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In this week's AJC Shabbat Table, we contemplate what the Torah's prohibition against eating storks can teach us about compassion for those outside our immediate circles and we celebrate the birthday of Israel's largest city, Tel Aviv by remembering its idealistic Zionist founders who dreamed of building a modern Hebrew city.

The indecisive results of the last Israeli election, the fourth in two years, are generally attributed to controversies surrounding Prime Minister Netanyahu. However, the focus on Netanyahu overlooks some of the more fundamental divisions within the Israeli society, which lie at the heart of the current political stalemate. The most important of these divisions are the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the religious-secular divide.

Modern Israel celebrates its 73rd birthday this week. Let me put my cards on the table. I’m not dispassionate when it comes to the country. It is an unparalleled tale of tenacity and determination, of courage and renewal.