Former Congressman Andy Levin sits for a truly wide-ranging interview about the election, his concerns about the incoming Trump administration, Israel and so much more. The passionate Reconstructionist also discusses his Jewish identity, spiritual practice and how he has cultivated courage in public life. He offers honest assessments of his 2022 losing reelection bid and what lessons Democrats can draw from November’s defeat. He also offers a refreshingly candid take on courage in politics and the calculations politicians often make.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rep. Andy Levin.
Links:
Democracy holds a special place in Reconstructionist teachings, liturgy and practice — though most Jews have embraced American democracy as hospitable to Jewish life. Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D., and Rabbi William Plevan, Ph.D., dive deep into Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan’s — the founding thinker of Reconstructionist Judaism — thinking on democracy and pluralism and why it matters today. Each shares thoughts on the prospects for liberal democracy at a time when the form of government is under strain across the world — and what it might mean for Jewish communities. As a bonus, Rabbi Jacob Staub, Ph.D., who directs the Evolve podcast, shares the process behind Evolve’s series of essays on democracy.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Rabbi Bill Plevan, Ph.D. and Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D..
Links:
Tareq Abu Hamed, Ph.D., and Rabbi Michael Cohen talk about the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies in Israel’s Negev region. The nearly 30-year-old academic and research institution brings together students and faculty from Israel, the West Bank, Gaza, Jordan and elsewhere to build relationships and solve pressing environmental challenges. Arava is partnering with a Palestinian organization on a new plan to meet needs for water, sanitation, hygiene and energy in a devastated Gaza Strip that’s years away from being rebuilt. Abu Hamed and Cohen each share how they hold on to hope in a seemingly hopeless time for those dedicated to regional peace.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Dr. Tareq Abu Hamed, Rabbi Maurice Harris, and Rabbi Michael Cohen.
Links:
It’s not easy to talk about and process the first anniversary of Oct. 7, 2023, when war continues to widen, hostages remain in Gaza and a ceasefire seems less and likely. This episode aims to model such a conversation. In a wide-ranging interview featuring Rabbi Mira Wasserman, Ph.D., interim vice president of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College and Elliott Glassenberg, senior educator at BINA: the Jewish Movement for Social Change, they and Bryan discuss Oct. 7 and how Israeli and American Jews have been impacted. They also explain the relationship between RRC and BINA and how it may be more important than ever for rabbis serving in the Diaspora to devote time to better understanding the dynamics of Israeli society.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Elliot Glassenberg and Rabbi Mira Beth Wasserman, Ph.D..
Links:
If we embrace Judaism, what do we do with passages from Torah and elsewhere that seem to directly undermine our worldviews and values? Human rights attorney turned rabbinical student Maria Pulzetti makes a compelling case that we should deal with these problematic biblical passages head-on. Maria and Bryan also examine reproductive justice, as well as the legacy of slavery and systemic racism, through a Jewish lens. Later, they discuss what motivated Maria to become a rabbi, her opposition to the death penalty and her time, in the early 2000s, as a human rights worker in Russia.
\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
Visit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Maria Pulzetti.
Links:
Marc Dollinger has seen a thing or two. In his academic career, the historian of American Jewry has been labeled a “self-hated leftist Jew” and “right-wing Zionist colonialist.” He’s been criticized for failing to capture the full nuance of black-Jewish relations and been abandoned by his publisher for suggesting that Jews bear some responsibility for the continuance of American racism. And, while he studied leftist anti-Israel sentiments for decades — focusing on its origins after the Six Day War — he’s been utterly shocked by the virulence of anti-Israel sentiment on campuses since Oct. 7, 2023. In this packed interview, Dollinger addresses the nature of academic freedom, the importance of DEI work in Jewish communities and the lines between anti-Zionism and antisemitism. He also talks about his previous book Black Power, Jewish Politics and his forthcoming memoir of his campus intellectual battles.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Marc Dollinger.
Links:
For a certain generation of Jewish Americans, Israel and the memory of the Holocaust represented twin pillars of civil religion, argues Louis Newman, a scholar of Jewish ethics and religion. While these pillars may have shown cracks for decades, Newman says they came crashing down on Oct. 7,2023. Israel had failed its most basic function: keeping Jews and all its inhabitants safe. What does a people do when its faith is shattered? What can we learn from our history? Where do we go from here? Newman discusses all this and more in a thought-provoking interview. The author of a new book on how to succeed in college also gives his take on campus antisemitism, anti-Israel protests and what colleges might do to restore both safety and the free exchange of ideas and expression.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Louis Newman.
Links:
Rabbi Katie Mizrahi is a Zionist who was beyond devastated by Hamas’ mass killings, rape and kidnapping on October 7th. She reaffirms Israel’s right to defend itself. And she explains why she is opposed to how Israel has conducted its war and why she joined calls for a bilateral ceasefire. She expands on this line from her essay, “But here is the heart of the matter. I am not ready to become monstrous to defend my people from monsters.” We talk about the difficulty of interpreting events and the deluge of information and making informed decisions about where one stands. She shares how B’nai Havurah Denver Reconstructionist Congregation has responded these last seven months and how Zionists and anti-Zionist still inhabit the same community. Bryan and Rabbi Katie reminisce about what it was like to be in Israel in the 90s a time of hope and optimism. She shares her experience working against Israeli demolitions of Palestinian home and the trauma of witnessing the shooting of a Palestinian man. This episode is dedicated to Bryan’s late father, Robert.
\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
Visit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Katie Mizrahi.
Links:
It’s a supersized Passover edition of Evolve! First, Rabbi Nathan Kamesar drops by to discuss his recent essay, "The Legitimacy of the State of Israel: Surviving in a Hostile Region." Bryan and Nathan reflect on their respective relationships with Israel and Israeli politics. Nathan opens up about what it’s like being a pulpit rabbi and spiritual leader during wartime and how he’s been approaching his job the last few months (5:00). Nathan and Bryan offer some of their personal opinions about the Israel-Hamas war and war in general. Nathan shares which of the many unknowns he would most like to know in order to make sense of things. Bryan asks Nathan about his response to the recent Atlantic Magazine cover story “The Golden Age of American Jews is Ending” (31:05). Nathan reflects on how he’s thinking about Passover this year, how he’s trying to center empathy and why it’s impossible to avoid politics at the seder table (42:30). Then, for a special bonus interview, Reconstructing Judaism’s own Rabbi Maurice Harris stops by for a conversation with Sam Wachs about all things Moses, including his starring role in the new Netflix Docudrama Testament: The Story of Moses (54:30).
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Rabbi Maurice Harris and Rabbi Nathan Kamesar.
Links:
Rabbi Haviva Ner-David, an activist and author, shares what it is like to live in Israel – and be a parent - right now, with all the heartbreak, confusion and glimmers of hope. In this conversation, the author and spiritual director discusses the personal losses she suffered on October 7 and after (9:18) She also shares anxiety about living in Israel’s north and how and why she’s recommitted herself to interfaith peace activism (22:10) and her work with the Standing Together, the grassroots movement mobilizing Jewish and Palestinian citizens of Israel in pursuit of peace . With views on the conflict becoming ever more entrenched, Ner-David’s perspective is refreshingly iconoclastic. Whatever your perspective, left, right or center, she says something to challenge you.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Haviva Ner-David.
Links:
The Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association was founded in 1974 to serve as the professional association of the small but growing number of rabbis affiliated with the Reconstructionist movements. These rabbis were trained with a very different approach than their peers in other movements. Rabbi Elyse Wechterman, the RRA’s CEO for roughly the past decade, discusses the transformation of the rabbinate and why it matters to everyone who cares about Jews and Judaism (5:00). She shares how disparate factors ranging from COVID to the emergence of the gig economy have shaped the rabbinate in unexpected ways (31:50). The discussion turns to how the events of October 7 and subsequent Israel-Hamas War have placed unprecedented strain on rabbis (44:45). There are some lighter moments as well. Wechterman quotes Billy Joel: “The good old days weren’t always good. Tomorrow ain’t as bad as it seems.”
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Elyse Wechterman.
Links:
After 20 years of work, Jay Michaelson —scholar, rabbi, lawyer, activist, meditation teacher —has published his first book of fiction, “The Secret That Is Not a Secret: Ten Heretical Tales” (03:30). The linked short stories focus on a range of Jewish characters: Men and women, Orthodox and secular, straight and gay, Israeli and American. Yet each carries a secret desire that could be described as queer, and their stories explore the nature of heresy, queerness, kabbalah, mysticism and the sometimes-thin line between erotic desire and religious yearning. Michaelson would probably have preferred we discussed “The Secret That Is Not a Secret” for the full episode. Yet, we’re living in a post October 7 world and Michaelson, who’d stopped writing about Israel about a decade ago, felt compelled to jump back in. In the Forward and Rolling Stone, he’s written about the ethics of war, the charged nature of the term genocide, the debate about campus antisemitism and the fates of the two Ivy League presidents forced to resign after public uproar. We delve into some of these op-eds (31:40) and discuss how’s he taken care of himself during one of the most emotionally trying times of his life.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Jay Michaelson.
