Despite living in times of unprecedented access to material goods, it seems as if anxiety and unhappiness have never been higher, particularly among the younger generation. Rabbi YY Jacobson, one of the foremost spiritual thought leaders of our time, joins Rabbi Wildes to reveal the mystical yet scientific reason behind this reality and answers Mark Twain's famous question of how the Jewish people have survived through centuries of persecution. Rabbi Jacobson also details his experience spent as...
Jun 21, 2022•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 108
There is a deep yearning for spiritual experience and meaning among the young Jewish community. Rabbi Daniel Bortz, better known as The Millennial Rabbi has gained social-media fame through his focus on meditation, Kabbalah, and Torah wisdom for achieving happiness. Rabbi Wildes speaks with Rabbi Bortz about all this and more in this inspirational and informative conversation that will leave you thinking about "God" in a whole new way. Timestamps: 1:30 - Millennials and Torah 12:30 - Nature of G...
Jun 01, 2022•44 min•Ep. 107
The status quo between the Israelis and the Palestinians is clearly untenable. Rabbi Mark Wildes speaks with Rabbi Yehuda HaKohen who has spent his life engaging with his Palestinian neighbors in the West Bank, about whether peace is possible. This is an explosive conversation where you will often find yourself disagreeing, but it is a guarantee that you will not leave thinking exactly the same way you did before about the conflict. Timestamps: 1:30 - Post-Zionism 5:30 - One-State solution 14:00...
May 24, 2022•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 106
L'Chaim OG (Zecharya Levine) is blowing up in the Jewish music scene with his inspirational lyrics and catchy beats. Zecharya takes us through his journey from growing up Christian to falling in love with Torah and eventually converting. He also debuts an acapella version of his new song and reveals a beautiful secret about the iconic musician Prince, who happens to be his cousin. The Torah wisdom in this conversation is immense as Zecharya shares the lessons he's learned on his journey that wil...
May 03, 2022•1 hr•Ep. 105
Rabbi Tovia Singer is world-famous for his debates with priests and pastors as well as for saving countless Jews from falling victim to the hands of Christian cult groups. Rabbi Singer cautions regarding congregations that "are designed to appear Jewish, but are actually fundamentalist Christian churches, which use traditional Jewish symbols to lure the most vulnerable of our Jewish people into their ranks." In this incredible conversation, Rabbi Wildes and Rabbi Singer discuss: Are Christian Mi...
Apr 27, 2022•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 104
People often refer to Jeffrey Gurian as a “Renaissance Man”, because he’s involved in so many things. He’s a doctor, lecturer, and motivational speaker, but he’s also a comedy writer, performer, director, author, producer, and radio personality, and not always in that order. In this episode, Dr. Gurian shares with Rabbi Wildes how he was able to write multiple books while in the hospital with Covid, how he was able to cure his stutter, the biggest impediment to happiness in people’s lives, his e...
Apr 12, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 103
There are very few people as informed as Dr. Yishayhu on Israeli geopolitics and he has extensive experience in the field, including time spent as an advisor at the highest levels of the Israeli government. In this episode, Dr. Yishayahu explains Israel's precarious position in regards to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, how the instability in eastern Europe may actually benefit Israel in their conflict with Iran, whether the West should institute a no-fly-zone in Ukraine, and more.
Apr 05, 2022•47 min•Ep. 102
This week, Rabbi Wildes sits down with social media superstar Lizzy Savetsky. Lizzy spreads positive messages surrounding the topics of Israel advocacy, matchmaking, women's empowerment and more to her nearly 200,000 Instagram followers. Lizzy shares how she balances her social media presence with her everyday life, which Instagram comments irritate her the most, why she enjoys matchmaking, her message to empower young women, and more.
Mar 29, 2022•44 min•Ep. 101
2 of the 3 million refugees created by the Russian invasion into Ukraine have fled to Poland. Rabbi Mark Wildes speaks with the Chief Rabbi of Poland, Rabbi Michael Schudrich on how the Polish Jewish community is responding to the crisis. "For hundreds of years, Jews have fled out of Poland, but now Jews are fleeing to Poland." Donate here: https://fjc.org/news/crisis-in-ukraine/
Mar 22, 2022•35 min•Ep. 100
Rabbi Mark Wildes is joined by Jacqueline Murekatete, founder of the Genocide Survivors Foundation. Jacqueline shares her harrowing story of how she survived the Rwandan Genocide, her thoughts on the current situation in Ukraine, and more.
