Podcasts about Rabbinate

Israel should not be a religious state, Rabbi David Stav says, and then its citizens could more freely welcome religion into their lives.The Chief Rabbi of Shoham, an Israeli town with a large secular populace, Rabbi Stav has long dedicated his life to bridging the social divides between religious and secular life. After the Rabin assassination, he and other rabbis founded Tzohar—an organization that "makes Jewish life accessible to secular Israelis—which received the 2009 Presidential Award for Volunteers.Rabbi Stav was previously a candidate for Israel's Chief Rabbinate and sought to revolutionize the relationship between religion and state.Now, he joins us to answer 18 questions on Israel, including democracy, IDF drafts, and Messianism.This interview was held on Sept. 11.Here are our 18 questions:As an Israeli, and as a Jew, how are you feeling at this moment in Israeli history?What has been Israel's greatest success and greatest mistake in its war against Hamas?How have your religious views changed since Oct. 7? What do you look for in deciding which Knesset party to vote for?Which is more important for Israel: Judaism or democracy?Should Israel treat its Jewish and non-Jewish citizens the same?Now that Israel already exists, what is the purpose of Zionism?Is opposing Zionism inherently antisemitic?Should Israel be a religious state?If you were making the case for Israel, where would you begin?Should all Israelis serve in the army?Can questioning the actions of Israel's government and army — even in the context of this war — be a valid form of love and patriotism?What do you think is the most legitimate criticism leveled against Israel today?Do you think the State of Israel is part of the final redemption?Is Messianism helpful or harmful to Israel?Do you think peace between Israelis and Palestinians will happen within your lifetime?Where do you identify on Israel's political and religious spectrum, and do you have friends on the “other side”?Do you have more hope or fear for Israel and the Jewish People?

Growing up in the Orthodox movement, Neshama Carlebach would hear it a lot: "It's a shame your father never had sons." The father in question, the acclaimed Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach, instead had two daughters—and the implication was that his legacy as a prolific songwriter, whose repertoire includes the popular 1965 folk anthem "Am Yisrael Chai", would die with him. Neshama didn't let those comments stop her—in fact, the opposite became true. After growing up in Toronto, Neshama ended up following in her father's footsteps, first becoming an acclaimed singer, teacher and songwriter, and now embarking on a years-long journey to becoming a rabbi. Her theological studies changed tone after Oct. 7, sparking a new desire in her to be "a rabbi who fights" for her community. But what's remained consistent has been her stubborn defiance of societal expectations. Neshama joins Ralph Benmergui on Not That Kind of Rabbi to discuss her life and music, and explain what it's like raising two sons to carry on the Carlebach legacy in an increasingly antisemitic world. Credits Host: Ralph Benmergui Producer: Michael Fraiman Music: Yevhen Onoychenko Support The CJN Subscribe to The CJN newsletter Donate to The CJN (+ get a charitable tax receipt) Subscribe to Not That Kind of Rabbi (Not sure how? Click here)

It is an honor to welcome Rabbi Jen Lader to the show in this re-released episode. Rabbi Jen is an amazing spiritual leader, youth rabbi, and personal friend. She will share her journey to becoming a Rabbi and the lessons she learned along the way. Her vision for her career gives insight to anyone standing at the crossroads of life.  If you enjoyed this episode, don't forget to subscribe and follow Temple Israel on social media to stay up to date on Waking Up To Life.    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/templeisraelmi  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/templeisraelmi/  YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLn9spWvsCBvcQ-o5XLeFLHKcLoj2nBAfM  Web: https://www.temple-israel.org/wakinguptolifepod 

One of our founding agents at Compass Miami, Levi Meyer, is back on the pod to give us the latest on the Miami market, updates on developments in Brickell, and new HOA and Condominium Board regulations. A few fun facts about Levi: He's a fifth-generation Floridian and a longtime Coral Gables resident. He's one of 9 siblings, an Israeli military vet, and he grew up attending Rabbinate school. Before he was selling Miami's most prestigious homes, Levi was in the business of selling arms and ammunition (yes, you read that right). Levi is also deeply involved in his community. He serves on the boards of several charities, including United Hatzalah and The Friendship Circle of Greater Miami, and he's the President and Chairman of the Chabad of Coconut Grove. He lives in Coral Gables with his amazing wife Lauren and their two beautiful kids, Benjamin and Charlotte. While Levi's real estate achievements are impressive—he's ranked in the top 1% in our industry—what's even more special is our friendship. He's one of my oldest friends at Compass, he officiated my wedding, and I'm lucky to have a guy like Levi in my life. Be sure to follow him on Instagram @TheMeyerGroupRE and his personal account @levimeyerre 

Rabbi Jonny Hughes is the founder and CEO of The Abraham Effect, a non-profit providing support for Jewish students in non-Jewish schools in the United Kingdom. To get to where he is today, his path wound through English public schools, football pitches and the Rabbinate. This is his story.  Saturday to Shabbos is a Tachlis […]

Rabbi Shmuel Fox reflects on his childhood, life in the Rabbinate, some of his notable encounters with iconic figures of Jewish history, the changes in the Religious and national communties over the past 100 years, and much more. ----- To sponsor an episode: JewsShmoozeMarketing@gmail.com Listen on the phone!! UK: 44-333-366-0589 IL: 972-79-579-5005 USA: 712-432-2903 Check out the Jews Shmooze T-shirts and mug: https://rb.gy/qp543

On this episode of Talking Away The Taboo, Rabbi Karen Glazer Perolman joins Aimee Baron, MD to talk about... -her upbringing, her passion for her job as a community rabbi, and having a stillbirth -her baby, Leo, who she lost -what grief looks like when your job is to hold people in *their* pain -how she has managed to get through all of it More about Rabbi Karen Glazer Perolman: Karen Glazer Perolman is the Senior Associate Rabbi at Temple B'nai Jeshurun in Short Hills, NJ, the congregation she has served since 2008. She studied at the University of Maryland at College Park (2004) followed by Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York (M.A.H.L., 2009; Ordination, 2010). While in rabbinical school Karen had the privilege to serve as a teaching assistant to theology professor Rabbi Eugene B. Borowitz, z”l. She sits on the board of Project Kesher and was a member of the CCAR Taskforce on Women in the Rabbinate from 2017-2020. She is a grateful alumnus of the Institute for Jewish Spirituality's Clergy Leadership Program and CLAL's Rabbis Without Borders, GLEAN, and LEAP fellowships. Karen is a voracious reader which fuels her passion to understand the relationships between food, spirituality, politics, Judaism, feminism and social justice. She is married to Liz Glazer, a lawyer-turned-standup comedian and are parents to baby Eloise, teenage cat Jack, and Leo, of blessed memory. Connect with us: -Check out our Website - Follow us on Instagram and send us a message -Watch our TikToks -Follow us on Facebook -Watch us on YouTube -Connect with us on LinkedIn

On this episode of Judaism with Altitude we get a glimpse into the background of Rabbi Danny Wolfe-- diving into his upbringing, his journey towards observant Judaism, how he met Sara, and what drives him.

