Building Jerusalem

Richard Kemp is a colonel of the British Army (retired). He now works as a security consultant and political commentator.

Elisha Ancselovits is a rabbi, teacher, and researcher at the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies, Yeshivat Maale Gilboa, and Yeshivat haHakshava.His most recent book is "When Jews Argue: Between the University and the Beit Midrash", which he edited with Prof. Ethan B. Katz and Prof. Sergey Dolgopolski. Along with Uri Farber, he hosts the podcast "Common Sense Halakha".

Azar Gat is a professor at the School of Political Science, Government, and International Affairs at Tel Aviv University. He holds the Ezer Weitzman Chair for National Security.

Aleeza Ben Shalom is a matchmaker, author, and TV personality. She is most well-known as the star of the Netflix series "Jewish Matchmaking".

Rachmiel Travitz is an ordained rabbi and a scholar of the Andalusian rabbinic tradition.

Charlie Solomon is an old friend of my grandfather's, who grew up in India when it was still under the British Raj. He will turn 100 this July.  

Yehuda Niasoff is a chazan, a shochet, and mohel (cantor, ritual slaughterer, and ritual circumciser). He is also a wedding singer, a medical first responder, and an amateur pilot. 

Sam Benjamin bears the torch of a fascinating culture: the Baghdadi Jewish community of India. He teaches the traditional Iraqi method for reading from the Torah, and works at the Sephardi Synagogue.

Eddy Boas is a child survivor of the Holocaust and author of “I'm Not a Victim, I Am a Survivor”, which tells the story of how he and his family made it through the Holocaust.

Gershon Avtzon is the Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivas Beis Menachem in Jerusalem, commonly know as "the RAP".

Tamara Samuel is the CEO of Shalom.

Alan Solomon is the first cousin of my late grandfather. He and his wife Edna sat down with me, to tell stories of his youth growing up in Burma.

My chat with Dr Jamie Q Roberts following his final lecture at the University of New South Wales: "The Death of Truth and Magnanimity at the University (and other Institutions)".

Lecturer, novellist, and musician, Dr Jamie Q Roberts recently left the University of New South Wales. This is his final talk, "The Death of Truth at the University (and other Institutions)". Join us next week for a follow-up chat.

Jeremy Isaac is a partner in Australian health food company DJ&A, and an amateur games designer. We chat about coping with despair, listening as meditation, and the value of games.

Zevi Slavin is a practitioner and teacher of Jewish mysticism. Find him on Youtube at: 'Seekers of Unity'.

David Sandmel is the Director of Inter-Religious Engagement for the ADL. We discuss Jewish-Christian relations, Biblical interpretations, and his meetings with the Pope.

Rachel Rosenthal recently finished her doctorate at the Jewish Theological Seminary, where she is on the Talmud faculty. She is a fellow at the Shalom Hartmann Institute, and teaches Talmud in academic & traditional settings.

MaNishtana is a rabbi, writer, and speaker on racial and religious identity - particularly on how it manifests around American Jews.

Dan Feferman is a Fellow at the Jewish People Policy Institute and a Major (res.) in the Israel Defense Forces. We talk about the emerging phenomenon of Israeli Judaism and marginal trends among American Jewry that could become the new mainstream.

David Wolpe is one of the most influential rabbis in America. We touch on smartphones in Shul, his debate with Sam Harris, and his unlikely Viking heritage.

Meir Kay is a filmmaker, public speaker and social media personality. His vlogs on Youtube have surpassed 350 million views.

Sal Litvak is a filmmaker who read the entire Talmud Bavli over seven years. His Facebook page Accidental Talmudist is the most popular Jewish page on social media. We talk about losing loved ones, mystical revelation, and rowing as a spiritual discipline

Frumma Rosenberg-Gottlieb and Simcha Gottlieb are the power couple of Jewish meditation. Their latest book is "Awesome Aging".

Manis Friedman is a rabbi, educator, author and the Chabad shliach to Minnesota for over 50 years. We talk about the role of intimacy in mysticism and in marriage.