Links:
Can individual acts of loving-kindness really make a difference with Israel and Hamas at war? Rabbi Amy Eilberg, a longtime peace activist, says yes. Eilberg, the first woman ordained by the Conservative movement, believes that nearly everyone with a connection to Israel and Gaza — and maybe even those without such a direct connection — are experiencing pain and trauma. In this podcast, Eilberg explains that so many of us are consuming every op-ed and podcast about the conflict as a means to avoid deep pain. She shares her decades-long journey into metta meditation and how she turned to it after October 7. We also discuss how even though many Jews have felt isolated in recent months, she doesn’t buy into the narrative that the whole world is against Jews. Nor has she given up on coalition-building or the importance of anti-racism efforts. This is a pastoral conversation in which she addresses the feelings of pain, anger and hopelessness that host Bryan Schwartzman, and many others, have experienced during wartime. It’s about how individuals might seek healing and, maybe, how Jewish communities can address trauma to become healthier.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Amy Eilberg.
Links:
Halakhah is for Orthodox Jews. It means Jewish law: what you can do and can’t do. Right? Not according to Laynie Soloman, a passionate teacher of Jewish text and thought at SVARA: A Traditionally Radical Yeshiva. Soloman says that Halakhah isn’t law, per se, since law – especially when it comes to queer and trans folks – can serve as an instrument of oppression. Rather, Soloman speaks of Halakhah as “Jewish practice and its surrounding discourse,” i.e. what Jews do. Soloman discusses SVARA’s Trans Halakhah Project, which seeks to empower trans Jews. Soloman talks with hosts Bryan Schwartzman about what the project means in a political climate hostile to trans people. “Celebrating our transness is a political act.” Recorded early in the Israel-Hamas War, Soloman describes how they have turned to ancient rabbinic sources to understand how Jews have dealt with catastrophe and violence in the past.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Laynie Soloman.
Links:
“I’m sorry Dave, I can’t do that.” That’s the famously chilling line spoken by HAL, a sentient computer, in Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey. By refusing orders, HAL sets out to kill Dave. Will artificial intelligence do something like this in reality (something on the scale of the Terminator or the Matrix?) Will A.I. put most of us out of work? Or are these concerns overblown? To address these questions, we sit down with Mitch Marcus, a computer scientist and linguist who has been studying A.I. since the 1970s. We discuss how programs like Chat GPT work, what he thinks governments should do to regulate A.I., and what it means for A.I. to succeed. He also shares how the study of Talmud and Zohar has informed his understanding of how language works and how Jewish ethics can guide social policy surrounding A.I. He breaks down the difference between a computer and the mythical Golem.
\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
Visit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Mitch Marcus.
Links:
Divorce may be normal, but, in too many Jewish communities, it hasn’t been normalized. This episode features Ariel Collis and Reb. Ezra Weinberg, who each have experienced divorce and been underwhelmed by the response within their Jewish communities and are advocating for change (12:40). In the conversation, Collis and Weinberg imagine what more embracing responses might look like: from organizing meal trains and Shabbat invitations to, possibly, including divorce announcements in synagogue bulletins. Weinberg talks about his work with the group he’s founded: Revoice, a Journey of Discovery for Jewish Families After Divorce. At the top of the show, executive producer Jacob Staub shares experiences from his own painful divorce. He also speaks about connections between Sukkot and divorce, including the holiday’s focus on impermanence and the tradition of inviting guests into our sukkot.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/45
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Ariel Collis and Reb Ezra Weinberg.
Links:
In this pre-High Holidays episode, Bryan Schwartzman asks Rabbi Nathan Kamesar how he prepares to lead Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur services. They discuss ways people can the most out of the holidays, whether they go to synagogue or not. Although as a congregational rabbi, Kamesar does make a pitch for showing up in-person or virtually. He also discusses his own contemporary theology as it relates to the High Holidays and also addresses the existential dread many may be feeling from climate change, the perils facing democracy and so much more. More broadly, he offers a defense of Jewish prayer and speaks about how the traditional prayer structure can be meaningful today. And, father-to-father, Bryan asks for advice for young parents who might be struggling to find the time for serious reflection, let alone transcendence. The short answer: cut yourself some slack.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Nathan Kamesar.
Links:
Confused, angered, and heartbroken by the push to weaken Israel’s independent judiciary? Not sure what to think? Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D., Reconstructing Judaism's CEO, and Rabbi Maurice Harris, its Israel affairs specialist, don't claim to have all the answers. Yet, they’ve each just spent extended stays in the country immersed in conversations about its future as well as its relationship with Diaspora Jewry. In conversation, they make an impassioned, moral defense of sustained engagement with Israel, even as they take a principled opposition to the government's attempts to strip away the country’s democratic character.
\n\nHarris and Waxman describe what it’s like to be in Israel, and taking part in demonstrations, as this all unfolds. They explain the Reconstructionist commitment to a multi-vocal, multi-perspective conversation about Israel/Palestine as exemplified by the running debate on Evolve itself. Our guests also respond to several Evolve essays putting Palestinian suffering front and center. This is a grounding, not-to-be missed conversation about some of the most pressing questions facing the Jewish world today.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D. and Rabbi Maurice Harris.
Links:
Have you ever struggled to explain racism to your kids? Flubbed conversations at the dinner table? Unsure how racism and antisemitism fit together, or how to process the 2020 racial reckoning and subsequent backlash? Then be sure to catch our conversation with Buffie Longmire-Avital, Ph.D., a psychology professor who identifies as a Black American Jewish woman. She shares her research about Jewish families as well as her own perspective as the mother of two biracial sons. She shares the implications of a recent incident at her son’s school, in which white and Black students split into opposing football teams, leaving her son on the sidelines. She offers advice on how parents, especially white Jewish parents, can better prepare their kids to respond to microaggressions and make Jewish communities more embracing spaces. Her research is part of a Reconstructionist Rabbinical College project called “Race, Religion and American Judaism.” At the top of the episode, Rabbi Mira Wasserman joins to explain the project and the importance of Longmire-Avital's research.
\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
Visit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Buffie Longmire-Avital, Ph.D. and Rabbi Mira Beth Wasserman, Ph.D..
Links:
It all started with a nightmare. The Midwest had been obliterated by a nuclear attack. Sallie Gratch awoke and realized it wasn’t too late and got to work in the anti-nuclear movement. Gratch is the recipient of the 2023 Keter Shem Tov, or “Crown of the Good Name” award, given at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College’s graduation. In in this interview, Gratch traces her path as an activist, detailing her first encounters with Jews in the Soviet Union. She shares the story of the organization she founded, Project Kesher and its mission to empower Jewish women in the former Soviet Union and how it has been forced to pivot in response to war in Ukraine. More than that, Gratch explores how she got the confidence to believe she could be part of change, and the role that Jewish values have played in shaping her activism.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Sallie E. Gratch.
Links:
Though Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann’s son, Mint, had faced anxiety and depression before, his cry for help was as alarming as it was unexpected. The teen was thinking about ending his life. Yet by going to his parents, Mint was able, ultimately, to get the help he needed. On Rosh Hashanah, this past year, Rabbi Herrmann shared this most personal of stories to make a larger point: there’s an ongoing stigma around mental illness. As long as the stigma pervades, people's lives are at risk. (The stigma, and concerns for her son’s privacy, were reasons she hadn’t shared much of this publicly before.) In this expansive interview, Herrmann focuses particularly on trans youth and how political attacks on transgender rights could have devastating mental health consequences. She also shares how her NYC congregation responded to her sermon, how things are starting to change there, and what she thinks needs to happen in other Jewish communities. At the episode’s outset, Rabbi Jacob Staub, the show’s executive producer, offers poignant framing about the topic of mental health.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/40
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Lauren Grabelle Herrmann.
Links:
This Passover, please support the work of Evolve and Reconstructing Judaism with a donation so we can continue to build participatory, joy-filled communities that engage Jews, seekers, and our loved ones: https://www.reconstructingjudaism.org/make-your-impact-this-passover/
\n\nHalf a century ago, Rabbi Michael Strassfeld — a leader of the countercultural Havurah movement — co-edited “The First Jewish Catalog.” The book, which sold an astounding 300,000 copies, presented tangible practices for do-it-yourself Judaism. His new book, “Judaism Disrupted: A Spiritual Manifesto for the 21st Century” argues that, some 2,000 years after the birth of rabbinic Judaism, it’s time to fashion Judaism into something new. In fact — newsflash — he suggests it might be time to do away with Shabbat services, at least in current form. A few weeks before Passover, he talks about how his ideas might apply to the Passover seder, and presents four new, alternate questions.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/39
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Michael Strassfeld.
Links:
A rafting trip got Rabbi Daniel Swartz — a longtime environmental activist — thinking about the way the human experience relates to the processes of the natural world. How do people live absent the belief that things are getting better, and could quite possibly be getting much worse? How do we muster the resilience to try to make a difference — especially on Climate Change — while simultaneously preparing for real losses, both to the natural world and human civilization? The director of the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life talks about the philosophical and theological questions he’s wrestled with as he’s marshaled his energies toward activism. He demonstrates his philosophy in action, recalling a 2021 gathering of global religious leaders at the Vatican in which participants shaped an important statement on Climate Change. And he shares his impressions of meeting Pope Francis.