Rabbi Leopold Cohn, D.D. (1862 – 1937)OCTOBER 4, 2012 BY H B CENTZFrom Rabbis meet Jesus the Messiah – a collection of 24 biographies and testimonies of Rabbis encounters with Jesus the Messiah© Messianic Good News.Life began for Leopold Cohn in the little town of Berezna, in the eastern part of Hungary. At the age of seven a great calamity befell the young lad; he lost both of his parents in the same year and was left to shift as well as he could for himself. In later years he often recalled how those days of terrible loneliness and bitter struggle for existence taught him to trust in God with all of his heart. It seems natural, then, to find young Cohn, after his confirmation at the age of thirteen, determined to enter upon a course of study with a view to becoming eventually a Rabbi and leader among his people. That he gave good account of himself as a student we conclude from the fact that at the age of eighteen, he graduated from the Talmudical academies with a record of high scholarship and with commendations as a worthy teacher of the Law.Following the completion of his formal studies and the subsequent receipt of “smikha” or ordination, Rabbi Cohn contracted a very happy marriage and, in keeping with the custom of the time, became installed in his wife's paternal home, there to devote himself to the further study of the sacred writings.Through the years of almost ascetic religious study and devotion, the burning problems of his people, the problems of the exile and of the promised but long delayed redemption through the coming of the Messiah, had become deeply etched upon the Rabbi's spirit, and now that he had obtained leisure and could follow the call of his heart, he gave himself to earnest prayer and research in the hope of finding their solution.A part of his morning devotions was the repetition of the twelfth article of the Jewish creed, which declares, “I believe with a perfect faith in the coming of the Messiah, and though He tarry, yet will I wait daily for His coming.”The regular use of this affirmation of faith fanned to a flame the desire of his heart for the fulfilment of God's promises and the speedy restoration of scattered Israel, until no longer satisfied with the formal prayers, he began to rise up in the midnight watches and sit on the bare ground to mourn over the destruction of the temple and to implore God to hasten the coming of the Deliverer.“Why does the Messiah tarry? When will He come?” These were questions which continually agitated the young Rabbi's mind. One day, while poring over a volume of the Talmud, he came upon the following citation: “The world will stand six thousand years. There will be two thousand years of confusion, two thousand years under the law, and two thousand years of the time of the Messiah.” With quickened interest he turned for light on the passage to the writings of Rashi, the foremost Jewish commentator, but the explanation he found there seemed to him to be of little help. “After the second two thousand years,” it read, “the Messiah will come and the wicked kingdoms will be destroyed.” When he turned away from the ponderous volumes, the solution of his problem appeared to him to have become more difficult than ever. According to Talmudical reckoning the Messiah should long since have come; yet, there was the exile, still the bitterest fact of Jewish life, to be accounted for. “Can it be possible,” he asked himself, “that the time appointed by God for the coming of the Messiah has passed and the promise has not been fulfilled?” Sorely perplexed, Rabbi Cohn decided to begin a study of the original predictions of the Prophets, but the very contemplation of the act filled him with fear, for, according to the teaching of the Rabbis, “Cursed are the bones of him who calculates the time of the end.” And so it was that with trembling hands, expecting at any moment to be struck by a bolt from heaven, but with an eagerness irresistible, he opened the book of the prophet Daniel and began to read.When he reached the ninth chapter, light began to dawn upon him. He had struck a mine of hitherto concealed truth, covered up by the commentaries of the revered doctors of the law.From the twenty fourth verse of the chapter before him he deduced without difficulty that the coming of the Messiah should have taken place 400 years after Daniel received from the Divine messenger the prophecy of the Seventy Weeks. The scholar, accustomed to the intricate and often veiled polemical treatises of the Talmud, now found himself strangely captivated by the clear and soul satisfying declarations of the Word of God, and it was not long before he began to question in his mind the reliability of the Talmud, seeing that in matters so vital it differed from the Holy Scriptures.It was not an easy nor a pleasant matter for Rabbi Cohn, leader of a Jewish community, daily gaining in popularity among his people, to entertain doubts concerning the authority of the Talmud. Quite apart from the disquietude that it brought to his own soul, he felt that doubt was heretical in a man of his position and in some mystical way injurious to the welfare of Israel. And yet, every moment of sober contemplation brought him face to face with the question, “Shall I believe God's Word, or must I shut my eyes to truth?” In the midst of the conflict thus produced in his heart, there was one prayer that rose to his lips more often than any other: “Open Thou mine eyes, O Lord, that I maybe hold wondrous things in Thy law.”Without being fully conscious of it, Rabbi Cohn was travelling toward a parting of the ways. A crisis was inevitable; and it broke upon him one “Chanukah.” It was the season of the Feast of Dedication and, as was his custom, he planned to preach to his people on the meaning of the feast. He had not intended to refer in his sermon either to his doubts about the Talmud or to his late discoveries in the prophecy of Daniel, but when he arose to speak some of his deepest thoughts welled up within him and would not be denied articulation. The effect of his words upon the congregation became immediately evident.Whispers grew to loud protests, and before the sermon progressed very far the service broke up in an uproar. That day initiated a series of petty persecutions which robbed the life a of the young Rabbi of its joy and made his ministry difficult to the point of impossibility.The New Testament was as yet an unknown book to Rabbi Cohn, and consequently it never entered his mind to look there for the fulfilment of the Old Testament prophetic predictions. In a vortex of soul, casting about for a course of action, he decided to seek advice from a fellow Rabbi in a distant town, a man his senior by many years, for whose learning and piety he entertained a very high regard. “Surely,” he thought, “my problem is not a new one. Others must have puzzled over it and found some satisfactory answer, else how could they continue to study and teach the Talmud.” But here again his hopes were destined to be dashed to the ground. When Cohn had hardly finished the unburdening of his troubled soul, the Rabbi whose help he travelled so far to seek began to lash him with his tongue and to pour upon him a veritable stream of insult and vituperation. “So you have set out to find the Messiah to uncover the inscrutable? You are hardly out of the shell and already you have the temerity to question the authority of the Talmud! The teachings of our masters are no longer good enough for you? You talk for all the world like the renegades across the sea, about whom I have recently read in a Vienna paper, who claim that our Messiah has already come. Better go back to your post, young man, and count yourself happy that you have not yet been deprived of it. And take my warning, if you persist in these unholy ideas, you will one day end your Rabbinate in disgrace and probably wind up among those apostates in America.”Disappointed and crushed, Rabbi Cohn took his leave. But in spite of his utter humiliation, a new thought was beginning to form in his mind, and with it he seemed to see a glimmer of new hope in the far distance. America! The Land of freedom! The haven of the persecuted! There he would continue his investigation.March 1892 found Rabbi Cohn in the city of New York, warmly welcomed by his countrymen, many of whom had known him personally at home. Rabbi Kline of the Hungarian Synagogue, who had preceded him to America, and to whom he had a letter of recommendation, received him with much kindness and even offered him a place of temporary service in his synagogue while awaiting a call to a suitable congregation.On a Saturday, soon after his arrival, Rabbi Cohn went out for the customary Sabbath afternoon stroll. As had become his habit, he was meditating upon the subject of the Messiah. But in the midst of his musings, as he was passing by a church located in one of the Ghetto streets, his attention was arrested by a sign written in Hebrew and announcing “Meetings for Jews.” He hardly knew what to make of the strange combination: A church with a Cross upon it, and meetings for Jews!While he stood in front of the church absorbed in thought, a countryman of his seized him by the arm and said in a voice charged with fear. “Rabbi Cohn, better come away from this place.” The Rabbi was startled, but at the same time his sense of inquiry was aroused. Just what was there about that church with the Hebrew sign upon it? “There are apostate Jews in that church,” he was told with bated breath, “and they teach that the Messiah has already come.” At the sound of these words Rabbi Cohn's pulse quickened. They teach that the Messiah has already come! Could these be the people referred to by that Rabbi whom he had visited before leaving Hungary? This was something worth finding out.As soon as he could take leave of his companion, and after making sure that he was not being observed, he quickly retraced his steps to the church. But he had hardly set foot inside the