Today’s Talmud page, Yevamot 122, brings us to the end of Tractate Yevamot. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to review some of its key insights, and tell us why the rabbis chose to begin their discussion of marriage and family with the grim question of a man dying childless. What does it truly mean to be a member of a family? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversation in the Take One Facebook group....
Jul 07, 2022•9 min•Season 14Ep. 122
Today’s Talmud page, Yevamot 121, teaches us a lesson in Jewish martial arts. Rabbi Hillel Norry, who also holds a black belt in Tae Kwon Do, joins us to share the Talmud's philosophy on fighting, and why sometimes it's better to know how to roll with the punches. Why should picking a fight be your last resort? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversation in the Take One Facebook group. Take One is ...
Jul 06, 2022•11 min•Season 14Ep. 121
Today’s Talmud page, Yevamot 120, tells us that the only real way to identify a Jew is by looking at the...nose? Filmmaker Gayle Kirschenbaum shares her journey of coming to terms with her own nose, and her own mother. Why is the nose such a subject for obsession for so many Jews? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversation in the Take One Facebook group. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. Th...
Jul 05, 2022•11 min•Season 14Ep. 120
Today’s Talmud pages, Yevamot 118 and 119, shares Reish Lakish’s popular idiom that “it is better to sit as two, then to sit lonely as a widow.” Show editor and associate producer Quinn Waller joins to share her thoughts on this hot take and shares some of her own experiences navigating the waters of being single in New York, and tells tales of bad dates past. Is it better to be with any spouse, or can you be happy on your own? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tablet...
Jul 04, 2022•6 min•Season 14Ep. 118
Today’s Talmud pages, Yevamot 116 and 117, make the case that the hardest relationship to endure is between a man and his mother-in-law. Show producer Darone Ruskay joins to explore his own tumultuous relationship with his wife's mother, and help listeners navigate through the thicket that is family ties. Why can your in-laws be so frustrating? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversation in the Tak...
Jul 01, 2022•8 min•Season 14Ep. 116
Today’s Talmud page, Yevamot 115, asks what to do in case a husband is missing in action and the wife seeks to marry another man. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to talk about Judaism's approach to agunot, or women left tethered to marriages they cannot annul, and why the Talmud spends so much time exploring the issue, especially when it comes to men missing in a time of war. How did this question come into very practical consideration in the aftermath of September 11, 2001? Listen and find out. ...
Jun 30, 2022•10 min•Season 14Ep. 115
Today’s Talmud page, Yevamot 114, talks about what happens when world events make us feel, well, like we can't quite cope. Rabbi Yael Hammerman joins us to tell us what pulpit rabbis do when the news seems too awful to bear. How do you reconcile your emotional and spiritual life with an external reality that is too often too harsh? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversation in the Take One Faceboo...
Jun 29, 2022•12 min•Season 14Ep. 114
Today’s Talmud page, Yevamot 113, makes an audacious claim: Women want to get married so badly they'll say yes to almost anyone. Lisa Ann Sandell, children book author and editor and also wife of host Liel Leibovitz, joins to explore this question and explain why she was far less eager than her husband to say I Do and tie the knot. What changed since Talmudic times when it comes to getting hitched, and what remains the same? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag...
Jun 28, 2022•8 min•Season 14Ep. 113
Today’s Talmud pages, Yevamot 111 and 112, have the rabbis asking whether a person who can neither hear nor speak is capable of cognition. Rabbi Lauren Tuchman, the first blind person to be ordained as a rabbi, joins us to talk about Judaism's idea of da'at, or reason, and how the rabbis viewed the mental state of people with disabilities. Why does the Talmud differentiate between the blind and the deaf-mute? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us ...
Jun 27, 2022•11 min•Season 14Ep. 111
Today’s Talmud pages, Yevamot 109 and 110, teach us that even a life of studying Torah non-stop is meaningless unless one also commits oneself to the mitzvot, or righteous deeds. Rabbi Mordechai Lightstone joins us to talk about Judaism's attitude to the relationship between body and soul, and explain why real sanctity is impossible unless it's embodied in deed as well as spirit. Why did the High Priest in the ancient Temple had to be married to serve in his exalted role? Listen and find out. Li...