\n\nSign up for Evolve's email list: https://reconstructingjudaism.us6.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=e8dc2f2d9405f4a028431548a&id=cef6081b93
\n\nCelebrate Five Years of Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: https://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org/uncover-the-light-purim-campaign/
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/38
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Daniel Swartz.
Links:
This Israeli government is different, unprecedented, more religious, and righter wing than any before. At least, that’s what countless headlines and pundits are saying. According to two Israeli legal scholars and activists, Gila Stopler and Yofi Tirosh, this really is a moment of crisis for Israel. Stopler and Tirosh detail how the dramatic drop in women represented in government — two Orthodox coalition parties have no women representatives — is shaping an agenda that could dramatically curtail women’s rights. Rather than the cosmopolitan place in which women thrive and lead, they warn of a sobering future in which men and women are segregated in much of public life, looking more like other Conservative Middle Eastern nations than the nation Israel’s founders built and envisioned. Will it happen? Can the legal system — itself under assault — or popular protests prevent the worst fears from occurring? How much does this all have to do with the inability of Israeli and Palestinian leaders to make peace? We discuss all this and more.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Dr. Yofi Tirosh and Gila Stopler.
Links:
Like many progressive Jews living outside Israel, Marc Overbeck watched the most recent Israeli election returns with mounting concern regarding the future of a democratic Israel. He feared the incoming government – described as the most right-wing in Israel’s history – could turn the country into something unrecognizable. For example, one of Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition partners, Itamar Ben Gvir, has said Arabs should be expelled from Israel. Overbeck, a Reconstructionist leader who has worked in government in two countries, sat down to write his thoughts. What came out was an impassioned defense of the longed-for ideal of Israel as a Jewish state and democracy and defender of human rights for all. He raises up two idealistic thinkers: Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan, founder of Reconstructionist Judaism, and Theodor Herzl, catalyst of modern political Zionism. He also offers an impassioned defense of the idea of democratic government as a force for good.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Marc Overbeck.
Links:
This episode features polymath Jay Michaelson, a rabbi, journalist, scholar, LGTBQ activist and meditation teacher. Michaelson spent 20 years researching Jacob Frank for his new book, "The Heresy of Jacob Frank: From Jewish Messianism to Esoteric Myth". In 18th century Poland, Frank led the largest mass apostasy in Jewish history. He was the most notorious Jew in Europe and, not without good reason, history has remembered Frank as something of a scoundrel. However, Michaelson separates myth from fact and explains why Frank’s radical philosophy may have been a precursor to how many non-Orthodox Jews relate to the tradition today. We dip into modern politics, including the endurance of the cult of personality in human affairs, but also spend a lot of time talking about the 18th century, which seems no less a wild time than our own.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Jay Michaelson.
Links:
Imagine if there were a digital yeshiva where Jews of Color could gather to learn Torah and Jewish practices in a safe, supportive atmosphere in which no one’s Jewishness is questioned. Good news, Ammud: The Jews of Color Torah Academy already exists! In this episode, we speak with Ammud's executive director, Alexandra Corwin, a noted educator and organizer with Ashkenazi, Peruvian, and Quechua heritages. We delve into why Jews of Color need affinity spaces and how such spaces can benefit all Jewish communities. We discuss the nuts and bolts of the digital yeshiva: how it operates, what it teachers, who are its teachers and students. And, of course, we learn about Alexandra’s plans for Ammud, which means pillar in Hebrew, and what’s at stake. Also, Alexandra discusses her own journey toward Jewish leadership.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Alexandra Corwin.
Links:
From the time she was a young girl, Rev. Wil Gafney knew something was wrong. Every major biblical figure, in both art and popular culture, was represented as white. Now a scholar and Episcopal priest, Gafney paints a more accurate picture of our Afro-Asiatic forebearers, making a case that engaging with the racist history of biblical criticism and western art is key to forging a more just future. Gafney also briefly discusses her love of sci-fi and Star Wars and tries to dissect the animus aimed at black actors that ventured into the Star Wars universe. She also discusses her love of Hebrew, praying in synagogues and connection with Jewish community, and some of the fraught nature of inter-religious interactions. Though the discussion isn’t High Holiday-themed per se, the content seems apt for the days of awe as it challenges all of us to question our assumption and, perhaps, to atone for harm caused intentionally or unintentionally.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rev. Wil Gafney, Ph.D..
Links:
A friend once told Rabbi Kevin Bernstein that he’s the most anti-circumcision mohel they’d ever met. Bernstein isn't against circumcision; he’s performed hundreds of brit millah ceremonies. But he is sympathetic to people’s concerns, questions and downright discomfort with it. In this episode, the veterinarian turned Reconstructionist rabbi offers a Reconstructionist take on this most ancient of Jewish conventual ceremonies. He responds to critics who question the continued relevance and, yes, the safety of circumcision, including our two prior guests, novelist Gary Shteyngart and business consultant Max Buckler. And he attempts to demystify the process and explain what happens at a brit millah ceremony.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Kevin Bernstein.
Links:
Popular culture and Jewish humor are rife with circumcision jokes. Remember Mel Brooks explaining the practice to Robin Hood and his Merry Men? Seinfeld and Shakey the Mohel? Yet serious examinations of circumcisions and brit millah and what it means today — and why non-Orthodox Jews keep up the practice — are much harder to come by. In this first of a two-part series, we talk with critics — if not outright opponents — of circumcision. The first needs no introduction: Bestselling novelist and memoirist Gary Shteyngart. His New Yorker article about his own botched circumcision as a 7-year-old sparked conversation across the Jewish world and beyond. And Max Buckler, a business strategist who has been increasingly active and vocal on the issue. We discuss circumcision from the perspective of morality, Jewish tradition, medicine, gender norms and the rights of parents and children. We even address the question of whether circumcision decreases male sexual potency and pleasure. And we explore alternative rituals to mark the covenant between God and the Jewish people.
\n\nWarning, this episode contains graphic descriptions of male genitalia and includes a discussion on how racism plays a role in the history of circumcision in the U.S. Still with us? Stay tuned, next month we’ll talk to a Reconstructionist mohel.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Gary Shteyngart and Max Buckler.
Links:
Have you ever heard a Jewish organization refer to itself as “warm and welcoming” but, on some level, fail to live up? Walked into a Jewish space and felt like you might as well have been invisible? Or yearned to see LGBTQ Jews, Jews of Color, interfaith families, those with disabilities and so many other fully embraced and at home in Jewish communities? Then listen to Bryan's conversation with Miriam Steinberg-Egeth and Warren Hoffman, Ph.D., about their book “Warm and Welcoming: How the Jewish Community Can Become Truly Diverse and Inclusive in the 21st Century.” The two, longtime friends and collaborators, explain how the book came together and what they hope it accomplishes. The authors argue that “warm and welcoming” is not a state to achieve but a constant process.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Miriam Steinberg-Egeth and Warren Hoffman.
Links:
What if the central purpose of the Torah is to ensure was to ensure that people live in harmony with the environment and other living things? That is exactly what Rabbi David Seidenberg teaches, and he believes that Jews have strayed from the Torah’s message for thousands of years. Seidenberg also believes Jews can return to the Torah’s teaching and play a key role in combating climate change – before it is too late.
\n\nSeidenberg spoke with podcast host Bryan Schwartzman live from B’Yachad: Reconstructing Judaism together, the movement-wide convention, in late March in Northern Virginia. This is the first Evolve podcast episode in front of a live audience. We took questions from the audience, had some sound interference from the next room but, through technical marvel, managed to record a crisp episode. And we delved deeply into Judaism and the environment, addressing questions like: does the Torah view animals as people? Is there any way to summon optimism regarding the state of a natural world confronting climate change caused by humans? Have humans always wrecked the environment and are we capable of change?
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi David Seidenberg.
Links:
Every week, it seems, there is another controversy related to efforts to boycott Israel and its policies vis-a-vis the Palestinians. When Ben & Jerry’s announced last year that it would cease selling its products in the Occupied Territories, it touched off a brouhaha that lasted months. Rabbi Maurice Harris, Reconstructing Judaism’s lead staff member on Israel affairs, explains why this story garnered such attention and what he thinks it all means. He also delves into a recent Amnesty International report accusing Israel of Apartheid and narrates Reconstructing Judaism's response, both in terms of process and substance. While analyzing the prospects for a two-state solution, he speaks about his own complex feelings on the conflict, considering his long-standing relationships with Palestinian families and his deep attachment to his own Israeli family. He also discusses the importance of humility and respect when engaging in conversations about Israel-Palestine.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Maurice Harris.
Links:
Just days before a horrifying hostage standoff at a synagogue in Colleyville, Texas, we recorded an episode about antisemitism. Our guest: Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D, president of Reconstructing Judaism. Her Evolve essay, “Beyond Antisemitism,” brings a distinctly Reconstructionist perspective, one that calls upon a full understanding of the movement’s evolution. In this piece, she lays out a positive call to action. Rather than give in to fear, Deborah argues we should lean into Jewish identity, community and coalition-building and link efforts to combat antisemitism with fighting racism, Islamophobia and other forms of intolerance. Rabbi Jacob Staub, Ph.D., the show’s executive producer, joins Bryan Schwartzman as a guest host. The three engage in a wide-ranging conversation and look for areas of hope and uplift at a time when the light can be difficult to see.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D..