Mar 16, 2022•52 min•Ep. 99
Imam Antepli is a globally acknowledged scholar and leader of cross-religious and cross-cultural dialogue in American higher education and in non-profit world. He has built multiple organizations and initiatives to facilitate religious and spiritual life across America’s college campuses, sowing seeds of understanding between religions while upholding their cultural integrity and dignity. In July 2019, Antepli joined the Sanford School of Public Policy as associate professor of the practice, wit...
Mar 10, 2022•58 min•Ep. 98
Raised in Brooklyn, Inna Vernikov is a small business owner and a practicing lawyer. Inna grew up as one of three children in a family of Ukrainian immigrants, being taught the value of integrity and hard work by her mother, a bookkeeper, and her father, a businessman. As a business owner and attorney, Inna has overcome adversity and has always been there for the people. Supporting local schools and education, Inna has volunteered her time participating in “Career Day” for public school students...
Mar 01, 2022•23 min•Ep. 97
Sivan Rahav-Meir is a media personality and lecturer. Married to Yedidya, the mother of five. Lives in Jerusalem. Went on shlichut with her family 2019-2020, when she served as World Mizrachi's Shlicha to North America. She works for Israel TV news, writes a column for Yediot Aharonot newspaper, and hosts a weekly radio show on Galei Zahal (Army Radio). Her lectures on the weekly Torah portion are attended by hundreds and the live broadcast attracts thousands more listeners throughout the world....
Feb 17, 2022•43 min•Ep. 96
In this episode Rabbi Wildes speaks with Naomi Nachman. As cooking has always been her passion, in 2004, Naomi started her own kosher personal chef business, The Aussie Gourmet, to pursue cater weekly and Shabbat/Yom Tov meals for families and individuals within The Five Towns and neighboring communities and beyond — including Alaska and Israel. Naomi is often sought after to give cooking demonstrations and produce kosher Chopped competitions throughout the New York/New Jersey Metropolitan as we...
Feb 09, 2022•42 min•Ep. 95
Lori Palatnik is a writer and Jewish educator who has appeared on television and radio. She is the Founding Director of The Jewish Women's Renaissance Project, an international initiative that brings thousands of women to Israel each year from 18 different countries on highly subsidized programs to inspire them with the beauty and wisdom of their heritage (www.jwrp.org). She is a much sought-after international speaker, having lectured in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, U.K., Central America, South Am...
Feb 04, 2022•54 min•Ep. 94
In this episode Rabbi Wildes continues his Science and Religion series. His guest is renowned scientist Rabbi Dr. Chaim Presby. They talk about evolution, Torah, human origins and a host of other issues.
Jan 19, 2022•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 93
Gerald Schroeder is a scientist with over thirty years of experience in research and teaching. He earned his Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Doctorate degrees all at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, with his doctorate thesis being under the supervision of physics professor Robley D. Evans. This was followed by five years on the staff of the MIT physics department prior to moving to Israel, where he joined the Weizmann Institute of Science and then the Volcani Research Institute, while also h...
Jan 12, 2022•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 92
On this episode of the WildesCast we begin a new three-part series on the relationship between religion and science. Our first guest in the series is Rabbi Dr. Natan Slifkin, otherwise known as “The Zoo Rabbi.” Can you believe in both Torah and Evolution? How can a study of the animal kingdom help us remain faithful to Judaism and still believe in science? Hear answers to these questions and more.
Jan 05, 2022•59 min•Ep. 91
Rabbi David Aaron is a spiritual visionary and master educator who has invested over 3 decades delving into life’s BIGGEST question marks and sharing Torah’s transformational wisdom to adults and young adults. He has emerged as the ‘God expert’ simply because he has dared to ask and answer the most difficult questions that he/ALL people have and/or struggle with about God’s existence and their own.
Dec 22, 2021•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 90
The Annual Ruth B. Wildes Memorial Lecture 2021 presents an evening with Rachel Kraus. This event is Complimentary with a suggested donation and includes a Dessert Reception & Wine Bar following the lecture. Rachel is an incredibly interesting, knowledgeable and dynamic speaker, who's topic this evening will be "The Torah's Hidden Thread to Humanity." Rachel Kraus is a marketing and brand executive and managing director of a boutique marketing and brand consulting firm. Previously, Rachel wa...
Dec 16, 2021•57 min•Ep. 89
Virág Gulyás is a former diplomat to the EU, communications consultant, and journalist. She is also the NYC coordinator for End Jew Hatred, a grassroots civil rights movement dedicated to ensuring Jewish liberation from centuries of persecution and achieving justice for the Jewish people through peaceful direct action. As a loud pro-Israel voice, a Hungarian, and a non-Jewish Zionist, Gulyas has created a movement that aims to change the stereotypes about Israel and the Jewish people one day at ...
