Anonymous: Searching for the Beginning [Origins of Judaism 1/6]

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Rabbi Josh Grajower - rabbi and educator - about the loss of his wife, as well as the loss that Tisha B’Av represents for the Jewish People.The Jewish people mourn every year on Tisha B’Av, but it can still be hard to connect with the feelings of the day. Mourning is felt most strongly with those closest to us, and while the things we mourn on Tisha B’Av are of great religious and historical significance, they can feel foreign. Rabbi Grajower lost his wife, Danielle Grajower, giving him intense insight into the mourning process.- How does it feel to lose someone close to you?- How do you deal with the finality?- How does time affect the emotional wound?- How can your loss affect your relationship with God?Tune in to hear a conversation on loss and mourning.Musical Credit:Eim Eshkachech by Itzhak Azulai https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0tldz_-0yUReferences:Holocaust Commemoration and Tish'a be-Av: The Debate Over "Yom ha-Sho'a" by Rabbi Jacob J. Schacter https://www.jstor.org/stable/23263711A Grief Observed by CS Lewis https://www.amazon.com/Grief-Observed-C-S-Lewis/dp/0060652381It’s OK That You’re Not OK by Megan Devine https://www.amazon.com/Its-That-Youre-Not-Understand/dp/1622039076The Unwinding of a Miracle by Julie Yip-Williamshttps://www.amazon.com/Unwinding-Miracle-Memoir-Death-Everything/dp/0525511350Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.

13 Juli 20211h 14min

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, our host, David Bashevkin, reflects on 18Forty’s Jewish peoplehood episodes.David reassesses 18Forty’s Jewish peoplehood topic from September 2020, which featured Rav Aaron Lopiansky, Laura Adkins, Bethany Mandel, and Samuel Freedman. Using highlight clips from those episodes, David explores what brings together a group of people to form a peoplehood, the ways the Jewish community is divided, and the effect these divisions have on the larger people.- Why did 18Forty choose this topic?- What constitutes a peoplehood?- How does a peoplehood remain united in the face of internal conflict?- Can it overcome division, even when the division stems from conflicting, deep-seated values, to remain united?- Can someone truly love a whole nation?Tune in to hear David reflect on 18Forty’s Jewish peoplehood exploration.For more, visit https://18forty.org/podcast/jewish-peoplehood-roundup/.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.

6 Juli 20211h 16min

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we sit down with our host, David Bashevkin, to reflect on 18Forty’s comedy episodes.David revisits 18Forty’s comedy exploration from July of 2020, featuring comedians Gary Gulman and Leah Forster and Rabbi Daniel Feldman. David once again explores the connections between comedy and life, and how comedy can help cope with tragedy. He also explores some of the qualities of Jewish humor.- Why did 18Forty choose comedy as a topic, and why so early?- What life lessons can comedy teach?- What are some of the characteristics of Jewish comedy and Jewish comedians?Tune in to hear David reflect on 18Forty’s comedy topic.References:https://natebargatze.com/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitch_Hedberghttp://www.joanrivers.com/https://18forty.org/articles/gary-gulman-this-impossible-life/The Most Human Human by Brian Christian https://www.amazon.com/Most-Human-Talking-Computers-Teaches-ebook/dp/B004FEG2S6Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl https://www.amazon.com/Mans-Search-Meaning-Viktor-Frankl/dp/0807014273/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr= For more, visit https://18forty.org/podcast/comedy-roundup/.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.

29 Juni 20211h 10min

In this anniversary episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we sit down with our host, David Bashevkin, to reflect on the last year of episodes.18Forty has explored many important and interesting topics and has helped build a community of people interested in exploring these ideas. But it has been a big undertaking involving many unforeseen factors and complications.- How has 18Forty decided what topics and guests to feature?- What has David learned about the process of interviewing?- How has 18Forty been affected by the community growing around it?- How has 18Forty dealt with controversy?Tune in to hear David reflect on 18Forty’s beginning and growth over the last year.References:Top Five by David Bashevkin https://www.amazon.com/Top-5-Dovid-Bashevkin/dp/1600918174For more, visit https://18forty.org/Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.

