When it comes to understanding Israel, its conflicts and its relationship with the United States, there are few people who know as much as Daniel Shapiro.
Shapiro served as the U.S. ambassador to Israel from 2011 to 2017. He was nominated by President Barack Obama after previously serving as senior director for the Middle East and North Africa on the U.S. National Security Council. When President Donald Trump took office in January 2017, Shapiro was ordered to resign, but came back during the Biden administration as special liaison to Israel, focused on Iran.
Now, he is taking his wealth of knowledge to Har Sinai-Oheb Shalom Congregation in Baltimore for a free talk on Nov. 7, where he will discuss the history of the Jewish state, his work and the future of Israel during uncertain times.
It’s not easy to book someone like Shapiro. Har Sinai-Oheb Shalom’s rabbi, Rabbi Rachel Sabath Beit-Halachmi, said that the event is largely thanks to her personal connection to the former ambassador.
“It actually started decades ago. Ambassador Shapiro, his wife and I have known each other since we were young. We all grew up at the same Reform summer camp in Wisconsin. I’ve known them for a long time, and have had the opportunity to work with Ambassador Shapiro in Israel on a number of projects,” Sabath said.
The date was formalized six months ago, and Sabath said that the Har Sinai-Oheb Shalom community has been excited for the event ever since.
“Everybody has so many questions — I have a long list,” Sabath said. “I think everybody’s really eager to hear his wisdom, his insights, what he thinks is possible, how he sees the Abraham Accords, how he sees America’s role. … We’re also very interested in how he understands the current relationship of the administration to Israel to be affecting other American concerns, and also concerns of the American Jewish community.”
Nearly 200 people have pre-registered for the event, and the synagogue expects even more to attend. It’s not often someone as accomplished as Shapiro comes to a synagogue in Baltimore to share their insights.
Shapiro has a history of being a key component of American-Israeli relations. According to Haaretz, he was named ambassador in 2011 after being Washington’s main point of contact for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He also served as President Obama’s adviser to the Middle East affairs during Obama’s 2008 election campaign.
Following his departure from the governmental side of things, Shapiro worked as a fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University.
While Sabath declined to offer specifics as to what Shapiro might predict about the next phase of U.S.-Israel relations, she said that “it’s just been remarkable the extent to which what he imagined could happen has happened and is happening.”
The rabbi said there were early indications that Shapiro would go on to do great things. Even in a camp of many young Jews, he stood out among the crowd.
“From a young age, I think one of the relevant pieces here is that not only did he clearly have all of these leadership skills, but he spent time in Israel, and he, as a teenager, was already in love with Hebrew,” Sabath said. “The fact that as an American ambassador, he’s one of the few ambassadors who’s been a Hebrew speaker, and he also speaks some Arabic, that has been hugely significant in his success.”
“I think that his ongoing success as a diplomat is made even more successful because of that background, with that deep learning of Hebrew. One of the main places that happened was at that summer camp.”
For Sabath, the event will not just be an informative talk, but a night spent with an old friend. For the congregants and community members that attend, Shapiro’s talk will be a chance to learn about some of the most pressing issues Israel faces straight from an eminent source.
“The opportunity to have such a high-level diplomat in our sanctuary, and to be able to share a high-level diplomatic overview of what’s happening in the Middle East and what it means for America is an incredible opportunity,” Sabath said.
