EVENTS

Building Our Children’s Moral Foundation

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If we care for the future of democracy, we must recover that sense of shared morality that binds us to one another.”

With fraying civility, erosion of trust, and social media shaping the hearts and minds of the rising generation, the formation of principled and morally courageous young people has never been more important. Parents, educators, and religious leaders all have roles to play in the moral development of our children. How, at this fraught moment in Jewish history, can parents and educators build for our children an unshakeable moral foundation?

Leading social psychologist Dr. Jonathan Haidt and Sacks Scholar and religious leader Dr. Mijal Bitton will join Tikvah’s Dr. Jonathan Silver to explore the impact of American culture and digital media on children’s character development.

They will discuss what empirical research suggests about strengthening moral agency and how parents and educators can work together to raise young adults with a sense of civic responsibility. They will also examine how Jewish wisdom can guide our sons and daughters as they come of age.

When: 8:00pm on Monday, November 18, 2024

Where: Congregation Kehilath Jeshurun, 125 East 85th Street, NY

View the panel of speakers

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Dr. Jonathan Haidt

Dr. Jonathan Haidt is an American social psychologist and author. He is the Thomas Cooley Professor of Ethical Leadership at the New York University Stern School of Business.


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Dr. Mijal Bitton

Dr. Mijal Bitton is a Spiritual Leader and Sociologist. She is the Rosh Kehilla of the Downtown Minyan and a Visiting Researcher at NYU Wagner. Mijal is a Fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute, a New Pluralist Field Builder, a Maimonides Fund Fellow and a Sacks Scholar.

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Dr. Jonathan Silver

Dr. Jonathan Silver is the Chief Programming Officer of Tikvah, the editor of Mosaic, and the Warren R. Stern Senior Fellow of Jewish Civilization. As the host of the Tikvah Podcast, he has hosted writers, rabbis, educators, military officers, artists, and political figures, including members of Israel’s Knesset, the U.S. Senate, and the prime minister of Israel.