The Jewish perspective on the function of a home is revolutionary. The home is not an aside, it is the incubator for all meaningful contribution to the world. Today, Chava Green shares her personal and professional experience with the idea of the "akeres habayis". Chava is a PhD student, writing her dissertation on chassidic feminism. She is also a woman navigating her own identity in a world that attributes little to the essential qualities of a woman. What does it mean to celebrate my feminini...
May 01, 2022•58 min
What happens when your life takes an unexpected turn? How can you find the balance between surrendering to G-d’s plan and taking ownership of the way you show up for your life? In today’s episode, Rivky shares her journey with a life-threatening illness that taught her, at a young age, what it meant to be the co-author of her life. || To become a paying subscriber of the podcast, please visit patreon.com/humanandholy. To sponsor an episode, please email us at humanandholy@gmail.com
Apr 24, 2022•34 min
Join four women, as we sit down at a table together and approach the Seder with fresh eyes. What do each of these steps really mean? And what lessons do they hold for our lives? || Today's episode is the last of a three part series on Pesach, where we are exploring the themes of the holiday of freedom. || To become a paying subscriber of the podcast, please visit patreon.com/humanandholy. To sponsor an episode, please email us at humanandholy@gmail.com
Apr 10, 2022•1 hr 4 min
On the Seder night, so much of our energy is directed towards getting the children to ask questions, while we provide the answers. What happens when we ask them the questions, and sit down to listen to their answers? Does Jewish law limit me or liberate me? Who am I, really? What do I seek to express? Join us in the hallways of the largest Chabad high school in the world, for a raw and honest conversation about the questions of true freedom. || Today's episode is part two of a three part series ...
Apr 03, 2022•48 min
Where do you feel limited in your life? How can you experience freedom from your personal limitations? If you have experienced internal freedom, why do you seem to keep coming back to the same cage? Today, Rivka Mazal Tauber shares her own personal experiences of limitations, and the chassidic wisdom that brings her to a higher plane. || Today's episode is part one of a three part series on Pesach, where we will be exploring the themes of the holiday of freedom. || To become a paying subscriber ...
Mar 27, 2022•42 min
Religious fervor, arrogance, a false assumption about another person's experience... all of these things can easily lead us down the slippery slope of self-righteous judgment. Today, Rochel Holzkenner takes a deep dive into our judgments of others and explore how we can bring ourselves to a place where we not only judge others less, but actually come to respect them for the very things we were critical of before. || To become a paying subscriber of the podcast, please visit patreon.com/humanandh...
Mar 20, 2022•43 min
How can we manage feelings of sadness or worry that confront us throughout our day? How should we respond to feelings of failure when we struggle to maintain our internal growth? Through the wisdom of Chapters 26 and 27 of Tanya, Rivky Brikman shares her ongoing, internal journey with G-d. || To become a paying subscriber of the podcast, please visit patreon.com/humanandholy. To sponsor an episode, please email us at humanandholy@gmail.com
Mar 13, 2022•37 min
Through her own experience with a stroke, and through watching her clients rise from the depths of internal struggle, Rus Devorah tells us the story of yeridah l’tzorech aliyah: how the greatest descents in our lives are often a preparation and a catalyst for unparalleled ascent. How can we support ourselves in rising, after we have plummeted? How can we experience our descent as the driving force of our subsequent ascent? Find more of Rus Devorah’s work on toratherapeutics.com || To become a pa...
Mar 06, 2022•55 min
Does the Torah value physical beauty, or not? How should we define our own beauty? When does our desire to feel beautiful come as a true expression of ourselves, and when does it come from a place of judgment or lack? In today's episode, we explore the Torah's unique perspective on physical beauty to better understand how we can fully embody our G-d given beauty, without making it about looking a certain way. || To become a paying subscriber of the podcast, please visit patreon.com/humanandholy....