Jun 24, 2022•8 min•Season 14Ep. 109
Today’s Daf Yomi page, Yevamot 108, delivers relationship advice from the rabbis: Beware your ex, for he or she knows exactly what makes you tick. Comedy writer Jen Spyra joins us to talk about what to do when relationships go bad, and about the most infuriating thing about breakups. What's the one thing you should always do immediately after being dumped? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversatio...
Jun 23, 2022•10 min•Season 14Ep. 108
Today’s page of Talmud, Yevamot 107, gives us a rousing bit of girl power. Kylie Unell joins us to talk about the Talmud's surprisingly progressive view of women's rights. How does Judaism's emphasis on human dignity continues to inspire us today? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversation in the Take One Facebook group. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz...
Jun 22, 2022•7 min•Season 14Ep. 107
Today’s Talmud page, Yevamot 106, delivers an impassioned plea against price gouging. Why does the gig economy, with its reliance on algorithms, ignore the rabbis' wisdom? And what happens, in the long term, where parents and other desperate people are forced to pay exorbitant prices for basic needs? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversation in the Take One Facebook group. Take One is a Tablet St...
Jun 21, 2022•10 min•Season 14Ep. 106
Today’s Talmud pages, Yevamot 104 and 105, raise a question that's been in the news a lot lately: Do thoughts and prayers actually work? Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us with insights into this contested phrase, from the Talmud to the Civil War and beyond. What did Lincoln have to teach us about thoughts and prayers in times of tragedy? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversation in the Take One Face...
Jun 20, 2022•8 min•Season 14Ep. 104
Today’s Talmud pages, Yevamot 102 and 103, make an astonishing claim: The Biblical heroine Yael fornicated no less than seven times with the evil king Sisra, but she was forgiven as she did so in the service of a righteous cause. Dr. Erica Brown joins us to speak of sin, pleasure, and duty, and whether it's ever ok to do bad, bad things for the best of reasons. What profoundly modern lesson does Yael have to teach us today? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag....
Jun 17, 2022•12 min•Season 14Ep. 102
Today’s Talmud page, Yevamot 101, tells a story about a wayward son as a way of asking a major theological question about doubt, certainty, and their role in the believer's life. The late Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks addressed this question in one of his memorable talks, and we are privileged to share his insights on the value of radical uncertainty. What is the secret and often misunderstood essence of faith? Listen and find out. The audio of Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks was originally found on The R...
Jun 16, 2022•16 min•Season 14Ep. 101
Today’s Talmud page, Yevamot 100, asks whether it's rude or polite to live by the adage of “Ladies First”. Unorthodox co-host Stephanie Butnick joins us as a professional lady to talk about how to treat a woman. Is chivalry dead? Should it be? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversation in the Take One Facebook group. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, an...
Jun 15, 2022•7 min•Season 14Ep. 100
Today’s Talmud page, Yevamot 99, asks whether it's possible for the wise and the righteous to stumble in their judgement. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to talk about construction of truth, the relationship between scholarship and reality, and other crucial measures of figuring out what's right. What do pets have to do with justice and peace?Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversation in the Take O...
Jun 14, 2022•7 min•Season 14Ep. 99
Today’s Talmud pages, Yevamot 97 and 98, offer us a heart-warming line about Torah, and writing, and the ways we mere mortals could achieve eternal life. What is the secret to immortality, and what does it have to do with writers?Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversation in the Take One Facebook group. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced ...
Jun 13, 2022•8 min•Season 14Ep. 97
Today’s Talmud pages, Yevamot 95 and 96, deliver a zany tale about a man who married again and again. Mark Oppenheimer joins us to talk about his own grandfather, who sped through no less than six marriages, and how the old man's example shaped his family's attitude to wedded bliss. What crucial relationship advice is the Talmud offering us today?Listen and find out.
Jun 10, 2022•10 min•Season 14Ep. 95
Today’s Talmud page, Yevamot 94, gives us a rare glimpse into how two of the Talmud's giants approached their craft. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to shed light on these wise men and their divergent intellectual traditions, and explain why their differences still matter to us today. How does a person's upbringing influence the way he or she sees the world? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversati...
