be white, upper-middle-class and heteronormative. As for theology, rare is the synagogue that doesn’t want its rabbi to “have been inspired to serve God,” as the R.A. handbook puts it; on the other hand, search committees disagree about how much theology and “God talk” they want from the bima.
And yet, even the most secular UU church or most liberal synagogue pursues the sacred in the ways they gather, worship, mourn and serve the community. As the squabbles intensify in “Search,” one older member of the committee laments that they’ve lost sight of their goal: how the search for a new clergyperson is a “a sacred task that will grow us spiritually.”
During my time on the search committee, I saw the sausage-making of synagogue life. Compromise is always hard. Even the most thorough, transparent search process is bound to disappoint someone.
And “Search” the novel can be, at times, as tedious as a real-life rabbinic search, as characters deliberate over candidates at painstaking length. But Huneven understands that holiness is not just a matter of reading from a prayer book or studying from a text, but lives in the way people create communities and choose their leaders. It’s a messy process, but if you do it in good faith and in a spirit of humility, you might end up with a pretty great rabbi.
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Sovereignty Is the Soul of Democracy
A general view shows the plenum at the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, in Jerusalem. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
Democracy is often invoked as a slogan, yet rarely defined with precision. It is more than elections and campaign rallies. A true democracy rests on institutions that limit power, protect minorities, and uphold the rule of law even when it is politically inconvenient. A democracy requires an independent judiciary, a free press, and leaders who understand that their authority is temporary and constrained by law. Above all, democracy requires sovereignty: a nation must be free to govern itself.
By all of these standards, Israel stands as one of the most dynamic democracies in the world.
Israel’s parliamentary system is frequently misunderstood, particularly by observers accustomed to the American two party structure. Unlike the United States, Israel’s multi-party parliamentary democracy allows a wide range of political voices to enter the Knesset.
Coalition governments are formed through negotiation and compromise. This system may appear fragmented to outsiders, but in truth, it reflects a deeper level of representation. Communities that would be marginalized in a two-party structure can influence national policy. Power is dispersed rather than concentrated.
That dispersion of power is a democratic strength.
It also explains why Israel’s institutions continue to work, even amid intense political debate. The country has seen repeated elections, coalition collapses, and fierce public protests. Yet the army remains under civilian control. The courts continue their work. The press operates freely. These are not signs of instability. They are signs of democratic strength.
The legal proceedings involving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offer a powerful illustration. Whatever one’s political view of Netanyahu, the fact that a sitting prime minister can face prosecution demonstrates the independence of Israel’s judiciary. In much of the Middle East, leaders are untouchable. In Israel, no one is above the law. The trial proceeds through established legal channels, with the defense and prosecution presenting their arguments before judges bound by statute.
President Trump recently urged Israeli President Isaac Herzog to pardon Netanyahu. President Herzog responded appropriately. He emphasized that he is the president of Israel and that any pardon request would be considered only after legal proceedings conclude, in accordance with the law. That response was not defiance. It was democratic clarity.
Sovereignty is not a rhetorical flourish. It is the bedrock of self government. Critics frequently scrutinize Israel’s democracy, often holding it to standards not applied elsewhere in the region. Yet Israel remains the only state in the Middle East where self government actually happens — where civil society is vibrant, protest is protected, and the media is relentless.
Democracy is not the absence of controversy. It is the presence of functioning institutions capable of withstanding controversy.
Israel’s strength lies not only in its military or technological achievements but in its commitment to law and accountable governance.
Sovereignty is not negotiable. It is the soul of democracy itself.
Sabine Sterk is the CEO of Time To Stand Up For Israel.
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Tucker Carlson Did Not Even Leave the Airport During Quick Israel Visit to Interview Mike Huckabee
Tucker Carlson speaks at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana, Oct. 21, 2025. Photo: Gage Skidmore/ZUMA Press Wire via Reuters Connect
Controversial podcaster Tucker Carlson spent only a few hours in Israel on Wednesday to interview US Ambassador Mike Huckabee and chose not to leave the Ben Gurion Airport complex before flying out of the Jewish state, of which he has been strident critic.
Carlson landed at the airport on a private flight, did not leave the premises while interviewing Huckabee, and then immediately returned to Europe, Israel’s Channel 14 reported.
Sources also confirmed to the Jerusalem Post that the visit went as planned: short and confined to Ben Gurion Airport with Carlson arriving and leaving on private flights.
Channel 14 correspondent Libby Alon noted on the social media platform X that Carlson opted not to spend time any time in the country “despite all the invitations from the Christian community in Israel.”