Feb 27, 2022•51 min
In today's episode, Freidy Yanover speaks about our challenges being signs that can direct us towards the next step of our journey. If we are open, we can allow them to nudge us more deeply into our lives and relationships with G-d. || To become a paying subscriber of the podcast, please visit patreon.com/humanandholy. To sponsor an episode, please email us at humanandholy@gmail.com
Feb 20, 2022•42 min
What is Jewish femininity? What does it mean to be leaders of our homes, and of the world? This episode explores these questions in a live panel hosted for the Young Women's Kinus. Rochel Flikshtein, Chayale Tzukernik, Rochel Deitsch, and Elana Kornfeld share how they each experience their Jewish femininity and power. || To become a paying subscriber of the podcast, please visit patreon.com/humanandholy. To sponsor an episode, please email us at humanandholy@gmail.com
Feb 13, 2022•41 min
In today's episode, Miriam Lipskier speaks about seeing another person's soul before we judge them for their actions. Based on chapter 32 of Tanya, and Miriam's own experience, we discuss what it actually means to see others as souls first. And what it means to see ourselves that way, too. || To become a paying subscriber of the podcast, please visit patreon.com/humanandholy. To sponsor an episode, please email us at humanandholy@gmail.com
Feb 06, 2022•57 min
In this episode, I speak with Alisa Fellig about the muscles we build, over time, that help us stay present with G-d in our more challenging moments. Through a miraculous outcome of her baby's birth, Alisa speaks about surrendering the future to G-d and fully owning our headspace in each moment. || TW: Alisa speaks about complications during birth. If you are pregnant or sensitive to complicated birth stories, please consider skipping the first fifteen minutes of the conversation. || To become a...
Jan 30, 2022•34 min
In today’s episode, I speak to Shterny Tubul about the lifelong process of Ratzui V’shuv, pining for spirituality, but always returning to the real work in this physical world. Shterny speaks about wrestling with a woman’s profoundly physical role in Judaism and how she had to redefine her understanding of spirituality. Through parenting her child, she began to sense what it meant to connect to G-d through her daily life, and she shares how she balances her personal process of longing and return...
Jan 23, 2022•48 min
In today’s episode, I speak to Kayla Goldstein about her journey with her Judaism throughout the years. For many years, she went through the motions of the religious lifestyle that she was brought up with. When life got rough, habit was not enough. Kayla speaks about being encouraged, for the first time, to truly ask questions -- and what happened to her relationship with G-d when she did. || TW: Kayla briefly mentions her struggle with depression, anxiety, and thoughts of suicide. || To become ...
Jan 16, 2022•43 min
In honor of Yud Shvat, I interview Dini Hecht and Inbal Levin about the way the Rebbe's vision for the world pushes them, each in their own way, to take responsibility for the state of the world and prioritize their fellow Jew's spirituality, just as much as their own. The world is already a garden. Through our tending, we reveal its inherent beauty. || To become a paying subscriber of the podcast, visit patreon.com/humanandholy. To sponsor an episode, please reach out at humanandholy@gmail.com....
Jan 09, 2022•59 min
In today's episode, Chana Kalmenson speaks about using our understanding of attachment theory to better understand our relationships with G-d. What does it look like for us to be securely attached to G-d, as a parent to a child? What does it look like for us to choose Him as adults, and form a committed, loving relationship? - To sponsor an episode, or to reach out about the podcast, please get in touch via humanandholy@gmail.com. To become a paying subscriber of the podcast, please visit patreo...
Jan 02, 2022•41 min
In today's episode, I interview Shternie Bell about finding the unity in seemingly opposing areas of our lives. Shternie shares her quest to bridge the divide between her personal identity and her life as a community leader, and in doing so, encourages us to look for the unifying thread that runs through our lives.
Dec 26, 2021•51 min
In today's episode, Vivi Deren speaks about utilizing the idea of L'chatchila Ariber to help us focus less on our obstacles, and more on our goals. Instead of becoming consumed with the challenges in her life, Vivi tries to focus her energy on her unique mission in bringing the world to its ultimate goal. ---- To become a paying subscriber of the podcast, please visit patreon.com/humanandholy. To sponsor an episode, please email us at humanandholy@gmail.com
Dec 19, 2021•50 min
In today's episode, Devori Nussbaum describes Daas as a felt sense in the body, as a true integration of G-dly awareness into our emotional and internal headspace. Devori outlines how to deepen our body's awareness of G-d, with compassion, curiosity, and openness.
