Today’s Talmud pages, Ketubot 88 and 89, introduce us to the Prosbol, the coolest Halachic concept you've never heard of. Producer Sara Fredman Aeder joins us to explain this marvelous rabbinic invention, and why it's still popular today. How did the rabbis encourage people to give out loans without fearing they'll never get their money back? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Ruskay and Quinn W...
Oct 03, 2022•9 min•Season 15Ep. 88
Today’s Talmud pages, Ketubot 86 and 87, provides important marriage therapy in just a few words. The Talmud discusses trust between a husband and a wife, and asks is there anything that the Rabbis wouldn’t do to ensure peace in the home. Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Ruskay and Quinn Waller. Our team also includes Stephanie Butnick, Josh Kross, Mark Oppenheimer, Sara Fredman Aeder, Robert ...
Sep 30, 2022•7 min•Season 15Ep. 86
Today’s Talmud page, Ketubot 85, advises us to favor a good neighbor over a distant relative. Mark Oppenheimer, co-host of the Unorthodox podcast, joins us to explain why. What did the rabbis understand about living in close proximity to other humans that modern-day architects have since reaffirmed? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Ruskay and Quinn Waller. Our team also includes Stephanie Butn...
Sep 29, 2022•9 min•Season 15Ep. 85
Today’s Talmud pages, Ketubot 82 and 83 and 84, give us a masterclass in how to make love last. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to explain how the Ketubah works, and why it was designed to keep love in the air and marriages sustainable. Is getting married just too darn expensive? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Ruskay and Quinn Waller. Our team also includes Stephanie Butnick, Josh Kross, Mark...
Sep 28, 2022•10 min•Season 15Ep. 82
Today’s Talmud pages, Ketubot 79, 80, and 81, reminds us of our responsibilities for the deceased, beginning with their burial. Producer Darone Ruskay joins us to tell a wild tale of inheritance, cemeteries, and a promise that can't be broken. Why is one coveted New York burial plot standing a quarter empty? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Ruskay and Quinn Waller. Our team also includes Steph...
Sep 23, 2022•8 min•Season 15Ep. 79
Today’s Talmud page, Ketubot 78, reminds us that Judaism isn't an ephemeral, ethereal religion: We're about life right now and right here on this earth, which means caring about... stuff. How do the things we own define us? And how might crass commercialism save our souls and save America? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Ruskay and Quinn Waller. Our team also includes Stephanie Butnick, Josh ...
Sep 22, 2022•13 min•Season 15Ep. 78
Today’s Talmud page, Ketubot 77, asks what, if any, are good reasons to leave your spouse after you get married. Foul smell? Unexpected injuries? Career change? Stephanie Butnick joins us to talk about love, marriage, and how to grow closer together without growing apart. What great marriage advice does the Talmud have to offer? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Ruskay and Quinn Waller. Our tea...
Sep 21, 2022•8 min•Season 15Ep. 77
Today’s Talmud page, Ketubot 76, gives us an insight into eating animals and what makes a beast kosher. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to explain how this seemingly technical question corresponds to the spiritual preparation for the High Holidays. What do physical scabs and emotional wounds have in common? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Ruskay and Quinn Waller. Our team also includes Stephan...
Sep 20, 2022•10 min•Season 15Ep. 76
Today’s Talmud pages, Ketubot 74 and 75, tell us an insightful story about rabbis, doctors, and the very different roles they play. Rabbi Ricky Hidary joins us to explain why maladies leave us with scars, but spiritual rebirth is also a fresh start. What privileges do rabbis enjoy that even the best physicians never will? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Ruskay and Quinn Waller. Our team also ...
Sep 19, 2022•10 min•Season 15Ep. 74
Today’s Talmud pages, Ketubot 72 and 73, teach us a lesson in preparing for the inevitable end. Writer Rodger Kamenetz joins us to read two of his poems from his latest collection, The Missing Jew, and meditate on how we ought to think about our own death and the other profound mysteries of existence. If a boy is born with two heads, on which one should he wear his kippah? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edit...