door when a sight met his eyes that compelled him to turn back. The speaker on the platform was bareheaded, and so was the audience. As it would have been to any orthodox Jew, that was to Rabbi Cohn the height of sacrilege.On the way out, however, he thought that he should explain to the sexton his reason for leaving, and from him he received the suggestion that even if he could not stay for the service, he would nevertheless be welcome if he called for a private interview with the minister at his home.On the following Monday, although still somewhat affected by his Saturday's experience, Rabbi Cohn plucked up enough courage to present himself at the minister's address. He entered the house with many misgivings, but the impression made upon him by the gracious personality of the minister, a Christian Jew, and by the fact that the man was, like himself, a trained Talmudist and in addition the scion of a famous Rabbinical family, very soon put him completely at ease. Before he realised what he was doing, he found himself relating to his new found friend the story of his Messianic quest.Near the close of the interview, noting that his visitor was completely unacquainted with its contents, the minister handed him a copy of the New Testament in Hebrew and asked him to study it at his leisure. Receiving with eager hands the book which was destined to transform his life and ministry, and being anxious to examine it, Rabbi Cohn opened the volume and turned to the first page, and there his eyes fell upon the first lines of the Gospel by Matthew, “This is the book of the generation of Yeshua the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.”The feeling which these words awakened in him beggar description. It seemed to him that he had finally reached the goal of his long quest. The sacrifices he had made, the separation from wife and children he had endured, the days he had spent in agonizing prayer all those things were about to bear their fruit and receive their reward. The problem which neither he nor those he consulted with could solve was now answered by a book, and that book was in his hands. Surely such a book must have come to him by the will of Heaven. God had finally answered his many prayers, and now, he was sure, He would help him to find the Messiah.Taking leave of his kindly host, Rabbi Cohn ran as fast as he could to his room and, locking the door, gave himself to a study of the precious volumes his pearl of great price. “I began reading at eleven o'clock in the morning,” he wrote later in reflecting upon the events of that momentous day, “and continued until one o'clock after midnight. I could not understand the entire contents of the book, but I could at least see that the Messiah's name was Yeshua, that He was born in Bethlehem of Judah, that He had lived in Jerusalem and communicated with my people, and that He came just at the time predicted in the prophecy of Daniel. My joy was boundless.”But had he been able to look into the future, Rabbi Cohn would have seen other days of sorrow in store for him. Narrow and toilsome is the path of faith in a world of unbelief. His first rude shock came the very next morning, when he tried to share his discovery with Rabbi Kline, who but recently had offered to assist him in finding a charge. “You are a wild dreamer,” shouted his Rabbinical colleague when he had heard Cohn's story. “The Messiah whom you say you found is none other than the Jesus of the Gentiles. And as for this book,” he said, tearing the New Testament from Cohn's hands, “a learned Rabbi like you should not even handle, much less read this vile production of the apostates. It is the cause of all our sufferings.” And with these words he threw the book to the floor and trampled upon it with his feet.Fleeing from this unexpected outburst of wrath, Rabbi Cohn felt himself once more a raging sea of conflicting thoughts and emotions. “Can it be possible that Yeshua the Messiah, the son of David, is the Jesus whom the Gentiles worship?” To believe upon such an one would indeed be an act of rank idolatry!The days which followed were filled for him with heartache and melancholy thoughts. But gradually he succeeded in freeing himself from the clutches of despair and began to study his problem anew in the light of the Holy Scriptures. When he turned to God's lamp of truth, he found light.The prophetic vision of the suffering Messiah began to penetrate his mind as he read and re-read the fifty third chapter of the prophecy of Isaiah, but yet he was a long way from finding peace of soul. The solemn questions that now stared him in the face were, “What if Yeshua and Jesus are the same persons? How shall I love the hated one? How shall I defile my lips with the name of Jesus, whose followers have tortured and killed my brethren through many generations? How can I join a community of people so hostile to those of my own flesh and blood?” These were indeed questions troublesome enough to rob any man of his peace. And yet, above all the raging storm, there was a still, small voice that kept speaking to his heart and saying, “If He is the Messiah predicted in the Scriptures, then surely you must love Him, and no matter what others have done in His name, you must follow Him.”Still halting between two opinions, Rabbi Cohn decided to fast and to pray until God clearly revealed to him what to do. When he began his supplications, he had in his hands a Hebrew Old Testament. Being wholly absorbed in prayer, he was startled when the volume fell from his hands to the floor, and when he bent down to retrieve the sacred book, he saw that it had opened at the third chapter of the prophecy of Malachi, which begins with the words, “Behold I send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me, and the Lord whom ye seek shall suddenly come to His temple, even the Angel of the Covenant whom ye delight in: behold He has already come, saith the Lord of Hosts.” Now his entire being was electrified to attention and his every sense of perception awakened. For a moment he felt that the Messiah stood by his side, pointing him to the words, “He has already come.” Stricken with a feeling of awe, he fell on his face, and out of his innermost parts came words of prayer and adoration. “My Lord, my Messiah Yeshua. Thou art the One in whom Israel is to be glorified, and Thou art surely the One who hast reconciled Thy people unto God. From this day on I will serve Thee no matter what the cost.”And as if indirect answer to his prayer a flood of light filled his understanding, and to his unspeakable happiness he no longer found it difficult to love his Lord, although he was sure now that it was Jesus whom he was addressing. In that hour he knew that he had become a new creature in the Messiah.Consulting no longer with flesh and blood, Cohn began to proclaim to all his friends and acquaintances that the, rejected Jesus was the true Messiah of Israel, and that not until the Jews as a people accepted Him could they find peace with God. The first reaction of his friends was one of amused indulgence. “Rabbi Cohn is mentally confused,” they said, “due to his long separation from his loved ones.” But when his perseverance and earnestness of appeal challenged their attention, they branded him as a traitor to his people and began to persecute him bitterly. Some even thought that it would be a pious act to remove him from among the living. Such are the ways of zeal void of the knowledge of God!When Cohn's countrymen settled down to the inevitable acceptance of the fact of his conversion, they proceeded to dispatch letters to his wife and friends at home, to inform them about his “apostasy.” As a result, all communications between him and his wife were soon completely stopped.In the meantime the Jews of New York were in an uproar over the act of the once honoured Rabbi. There is no way of estimating what harm fanatical persecution would have inflicted upon him had he remained long in New York. But very fortunately the minister who gave him his first New Testament learned about his plight and came to his aid. A group of friends was rallied, who undertook to give shelter and protection to Cohn; but when it became plainly evident that in New York his life would be daily in dire danger, arrangements were made for his secret departure to Scotland, that he might have opportunity to study and gather strength in a friendly environment.In the city of Edinburgh, in Scotland, Cohn found a cordial welcome among the people of the Barklay Church. It was well that he was now among friends, for he had another battle ahead of him and another enemy to overcome, an enemy more subtle and dangerous than all those he had left behind in New York. Approaching the day of his baptism, he felt that he would have to face the supreme test of his life, and that arrayed against him would be Satan and all the powers of hell. Many things, he knew, were in the balance for him. In a spiritual way he expected to gain much from a resolute and open confession of his faith in the Messiah, but on the human side he was in danger of losing all that he counted dear in life his wife, children, friends, position, dignities, in fact, everything.For some days prior to his baptism, even until the very hour of his solemn public commitment to the Messiah, Cohn lived under a cloud of gloomy forebodings. Prayer, to which he resorted often, brought him only temporary relief. But on the morning of his baptism, when he reached the church, he felt strengthened and cheered, as if the clouds had been dispelled by the very presence of the Messiah whom he was so eager to confess. Later on he came to know how the prayers of many friends had supported him in the hour of battle and of glorious victory. Indicative of these was a letter he received from Dr. Andrew A. Bonar, the venerable pastor of the Finnieston Church in Glasgow, which read, “My people and I were praying for you at our Service this morning.” In this way Cohn cut loose