Links:
Rabbi Jacob Staub, Ph.D., has been among the Reconstructionist movement’s most influential thinkers, writers and teachers over the past 50 years. Yet, on the eve of his bar mitzvah, Jacob – raised in his Orthodox home – decided that Judaism just wasn’t for him, he didn’t believe in any of it. In this special episode celebrating his career, guest host Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D., president and CEO of Reconstructing Judaism, traces how Jacob went from being a secular college student, intent on pursuing a literary life, to the rabbinate. As we learn about Jacob’s embrace of Reconstructionist Judaism, his years at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College – when it was an unaccredited, startup institution – to his decades on the faculty and leadership, we learn a great deal about the development of Reconstructionist Judaism over the decades. The two friends of nearly 30 years discuss some of what is most important to them as rabbis and human beings.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D..
Links:
In the public imagination, the practice of adoption is often thought of as children in need of a loving home being matched with couples who get to fulfill deferred dreams of becoming parents. And as a bonus, society lifts one more child out of poverty. It’s a win-win, right? Minna Scherlinder Morse, a writer and editor as well as an adoptive parent, says the reality and the history is far more nuanced. In this episode, timed for National Adoption Month, Morse examines adoption from a Jewish ethical lens and raises many questions. Are birth parents pressured to give up children by adoption agents? Could social policy make it possible for more birth families to raise children? Why does the flow of children seem to move from poorer families of color to wealthier, white families, or from impoverished nations to the developed ones? “Adoption isn’t a bad thing, it’s a tricky thing,” Morse says, noting that transracial adoptions can increase the complexities for all involved. She also offers particular advice for families exploring adoption and outlines some steps Jewish communities can take to right historical wrongs.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/25
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Minna Scherlinder Morse.
Links:
Rabbi Michael Perice made a startling revelation to his congregation: For four years, he’d been addicted to opioids. Now, celebrating 10 years of liberation, Perice decided it was time to share his story with his community and the wider world. His goal: to lift the stigma surrounding addiction and bring further attention to the epidemic within the Jewish community and beyond. In this interview, the 2020 Reconstructionist Rabbinical College graduate shares the circumstances that found him dependent upon a highly addictive substance, how he finally recognized his life had spiraled out of control and how he has approached his recovery. He also discusses his youthful disillusionment with Judaism when his childhood rabbi, Fred Neulander, was arrested and ultimately convicted for the murder of his wife. And we talk about how he re-engaged with Judaism in the early years of recovery while working for his family-run funeral home. Rabbi Perice also highlights several Jewish leaders and organizations concentrating on addictions and argues more needs to be done.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/24
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Michael Perice .
Links:
To many, the Spanish Inquisition calls to mind one of countless historical examples of the persecution of the Jews. Or maybe it conjures Mel Brooks’ macabre, comedic roost in “History of the World, Part I.” Yet, for hundreds of thousands of people, the Inquisition represents a historical drama that continues to shape their lives. In the past few decades, a growing number of the descendants of Jews who had been forced to flee, convert, or hide Jewish practices during the Inquisition have been seeking to reconnect with their Jewish roots. At times, they have been embraced, other times shunned, and, too often, encountered Jewish experiences that didn’t authentically reflect their Sephardic roots. We talk about all this with Rabbi Leila Gal Berner, a scholar of Spanish Jewry and former congregational leader. Rabbi Berner's latest book is Listening to the Heart of Genesis: A Contemplative Path (Wipf and Stock), a fresh, contemporary approach to the stories and themes of Genesis that includes the practice of Kri'at Hakodesh, Sacred Reading. For her research into the medieval Spanish Jewish community, see her book, On the Western Shores: The Jews of Barcelona During the Reign of Jaume I, el Conqueridor 1213-1276.
\n\nTo broaden the discussion, we also speak with Rabbi Barbara Aiello, who grew up stateside steeped in her Italian Jewish heritage. Nearly 20 years ago, Rabbi Aiello returned to her ancestral homeland of Calabria, Italy to help rebuild Jewish life. She founded Sinagoga Ner Tamid del Sul, the first openly functioning synagogue in Calabria in nearly 500 years.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/23
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Rabbi Barbara Aiello and Rabbi Leila Gal Berner.
Links:
In Barbara Breitman’s telling, hope isn't "some fluffy thing." It's an essential Jewish practice. Hope enables leaders to imagine a different world and work to bring it out about no matter what obstacles stand in the way. Breitman, a spiritual director, therapist and scholar of religion, cites Moses, Noah and Mordechai as Biblical characters who embody this kind of hope. How can ordinary people emulate these examples?
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/22
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Barbara Breitman.
Links:
“People are really still antisemitic? I thought you all were just regular white people now.” When social justice activist Carin Mrotz heard those words from a Black activist, Mrotz knew she had even more to do: Educating non-Jewish progressives about antisemitism, putting antisemitism on the progressive agenda, building alliances to tackle antisemitism, racism and all expressions of white supremacy. In this interview, Mrotz, executive director of Minneapolis-based Jewish Community Action, discusses how the murder of George Floyd and subsequent conviction of former police officer Derek Chauvin has impacted her work. Mrotz also talks about her working relationship with Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress. And, just to mix things up, we get into how the Miami punk rock scene of the 1980s shaped her worldview.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Carin Mrotz.
Links:
The first American bat mitzvah took place on March 18, 1922. As its 100th anniversary nears, we’ve got something of a departure for our podcast. We’re running an episode that we co-sponsored of Adventures in Jewish Studies, a podcast of the Association for Jewish Studies. In it, guest scholars Rabbi Carole Balin, Melissa R. Klapper, and Rabbi Deborah Waxman consider the history of the bat mitzvah and its evolution over time. They also explore how the bat mitzvah helped pave the way for greater inclusion of women in public Jewish ritual and practice and helped shape American Jewish life.
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/20
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D..
Links:
We talk with Rabbi Rebecca Richman of Philadelphia’s Germantown Jewish Centre about environmental justice and the legacy of environmental racism, particularly focusing on her adopted hometown of Philadelpha, whose refinery – which recently made national headlines with a massive conflagration – has harmed Black and brown residents' health for decades. She addresses how the Torah can help us conceive of environmental justice and identify environmental racism. And in an emotional segment, we discuss parenthood in a world that seems spinning out of control. “As a parent...if I don’t take care of this place today, then there is no life for my children. And, if I don’t teach my children to take care of this place, then there will be no capacity for them to have children.”
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Bec Richman.
Links:
At 87, Rabbi Arthur Waskow still proudly calls himself a radical. His most revolutionary act may have taken place 52 years ago, when he wrote, published and organized the original Freedom Seder. Celebrated, debated and criticized, the Freedom Seder upended the contemporary seder by incorporating contemporary, non-Jewish liberation struggles. We talk about the origins of the Freedom Seder and what it means today. We explore Waskow’s life of activism, including his personal interactions with Rev. Martin Luther King Junior. And Waskow shares what keeps him turning out books and, at increasing risk to himself, taking to the streets and facing arrest. He also offers some practical advice on how to make a Zoom seder more compelling and how to take first steps as an activist. And we ask the burning question (no pun intended): is civilization as we know it headed for collapse?
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Arthur Waskow.
Links:
Natural Organic Reduction — or, more colloquially, human composting — is not only legal in Washington State, but also happening, right now. People are choosing to have their remains rapidly converted into soil. How will Jewish leaders and communities respond to a practice that, on some level, is challenging to Jewish law, to centuries of burial practices, and, maybe, to people’s sensibilities?
\n\nIn this live episode, recorded as part of the 2021 Big Bold Jewish Climate Festival, we speak with Rabbi Seth Goldstein and Rabbi Adina Lewittes, two religious leaders who’ve thought deeply about human composting, the green burial movement, and what each means for Jewish communities. We discuss how the adoption of the practice may make a real difference in reducing carbon emissions and how the practice realizes important Jewish values. We get into the details of human composting works and bust some myths about death, burial, and what’s required under Jewish law.
\n\nNote: Since we include an audience Q & A, moderated by our executive producer, Rabbi Jacob Staub, this episode is substantially longer than our typical show.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Rabbi Adina Lewittes and Rabbi Seth Goldstein.
Links:
Since Ta-Nehisi Coates published his influential Atlantic essay “The Case for Reparations” in 2014, a number of thinkers have made explicitly Jewish arguments for (and against) reparations for American slavery. Discussions have addressed concerns ranging from West German reparations to Israel, to Talmudic arguments, to the Jewish obligation to pursue justice. Educator and activist Rabbi Aryeh Bernstein argues in an article on Evolve that the case for reparations is presented clearly in the Torah itself. In this episode, Bernstein explores this claim, and what he thinks it means for present-day policies and politics. “I would love to reach a point where it is totally incoherent to be a politically-conscious Jew who cares about Torah at all, who isn’t in favor of reparations because it is the core political principle of our own religious identity.”
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Aryeh Bernstein.
