“I think part of the exciting challenge and possibility in contemporary Jewish life is how do we celebrate our diversity? How do we be that mosaic? and how do we share identity?” — Joshua Krug, Founder, Opening Doors Featuring: Josh Krug, Founder, Opening Doors Opening Doors is an educational intervention that deploys the power of text, context, and technology to help people find genuine connection, belonging, and meaning. Opening Doors seeks to offer virtual infrastructure for gathering and lea...
Jan 16, 2022•53 min•Season 3Ep. 39
Ariele Mortkowitz is passionate about working with and for women. She creates communities that help women interact with each other, their families and their faith. Ariele has dedicated herself to the pursuit of fulfilling female spiritual and communal experiences. Prior to the creation of SVIVAH, she created the Agam Center to establish a Jewish communal home for women's spirituality, wellness, ritual, and education. She has dedicated her life to learning and becoming a woman who spiritually upl...
Dec 23, 2021•58 min•Season 2Ep. 38
Featuring: Dr. Rabbi Kerry Olitzky Rabbi Dr. Kerry Olitzky explains, “parents access religion through their children…books like these allow people to transcend institutional borders and access Jewish thought.” Rabbi Olitzky tells us in the podcast that he is optimistic for the future of Jewish life. He explains that the Jewish community requires adaptive leaders and mission driven organizations that will continue to bring Jewish content into the marketplace of ideas and make Judaism and its cont...
Dec 10, 2021•44 min•Season 2Ep. 37
Featuring: Anne Lanski, Founding Executive Director of The iCenter “We’ve created a new Israel education paradigm…where Israel is really understood as integral to Jewish identities,” explains Anne Lanski, the founding executive director of The iCenter. The iCenter’s tagline is “Inspiring Meaningful and Enduring Connections to Israel.” Throughout her career, Anne Lanski had created immersive Israel experiences that lead to greater understanding of engagement with Israeli. She has led The iCenter ...
Nov 12, 2021•36 min•Season 2Ep. 36
Wilderness Torah Featuring: Rabbi Zelig Golden, Co-Founder and Executive Director When discussing the concept of retreat into the wilderness, Rabbi Zelig suggests, “The Torah is teaching us that there is a powerful and essential medicine in the wilderness and that when we go and receive that medicine…it has the power to fundamentally change who we are, to help heal us and to become more clear on who we are.” Mission : Wilderness Torah awakens and celebrates the earth-based traditions of Judaism ...
Oct 29, 2021•48 min•Season 2Ep. 35
Kabbalah Experience Featuring: David Sanders, Founder and Melanie Gruenwald, Executive Director “Our world is so challenging and we can’t and don’t want to tune it out, we have to really pay attention. So one of the things we try also develop…is looking at what are our shared experiences, what is it about the human narrative that challenges us to really work on ourselves,” eplains David about how we engage with the learning and practices of Kabbalah. Their mission : Kabbalah Experience provides ...
Oct 15, 2021•41 min•Season 2Ep. 34
Featuring: Madison Jackson, Founder and Executive Director “I realize there needed to be some program, some organization, just some way, of connecting individual people from around the world because the human level is where we grow more accepting, meaning when we get to know a person face to face, get to know their own story, and feel that emotional attachment then we (might) become more open minded to the idea of Jewish life existing in all corners of the world,” say Madison while sharing her r...
Oct 01, 2021•36 min•Season 2Ep. 33
Featuring: Gen Slosberg, Co-Creator & Producer “I would say that the primary purpose and core reason that Lunar exists is to serve Asian-American Jews…We are like a love letter to our community. We want our community to feel seen and (feel) like they belong,” explains Gen Slosberg. LUNAR’s Purpose is to cultivate connection, belonging and visibility for Asian American Jews through authentic multimedia storytelling and intersectional community programming. LUNAR’s Values: By us for us: We str...
Sep 17, 2021•29 min•Season 2Ep. 32
Featuring: Carrie Bornstein, CEO, Mayyim Hayyim “I found out about Mayyim Hayyim before it opened actually…I was really drawn to the idea of taking something that seemed like it should be one way and flipping it on it’s head to make it better and more relevant and accessible,” explains Carrie Bornstein about her path to working at Mayyim Hayyim. Mayyim Hayyim is a 21st century creation, a mikveh rooted in ancient tradition, reinvented to serve the Jewish community of today. Mayyim Hayyim is an i...
Sep 03, 2021•39 min•Season 2Ep. 31
Featuring: Aharon Ariel Lavi, Founder and Executive Director “What communities give to people is invaluable…they give a sense of belonging, sense of friendship, and of support and of identity. It’s something that is at the core of our lives,” explains Aharon Ariel Lavi when sharing his passionate journey toward working with and supporting intentional communities. Founded in 2014, Hakhel is the first and largest global incubator for Jewish intentional communities. Its mission is to spark and supp...