Dec 12, 2021•56 min
In today's episode, I interview Rivky Kaplan about moving away from our obsession with productivity to embrace the value of simply being. Many of us measure our worth by the light we are emitting. Through a talk given by the Lubavitcher Rebbe about the diminishment of the moon, Rivky challenges us to consider that sometimes, our mere presence is enough. We are human beings, not doings. Some days, G-d asks us, simply, to be.
Dec 05, 2021•1 hr 4 min
In today's episode, I interview Chana Margulies about embracing the continuous, inward nature of personal challenges. Through the lens of her personal journey with cancer, infertility, and a family member's depression, Chana discusses the instinct to shame recurring struggles, and how we can learn to celebrate the opportunities for holiness in our continuous battles. Chana can be reached through her website chanamargulies.org. Her memoir “Jumping in Puddles” is available on Amazon. Her newest bo...
Nov 28, 2021•51 min
Join a group of women, as we celebrate the new year of Chabad Chassidus. Play a game with us, laugh with us, look inward. This is the year we discover the holiness in our human experience.
Nov 21, 2021•1 hr 11 min
In this episode, I interview Chayale Tzukernik about the role our thoughts play in the way we view the world. Chayale speaks about bridging the gap between her intellectual understanding of an idea and its practical implications in her life. We discuss questioning our natural thought processes in order to guide them towards a more objective truth, and how to practically reframe our experiences in order to align them with a more G-dly perspective of the world.
Oct 03, 2021•45 min
Have you ever felt yourself floating above your life? Have you ever connected spiritually to an idea, but still felt detached from it in your day to day life? Today, I explore how Sukkos teaches me the profound importance of physical embodiment as the manifestation of our spiritual experiences.
Sep 19, 2021•16 min
In today’s episode, I interview Chaviva New about her unique and deeply personal relationship with the mitzvah of tzedakah. She talks about charity as this ongoing conversation she has with G-d: both to give thanks and to ask for things that she needs. In the days leading up to Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, Chaviva's words are a powerful reminder that a mitzvah can be a daily opportunity for us to interact with G-d.
Sep 05, 2021•37 min
What would our life look like if we tapped into the limitlessness of our potential? Do we stunt ourselves when we become too well versed in our limitations? What is the true meaning of Ein Sof, and how can its presence in our world inform the way that we live? In today’s episode, I interviewed Dena Shusterman about the experiences she has had in pushing herself beyond her perceived limitations. Dena talks about expanding her family, stretching herself financially, and sometimes, scaling back in ...
Aug 22, 2021•50 min
In today’s episode, I bring you a beautiful, soulful conversation I had with Menucha Schwartz about a chassidic discourse that makes the case for the importance of a sense of a self in our relationship with G-d. Not as an end unto itself, but as a vehicle that takes us where we need to go. We explore why the word “yeshus” might not actually be the big, bad word in G-dly service, and what it looks like to allow your sense of self to evolve, as your reality becomes more aligned with G-d’s.
Aug 08, 2021•44 min
In today’s episode, I interview Dena Gorkin, principal of Bnos Chomesh Academy and a sought after educator about the topic of Iskafia as a powerful regulation tool to teach to youth, and ourselves. Dena throws a new spin on the topic that I had never considered before: Iskafia is not extended self-control. It is the moment of pause before making a decision where we can regulate ourselves enough to make a conscious choice.
Jul 25, 2021•42 min
In today’s episode, I interview Raizel Deitsch about a verse from Mishlei which encourages us to “find G-d in all your ways”. Raizel speaks about giving herself permission to find G-d in the human corners of her life, which sparked her transition from an abstract relationship with G-d to one that emanated from her authentic, physical experience. Raizel’s words are a powerful reminder that G-d is looking for a personalized relationship with us that goes far deeper than the world’s opinions or exp...
Jul 11, 2021•43 min