Sep 16, 2022•8 min•Season 15Ep. 72
Today’s Talmud page, Ketubot 71, delivers a strong reminder that our family is at the heart of our religious life. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to unpack the wisdom of the rabbis and explain what it can still teach us moderns today. What is the one Talmudic marriage advice you can't afford to ignore? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Ruskay and Quinn Waller. Our team also includes Stephanie B...
Sep 15, 2022•9 min•Season 15Ep. 71
Today’s Talmud page, Ketubot 70, informs us that real estate is special and shouldn't be regarded as any other kind of of property. New York City superstar real estate agent Scott Harris, the host of the Finding Home podcast, joins us to talk about why a home is truly where the heart is, and what the Talmud intuitively understood about Zillow. What are we really looking for when we look for a new house? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leib...
Sep 14, 2022•8 min•Season 15Ep. 70
Today’s Talmud page, Ketubot 69, tells us a riveting story about Jews and higher education, a fraught topic even in ancient times. Mark Oppenheimer, host of the new podcast Gatecrashers, a look at the history of Jews in Ivy League universities, joins us with a sneak preview of his new show. Why do Jews continue to obsess over schooling? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Ruskay and Quinn Waller....
Sep 13, 2022•7 min•Season 15Ep. 69
Today’s Talmud pages, Ketubot 67 and 68, raise a thorny question: Are we really equal? And should we be treated exactly the same, or, rather, according to the standards to which we've grown accustomed? And what does any of it have to do with charity? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Ruskay and Quinn Waller. Our team also includes Stephanie Butnick, Josh Kross, Mark Oppenheimer, Sara Fredman Ae...
Sep 12, 2022•12 min•Season 15Ep. 67
Today’s Talmud pages, Ketubot 65 and 66, tell us a wild story about jealousy, desire, destitution, and two women engaged in a bitter, made-for-TV fight. Tablet Magazine's Editor in Chief Alana Newhouse joins us to talk about this juicy story and the deeper lessons it can still teach us today. What would the rabbis have made of the Real Housewives franchise? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Rus...
Sep 09, 2022•10 min•Season 15Ep. 65
Today’s Talmud page, Ketubot 64, dwells on the different ways men and women experience sexual desire. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to shed light on this touchy subject, and explain why that great Talmudic scholar, Larry David, channeled the spirit of the ancient rabbis surprisingly well in one iconic episode of Seinfeld. What can you learn about men and women by visiting a brothel? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produc...
Sep 08, 2022•8 min•Season 15Ep. 64
Today’s Talmud page, Ketubot 63, tells us the story of Rabbi Akiva, who didn't start learning Torah until he was 40 and who still became one of the greatest sages in history. What is the secret to realizing your own, and others', true self worth? And why is the Hebrew month of Elul the perfect time for such epiphanies? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Ruskay and Quinn Waller. Our team also inc...
Sep 07, 2022•10 min•Season 15Ep. 63
Today’s Talmud page, Ketubot 62, delivers a message about the power of positive thinking. Rabbi Ari Lamm joins us to discuss why Judaism sets so much store in optimism, and why this may just be the best time ever to be Jewish. Who are the prophet and the wizard, and which one do we need right now? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Ruskay and Quinn Waller. Our team also includes Stephanie Butnic...
Sep 06, 2022•11 min•Season 15Ep. 62
Today’s Talmud pages, Ketubot 60 and 61, ask a question that keeps new parents up at night: When, precisely, does a baby truly recognize his or her mother? Stephanie Butnick, a year into motherhood, joins us to discuss her own experiences with the charming Baby Edith, and muse on why we should continue to set developmental milestones throughout our entire lives. Does your child see you as a different person every day? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is host...
Sep 05, 2022•8 min•Season 15Ep. 60
Today’s Talmud pages, Ketubot 58 and 59, raise a metaphysical head-scratcher: Can you consecrate something that doesn't yet exist? Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to talk about Jacob, Esau, promises, and the profoundly distinct ways Jews see both present and future. What was Esau's seminal mistake in selling off his birthright for a bowl of soup? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Ruskay and Quin...