Aug 20, 2021•33 min•Season 2Ep. 30
Featuring: JGirls Magazine with Elizabeth Mandel, Founder and Executive Director Elizabeth Mandel defines attributes of feminist leadership as “…to be able to think expansively, holistically, and generously, to be able to create space for other’s ideas, really listen to those ideas…to be able to use positions of authority, to create space for a multitude of voices that are different from your own.” jGirls has two main components. The first is the Online Magazine. Here they hosts a variety of voi...
Aug 06, 2021•53 min•Season 2Ep. 29
Featuring: Institute for Jewish Spirituality with Rabbi Josh Feigelson “In my experience, spirituality is about… presence , being present with what is and not judging it and awareness , living with awareness and intention,” says Rabbi Josh as he shares his definition of spirituality. He goes on to teach us Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Breditchev’s ( Bio here ) interpretation of the pasuk -sentence- in Exodus 25:8, “Make Me a sanctuary that I may dwell in them ( וְעָ֥שׂוּ לִ֖י מִקְדָּ֑שׁ וְשָֽׁכַנְתִּ֖...
Jul 23, 2021•40 min•Season 2Ep. 28
Featuring: Tkiya with Carla Friend, Founder and Executive Director “The music really transformed me in a number of ways. I felt an instant and deep connection to my father and also to my Jewish heritage in general,” reflects Carla Friend about attending Shabbat Services. Tkiya’s mission is to use participatory music experiences to help people of all ages find their unique connection with Jewish culture and to reinvigorate diverse Jewish communities. Imagine an experience where people of all ages...
Jul 09, 2021•28 min•Season 2Ep. 27
Featuring: Craig Dershowitz, Cofounder & CEO My driving force is ‘how do I do the most good with my work?’ …and I can’t think of a better way than supporting (Israel) the country that helps the causes about which I am passionate, explains Craig Dershowitz, Cofounder and CEO of Artists 4 Israel. Artists 4 Israel prevents the spread of anti-Israel bigotry through art and helps communities and people affected by terrorism and hate. Artists 4 Israel’s international network of artists are agents ...
Jun 25, 2021•34 min•Season 1Ep. 26
Featuring: Deborah Fishman Shelby “Shared meals around Jewish values and holidays is a really powerful way for people to connect to something larger than them and with each other….when people break bread together in this way it transcends boundaries and it allows people to really connect on a deep level.” FED is a platform for ideas built into an inclusive community with delicious food; inspirational talks, music, and art; and the company and creative energy of others you find at FED. Speakers a...
Jun 11, 2021•24 min•Season 2Ep. 25
Featuring Educator and Musician: Eliana Light “Prayers were written by people… in response to what was going on in their lives and the universe at that time…we have been given the incredible gift and challenge of using other people’s words for our prayer practice and on the other side we have the challenge of bring our own selves to it, our own words…” explains Eliana Light during this podcast. Eliana’s explanations of prayer and Jewish liturgy, allow for deep thought. I don’t have conversations...
May 28, 2021•41 min•Season 2Ep. 24
Featuring Rabbi Drew Kaplan “Judaism has a lot of wisdom on life and, since drinking alcoholic beverages has been a cornerstone of humanity for thousands of years, Judaism has a lot to say about this topic,” explains Rabbi Kaplan on his website. JewishDrinking.com is the #1 English-speaking resource for Jewish wisdom, history, textual, and other similar resources regarding drinking. There’s a lot in the Jewish tradition about drinking – whether in the Torah, Talmud, history, or more. JewishDrink...
May 14, 2021•42 min•Season 2Ep. 23
Featuring: Rabbi Adina Allen, Co-founder & Creative Director “The world isn’t lacking more information. What we need is a way to process and hold and to integrate that information so it can actually have an effect on us and can shift our actions,” are the thoughts that led Rabbi Adina to realize that both with art making and Judaism are ways that could help us stay with what is hard so that it can move through us and something new and and transformative can come out. Jewish Studio Project (J...
Apr 30, 2021•39 min•Season 2Ep. 22
Featuring: Todd Shotz “You may not remember necessarily every single thing that they (your educators) taught you but you remember how you felt in the learning process and that has stayed with you,” explains Todd Shotz. He says that our (Hebrew Helpers’) process helps to create “the feeling, that connection, that engagement which comes from showing the relevance of what our tradition has to hold for modern life.” Since 2005, Hebrew Helpers, a nationwide Jewish Studies program, has been providing ...
Apr 16, 2021•56 min•Season 2Ep. 21
Featuring: Peter Levinson, Co-founder and Lead Guitarist “There had to be a transformation of understanding…. that’s what the Ruach has done for me,” describes Peter, during our discussion of the Keva and Kavana , Jewish elements of prayer. He continues to say, we really believe that giving people a real strong feeling of who they are, and a sense of confidence and they’ll do the right thing” The Ruach is a Jewish Rock band and spiritual community in Charlotte, NC spreading the joy of Judaism th...
