Podcast: Yuval Levin on the Failure of America’s Institutions

This Week’s Guest: Yuval Levin

In our age of expressive individualism, one characteristic that most sets observant Jews apart, that makes them most “countercultural” as compared with mainstream American society, is their rich communal life. From crowded Shabbat tables, to volunteer ambulance and community-watch groups, to the close-knit communities that form around synagogues and day schools, the life of a committed Jew is embedded in a deep network of formative institutions.

Of course, American Jewish life is far from perfect, and Jewish communities must contend with the same forces of radical individualism that have damaged American institutions of all sorts, from government and the media to schools and civic organizations. This breakdown of public life lies at the heart of what ails contemporary America, argues the political thinker Yuval Levin in his new book A Time to Build, in which he examines not only the failures of these communal institutions but also how they might be rebuilt.