Dec 15, 2021•46 min•Ep. 88
In this episode Rabbi Wildes speaks with World Series of Poker winner Gershon Distenfeld. Gershon M. Distenfeld, Senior Vice President, is Co-Head of Fixed Income, Director of Credit and a member of the Operating Committee. As Co-Head of Fixed Income, he is responsible for the management and strategic growth of AB’s fixed-income business. As Director of Credit, Distenfeld oversees all of AB’s credit-related strategies, including all global and regional investment-grade and high-yield strategies,...
Nov 24, 2021•54 min•Ep. 87
In this episode Rabbi Wildes talks with Elon Gold. Elon Gold is a comedian and actor who has starred in FOX's 'Stacked’ and NBC's 'In-Laws’. His one hour stand up special on Netflix, “Elon Gold: Chosen & Taken” received wide acclaim from audiences and peers alike. It is currently streaming on Amazon Prime. He has made ten appearances on 'The Tonight Show' and had a recurring role on the FOX hit show, 'Bones’. Elon was a writer/performer on ABC's 'The Dana Carvey Show' and has guest starred o...
Nov 17, 2021•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 85
In this episode Rabbi Wildes speaks with Leah Gottfried. Leah graduated with a Film Studies degree from Yeshiva University where she studied screenwriting and TV writing as well as cinematography at NYU. Leah also studied at The Actors Circle in Los Angeles and has numerous commercials and TV credits including Time Warner Cable and Yamaha ATV under her belt. She is a sought after speaker and writer, with recent speaking engagements including Yeshiva University and Limmud NY and an op-ed piece pu...
Nov 10, 2021•41 min•Ep. 84
In this episode Rabbi Wildes speaks with Michael Eisenberg. Michael Eisenberg is co-founder and General Partner at Aleph, an early stage venture capital fund with over $500 million under management. Michael has been a venture capitalist for twenty-five years. Aleph focuses on partnering with great Israeli entrepreneurs to build large, meaningful companies and impactful global brands. Since its founding in 2013, Aleph has invested in more than forty companies, including Melio, Lemonade, Bringg, J...
Nov 04, 2021•56 min•Ep. 83
In this episode Rabbi Wildes speaks with Rabbi Dr. Jacob Schacter. Rabbi Shacter is arguably the most important scholar and spokesperson for modern orthodoxy today. He holds a Ph.D. in Near Eastern Languages from Harvard and received rabbinic ordination from Yeshiva Torah Vodaas. The other hat Rabbi Schacter wears, and wears well, is that of scholar extraordinaire. He has authored dozens of important scholarly articles and books that have become the mainstay of modern orthodox thought and he lec...
Oct 20, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 82
Rabbi Chaim Miller was educated at the Haberdashers' Aske's School in London, England and studied Medical Science at Leeds University. At the age of twenty-one, he first began to explore his Jewish roots in full-time Torah study. Less than a decade later, he published the best-selling Kol Menachem Chumash, Gutnick Edition, which made over a thousand complex discourses of the late Lubavitcher Rebbe easily accessible to the layman. His 2011 compilation, the Lifestyle Books Torah, Five Books of Mos...
Oct 13, 2021•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 81
In this interview Rabbi Wildes interviews Rabbi Doniel Katz. Doniel Katz is an internationally sought-after speaker and teacher. A former award-winning filmmaker and theater director in Australia, he has lived and studied in Jerusalem for the last ten years. His famous classes in Jerusalem routinely drew overflow crowds eager to hear his unique combination of mussar, self-development, Chassidus and Kabbalah. Rabbi Katz's ability to present profound concepts from all areas of Torah in a concrete ...
Oct 06, 2021•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 80
Beatie Deutsch is the Israeli national champion in the marathon and half marathon. As a mother of five young children, she has learned to apply her training to the real marathon of life. Beatie took up running just four years ago and recently went pro with the goal of qualifying for Tokyo 2020 and representing Israel in the Olympics. More than anything else, her journey has empowered her to dream big and keep pushing, a message Beatie is passionate about sharing with other women.
Sep 27, 2021•44 min•Ep. 79
Dr. Nava Silton is a Professor of Psychology at Marymount Manhattan College. After graduating from Cornell University in 2002, she completed a master's and doctorate in Developmental Psychology at Fordham University. Nava looks at the interface between religion and health and has done significant work in the fields of disabilities and children's media. She has worked at Nickelodeon, Sesame Workshop and has consulted for Netflix, Blue's Clues, Mediakidz, etc. She has appeared often on Fox 5 News ...
Aug 30, 2021•43 min•Ep. 78