from the life he once lived, in order to give himself anew to the service of his people. He was no longer a Rabbi of the law, but a messenger of the Messiah, and he carried in his heart the secret of Israel's salvation.Thus far we have dealt at length with Rabbi Cohn's spiritual pilgrimage, because therein is to be found the secret of this truly great man's life and work. The Doctor Leopold Cohn of the after years, the erudite scholar, the brilliant preacher, the faithful pastor and tireless missionary, can be understood only in the light of the quest of his youth, when as a rising light in the Rabbinical profession he counted nothing too dear to be sacrificed on the altar of truth and devoted to the cause of his people's redemption.The exigency of space compels us now to draw the curtain upon that period of Cohn's life which embraces his residence and labour in Scotland and his reunion with his wife and children. How his family came to share his faith in the Messiah could well be told, and indeed deserves to be told, in a separate story. That they did so, is but an added testimony to the sincerity and uprightness of the man.We take up the story again at the point of Cohn's return with his family to New York in the fall of 1893. The time elapsed between this and his first arrival in New York had changed the man not at all in his essential character. He was the same passionate pilgrim after truth, except that now he had his bearings and the goal was no longer to him a matter of speculation. He had drunk at the fountain of living water. “I know whom I have believed” was now as truly his slogan as once it had been St. Paul's.For the former Rabbi there was only one calling in life to serve God, and only one thing worth doing to make known the way of God's salvation in Jesus the Messiah. And so, upon landing again in New York, he set about immediately to establish contact with the masses of his Jewish brethren.To secure a platform for the proclamation of the Gospel he opened a little mission in Brownsville. Being a man of practical sense, he devoted himself not alone to preaching, but also to the alleviation of the many needs that he found in the lives of immigrant Jews who were then crowding into New York by the thousands. It strikes one with pungent tragedy that at his first attempt to serve his people in the name of the Messiah, he stood very much alone. While his work as a preacher did not lack popularity, the Jewish community as a whole still looked upon him with hostile eyes, and Christians, who should have upheld his busy hands, rallied to his aid altogether too slowly.Before he went very far with his mission project, his wife's jewellery, a token of former affluence, had to be sacrificed in order to provide the rent for the humble meeting hall. And there came days when the larder of the missionary's little family was quite bare of provisions and when the children had to be sent to school half fed. Those must have been heartbreaking days, sufficient to crush the stoutest of spirits; but Cohn carried on undaunted, trusting himself and his beloved to God, who had called him out of darkness into His marvellous light.Persecution must also have been a sore trial to the sensitive spirit of the young missionary; but if there were scars inflicted by cruel tongues and hands, those were known alone to God. Cohn never complained, but remained always bright and hopeful. There is on record an incident related by Dr. Cohn many years ago to an intimate group, in order to illustrate the text: “The disciple is not greater than his Lord.” “One afternoon,” he said, “I went to deliver a New Testament at a house where it had been requested. But when I arrived there, a powerful man fell upon me, first battering me with his fists and then jumping upon me with his feet. Finally he took hold of my ears, and lifting my head, he began to knock it repeatedly against the hard floor, all the while intoning in Hebrew, ‘These ears which heard from Sinai that we must have no strange gods, and which now listen to the Christian idols, must be pulled out,' and emphasizing each mention of the words ‘pulled out' with a terrible jerk.” From this experience Cohn went home with blood on his face, but that was the blood of one who suffered for the truth's sake and it became the seed of a great work.But perhaps the sorest trials which he had to suffer came from the side of people who were ostensibly of like mind with him. “False brethren” such characters were dubbed by the apostle Paul, and no better description for them has been found yet.When Dr. Cohn was already established in his work, with a large congregation of Jews whom he had won to the faith of the Messiah rising up around him to call his name blessed, there were found men of sufficient temerity to impugn his motives and to question the sincerity of his faith. Fortunately there were others, men of unimpeachable character, who knew the real worth of Dr. Cohn and stood with him and for him to the end of his life. It is noteworthy that in 1930, at a time when the severest attacks were being levelled upon him, Wheaton College in Illinois, a Christian educational institution of first rank, conferred upon him the honorary degree of Doctor of Divinity.Dr. Leopold Cohn passed away on December 19, 1937. His funeral service, held at the Marcy Avenue Baptist Church in Brooklyn, N.Y., and conducted by the ministerial association of which he had been a life long member, drew a large attendance of friends and admirers, both Jews and Christians. Of the many beautiful tributes paid to his memory perhaps the most revealing and intimate will be found in the following brief address delivered by Hugh R. Monro, LL.D., a prominent business executive of New York, who had known Dr. Cohn and associated with him for a period of nearly forty years:“I am glad this evening to bear a simple word of tribute to this valiant soldier of Christ who was my friend for many years. As far as I have been able to draw from the remarks that have been given tonight, I think that my acquaintance extended over a period almost as long as that of any of the speakers, nearly forty years. I treasure this fellowship as one of the inspiring things which have come into my life, one of the real influences. I owe a great debt to this true soldier of the Cross. He was indeed a soldier, for, as several have indicated, he knew what strife was, what warfare was, on behalf of the Lord. There are probably not many in this audience who know how acute the suffering of this servant of Christ was in his early ministry, the anguish that he went through over a period of years.It is one of the phenomena of the spiritual history of this city and it is hard to account for it. I can hardly think of a parallel in the religious history of this country. To find an exact parallel I should have to go abroad to a celebrated case in France, in which one of his own people was concerned a generation ago. The simple fact is that his life was inconstant peril for years in his early ministry. He was the victim of assault more than once. How strange this is when we think of the gentleness of his spirit, and his humility, and his one passion, and that to serve others. Yet for some reason this violent opposition not only on the part of his own people, but on the part of some Gentiles, developed, and for many years he was hounded and haunted night and day by opposition, by obstacles, by vilest slander and misrepresentation. It sounds like a chapter out of the dark ages. Perhaps some day that history will be written. I think there would be a value in the record. We live in days of such indulgence and softness, we know little of what our forefathers had to pass through, the things that put fight into them and iron in their blood. But Leopold Cohn knew all about it. Another impression I have, and that was his singular poise and stamina. Leopold Cohn knew his Bible as few men know theirs. He was steeped in its teaching. He had a full-orbed message. In the first Epistle to the Corinthians there is a list of the endowments that are given to the saints of God, fruits of the Spirit. In the Epistle to the Ephesians there is a catalogue of God's gifts to His Church. And when our Lord ascended on high He gave gifts unto men, and these gifts were prophets, apostles, pastors, evangelists, and teachers. Now I can think of our beloved brother right in the midst of that catalogue. He was in truth a gift of our Lord to the Church. He had the true spirit of the under-shepherd. He had a passion for souls. He had a keen responsiveness to the voice of the Spirit. How unstintingly did he labour during all these years in this very community.Starting amidst discouraging circumstances, and with only a few kindred spirits behind him to share his afflictions and persecutions, the work which he founded is reaching out, as has been observed, to almost all quarters of the globe. Our Lord is a great Vindicator. He has a way of seeing his children through, and he has a way of settling accounts and squaring things. What a satisfaction and joy it is to realise as we meet here tonight that even while still in the flesh he knew his Lord's vindication. He had led him out into this large and wealthy place. So I salute this true soldier of the Cross. I would like to lay some worthy tribute upon this casket. He has fought a good fight. He has finished his course. He has kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up that crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give him, and not to him only, but to all those that love His appearing.”Those who knew Dr. Cohn will remember him best for his humility of spirit. Like Moses, the great emancipator of Israel, Dr. Cohn “knew not that his face was aglow after talking with God.” Therein lay his greatness.Taken from ‘When Jews face Christ', copyright – Dr. Henry Einspruch.Republished by permission. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit awolinsky.substack.com