Sep 02, 2022•13 min•Season 15Ep. 58
Today’s Talmud page, Ketubot 57, prods us to think about weddings as contractual obligations necessary for the survival of society. Few authors delivered keener insights into this question than Jane Austen, so today we're happy to feature the first episode of a recently launched podcast, Jane and Jesus, which looks at the author's seminal work on love, marriage, and faith, Pride and Prejudice, through a theological perspective. It's hosted by Karen Swallow Prior, and on today's episode, her gues...
Sep 01, 2022•43 min•Season 15Ep. 57
Today’s Talmud page, Ketubot 56, asks the question all of us in committed relationships periodically ponder: How do we keep the magic alive even after years and years and years? Tablet Magazine's Samantha Hacker, now five months past her own wedding day, joins us to offer some insights. What's the one thing you can buy that pretty much guarantees a happy marriage? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Dar...
Aug 31, 2022•12 min•Season 15Ep. 56
Today’s Talmud page, Ketubot 55, gives us a thrilling dispute between the two giants who made the Babylonian Talmud the masterwork it is: Rav and Shmuel. What is the difference between their two distinct ways of looking at the world? And why does it still matter to those of us today interested in anything related to teaching and learning? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Ruskay and Quinn Walle...
Aug 30, 2022•10 min•Season 15Ep. 55
Today’s Talmud pages, Ketubot 53 and 54, ask the same question so many of us ask daily: When will we ever grow up? Kylie Unell joins us with an introduction to her podcast, How to Save a Soul in 30 Days, in which she contemplates the Hebrew month of Elul, a month-long spiritual bootcamp designed to get us in grown up shape before the High Holidays. How does Judaism teach us to adult? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produc...
Aug 29, 2022•13 min•Season 15Ep. 53
Today’s Talmud pages, Ketubot 51 and 52, deal with the difficult question of the captive woman. Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin joins us to explain this particular thorny predicament, and how it teaches us an inspiring lesson about love and self-sacrifice. What was the real-life historic case of a woman kidnapped that was deeply debated by Talmudic scholars? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone Ruskay and Q...
Aug 26, 2022•9 min•Season 15Ep. 51
Today’s Talmud page, Ketubot 50, asks the question teachers and parents have been pondering since time immemorial: Should we be sweet to our kids? Or harass them until they study properly? Producer Darone Ruskay joins us with some tales from the front lines of parenting two terrific twins, and shares some Talmudic tips to making sure your children are self-motivated and happy. How do you get those 12-year-olds to practice their guitars? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios productio...
Aug 25, 2022•10 min•Season 15Ep. 50
Today’s Talmud page, Ketubot 49, poses a question many of us ask ourselves every day: what, precisely, do parents owe their children? Lily Bess Leibovitz, age 11, joins us to opine on this subject, and offer her categorical approach to needs, wants, and keeping things fair. Should parents care about what other parents are doing when making up the family rules? Listen and find out. Take One is a Tablet Studios production. The show is hosted by Liel Leibovitz, and is produced and edited by Darone ...
Aug 24, 2022•9 min•Season 15Ep. 49
Today’s Talmud page, Ketubot 48, finds the rabbis in the mood for love. Therapist Nicoletta Heidegger joins us to talk about why the rabbis' insistence on being naked during intercourse is surprisingly progressive, and what the Talmud has to say to couples looking for some solid marriage advice. What profound insight did the rabbis have when it comes to sex? Listen and find out. Like the show? Send us a note at takeone@tabletmag.com. Follow us on Twitter at @takeonedafyomi and join the conversat...
Aug 23, 2022•9 min•Season 15Ep. 48
Today’s Talmud pages, Ketubot 46 and 47, teach us a concrete and unorthodox lesson on...saving money. Why should we sometimes throw the cautious and sensible advice about pinching pennies to the wind? And what did the rabbis understand about personal finance that Suze Orman, say, may not? 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 produc...
Aug 22, 2022•8 min•Season 15Ep. 46
Today’s Talmud pages, Ketubot 44 and 45, give us a solid bit of relationship advice. Rabbi Sari Laufer joins us to explain why the rabbis warned against defaming your wife, and what the status of your physical intimacy had to do with the state of your relationship. Is it ever alright to complain to friends about your significant others? 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 Fa...
Aug 19, 2022•10 min•Season 15Ep. 44