Links:
Endowments and donor-advised funds: They may sound like boring financial terms, but they're actually part of a fascinating history of philanthropy in the Jewish community. They reflect the ways in which individuals and organizations use financial resources to impact the Jewish community and democratic society writ large. For half a decade, Lila Corwin Berman has been raising eyebrows, and sparking conversation, with her writings about wealth and charitable giving, Jewish communities, and democracy. In this interview with Berman, we explore the origins of both endowments and donor-advised funds, and examine how they have shaped communal decision-making.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Lila Corwin Berman.
Links:
Does the Talmud offer a perspective on police reform, and whether it makes sense to, as the slogan says, defund the police? Rabbi Aryeh Cohen, a Talmudic scholar and an advocate for redirecting police funding, explains what ancient Judaism does and doesn’t have to say about policing. After a quick post-election debrief, Cohen lays out the case for a new approach to policing, one in which far fewer officers would carry arms. He addresses questions about armed guards protecting Jewish institutions during a time of rising antisemitism and touches on how his experience as a soldier in the first Lebanon War shaped his anti-violence worldview.
\n\nRead Rabbi Cohen’s Evolve essay: "What Happens When Everything Is Broken? Grappling With #DefundthePolice"
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/14
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Aryeh Cohen.
Links:
How can Jewish ethics shape how people make decisions about daily life during a pandemic? Rabbi Mira Wasserman, who directs the Center for Jewish Ethics, explains how ethical considerations have shaped her own decisions — such as whether to drive her child to school or send him on the school bus — and how they should operate on a communal level. She also addresses the narrowness of questions of medical ethics such as best use of limited hospital resources, arguing that a true ethical response to crisis goes beyond the mechanics of triage to address the structural inequities in our health care system that lead to scarcity in good times as well as crises. She and Bryan also cover how Hollywood action movies' model of heroism reflect a warped model of heroic individualism that neglects less flashy, but vital and sustaining contributions. Is it time to rethink the actions and behaviors celebrated by American society?
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/13
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Mira Beth Wasserman, Ph.D..
Links:
"A dream uninterpreted is like a letter not read.” That quote, attributed to Rabbi Hisda in the Talmud, coupled with the frequency and importance of dreams in the Bible, might make you think dream interpretation plays a central role in Jewish tradition. Yet Rabbi Haviva Ner-David, an Orthodox feminist turned “post-denominational, interspiritual rabbi”, says that dreams have long been neglected in mainstream Jewish practice. It was through Ner-David’s exploration of other religious traditions that she encountered dreamwork as a spiritual practice. In this interview, she discusses how dreams offer each of us a tool to better understand ourselves and our world – if we only know how to use it.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Haviva Ner-David.
Links:
Making art is either for children or acclaimed artists, right? Not if Rabbi Adina Allen has anything to say about it. Allen is the co-founder of the Jewish Studio Project and daughter of a pioneering therapist. In this episode, Allen makes the case that engaging in a creative process is something that adults not only can do, but should do. Art-making, she explains, can be a tool for emotional regulation. It’s also a tool for spiritual exploration, engaging Jewish texts and community, and getting in touch with the place inside oneself that leads an individual to make a better world. How does this all work? And how is Rabbi Allen running an organization while social distancing at home with her husband (and co-founder), two children age six and under, and a dog? We cover all that and more in this engaging conversation.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Adina Allen.
Links:
In our conversation with Rabbi Elliot Kukla, we discuss his essay for Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations about the profound and unexpected ways in which trauma can affect a person's health and overall spiritual wellbeing. In the piece and this interview, he shares some of what he's learned about life by being chronically ill. We discuss his heightened appreciation for the interdependence of people, and what that means for the responsibilities of societies and communities to care for their members, even the most vulnerable. We also talk with Rabbi Kukla about his recent New York Times piece, "My Life Is More 'Disposable' During This Pandemic", and about the COVID-19 pandemic more generally; about the newly resurgent racial justice movement; and about the challenge parents face in maintaining hope for our children and the world they're inheriting in this deeply unsettling time.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/10
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Elliot Kukla.
Links:
As far back as 1988, Rabbi Fred Scherlinder Dobb was convinced that climate change presented the greatest threat to humanity’s and the earth’s health and survival. He was determined to do everything in his power to safeguard the planet for future generations. So why go into the rabbinate? In this interview, he explains how Jewish values and community have served as the underpinning for his environmentalism, and how many Jewish ideas promote the kind of long-term thinking that is needed right now. Though this interview was recorded before the murder of George Floyd and subsequent protests that took place in all 50 states, he discusses racism and how climate change will continue to disproportionately affect poorer communities comprised of people of color – unless changes are made. He also explains how lessons learned during this pandemic might be applied to taking steps to lessen climate change. He offers an empowering and hopeful message about how the actions we take now can positively impact humanity and all life for generations to come.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Fred Scherlinder Dobb.
Links:
In many Jewish communities, Israel-Palestine is the third rail that nobody wants to step on. Yet the Jewish community of Madison, Wis., found a way to have a sustained, facilitated dialogue that brought together participants with vastly different viewpoints. In this episode, professional facilitator and mediator Harry Webne-Behrman explains how they did it, what was why dialogue is so central to a healthy democracy. Acknowledging that the model used in Madison can’t be used during a time of pandemic, Webne-Behrman talks about what communities can do now and in the future to spur the kinds of conversations that transform lives.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Harry Webne-Behrman.
Links:
When he confronted demonstrators at the 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Va.,hearing the chants of “the Jews will not replace us”, Rabbi Mordechai Liebling came face-to-face with white supremacy and antisemitism. As a child of Holocaust survivors, Liebling has thought about antisemitism his entire life, and as a veteran organizer and activists, he’s worked with a cross-section of groups to combat intolerance in all forms. In this conversation, Liebling describes his experiences in Charlottesville: what brought him there, and what he learned about hate in America. He also reflects on two of his Evolve essays: “Thoughts on Racism and Antisemitism” and “A Brief History and Update on Antisemitism”, paying particular attention to relations between American Jews and African Americans.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Mordechai Liebling.
Links:
John Backman wore a dress as a child and had never felt comfortable identifying as a man. And only in the past decade, well into middle-age, John, a writer and spiritual director, began to use the pronouns she and her (and sometimes going by the name Janelle.) Yet, she identifies as gender non-binary, rather than as a woman. What has all this meant for her relationship with her wife of decades? Her adult daughter? Friends and colleagues? In this remarkably candid interview, John describes what it is like to live between society’s definitions of male and female. A Christian and Zen practitioner, John places her lifelong quest for true self — and struggle with mental health — within a spiritual framework.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: John Backman.
Links:
Imagine you’re an African American Jew-by-choice and made the monumental decision to go to rabbinical school. A fellow synagogue board member says, “wow, you’re more Jewish than the Jews.” Throughout rabbinical school, the first thing you’re asked when you enter Jewish space is “how can you be Jewish?” or “when did you convert?” And then after starting your first job as a campus rabbi, a parent asks if you’re really ordained. In this episode, Rabbi Sandra Lawson shares her personal experiences like these. She seeks to push white Jews to face their assumptions and confront racism within themselves, racism that may not be malicious in intent but is inherited from the world around. Her hopes are for the Jewish people to live up to our highest ideals.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Sandra Lawson.
Links:
Slavery has been described as America’s original sin. Abolished with the passage of the 13th Amendment in 1865, slavery still casts a shadow over American life. Today, many Americans are seeking to better understand, and respond to, this tortured history. Can Judaism offer some guidelines for how to do that? Do Jews have to atone for the sin of slavery, even though mass Jewish migration to the United States didn’t happen until decades after the Civil War? Rabbi Toba Spitzer answers yes to both questions. In this episode, the religious leader of Congregation Dorshei Tzedek, a Reconstructionist congregation outside Boston, discusses ideas she first explored in a Yom Kippur sermon. Spitzer says that the ancient priests — who may have been among the Hebrew Bible’s editors — had ideas about communal sin that may offer a path toward societal acknowledgement and atonement for the sin of slavery. Rabbi Jacob Staub, Ph.D., who directs the Evolve project, sits in for this interview.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Toba Spitzer.
Links:
In our third episode of Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations, we speak with Rabbi Joshua Lesser of Congregation Bet Haverim in Atlanta. A noted civil rights activist and leader, Lesser shares the evolution of his thinking on race and how fighting injustice has always been a core component of his rabbinate. He breaks down the Jewish conversation on race into an internal and external conversation. The internal focuses on efforts to fully embrace and celebrate Jews of color as a central part of North American Jewry. The external focuses on how Jewish communities interact with communities of color and confront structural racism. Lesser discusses steps his congregation has taken.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/3
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Joshua Lesser.
Links:
In episode 2, we speak with Rabbi Ariana Katz of Hinenu: The Baltimore Justice Shtiebl, a new congregation that harkens back to an Eastern European, hyper-local vision of Jewish community. Katz, an under-30 rabbi who once lived in an anarchist collective, describes her efforts to organize a new, intergenerational community convened around spirited prayer and social justice activism. Rather than seeking to overturn the synagogue model, Katz explains she is seeking to revitalize an older model. We also discuss how building an explicitly progressive spiritual community creates an atmosphere that welcomes people whose political views on race, LGBTQ issues, and Israel/Palestine have left them marginalized or excluded from other Jewish communities.
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/2
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Ariana Katz.
