Flexigidity: The Secret of Jewish Adaptability

In Flexigidity, Gidi Grinstein offers a bird’s eye systemic view of Jewish society, exploring the secret of Jewish survival, resilience, security, prosperity and leadership during past millennia. Gidi argues that this secret stems from a unique societal hybrid between old and new, tradition and innovation, rigidity and flexibility – Flexigidity. He shows how this hybrid exists in many areas of Jewish society including mission, community, law and membership. Grinstein then explores the impact of the State of Israel on Jewish society and on the Flexigidity of Judaism. He argues that Flexigidity, which has been the secret of success for Zionism and for the State of Israel, is being compromised by modern Israel. He then puts forth that Judaism’s legacy of flexigidity may be key to Israel’s future prosperity and security. Grinstein then articulates a bold vision for Israeli society that stems from that legacy of Judaism. He envisions a network of vibrant and prosperous communities that are engines of local and inclusive growth, prosperity, resilience and cohesion. That vision may be highly relevant to other nations and societies that grapple with the challenges of the 21st century. The last section of the book calls for ‘Flexigid leadership.’ It establishes the characteristics of such leadership that takes a broad view of society and history and argues for its critical importance for the future of Israel and the Jewish world at large.

Gidi (Gideon) Grinstein is the Founder and President of the Reut Institute, Israel s leading not-for-profit strategy and action group specializing in societal innovation incluiding in national security, economic development and technology. Gidi work of leadership, with his team, spans a broad range of areas. He co-framed and has been leading on the ISRAEL 15 Vision, which calls for Israel to become one of the fifteen leading nations in terms of quality of life. He co-envisioned the vision of 21st Century Tikkun Olam, calling for the State of Israel and the Jewish world to improve the lives of a quarter of a billion of the world s poorest people within a decade. Under his leadership, the Reut designed the response to the de-legitimization of Israel. In the 1990s, Gidi established and led the team that took turned the vision of Birthright Israel into a plan. He has also been a leading voice on essential electoral and government reform. Prior to establishing Reut, Gidi served as Secretary of the Israeli Delegation for the Camp David negotiations in 2000, working out of the Bureau of the Prime Minister of Israel. Gidi is a graduate of the Tel-Aviv University schools of law and economics and of the Harvard Kennedy School of Government as a Wexner Israel Fellow. His hobby is long-distance running, and he ran a few Marathons around the world. Gidi is married with five children.