Part 2 of Xava's spontaneous series on foxes! Featured are Babylonian pedagogy, greedy wolves, overzealous interpretation and selfishness in the Rabbinate. Sign up for Sacred Wiggles here: https://bit.ly/sacredwiggles To ask us questions, text or leave us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

The Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association was founded in 1974 to serve as the professional association of the small but growing number of rabbis affiliated with the Reconstructionist movements. These rabbis were trained with a very different approach than their peers in other movements. Rabbi Elyse Wechterman, the RRA's CEO for roughly the past decade, discusses the transformation of the rabbinate and why it matters to everyone who cares about Jews and Judaism (5:00). She shares how disparate factors ranging from COVID to the emergence of the gig economy have shaped the rabbinate in unexpected ways (31:50). The discussion turns to how the events of October 7 and subsequent Israel-Hamas War have placed unprecedented strain on rabbis (44:45). There are some lighter moments as well. Wechterman quotes Billy Joel: “The good old days weren't always good. Tomorrow ain't as bad as it seems.” Theme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb Visit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org Subscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss Read these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1 This podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org (https://ReconstructingJudaism.org). Special Guest: Rabbi Elyse Wechterman.

Rav Yitzchak Breitowitz is a Senior Lecturer in Yeshivas Ohr Somayach in Jerusalem. Until April 2010, he was the Rabbi of the Woodside Synagogue in Silver Spring, Maryland and Professor of Law at the University of Maryland Law School. We spoke about his journey from yeshiva to law school, and from the the workforce to the Rabbinate. And we discussed one of the most underrated aspects of living a Torah life. To listen to the Rabbi Breitowitz Q&A Podcast click here (highly recommended). Join me in learning hilchos Purim with Virtual Halacha Program! Click Here for free registration. Please join the ⁠⁠⁠Shtark Tank Quiet Whatsapp Group⁠⁠⁠ for exclusive bonus content! If you have any sort of feedback, or just want to say hey, don't hesitate! You can reach me by ⁠⁠email⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠LinkedIn Topics Covered Early Childhood+Yeshiva Years Decision to Leave for Law School Memories of Boston Early Career+Teaching Torah Returning to the Rabbinate Today's Generation

#252.> Sponsored by Taj Art > The auction will take place Sunday, Dec 24, 12:00 PM EST. > To view the complete catalogue and bid on items (make sure to register first!) click here. 1. To view and bid on Lot 9, Me'ein Ganim see here.2. To view and bid on Lot 11, Eitz HaDaas of Rav Shimshon Morpurgo see here. 3. To view and bid on Lot 12, Divrei Zikaron of Rav Yosef Stadthagen, an ethical work on Shulchan Aruch Hilchos Shechita & Bedikah see here.4. To view and bid on Lot 26, Shomer Emunim of Rav Yosef Ergas see here. 5. To view and bid on Lot 27, first edition Gevuras Hashem of the Maharal printed in 1582 see here.6. To view and bid on Lot 44, Lekach Tov from Rav Moshe Najara see here.7. To view and bid on Lot 75, Masa Melech on the laws of Taxes from Rav Yosef Ibn Ezra see here.8. To view and bid on Lot 86, the Hebrew-Latin 1541 edition of Sefer Tishby see here.9. To view and bid on Lot 93, the 1st edition of Sefer Chafetz Chaim (published anonymously in 1873) see here.10. To view and bid on Lot 119, an Indian Torah Scroll case see here.11. To view and bid on Lot 123, a hand drawn and illustrated “Mizrach” (including Moshe with horns!) see here.12. To view and bid on Lot 127, the manuscript memorial book of the community of Padua, 1749 – 1778 see here.13. To view and bid on Lot 141, The Appointment Letter of Rabbi Yosef Chaim Zonnenfeld to the Rabbinate of Yerushalayim see here.14. To view and bid on Lot 152, Manuscript of “Ibbur Shanim” / Tiqqun Yissachar by Rabbi Yissachar Ibn Sussan of Tzfat see here.15. To view and bid on Lot 171, 12.5 manuscript pages of Rav Shach that would later be published in Avi Ezri see here.16. To view and bid on Lot 180, Shu't Ohr HaMeir of Rav Meir Shapiro (R'Y Chacmei Lublin) with his handwritten dedication see here 