22 Juni 202157min

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Rabbi Jacob J. Schacter - rabbi, professor, and historian - about censorship as it relates to Jewish history.Though censorship exists in many areas, it is particularly interesting to analyze it from the lens of Jewish history. It can be tempting to idealize the lives of gedolim when writing about them, or to whitewash parts of history that don’t fit with our modern conceptions. It can be tricky to navigate history while preserving a given set of values.- How should we study Jewish history?- Is there room for idealization or censorship?- Or should we always seek the historical truth?- What should we do when history is problematic in the face of our values?Tune in to hear a conversation on censorship and Jewish history.References:Zakhor by Yosef Hayim Yerushalmi https://www.amazon.com/Zakhor-Jewish-History-Lectures-Studies/dp/0295975199On the Morality of the Patriarchs: Must Biblical Heroes be Perfect by Rabbi JJ Schacter https://www.academia.edu/37135943/Jacob_J_Schacter_On_the_Morality_of_the_Patriarchs_Must_Biblical_Heroes_be_Perfect_in_Zvi_Grumet_ed_Jewish_Education_in_Transition_Proceedings_of_the_First_International_Conference_on_Jewish_Education_Teaneck_2007_1_9Changing the Immutable by Marc Shapiro https://www.amazon.com/Changing-Immutable-Orthodox-Judaism-Rewrites/dp/1904113605Facing the Truths of History by Rabbi JJ Schacter https://www.yutorah.org/lectures/lecture.cfm/704426/rabbi-dr-jacob-j-schacter/facing-the-truths-of-history/Rabbi Jacob Emden: Life and Major Works by Rabbi JJ Schacter https://www.google.com/books/edition/Rabbi_Jacob_Emden/-wMmAQAAIAAJ?hl=en For more, visit https://18forty.org/censorship/. Rabbi Jacob J. Schacter is a rabbi and historian of intellectual trends in Orthodox Judaism. As a Rosh Yeshiva and professor of Jewish History and Jewish Thought at Yeshiva University, Rabbi Schachter lives at the crossroads of the religious and academic worlds. Rabbi Schachter holds a Ph.D. in Near Eastern Languages from Harvard University, where he wrote his dissertation on Rabbi Yaakov Emden. He is the author of several works, and is a mentor to many rabbis in the Jewish community. Rabbi Schachter brings to 18Forty his knowledge, wisdom, and nuanced thinking about the questions of censorship and how we approach Jewish history.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.

15 Juni 20211h 30min

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Jonathan Rosenblum - journalist and author of multiple ArtScroll biographies - about censorship and specifically how it applies to biographies.One of the many areas in which censorship can be exercised is biography writing. Certain biographies of gedolim have been criticized for censoring their life stories to mask their imperfections, distorting history in the process. But censorship isn’t always about distorting the facts and may instead be about cultivating a certain look or feel.- What is the goal of censoring the biographies of gedolim?- What impact does it have?- What are the intended effects of the biographies in the first place?- What effects would the uncensored versions have?Tune in to hear a conversation on biographical censorship.References:The Censor, the Editor, and the Text by Amnon Raz-KrakotzkinHidden Diaries and New Discoveries by Avinoʻam RozenaḳPachad Yitzchak: Igrot U’ketavim by Rav Yitzchok HutnerSin•a•gogue by David BashevkinThey Called Him Mike by Jonathan RosenblumBetween Berlin and Slobodka by Hillel GoldbergFor more, visit https://18forty.org/censorship/.Jonathan Rosenblum is a journalist who writes for several Orthodox media publications, most notably through his weekly column in Mishpacha. Before entering journalism, Jonathan attended the University of Chicago, Yale Law School, and Ohr Somayach. Jonathan has written several biographies on Jewish figures, and was a founding writer of the Cross-Currents journal. Jonathan brings to 18Forty his commitment and dedication to the spheres of Jewish public opinion, politics, and religious culture.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.

8 Juni 20211h 3min

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Altie Karper, editorial director of Schocken Books, about censorship and cancel culture.Every community has boundaries, and every community needs a way to enforce those boundaries. As Altie’s experience publishing a book that received religious pushback tells us, it can be hard to gauge if something will be deemed appropriate. If a public figure says something that doesn’t fit within the boundaries of a community, there should be criticism, but this criticism can easily become sharp and unjust. We must ultimately remember that there are people behind the mistakes and they deserve to be given some benefit of the doubt.- What amount of censorship is ok and what amount is too far?- How should one criticize a public figure for saying something inappropriate?- What kinds of criticism go too far?- What is the difference between communal boundaries and cancel culture?Tune in to hear a conversation on censorship, criticism, and cancellation.References:One People, Two Worlds by Ammiel Hirsch, Yaakov Yosef Reinman For more, visit https://18forty.org/censorship/. Altie Karper is the editorial director of Schocken Books, a division of Penguin Random House. Schocken has a long history as a major publisher of Jewish literature and an early publisher of great thinkers such as Kafka, Rosenzweig, Buber, and Agnon, among many others. As one of the leading names in Jewish publishing, Altie has worked on many of the great (and controversial) books of our time. No stranger to censorship battles, Altie brings to 18Forty her decades of thoughtful experience in the world of books, the Jewish community, and the boundaries around our ideas.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.

1 Juni 20211h 15min

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to an anonymous divorced man who gives us his perspective on the divorce process and the need to protect oneself from his own darkest inclinations.While one would never assume themselves capable of get (divorce document) refusal, the emotions of uncoupling run high and it's possible to find yourself considering using the get as a bargaining chip. We sit down with a man who was in this exact predicament and he explains why the get should never be used in this way and how signing a halakhic prenup protects both people in the dissolving marriage.-What role do community leaders, rabbeim, and therapists play in a couple's divorce process?-What should one do post divorce to better themselves?-What can men do to protect themselves from even the consideration of get refusal?-How important is the halakhic prenup for all communities?Tune in to hear a conversation on divorce, granting a get, and what can be done to protect against our baser instincts.References:To Heal a Fractured World by Rabbi Jonathan SacksThe Road Less Traveled by Scott PeckGame Plan for Life by Joe GibbsFor more, visit https://18forty.org/agunahBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.

11 Maj 20211h 7min