Links:
This inaugural episode features Rabbi Rachel Weiss of Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation in Evanston, Ill. The discussion focuses on Weiss’s Evolve essay “21st Century Judaism: Reimagining Synagogues and Communities” (You can find the link in show notes, below).
\n\nIn this inaugural episode, we speak with Rabbi Rachel Weiss of Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation in Evanston, Ill. Weiss describes her community’s effort to remain relevant at a time of great change in Jewish life and North American life more generally. From deep and respectful dialogue on divisive issues, to the transformational use of post-it notes, Rabbi Weiss shares a window into her synagogue community’s ongoing evolution.
\n\n“Can you have a conversation, a discussion, a difference of opinion about Israel/Palestine, and then can you still show up next week at the shiva of person you disagree with?...If we come together out of a place of shared humanity …. I think that is vital.”
\n\nTheme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\nVisit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
\n\nSubscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss
\n\nRead these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1
\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Rachel Weiss.
Links:
Coming in late September, this new podcast brings Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations to life. In this preview trailer, Rabbi Jacob Staub, Ph.D., and Bryan Schwartzman, an award-winning journalist, offer a taste of what’s to come. How does Judaism continue to evolve?
\nBe part of the conversation: Visit our home on the web, Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org
Theme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
","summary":"Welcome to Evolve! Listen to this brief teaser to find out what's coming soon to a podcast player near you. ","date_published":"2019-08-16T10:00:00.000-04:00","attachments":[{"url":"https://chtbl.com/track/4G298/aphid.fireside.fm/d/1437767933/a1e14040-bbfb-45f0-8938-b05ffd4afc51/95a61d41-16fe-413e-a533-8006a0875823.mp3","mime_type":"audio/mpeg","size_in_bytes":3107459,"duration_in_seconds":174}]},{"id":"1dd221c9-c52d-4502-be8b-c3d8c2261e06","title":"#TrendingJewish 27: Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen","url":"https://evolve.fireside.fm/tj27","content_text":"All good things must come to an end. In this final all-banter episode of #TrendingJewish, Bryan and Rachael go behind the scenes of podcast production. Highlights are reviewed, kudos are given, and take-aways are taken away. And last but not least, stay subscribed to this feed for a new podcast coming in September: Evolve. \n\nSubscribe by Email\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.Links:Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish ConversationsKehillat Israel Podcasts — Torah study, sermons and seminars on Jewish topics presented at Kehillat Israel, the largest Reconstructionist congregation in the world.Judaism Unbound podcast — Listen in as Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg analyze pressing issues for 21st century American Judaism. Mixing their own analysis with interviews of leading thinkers, practitioners, and even \"regular Jews,\" Dan and Lex look to push past the bounds of what it means to be Jewish in the 21st century.Unorthodox podcast — Unorthodox is the world’s leading Jewish podcast™ - but you don’t have to be Jewish to love it! Hosted by Mark Oppenheimer, Stephanie Butnick, and Liel Leibovitz of Tablet Magazine, each episode we bring you interesting guests (one Jewish and one gentile), News of the Jews, and so much more.BimBam Bids Farewell: Press Release AnnouncementSong Exploder — Song Exploder is a podcast where musicians take apart their songs, and piece by piece, tell the story of how they were made.Freakonomics Radio: The Most Interesting Fruit in the World (Ep. 375) — The banana used to be a luxury good. Now it’s the most popular fruit in the U.S. and elsewhere. But the production efficiencies that made it so cheap have also made it vulnerable to a deadly fungus that may wipe out the one variety most of us eat. Scientists do have a way to save it — but will Big Banana let them?Weezer Made A Video For Its 'Africa' Cover, And Of Course It Stars 'Weird Al' Yankovic : NPR","content_html":"All good things must come to an end. In this final all-banter episode of #TrendingJewish, Bryan and Rachael go behind the scenes of podcast production. Highlights are reviewed, kudos are given, and take-aways are taken away. And last but not least, stay subscribed to this feed for a new podcast coming in September: Evolve.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Links:
This is the second of a two-part series in which we explore contemporary trends in the Jewish camping world. In this episode, Jeremy Fingerman, CEO of the Foundation for Jewish Camp, shares his journey from corporate executive, working for well-known brands Campbell’s Soup and Manischewitz, to building the collective brand of Jewish day and overnight camps. He discusses ways the foundation has sought to raise the profile of some 160 Jewish camps, while offering training and leadership development for camp directors. He illustrates how Jewish camps are trying to keep up with trends in general camping, including shorter sessions and increased specialization. He also discusses how camps, long known as a setting for summer romances, are responding and recalibrating in response to the #Metoo movement.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Jeremy Fingerman.
Links:
Rabbi Isaac Saposnik, executive director of Havaya Summer Programs, discusses the latest trends in Jewish camping, from shorter sessions to the rise of specialty camps like Havaya Arts. Saposnik makes the case for the valuable role of Jewish overnight camp in developing campers’ Jewish identities and overall sense of self. The discussion focuses on ways to make camps welcoming and embracing for children of all different gender identities and sexual orientation. And yes, he proudly outlines his two camps’ "no screen" policies, and tells us how kids adjust to being separated from their smartphones and iPads.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Isaac Saposnik.
Links:
Noted historian Jack Wertheimer, who is affiliated with the Conservative movement, discusses his newest book The New American Judaism: How Jews Practice Their Religion Today. Wertheimer discusses his research into how “ordinary” Jews are experiencing Judaism in the 21st century. He talks about synagogue efforts to revitalize services, the emergence of new communities and the observance of Judaism in unconventional spaces, such as the annual Burning Man music festival. Considered something of a traditionalist who has sounded alarms about certain trends within American Jewry, in this conversation he talks about his encounters with dozens of vibrant communities and innovative rabbis, wondering if their efforts will be enough to stem the tide of disaffiliation.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Jack Wertheimer.
Links:
","summary":"Noted historian Jack Wertheimer discusses his research into how “ordinary” Jews are experiencing Judaism in the 21st century.","date_published":"2019-03-14T10:00:00.000-04:00","attachments":[{"url":"https://chtbl.com/track/4G298/aphid.fireside.fm/d/1437767933/a1e14040-bbfb-45f0-8938-b05ffd4afc51/2c047a50-7f85-4f95-9e2b-d338c679fd7e.mp3","mime_type":"audio/mp3","size_in_bytes":48303444,"duration_in_seconds":3016}]},{"id":"85f4e1b6-e930-451a-81e1-8d4ed8a614b8","title":"#TrendingJewish 23: Forming Rabbis","url":"https://evolve.fireside.fm/tj23","content_text":"Bryan and Rachael sit down with Elsie Stern, Ph.D, vice president for academic affairs at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College. Stern, who is the daughter, granddaughter, sister and sister-in-law of rabbis, discusses her surprisingly circuitous route to leading a rabbinic training program. Stern explains that rabbis are formed rather than made, and that while some methods to training rabbis are constant, others are being reimagined. Stern also recounts her fascination with the Bible, how it’s been transmitted through the ages and how it is taught and understood in Jewish settings today. “Judaism is what happens at the intersection of Torah and the Jews. Torah is always there as material for us to draw on, and in every generation, the folks who are Jews are changing. It's when those two come together that the Judaism at any moment is born.”\n\nSubscribe by Email\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.Special Guest: Elsie Stern.Links:About the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College — In an increasingly diverse Jewish world, we’re a progressive seminary that prepares students from all walks of life for the rabbinate.Our Approach to Rabbinical Formation — At the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, we train rabbis to bring the wealth of Jewish tradition to help contemporary Jews and communities make meaning of their lives, draw closer to the sacred, and work toward a more peaceful and just world.","content_html":"Bryan and Rachael sit down with Elsie Stern, Ph.D, vice president for academic affairs at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College. Stern, who is the daughter, granddaughter, sister and sister-in-law of rabbis, discusses her surprisingly circuitous route to leading a rabbinic training program. Stern explains that rabbis are formed rather than made, and that while some methods to training rabbis are constant, others are being reimagined. Stern also recounts her fascination with the Bible, how it’s been transmitted through the ages and how it is taught and understood in Jewish settings today. “Judaism is what happens at the intersection of Torah and the Jews. Torah is always there as material for us to draw on, and in every generation, the folks who are Jews are changing. It's when those two come together that the Judaism at any moment is born.”
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Elsie Stern.
Links:
What does social entrepreneurship look like in a Jewish context? How can concepts honed in a business context be employed in a spiritual fashion? And can the beit midrash, the traditional Jewish house of study, be reinvented for a new generation of spiritual seeker and Jewish learner? Bryan and Rachael raise these questions and others with guests Cyd Weissman, Reconstructing Judaism’s assistant vice president for innovation and impact, and rabbinical student Bec Richman. Cyd, who also teaches entrepreneurism, delves into the basic principles and how it is embodied in a grant program she administers. One thing she teaches is for entrepreneurs to “leave solutions at the door” and learn what “customers” actually want and need. Bec, a serial social entrepreneur who looks to Cyd as a mentor, discusses the process behind launching a new beit midrash geared for learners at different levels.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Bec Richman and Cyd Weissman.