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 15-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, from Sunday through Thursday. Knesset correspondent Carrie Keller-Lynn and religion and diaspora affairs reporter Canaan Lidor join host Jessica Steinberg for today's podcast, with a briefing from political correspondent Tal Schneider, reporting from the US. Schneider offers an update on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's trip in the US, including his meeting with Elon Musk, his first-ever meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, his conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the protestors awaiting him at every stop. Keller-Lynn turns to Tuesday's discussions in the Knesset and comments made by Likud minister David Amsalem in response to Netanyahu's remarks to Elon Musk about the judicial overhaul. Lidor discusses his trip to Uman, Ukraine over Rosh Hashanah, along with the tens of thousands of male pilgrims who made the long, arduous trip, often with young sons in tow. Keller-Lynn speaks about the Knesset approval for transferring NIS 149 million ($39 million) to the Religious Services Ministry and the intense debate over the sum of money following last week's approval of nearly half-billion shekels for ultra-Orthodox education and religious organizations. Lidor also discusses the influx of funding to the Conference of European rabbis, the umbrella Jewish organization now relocated to Munich, and which has tried to rival Chabad as the leading Jewish umbrella group in Europe. Discussed articles include: Arguing overhaul still ‘good,' Likud minister likens opponents to apartheid regime On my umpteenth trip to Uman, I finally visited Rabbi Nachman's grave Knesset okays NIS 149 million for Rabbinate salaries, renovations of rabbis' tombs Orthodox European rabbinical group finds a home in Munich, with new funding IMAGE: In the streets of Uman, a day after Rosh Hashanah, September 18, 2023 (Photo by Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, Dr. Wilf discusses the differences between Israel and the United States in their relationship to liberal Judaism. Does Israel need to be more welcoming to reform and conservative Judaism in the face of Rabbinate authority, or perhaps, is the solution more secularism, so each and every Jew can choose to practice as they please? Blake Flayton and Dr. Wilf then discuss the complexities of liberal Judaism and how they relates to Israel's current political climate. 

*** This Halacha deals with topic of Yichud. Yichud is the concept that a man may not be secluded with a forbidden woman. Please read all the Halachot on this topic as there are conditions and exclusions that must be fully understood before accepting Lema'ase. ***We have been reviewing the laws of Yichud, and we have learnt that from the Torah that it is forbidden for a man to be alone with a woman if she is not his wife, mother, daughter, or direct descendant. Furthermore, based on the Rabbinate, it is forbidden for Sephardim to allow one man to be alone with 2 or more women. (Ashkenazim should check with their Rabbi.) We also learned that a wife serves as a Shomeret (protector) when the husband and wife are with another woman. The wife's presence enables her husband to be there for he would not obviously then commit a transgression. So the question was asked if whether or not a mother, grandmother, granddaughter or sister would qualify as a protector. According to the Halacha, a mother, grandmother, granddaughter, great-granddaughter etc., would all qualify as protector and their presence would permit their male relative to be alone with another woman. A sister however, would not qualify. The question was then asked if a man may be alone with 2 women who are not related to him, but where the 2 women are mother and daughter. Or what about where the 2 women are grandmother and granddaughter? According to Halacha, it is forbidden, and a non-related man may not be alone with these ladies. To review, a wife, mother, daughter, granddaughter, and grandmother all qualify as protector and their presence enables the man to be alone with another woman. A sister does not qualify. Furthermore, a man may not be alone with 2 women, even when the 2 women are mother and daughter.

On this week's episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Rabbi Sandra Cohen discusses the rabbinate, mental health, and spirituality. [Read more...] The post Seekers of Meaning 7/14/2023: Rabbi Sandra Cohen on the rabbinate, mental health, and spirituality appeared first on Jewish Sacred Aging.

*** This Halacha deals with topic of Yichud. Yichud is the concept that a man may not be secluded with a forbidden woman. Please read all the Halachot on this topic as there are conditions and exclusions that must be fully understood before accepting Lema'ase. ***The Mishna in Kidushin, on the topic of Yichud, says that a man is not allowed to seclude himself with two women [listen to the audio clip for the exact quote]. When the Mishna said two women it meant even more than two women, meaning one man would not be allowed to be secluded with even 100 women. It's prohibited for it might lead to transgression and sin. That is the way Rambam learns, and that is the way Rav Chida learns. And that is also the opinion of the Ben Ish Chai. So, this restriction prohibiting one man from being secluded with 2 or more women is a restriction DeRabannan (from the Rabbinate.) So then the question is asked about a male teacher in a girl's school. Seemingly, based on the above restriction, there would be a problem for a male teacher to teach an all girls class. Is there a way to get around this ruling on Yichud? The Chachamim give a variety of conditions as follows, whereby following any one of them would then permit a male teacher to be in such a classroom. 1) If the door to the classroom is ajar or fully open, it is then permissible for a male teacher to be alone among a classroom of girls based on the fact that that people can walk in and out as they wish. Under such a condition, we wouldn't be suspect of any improprieties.2) If the door to the classroom is not locked, it also then permissible for the male teacher to be among the room of girls. For that matter, the condition also permits seclusion if there is no lock on the door at all. Here too, we would not be suspicious of any inappropriate activity that might lead to sin.3) If the teacher's wife is in the classroom, the Gemara then says that his wife's presence protects him against transgression, and he would be able to be alone with the girls in the class with the door closed and locked. Now, we said above in condition #3, that a wife's presence protects her husband from transgression, and he may then be in the classroom of girls. So the question was asked if his mother's presence would protect him as well. On this, there is a great Machloket amongst the Acharonim. Rav Chayim Palachi says this principal also applies to the mother, but Rav Chida says it does not. So what is the Halacha? According to Rav Moshe Feinstein, since the rule of prohibiting man from being secluded with 2 or more women is DeRabannan, we are therefore lenient and apply this condition to the mother as well. The mother's presence in the room does protect the son, and he may then be alone in a classroom among girls. To review. Based on a rule from the Torah, a man is not allowed to be secluded with one lady. Based on the Rabbinate, for Sephardim, a man may not even be secluded with 2 ladies or more, even as much as one hundred ladies. (Ashkenazim should ask their Rabbis as their laws vary.) If a man is giving a class to ladies, he has some methods and conditions whereby he can be alone with the them and not violate the laws of Yichud. He is OK if the door to the room does not have a lock. He is OK if he leaves the door open, or unlocked. And he is OK if either his wife or mother is in the room.

