S Novim Godom (С Новым Годом) from Israel—or from some parts of Israel, at least

Israel from the Inside with Daniel Gordis · Dec 29, 2025 · 1m

The video above is part of a much larger social and cultural issue in Israel—the efforts of an immigrant group to explain its traditions to an Israeli society either not terribly interested in them (at best), or outright opposed (in many cases).

When does an immigrant become an Israeli? When they have a perfect Israeli accent? When their Hebrew is every bit as good as their “mother tongue”? When they no longer go back to visit the country from which they came? When their kids have done the army?

Or when they’re buried here?

Or, perhaps, never?

I still recall a story told to me by Professor…