Links:
Rabbi Jacob Staub, Ph.D., who directs Reconstructing Judaism’s new Evolve project, explains why the website came into being. Structured around a series of essays that tackle questions that rabbis said were most pressing to their congregants, Evolve is meant to serve as a model for civil discourse at a time unprecedented societal divisions. As the former editor of the Reconstructionist, he explains how he hopes Evolve can emulate the level of discourse and innovative thinking that existed in the legacy print publication. Co-host Bryan reveals his fascination with Israeli historian and philosopher Yuval Noah Harari, and asks Rabbi Staub to respond to some of Harari’s critiques of religion and Judaism.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Jacob Staub, Ph.D..
Links:
Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D., president of Reconstructing Judaism, and Rabbi Nathan Kamesar, associate rabbi of Society Hill Synagogue in Philadelphia, discuss the ubiquity of technology and the opportunities and challenges they bring to Judaism. The two recently authored an in-depth essay, “Harnessing Technology” that asks, “how can we sanctify our online lives by acting according to our values? How can we use the resources on line to enrich our lives?” They mine Jewish tradition for ways to remain sane in a world that demands constant connectivity, and to retain a sense of holiness when interacting with others online. What do frogs (specifically boiling frogs) have to do with any of this? You’ll just have to listen to find out.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D. and Rabbi Nathan Kamesar.
Links:
Zoe Greenberg talks about what it is like to be a reporter and researcher for the New York Times. The 26-year-old tells talks about working with noted columnists like Nicholas Kristof; she once researched the number of Americans who die annually in bathtub accidents. We also hear about her original reporting, particularly for the Metro section, and how her colleagues broke the Harvey Weinstein story. Zoe recounts why she got into journalism at a time when the traditional business model for newspapers has broken down and during an era of deep division in American civic and political life. Zoe also delves into what it is like to be raised by a Reconstructionist rabbi, and we talk about what millennials are looking for in Jewish community and Jewish experiences.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Zoe Greenberg.
Links:
This interview with Rabbi Sandra Lawson was meant to focus on the intersection of Judaism and technology. But no illuminating conversation completely goes as planned. Rabbi Sandra explains how it is impossible to discuss her adoption of social media and technology without delving into questions of race, identity and sexuality. In this frank interview, Rabbi Sandra explains how fear, fear of failure, and fear of having others define her according to race and sexual-orientation, that prompted her to take the biggest risks in her life and rabbinical studies. A social media innovator, she explains how technology fits into her mission of reaching Jews in new settings: a new kind of rabbi for an evolving Jewish community.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Sandra Lawson.
Links:
Rabbi Mira Wasserman delves into the ethical questions raised by the dramatic emergence of the #metoo movement. Rabbi Wasserman discusses the ongoing challenge of speaking up against wrongdoing and shifting a culture that casts doubt on victims who have shared stories of abuse. The conversation focuses less on egregious cases of abuse and more on everyday encounters. We also ask: What can Judaism teach us about how to shape a world in bystanders routinely stand up to ensure the human dignity of all is protected? How can liberal Jews design ethical guidelines to live by? Is there a statute of limitations on asking for forgiveness?
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Mira Beth Wasserman, Ph.D..
Links:
Yes, Star Wars fans, our title is taken from a line that Yoda says to his troubled former pupil, Luke Skywalker, in The Last Jedi. In more traditional syntax, Rabbi Shira Stutman says something very similar. The senior rabbi of Sixth & I, a thriving Jewish arts and cultural center in Washington, D.C., talks about learning from failure, and how Jewish organizations must take risks to change and grow. Rabbi Stutman discusses how Sixth & I was both inspired by, and a departure from, Mordecai Kaplan’s vision of a synagogue center. She answers forthright questions about her organization’s business model, while extrapolating lessons more traditional congregations might use. She counters conventional wisdom on a number of points, challenging the idea that synagogues should spend money to engage millennials. And she explains why she once conducted a funeral for a dog, despite not being an animal lover.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Shira Stutman.
Links:
Rabbi Brian Field discusses Judaism Your Way, which, in case you were wondering, is not a congregation. The organization was formed to serve Jews in the Denver area who’d felt marginalized by existing congregations. In particular, Judaism Your Way was created to serve intermarried families. By offering a catered, individualized approach to Jewish experience, the organization has grown large enough that it could be considered a disruptive force in the Denver area. How has Judaism Your Way’s mission evolved as its gone from an upstart to a major force in Denver Jewish life? What does its success mean for more traditional communities in Denver and across the country? Can congregations learn from Judaism Your Way’s approach? And what is the rabbi talking about when he says Judaism Your Way represents the front porch and most congregations represent the kitchen? Rabbi Brian fields these questions and others while Bryan and Rachael try to stay on topic and forget about the theological themes of the original Ghostbusters movie.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Brian Field.
Links:
","summary":"Rabbi Brian Field discusses Judaism Your Way, which, in case you were wondering, is not a congregation. The organization was formed to serve Jews in the Denver area who’d felt marginalized by existing congregations. In particular, Judaism Your Way was created to serve intermarried families. By offering a catered, individualized approach to Jewish experience, the organization has grown large enough that it could be considered a disruptive force in the Denver area. How has Judaism Your Way’s mission evolved as its gone from an upstart to a major force in Denver Jewish life? What does its success mean for more traditional communities in Denver and across the country? Can congregations learn from Judaism Your Way’s approach? And what is the rabbi talking about when he says Judaism Your Way represents the front porch and most congregations represent the kitchen? Rabbi Brian fields these questions and others while Bryan and Rachael try to stay on topic and forget about the theological themes of the original Ghostbusters movie.","date_published":"2018-06-25T00:00:00.000-04:00","attachments":[{"url":"https://chtbl.com/track/4G298/aphid.fireside.fm/d/1437767933/a1e14040-bbfb-45f0-8938-b05ffd4afc51/dfe3efd1-4869-42e5-be5a-f53db3d2792f.mp3","mime_type":"audio/mp3","size_in_bytes":44286741,"duration_in_seconds":2741}]},{"id":"0edd09e3-3a09-4ee7-b691-b000c9b5f9c3","title":"#TrendingJewish 14: Thirteen Million Minutes","url":"https://evolve.fireside.fm/tj14","content_text":"BimBam, a nonprofit Jewish media studio, has created more than 350 animated video for children and adults. Youtube analytics reveal BimBam’s content has been viewed online for thirteen million minutes, or 24 years. BimBam’s founder, Sarah Lefton, and executive director, Jordan Gill, explain how they have sought to revolutionize Jewish education through digital storytelling and meaningful screen time. Sarah and Jordan explain how they approach funders and the challenge of cultivating for philanthropy in the media sphere. They also address criticisms that they might be adding to the “screentime problem” and encouraging people to skip the text. They also speak at length about the development of Shaboom!, BimBam’s original show aimed at children; though kids aren’t the only people watching.\n\nSubscribe by Email\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.Special Guests: Jordan Gill and Sarah Lefton.Links:About BimBam (formerly G-dcast) - Jewish videos for everyoneEntertaining and Educational Jewish Videos for Kids and Their ParentsMove Over, Looney Tunes: Studio G-dcast Videos Bring the Talmud to the World of Cartoons – Tablet Magazine","content_html":"BimBam, a nonprofit Jewish media studio, has created more than 350 animated video for children and adults. Youtube analytics reveal BimBam’s content has been viewed online for thirteen million minutes, or 24 years. BimBam’s founder, Sarah Lefton, and executive director, Jordan Gill, explain how they have sought to revolutionize Jewish education through digital storytelling and meaningful screen time. Sarah and Jordan explain how they approach funders and the challenge of cultivating for philanthropy in the media sphere. They also address criticisms that they might be adding to the “screentime problem” and encouraging people to skip the text. They also speak at length about the development of Shaboom!, BimBam’s original show aimed at children; though kids aren’t the only people watching.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Jordan Gill and Sarah Lefton.
Links:
This episode introduces another theme we’ll be exploring over several episodes: How is technology impacting Judaism and vice versa? The hosts of Judaism Unbound, Daniel Libenson and Lex Rofeberg, argue that the internet has revolutionized the Jewish landscape and made Jewish texts and knowledge radically accessible. They argue that, rather than entering a period of decline, Jewish life is migrating into an era that is at least partially defined by digital connections.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Daniel Libenson and Lex Rofeberg.
Links:
Like a number of upcoming episodes, this show focuses on how Jewish communities are evolving. Rabbi Sid Schwarz, author of Jewish Megatrends, discusses the phenomenon of “tribal Jews” and “culture Jews” and the how the two groups, which largely break down along generational lines, view Jewish life very differently. He also shares lessons learned from his nearly 40 years in the rabbinate.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Sid Schwarz, Ph.D..
Links:
Taking a page from the Judaism Unbound podcast, Rachael and Bryan ask the questions: What does Judaism do and what it is for? What does it do for those who don’t feel compelled by God to live life according to Jewish law? Rabbi Maurice Harris fields these questions, and also explains why he avoids “outing” himself as a rabbi while he’s a passenger on a commercial flight.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Maurice Harris.
Links:
Filmmaker Joshua Gippin discusses his antipathy to the idea that Jews are the chosen people and his journey that led him to embrace Reconstructionist Judaism, which rejects the idea of chosenness. The directory of The Chosen People? A Film About Jewish Identity also examines the challenge of presenting multiple perspectives on chosenness while holding such a strong personal perspective.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Joshua Gippin.