Moshe is a LinkedIn consultant, helping his clients stand out in a creator-filled market, by owning their unique talents and personality and connecting that to their ideal audience's needs. Before LinkedIn consulting Moshe spent 10 years in the nonprofit sector, starting his own nonprofit and founding a new Jewish community in the suburbs of Dallas. His community-oriented approach and passion for helping others are the cornerstone of his approach to growing on LinkedIn and life in general. Significant achievements: 1) built a Jewish community in Richardson, TX (suburb of Dallas) literally from the ground up (worked with city council, major local companies on projects etc.). 2)started his own linkedin consulting business - moved on from Rabbinate (for family/personal reasons) and was figuring what he would do next. Debated the classic 9-5 and decided to go crazy and do his own thing. Get to know Moshe: https://www.linkedin.com/in/moshe-segal/ If you want to know more about Dr. Jason Balara and the Know your Why Podcast: https://linktr.ee/jasonbalara Audio Track: Back To The Wood by Audionautix is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Artist: http://audionautix.com/  

The Rebbe weighs in on the "Langer Affair" (and R. Shlomo Goren's role in it), one of Israel's most politically-charged debates of 1973, with ripple effects that will ultimately shape the Rabbinate. Iggros Volume 28 Pg 99. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/yechiel-krisch1/support

On Episode 2 of The Holy Sparks Podcast, I get to interview my good friend and colleague Rabbi Joe Black. Rabbi Joe dives into his journey through his rabbinate. We talk songwriting, what it actually looks like to be a Senior Rabbi of a big shul ( 2000+ families) , the future of the Rabbinate, and Limmericks! Rabbi Joseph Black has served as Senior Rabbi of Temple Emanuel in Denver, CO since July, 2010 - previously serving as Rabbi of Congregation Albert in Albuquerque, New Mexico from 1996-2010. He served as Assistant and then Associate Rabbi at Temple Israel in Minneapolis, Minnesota from 1987-1996. He received his Bachelor's degree in Education from Northwestern University in 1982 and his Master's degree and Rabbinic Ordination from the Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR) in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1987. In 2012 he received an honorary Doctorate of Divinity from HUC-JIR. Rabbi Black serves as a Chaplain in the Colorado House of Representatives and is Past President of the Rocky Mountain Rabbinical Council. An award-winning songwriter and nationally recognized musician, he has recorded 7 albums of original Jewish music and published two songbooks. He also is an accomplished writer and poet. Rabbi Black has published several poems and articles in leading national literary and academic journals. He has been honored by American Songwriter Magazine for his music. He is a frequent contributor to anthologies and collections of Jewish writing. He has recorded seven critically-acclaimed albums of original music, a songbook, and two videos. Two of his songs, Boker Tov and The Afikoman Mambo have been made into Children's books and distributed by the PJ Library. His most recent book, There Once Was A Man From Canaan: The Five Books of Limerick, is a collection of Limericks based on each torah portion. This past September, he released two new Albums or original music: Praying With Our Feet – a collection of Jewish and spiritual songs, and Wire and Wood - his first foray into secular recording. He has performed his original music in many communities around the world and has received numerous honors for his performance and composition. As a musician, Rabbi Black is known for his guitar virtuosity, soaring voice and lyrics that are at the same time, funny, inspirational and thought-provoking. His music is an extension of his Rabbinate. Find him here: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?...For more info on The Holy Sparks Podcast go to www.holysparks.tvstreaming everywhere!

In this edition of the podcast, Rabbi Dobrusin recounts an experience which, in retrospect, might have had an influence on his vision of the rabbinate. 

As Rabbi Wolpe prepares to retire after serving as Rabbi of Los Angeles' Sinai Temple for 25 years, he and Rabbi Cosgrove engage in dialogue reflecting on his rabbinic career.   For more Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove, follow @Elliot_Cosgrove on Instagram and Facebook.   Want to stay connected with PAS? Follow us @ParkAvenueSyn on all platforms, and check out www.pasyn.org for all our virtual and in-person offerings. 

During: the period of British rule in America in the 1760's and early 1770's the rallying cry was: 'No taxation without representation'   Walter suggests that this slogan should be adopted in Israel, because the citizens are ruled by delegates from the parties instead of representatives voted by the people. It's time to drop the socialist system. Democracy is:  'Government of the people, by the people and for the people'. All About: The Illusions of America's Jewish communities and their erroneous belief that the remedy for increasing anti-Semitism are community security organisations. Walter suggests that it is Aliyah. Hear: Why there are calls to boycott the 50th anniversary event of the MunicOlympic massacre. While Germany behaved exemplary to compensate Holocaust survivors, they did not do so for the families of the victims of the 1972 terrorist attack that Germany could have prevented. We: Don't need competition by commercial Kosher supervision organisations. There is only one standard and the Rabbinate maintains it. Has: The establishment tainted even the best of our MK'? Why: The money Israel expends for Climate change  is better allocated to reduce the cost of living, so long as China and Russia continue to produce fossil fuels. The: Carnage on Israel's roads is due to inadequate driving instruction, We only learn how to operate a car, not how to behave in traffic. Our very effective Ministry of Transport must now turn to the qualifications of driving instructors. What: Americans call a conservative synagogue is in England Reform. The UK's biggest reform Synagogue has adopted a policy allowing a child  of a Jewish father and non-Jewish mother to be recognised as Jewish without conversion. The thin end of the wedge! And more. The Walter Bingham File 23AUG2022 - PODCAST

Sermon by Rabbi Angela Buchdahl, “Let Us Bless: 50 Years of Women in the Rabbinate"June 03, 2022

Please join Julie and Ted in welcoming Rabbi Sally Priesand to the Let There Be Light Podcast. 

When Idit Silman left the government coalition, she gave a strange reason. She said it was the implementing of the Supreme Court's ruling on Chametz in Israeli hospitals. What was that ruling? What are the rules on Chametz in Israeli institutions? What role does that Rabbinate play? How should Israel resolve the tension between its Jewish and Democratic identity? Liel and Mike invited Tani Frank, Director of the Center for Judaism and State Policy, to help explain these issues. Join us! This episode was edited by the amazing Ben Wallick Studios. Ben is awesome!Masa WebsiteFacebook pagePlease rate, review, share and recommend our podcast.If you have further questions about Israel, please feel free to contact your Masa teacher.

It is an honor to welcome Rabbi Jen Lader to the show this week.  Rabbi Jen is an amazing spiritual leader, youth rabbi, and personal friend.  She will share her journey to become a Rabbi and the lessons she learned along the way.  Her vision for her own career gives insight to anyone standing at the crossroads of life.  Join me as we listen to her advice about how to "Wake Up To Life".

In this episode we describe the essential structure of halakhic authority as a social phenomenon (not as a matter of doctrine). We describe two models - the formal hierarchical model and the horizontally distributed model - and contend, elaborating on the view of Jacob Katz, that Halakhah operates according to a third model - an informal, emergent hierarchy. The implication of this model is that there is no such thing as articulation of Halakhah in a vacuum. Reception and acceptance by communities is an inherent element of what makes Halakhah.

Conversion and its regulation is a major political fight in Israel today. Who is right? What's the debate? In this episode, I begin to take a broader look at institutionalized religion in Israel and try to situate the conversion conundrum within that. We get into the nitty gritty of the Halakhah and address an important graphic feature of how the laws of conversion were codified. We take issue with an otherwise excellent book by Barry Wimpfheimer. We go on a tangent about Beit Hillel and Beit Shammai and some key differences between them. We discuss a bit about the founding of the Chief Rabbinate under the British. The key contention, though, is that attempts to fit Halakhah within a modern, bureaucratic, regulatory regime will inevitably result in the distortion of Halakhah.