Charlie Buttons is a poet, spoken word performer and iconic mainstay at 770 Eastern Parkway - world headquarters of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement.

Chaim Samuels is a stand-up comedian who regularly performs at the Broadway Comedy Club in NYC. Find him on Youtube at "Lonelyboy Reactions".

Benzion Klatzko is a rabbi, author, lecturer, and musical composer. His best known project is shabbat.com, a social network for finding Shabbat meals which has grown into a matchmaking website. We talk about Israel trips, intermarriage, and the ingredient

Adrian Heathcote is a philosopher specializing in philosophy of mathematics and physics. He lectured for over two decades at the University of Sydney.

Phillip Hynek is a veteran wargamer. We talk about Allan B. Calhamer's classic boardgame "Diplomacy".

Asher Reich is a rabbi, teacher, and Talmudic scholar. He studied in Ponevezh Yeshiva under Rav Shach and received his rabbinical ordination from Rav Yitzchok Weiss, the Av Beth Din of Jerusalem.

Salvatore Babones is an associate professor of sociology at the University of Sydney. We talk about his new book, "The New Authoritarianism: Trump, Populism, and the Tyranny of Experts" - 30% off this week by clicking link at: http://buildingjerusalem.org

Brett Kelly is the founder and CEO of Kelly+Partners. He is a best-selling author, public speaker, and chartered accountant.

Vic Alhadeff is the CEO of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies. He is the spokesperson of Keep NSW Safe, and former editor of the Australian Jewish News.

Ros Ben Moshe is the Director of LaughLife Wellbeing, an organization that provides workshops and coaching on resilience and positivity in the face of adversity. Her first book is "Laughing at Cancer".

Dominic Wy Kanak is the Greens candidate for the upcoming Wentworth by-election.

Andrea Leong is the Science Party candidate for the upcoming Wentworth by-election.

Tim Murray is the Labor candidate for the upcoming Wentworth by-election.

Liz Fitzgerald is an art therapist and teacher of art therapy. She is a clinical supervisor of Masters of Art Therapy at the University of Western Sydney, and teaches an Intro to Art Therapy course at the University of Sydney.

Mendel Kastel is the CEO and rabbi of Jewish House Crisis Centre. He has previously worked in chaplaincy with prisons, hospitals, schools, and the police.

Moira Blumenthal is a theatre director and producer. She recently directed Timothy Daly's "The Man in the Attic" at the Eternity Playhouse.

Timothy Scriven is an aspiring author and PhD student in political economy. We talk about conceptions of ownership; modern paganism; and bears.

Talya is the principal family lawyer at Faigenbaum Family Lawyers. She is the honorary secretary of Unchain My Heart Inc., a working committee of Jewish women's organizations dedicated to the resolution of religious divorce issues affecting Jewish women.

Matthew is the founder of 2 Birds 1 Bee, an organization that provides professional sex education to schools.

Haroon and Raphael return to the show, this time in conversation about Rationalism and Mysticism in Judaism and Islam. Recorded with permission at Yom Limmud, Sydney 2018.

Haroon is the Fellow in Jewish-Muslim Relations at the Shalom Hartman Institute of North America.

Salvatore Babones is an American sociologist based in Sydney, Australia; and the author of "The New Authoritarianism: Trump, Populism, and the Tyranny of Experts". We talk about China's new social credit system, the state of American politics, and more.

Max is a poet and filmmaker. He has won two Webby awards and is the Head of Content & Storytelling at the Center for Humane Technology.

Igor Praporshchikov is a former Olympic wrestler, a wrestling coach, and a personal trainer.

John Bell is an actor, theatre director, and theatre manager. He is the founder of the Bell Shakespeare theatre company, which he headed for 25 years, and has been named a National Living Treasure.

Salvatore Babones is an American sociologist based in Sydney, Australia and the author of "The New Authoritarianism: Trump, Populism, and the Tyranny of Experts". I had the honour of being a guest on his "Midnight in America" YouTube series.