Links:
David Lubell discusses what brought him to Ecuador, how we’ve unwittingly taught our children to fear immigrants, and why he’s dedicated his professional life to making America more welcoming to immigrants.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: David Lubell.
Links:
Too often, people overlook the blessings of being alive. Judaism has, it seems, a blessing for every occasion. Bryan and Rachael are joined by Rabbi David Teutsch, Ph.D., and storyteller puppeteer Marilyn Price to discuss the relevance of Jewish blessings today. Teutsch and Price read from their new book From Gratitude to Blessings and Back and put up with Bryan’s invocation of Fiddler on the Roof.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Marilyn Price and Rabbi David Teutsch, Ph.D..
Links:
Abigail Pogrebin, a noted print and broadcast journalist, isn’t an observant Jew but spent a year observing the major and minor Jewish holidays and writing about her experiences. Abigail discusses with Bryan and Rachael about what each holiday asks of each of us, and how the Days of Awe challenge us to consider our own mortality and think about how will prioritize our lives and spend our time and energy.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Abigail Pogrebin.
Links:
Bryan, Rachael and guest Rabbi Jordan Gendra go medieval, medieval history that is. The Barcelona-born Gendra delves into Spanish history, including the 15th century roots to the recent standoff surrounding Catalan separatism. Bryan and the rabbi get into a friendly debate whether there are analogies between the independence movement in Barcelona and the secession of the South that led to the American Civil War. Oh, and he also charts his own journey from converso to Reconstructionist Rabbi and how that’s helped him reach Jews outside the mainstream.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Jordi Gendra.
Links:
First, Cosmo Kramer made a coffee table book about coffee tables. Now, we record a podcast about a podcast. In this episode, Bryan and Rachael chat with Emily Cohen, a rabbinical student and creator of Jew Too: Tales of the Mixed Multitude. They discuss the podcast medium, the influence of Star Wars in Bryan’s moral development, and the profound role that non-Jewish families have played in Jewish lives.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Emily Cohen.
Links:
","summary":"First, Cosmo Kramer made a coffee table book about coffee tables. Now, we record a podcast about a podcast. In this episode, Bryan and Rachael chat with Emily Cohen, a rabbinical student and creator of Jew Too: Tales of the Mixed Multitude. They discuss the podcast medium, the influence of Star Wars in Bryan’s moral development, and the profound role that non-Jewish families have played in Jewish lives.","date_published":"2017-11-14T00:00:00.000-05:00","attachments":[{"url":"https://chtbl.com/track/4G298/aphid.fireside.fm/d/1437767933/a1e14040-bbfb-45f0-8938-b05ffd4afc51/b6d3f4bf-915c-4377-b69f-8219c4bedb4f.mp3","mime_type":"audio/mpeg","size_in_bytes":58448068,"duration_in_seconds":2422}]},{"id":"66e69ced-8554-4131-9c0d-d41f01acf803","title":"#TrendingJewish 4: Carpooling with Rabbi","url":"https://evolve.fireside.fm/tj4","content_text":"What happens when a rabbi and a spiritual seeker carpool to work, stick a camera on the dashboard, and invite the world to watch? You get “Carpooling with Rabbi”, a 36-part Youtube series. Rabbi Seth Goldstein and Kirsten drop by #TrendingJewish to talk about the power of talking and the challenge of driving safely while discussing weighty philosophical topics.\n\nSubscribe by Email\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.Special Guests: Kirsten and Rabbi Seth Goldstein.","content_html":"What happens when a rabbi and a spiritual seeker carpool to work, stick a camera on the dashboard, and invite the world to watch? You get “Carpooling with Rabbi”, a 36-part Youtube series. Rabbi Seth Goldstein and Kirsten drop by #TrendingJewish to talk about the power of talking and the challenge of driving safely while discussing weighty philosophical topics.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guests: Kirsten and Rabbi Seth Goldstein.
","summary":"What happens when a rabbi and a spiritual seeker carpool to work, stick a camera on the dashboard, and invite the world to watch? You get “Carpooling with Rabbi”, a 36-part Youtube series. Rabbi Seth Goldstein and Kirsten drop by #TrendingJewish to talk about the power of talking and the challenge of driving safely while discussing weighty philosophical topics.","date_published":"2017-11-07T00:00:00.000-05:00","attachments":[{"url":"https://chtbl.com/track/4G298/aphid.fireside.fm/d/1437767933/a1e14040-bbfb-45f0-8938-b05ffd4afc51/66e69ced-8554-4131-9c0d-d41f01acf803.mp3","mime_type":"audio/mpeg","size_in_bytes":52512573,"duration_in_seconds":2175}]},{"id":"3bcdc40c-8147-4599-96a4-ab9dbc05df1f","title":"#TrendingJewish 3: Wrestling God and the Healthcare System","url":"https://evolve.fireside.fm/tj3","content_text":"It was not easy to find faith for Jennifer Janes after years of chronic illnesses. But this spiritual hospice social worker from San Antonio has used Judaism as a guide help her help others in difficult times. How does someone raised as a nominal Christian find a Jewish path in the middle of Texas? Bryan and Rachael will find out!\n\nSubscribe by Email\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.Special Guest: Jennifer Janes.","content_html":"It was not easy to find faith for Jennifer Janes after years of chronic illnesses. But this spiritual hospice social worker from San Antonio has used Judaism as a guide help her help others in difficult times. How does someone raised as a nominal Christian find a Jewish path in the middle of Texas? Bryan and Rachael will find out!
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Jennifer Janes.
","summary":"It was not easy to find faith for Jennifer Janes after years of chronic illnesses. But this spiritual hospice social worker from San Antonio has used Judaism as a guide help her help others in difficult times. How does someone raised as a nominal Christian find a Jewish path in the middle of Texas? Bryan and Rachael will find out!","date_published":"2017-10-31T00:00:00.000-04:00","attachments":[{"url":"https://chtbl.com/track/4G298/aphid.fireside.fm/d/1437767933/a1e14040-bbfb-45f0-8938-b05ffd4afc51/3bcdc40c-8147-4599-96a4-ab9dbc05df1f.mp3","mime_type":"audio/mpeg","size_in_bytes":48373582,"duration_in_seconds":2003}]},{"id":"0f529bf9-0f0e-4280-b144-351bb3d4bbf2","title":"#TrendingJewish 2: Asking and Telling","url":"https://evolve.fireside.fm/tj2","content_text":"Rabbi Jon Cutler had an incredible career as a chaplain in the U.S. Navy. After celebrating his recent retirement, Jon tells Bryan and Rachael about his challenges being a gay man in rabbinical school and the U.S. military while also being a voice for minority soldiers. Jon also unveils his secret plans for Bryan’s fitness routine!\n\nSubscribe by Email\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.Special Guest: Rabbi Jon Cutler.Links:How a high-ranking gay Navy chaplain retired with pride | The Times of Israel — In 2008, under the energetic US Navy chaplain serving with the Marines in Anbar Province, Iraq, a plywood synagogue rose from the grounds of the American air base at Al-Asad once used by Saddam Hussein.\r\n\r\nIt was the first synagogue built in Iraq in 100 years. During the Iraq War, it was a refuge for American Jewish service members who read from its kosher Torah — a rarity in Iraq — and attended High Holiday and Hanukkah services. These were among the many achievements of Rabbi Jon Cutler’s deployment in Iraq from 2008 to 2009.\r\n\r\nYet all of those achievements could have been dashed had the military ever learned Cutler’s secret: He is gay.\r\n\r\nFor nearly two decades, fear stalked Cutler and fellow gay, lesbian and bisexual members of the US military under the policy of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT), which was passed by the Clinton Administration in 1993 and became law in 1994.\r\n\r\nSix years ago on September 20, 2011, the policy was repealed. And on April 30 of this year, when Cutler retired as a Captain, the highest-ranking Jewish chaplain in the Marines, he walked down the aisle at his retirement ceremony with his husband, Thierry Steenberghs.","content_html":"Rabbi Jon Cutler had an incredible career as a chaplain in the U.S. Navy. After celebrating his recent retirement, Jon tells Bryan and Rachael about his challenges being a gay man in rabbinical school and the U.S. military while also being a voice for minority soldiers. Jon also unveils his secret plans for Bryan’s fitness routine!
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Jon Cutler.
Links:
Rabbi Leiah Moser has two passions: studying Talmud and composing electronica music. In this episode, Bryan and Rachael uncover the links between Jewish tradition and funky modern music.
\n\n\n\nThis podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.
Special Guest: Rabbi Leiah Moser .
","summary":"Rabbi Leiah Moser has two passions: studying Talmud and composing electronica music. In this episode, Bryan and Rachael uncover the links between Jewish tradition and funky modern music.","date_published":"2017-10-10T18:00:00.000-04:00","attachments":[{"url":"https://chtbl.com/track/4G298/aphid.fireside.fm/d/1437767933/a1e14040-bbfb-45f0-8938-b05ffd4afc51/b68538bc-0722-44ae-871e-7f389a6f891a.mp3","mime_type":"audio/mpeg","size_in_bytes":58735927,"duration_in_seconds":2435}]}]}