Carlson, who describes himself as an ardent Christian, has falsely accused Israel, whose Christian population is growing and well educated, of persecuting Christians. Critics have noted that the far-right media personality has seemingly devoted more time on his podcast to targeting Israel over its treatment of Christians than to other parts of the world, such as Nigeria, where Christians are being murdered and otherwise persecuted in large numbers.
On Wednesday, Carlson posted a “Greetings from Israel” message on X which included a photo of himself with his left arm over the shoulder of an unnamed man, both standing in front of fluttering Israeli flags.
Greetings from Israel. pic.twitter.com/1uBWvqBNST
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) February 18, 2026
Online disagreements between Carlson and Huckabee over allegations of Israel mistreating Christians had prompted the quick trip.
On Feb. 4, Carlson published a nearly 90-minute podcast on X, titled “Christian Persecution,” which he promoted by asking, “How does the US-funded Israeli government treat Christians in the Holy Land? We asked some. Listen carefully to their accounts. This will shock you.” He interviewed Anglican Archbishop of Jerusalem Hosam Naoum and Saad Mouasher, a Christian businessman in Jordan who serves as the chairman of Jordan Ahli Bank.
Carlson then highlighted such segments in his discussions as “The Christian Hospital in Gaza That Was Bombed Eight Times by Israel,” “How Many People Have Been Killed in Gaza?” “How Are Christians Treated in Israel?” “How Much Has Jewish Extremism Increased in Jerusalem?” “Why Israel Makes It Difficult for Christians to Visit Holy Sites,” and “Why Christians Are Safer in Jordan Than Israel.”
Huckabee shared Carlson’s X posting that day and responded on top of it: “Hey @TuckerCarlson instead of talking ABOUT me, why don’t you come talk TO me? You seem to be generating a lot of heat about the Middle East. Why be afraid of the light?”
Answering back, Carlson shared Huckabee’s post and wrote, “Thanks for this. I’d love to. We’ll reach out to your office today to set up an interview. Much appreciated.”
Carlson’s apparent eagerness to escape Israel contrasts with his enthusiasm for countries which he celebrates rather than criticizes. On Feb. 8, 2024, for example, Carlson published a more than two-hour episode featuring an interview with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, the authoritarian leader whose invasion to conquer Ukraine has now resulted in nearly 600,000 Ukrainian casualties and 1.2 million Russian soldiers’ deaths. According to reports, Carlson conducted the interview on Feb. 6 after arriving on Feb. 3.
Qatar received an enthusiastic endorsement last year from Carlson. On Dec. 7, Carlson interviewed Qatar Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani at the Doha Forum, where he revealed his plans to purchase a home in the desert monarchy known for its longstanding support of the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas.
“I have been criticized as being a tool of Qatar, and I just want to say, which you already know, I have never taken anything from your country and don’t plan to. I am, however, tomorrow buying a place in Qatar,” he said.
On Feb. 11, Carlson published an interview with Ron Paul, the former Texas congressman, paleo-libertarian advocate, presidential candidate, and longtime opponent of Israel who previously said that “Palestinians are virtually in a concentration camp.”
A study released in December by the Jewish People Policy Institute (JPPI) analyzed podcast transcripts from Carlson and fellow far-right podcast host Candace Owens, finding that both had increased their content targeting Israel in 2025.
The researchers identified April as the turning point for Carlson’s refocusing on Israel, and that “the share of negative content about Israel rose sharply from 48.9% in the previous six-month period to 70.3% over the last six months.”
Some of Carlson’s decisions last year which drew the most attention included his promotion of Nick Fuentes, the white supremacist podcaster who has praised Adolf Hitler, celebrated Hamas, and advocated rape. This provoked a revolt at the Heritage Foundation with multiple resignations after its president, Kevin Roberts, defended Carlson.
Carlson also got in on the game started by Owens of blaming Israel for the assassination of Charlie Kirk, while throwing in some traditional collective blame against Jews for the crucifixion of Jesus.
In a Jan. 30 interview with podcast host Piers Morgan, Jeremy Boreing, the co-founder and former co-CEO of The Daily Wire, explained the distinction he saw between Owens — who he had previously hired — and Carlson.
“I’d be careful not to conflate Candace Owens — who is sort of the queen of the Grift Industrial Complex — with Tucker Carlson, who — like him or leave him — is engaged in an actual political project,” Boreing said. “As far as I can tell, Tucker is trying to create a new American majority out of a sort of amalgamation of left-wing economic populism on the one hand and right-wing social populism on the other.”