Jun 09, 2022•9 min•Season 14Ep. 94
Today’s page of Talmud, Yevamot 93, finds one of the rabbis musing about currency, exchange rates, and the precise nature of our economy. Cryptocurrency expert and writer Ben Samuels joins us to explain what the rabbis would've made of Bitcoin, and why the Talmud is surprisingly forward-thinking when it comes to thinking about money. What's money worth anyway? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the convers...
Jun 08, 2022•8 min•Season 14Ep. 93
Today’s pages of Talmud, Yevamot 90, 91, and 92, deliver one of the most poetic evocations of justice in all of Judaism, instructing us that the law must always pierce the mountain, meaning that we should never abandon our inquiry into what is right in an effort to fashion a more perfect world. One hundred and six years ago this week, Louis Brandeis became the first Jew appointed to the United States Supreme Court. Twelve years and one day later, he wrote what would become one of the most famous...
Jun 07, 2022•19 min•Season 14Ep. 90
Today’s Daf Yomi pages, Yevamot 88 and 89, teach us that judges and leaders are like fathers to us and therefore deserve special rights and privileges. Producer Josh Kross joins us to talk about being a member of an early stay-at-home dad group, the looks he got from moms in the park, and why our modern understanding of fatherhood changed a bit since Talmudic times. How's the patriarchy doing these days? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Tw...
Jun 03, 2022•10 min•Season 14Ep. 88
Today’s page of Talmud, Yevamot 87, introduces a surprising legal ruling intended to release agunot, literally meaning women chained to their marriages. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to speak of this still deeply painful and, sadly, relevant subject, and offer an inspiring story from a recently departed American rabbi who devoted his life to helping agunot. What did the Talmudic rabbis do to help women extricate themselves from untenable marriages? Listen and find out.
Jun 02, 2022•11 min•Season 14Ep. 87
Today’s page of Talmud, Yevamot 86, kicks things off with a hilarious story of two of the Talmud's most famous rabbis quibbling with each other. Our very own Presidentscher Rav, historian and former official in the George W. Bush administration Dr. Tevi Troy joins us with an amusing story from the Ford White House that shows that this kind of rivalry among the powerful and influential is still alive and well. Who is the future vice president who bested his opponent by boarding up his office and ...
Jun 01, 2022•6 min•Season 14Ep. 86
Today’s page of Talmud, Yevamot 85, raises thorny questions about the rights and responsibilities men and women face when it comes to marriage, childbirth, sin, and other human pursuits. Yeshiva University's Dr. Shaina Trapedo joins us with a riveting tale of Henry VIII and how his very Talmudic understanding of these questions shaped world history. How did Shakespeare forever change the historical record and our understanding of the famous king? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a not...
May 31, 2022•13 min•Season 14Ep. 85
Today’s pages of Talmud, Yevamot 83 and 84, tell us a maddening story about a rabbi shouted down by a group of his peers. Is the Talmud trying to warn us about so-called "cancel culture"? Or is it teaching us a deeper lesson about how to argue, and, more importantly, how to educate our children? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversation in the Take One Facebook group. Take One is a Tablet Studios...
May 30, 2022•10 min•Season 14Ep. 83
Today’s pages of Talmud, Yevamot 81 and 82, give us an accounting of several non-binary gender experessions. Shoshanna Wechter, a woman of trans experience, joins us to talk about how reading the rabbinic deliberations makes her feel, and what this hotly debated modern subject can learn from Judaism's ancient wisdom. What does being in the women's section of the synagogue feel like for Shoshanna? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at...
May 27, 2022•11 min•Season 14Ep. 81
Today’s page of Talmud, Yevamot 80, raises the painful subject of infertility. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to offer a reflection from a wise Hasidic master on having and not having children and on finding hope in dark places. Why did so many of the Bible's heroes struggle with fertility issues? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversation in the Take One Facebook group. Take One is a Tablet Studi...
May 26, 2022•10 min•Season 14Ep. 80