Mar 19, 2021•55 min•Season 2Ep. 20
Featuring: Rabbi Jeff Stombaugh "There are so many meaningful ways to be involved Jewishly. And I believe one is not better or worse than another if it has purpose and meaning for you.” explains Rabbi Jeff Stombaugh. Rabbi Jeff experienced a defining moment during a prayer service at Hillel. He concludes that, “Judaism doesn’t need to look any one particular way. We can conscientiously push boundaries.” Rabbi Jeff Stombaugh is the Executive Director of the Well. The Well is Metro Detroit’s inclu...
Mar 05, 2021•41 min•Season 2Ep. 19
Featuring: Tiffany Woolf, Co-Founder "Always follow your blessings," says 103 year old Risa Igelfeld. Carl Reiner said, "Always have something to do and stay curious." These are two examples of the wisdom Tiffany Woolf has learned from our older generation. Tiffany’s affinity to hearing the stories of the elderly, gave her the idea to talk to capture their stories. She launched Silver Screen Studio’s and three years later. They have now produced three series of documentary shorts. You can view a...
Feb 19, 2021•35 min•Season 2Ep. 18
Featuring David Katznelson, CEO of Reboot. Reboot grapples with the question, “how do we take this thousands of years old thing (Judaism) and make it so we keep the core of what it is yet dress it in a way that can make people feel like they have ownership of it,” explains David. Reboot began as a conversation with people who had the ability to connect to a wide audience through arts and culture. They started to examine the inheritance they had from their Jewish connection. Feeling inspired, the...
Feb 05, 2021•55 min•Season 2Ep. 17
Today's guests are Mina Rush, National Director IsrealLink and Matt Rissien, Midwest IsraelLink Managing Director. Mina and Matt are passionate about the work they are doing to promote a curriculum that fits the need of today’s learners. During a Facebook live session , Mina explains that in creating IsraelLink, the only agenda that mattered was that of each individual student. She recognized the need to create something that enabled the students to figure out their own why for Israel. She and h...
Jan 22, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Season 2Ep. 16
One Table Featuring Aliza Kline, Executive Director “OneTable is designed as integrative as opposed to immersive. It is integrating Jewish life, practice, culture tradition in to your kitchen, in to your living room. and that sense of this is not something I leave my home for, this is in my home and that it’s my decision of what to serve and who to invite it is yours,” explains Aliza Kline, founding Executive Director of OneTable. “We have rituals to remind us to do things we might not do otherw...
Jan 08, 2021•59 min•Season 2Ep. 15
Featuring Kosha Dillz, aka Rami Matan Even-Esh “I had the opportunity to do anything I wanted, and I chose to stick with the Jewish people. That is the entire essence of Kosha Dillz,” explains Kosha Dillz. Kosha Dillz was born Rami Matan Even-Esh in New Jersey to Israeli parents. Kosha Dillz shares his journey. From a life of sports and competition to rap music to crime and addiction. And how he turned his life around. Today he uses his art to proudly represent who he is. He is best known for hi...
Dec 11, 2020•45 min•Season 1Ep. 14
Featuring Cantor Debbie Ballard, Founder of My Personal Judaism “Judaism doesn’t have to fit anybody else’s mold but your own”, says Cantor Debbi Ballard. She asks people to consider, “What does your Judaism look like and what does it mean for you to be Jewish.” Cantor Debbi Ballard has 30 years of experience in serving the Jewish community. She is a Jewish community professional, spiritual leader and experiential educator. She has always been an independent and strong minded woman. From an earl...
Nov 27, 2020•46 min•Season 1Ep. 13
At The Well Project Featuring: Sarah Michal Waxman, Founder “Judaism teaches so much about marking time, being aware of your time, knowing what time it is and making sure you find yourself in places of belonging”-Sarah Michal Waxman. Where do you belong? How do you create a feeling of belonging? Do you have a community that you meet with regularly? A community that lifts you up? Encourages you? Where you can be authentic? Where do you find spirituality? These are some of the questions Sarah Mich...
Nov 13, 2020•36 min•Season 1Ep. 12
Featuring: Molly Tolsky, Founder and Editor Molly Tolsky reflects on institutional concerns over diminished engagement in Jewish life. She notes, “people are super engaged in their Judaism, just not in traditional ways. It’s just as valid and just as big a part of their identity.” My guest today, Molly Tolsky, is the founder and editor of Alma ( heyalma.com ), a Jewish culture site from 70 Faces Media. Previously the editor of Kveller, Molly holds an MFA in Fiction Writing from Sarah Lawrence Co...
Oct 30, 2020•51 min•Season 1Ep. 11
LEV Children's Museum Featuring: Sarah DeWoskin, Founder and Director “In today’s world all of us are realizing that we want to reach everyone no matter where they are in their journey. It could be those on the way outskirts; or those that they are not even Jewish. In today’s world, the more understanding we have of one another’s cultures and where we are coming from; the more we can connect, collaborate, and meet each other where we are,” says Sarah DeWoskin about creating inclusive Jewish envi...
Oct 18, 2020•46 min•Season 1Ep. 10