Describing the scope of the two podcasters’ apparent ambitions, Boreing called Carlson “actively engaged behind the scenes at the White House and staffing decisions,” stating that “he wields his influence to try to effectuate a political end.”
In a Jan. 28 interview on the “Triggernometry” podcast, Boreing expanded on the point, saying that Carlson “is part of a small cohort of people” including the likes of Fuentes, former US Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, and Steve Bannon, who formerly advised US President Donald Trump, in pursuing a “political project” to reshape the American political right.
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Madrid Museum Launches Investigation After Jewish Women Harassed, Kicked Out
Illustrative: Anti-Israel activists held a rally ahead of the game between Maccabi Tel Aviv and Real Madrid for the Turkish Airlines Euroleague, in front of the Palacio de los Deportes (Movistar Arena) in Madrid, Jan. 8, 2026. Photo: David Canales / SOPA Images via Reuters Connect
A national art museum in Madrid has launched an investigation after three elderly Jewish women — including a Holocaust survivor — who were verbally harassed over their openly displayed Jewish symbols were subsequently forced to leave, fueling criticism that the institution sided with the perpetrators rather than protecting the victims.
On Tuesday, a spokesperson for the Museum Reina Sofía told multiple news outlets that the institution would “immediately launch an independent and transparent internal investigation to clarify what happened,” formally confirming the opening of a probe as scrutiny over the incident intensified.
“The museum wishes to unequivocally express its commitment to equality, religious freedom, and zero tolerance for any type of violence or discrimination related to antisemitism,” the statement read. “The museum’s staff is highly qualified in fundamental rights, conflict management, and the prevention of any type of discrimination.”
“Once again, we would like to highlight the importance that Jewish artists, patrons, and benefactors have had for the institution and its collection, especially in the avant-garde, without whose selfless collaboration the museum as we know it today would be inconceivable,” it continued. “For all these reasons, we will not rest until the unfortunate events that have taken place are clarified.”
Footage of the incident was circulated on social media.
Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition in 2026, but watch Spain’s shame, as three elderly tourists, including a Holocaust survivor, are harassed & kicked out of Madrid’s state run Reina Sofia museum over Jewish symbols. Staff said visitors were ‘disturbed’ by their presence and… pic.twitter.com/XdAlSlfKzd
— Saul Sadka (@Saul_Sadka) February 16, 2026
First reported by the Spanish news outlet Okdiario, the three women were visiting the museum in central Madrid last Saturday when other visitors spotted them wearing a Star of David necklace and carrying a small Israeli flag.
At that point, a group of people started attacking them verbally, shouting antisemitic insults, and calling them “crazy child killers.”
Rather than intervening against the instigators, museum officials expelled the Israeli women, telling them to leave because “some visitors were disturbed that they are Jewish.”
A security guard also told the group to hide their Jewish symbols, insisting they could not be displayed inside the museum.
Even though one of them pointed out that Spanish law allows people to wear religious symbols and carry national flags in public institutions, they were still forcibly removed from the building despite not breaking any rules.
The Action and Communication on the Middle East (ACOM) group, a leading pro-Israel organization in Spain, announced Monday it will pursue legal action against the Museum Reina Sofía “for discrimination and possible promotion of hatred from a public institution.”
“The legal action will be directed both at the institution and its top official, the museum director, Manuel Segade,” ACOM wrote in a post on X, adding that the museum’s actions reflect “a persistent pattern of using political agendas, engaging in discrimination, and promoting narratives of hate against the State of Israel and the Jewish-Israeli community from a publicly funded institution.”
“A public institution should never be used as a platform for sectarian activism,” the statement continued.
As a state-affiliated cultural institution under Spain’s Culture Ministry, the Reina Sofía is internationally recognized as one of the country’s leading contemporary art museums.
In the past, the museum has also faced criticism for hosting anti-Israel demonstrations and presenting an exhibition titled “From the River to the Sea,” a popular slogan among pro-Palestinian activists that has been widely interpreted as a genocidal call for the destruction of the Jewish state, which is located between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea.
Like most countries across Europe and the broader Western world, Spain has seen a rise in antisemitic incidents over the last two years, in the wake of the Hamas-led invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
Still, Spain stands out as one of the most extreme cases, with experts warning that antisemitic violence and anti-Zionist rhetoric have moved beyond a social phenomenon to, in many instances, being state-promoted and legitimized as a political tool.
In particular, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and several members of his left-wing party have come under mounting criticism from some of the country’s political and Jewish leaders, who accuse them of fueling antisemitic hostility.