The Anti-Semitic Rabbi who became a Priest and then back to the Rabbinate is the subject of this special Talkline with Zev Brenner. Gabriel Kanter-Webber, a Rabbinical Student in London researching Rabbis who were defrocked. discusses the unusual story of Rabbi Judah Elfein who appeared before a Rabbinical Court in NYC in 1923 to face charges of leaving the faith. This podcast is powered by JewishPodcasts.org. Start your own podcast today and share your content with the world. Click jewishpodcasts.fm/signup to get started.

Rabbi Klapper the founder of Modern Torah Leadership ,joins Rabbis Bechoffer and Kivelevitz to discuss his campaign to correct what he sees a s a gross injustice. He has submitted a draft of his essay for all Rischa listeners The Torah prohibits causing psychological distress to converts (ona'at hager). Most American dayyanim recognize the incredible ona'at hager that results from making converts repeatedly “prove” their Jewishness. Yet American batei din maintain a divorce policy that puts many valid converts and their descendants at risk of just such an ordeal. Here's how. American batei din conventionally distinguish two classes of converts when they write a get (halakhic bill of divorce). Converts who are halakhically observant at the time of divorce are identified as “ben/bat Avraham Avinu”. Those who aren't halakhically observant at the time of divorce are identified as “HaGer/HaGiyoret”, with no father's name. This is intrinsically problematic – there is no reason for batei din to judge the observance level of anyone appearing before them for divorce, and batei din generally claim never to do so. But the worst part is that Israeli batei din take the absence of “ben/bat Avraham Avinu” in a convert's get as a basis for challenging the validity of the conversion. Let me explain how this happened.    In traditional Jewish thought, “the convert” is a badge of honor, as in Maimonides' famous letter to Rabbi Ovadiah the Convert. But in the early 19th century, Rabbi Yaakov of Lissa (Toras Gittin 129:11) creatively argued that it would sully the honor of Avraham Avinu to be identified as the father of an apostate convert. Toras Gittin suggested that such converts should instead be identified by their non-Jewish name and the name of their biological father. The 1868 work Chayyei Aryeh (39) pointed out that using pre-conversion names and pre-conversion fathers raised all sorts of halakhic difficulties. He concludes that respect for Rabbi Yaakov prevents him from dismissing the ruling, but that it would be better to use “Hager/HaGiyoret” as the alternative. Despite Chayyei Aryeh's grudging acquiescence, it's not clear whether Toras Gittin's position had much influence on practice before the mid-20th century. We can say confidently that his position contradicts the still-standard 17th century halakhic work on documents Nachalat Shiv'ah (Mahadura Basra 31:4, inserted as note in Mahadura Kamma 41:23:4; see also the summary in Pachad Yitzchak (Lampronti) p.134), and that most books on gittin published after Toras Gittin, for example Arukh HaShulchan, gave a standard rule for converts without mentioning that apostate converts were an exception (even though apostate coverts were often brought up in two other halakhic contexts, writing sifrei Torah and wine). The still-standard late-19th century gittin manual Kav Naki (Seder Haget Rishon VeSheni 21 Note 7) cites Pitchei Teshuvah as citing a position of Toras Gittin about the case, without saying what the position is. (I have not found a relevant Pitchei Teshuvah.) Rav Gedaliah Felder's mid-20th century Nachalat Tzvi cites Toras Gittin's position as “there are those who say”, with a note that it applies only lekhatchilah. However, a practice based on Chayyei Aryeh's friendly amendment of Toras Gittin was practiced in the Tel Aviv beit din soon after 1948. We know of this practice from two sources. The first source emerges from Chief Rabbi Shlomo Goren's ruling in the famous “Langer case”. Rav Goren ruled that a brother and sister were not mamzerim even though their mother's get from her first husband was dated after their birth, because that husband had not converted validly, if at all. An anonymous Israeli dayyan's letter supporting this ruling was published as Appendix 3 of his Pesak Din HaAch v'Ha'Achot. (The houses of dayyanim identified as supporting the ruling were reportedly firebombed, hence the anonymity. The letter seems to identify its author as a member of the Tel Aviv-Yaffa regional beit din). One argument in that letter provides the information relevant to us: [1]The get (from the mother's first husband) is written “Avraham HaGer”, not “Avraham ben Avraham Avinu” as is customary to write on every get for a convert, as is made clear in Shulchan Arukh Even haEzer 129. The rationale for this must be that at the time the get was arranged in beit din, (the first husband) had an established record as not being observant of the tradition, and, it seems, that he had the reputation of a ‘mumar/turncoat to avodah zarah'. A get like this - we do not connect the person genealogically with Avraham Avinu, as is explained in Toras Gittin 129:11, “because (Avraham) certainly did not identify his name with such a congregation (of apostate converts), and we do not connect his genealogy back to Avraham Avinu ob”m”. Pitchei Teshuvah Seder Gittin note 21 also follows Toras Gittin (ADK: I have not found this in Pitchei Teshuvah; see my note above re Kav Naki), and that is our practice today in the beit din for divorce in the region of Tel Aviv/Yaffa, and that was the practice of the Av Beit Din for Gittin of that time, Rabbi Yosef Halevi zt”l, who officiated that get for Avraham Borkowsky (the first husband) in the year 5711. The letter cites Rabbi Halevi's practice in order to corroborate testimony that Mr. Borkovsky had remained a Christian throughout his life. This works if Rabbi HaLevi wrote “haGer” rather than “ben Avraham Avinu” only for converts who were ‘turncoats to avodah zarah', and not for the merely nonobservant. The argument is greatly weakened by the implicit concession that Rabbi haLevi would do the same for ‘public Shabbat desecrators'. The anonymous dayyan presumably assumed that for technical reasons the latter status applies only to a small subset of the nonobservant. In a supplement to the original letter (also published in Appendix 3 of Pesak Din HaAch v'Ha'Achot), the anonymous dayyan strongly critiques a practice that he presents as developing after Rabbi HaLevi's time: [2]Those dayyanim who relate frivolously to all matters relating to the validity of a get, and seek out the bediavad in order to do it lekhatchilah, and have begun to write in the get of a convert only “X Hager”, when according to the opinion of the poskim this hints that the divorcing man is not fit to be connected genealogically to Avraham Avinu ob”m because he desecrates Shabbat publicly, or worse, that he has likely returned to his previous religion – they are violating the longstanding practice of Israel, and in my opinion, they are transgressing many DON”Ts in the Torah that caution us regarding ona'at hager, because I have shown above with clear-cut proofs that lekhatchilah one must write either “ben Avraham Avinu” or else “X haGer ben Avraham”, but if it happens that a convert who comes to divorce is a public Shabbat desecrator, and thereby becomes a ‘turncoat to the entire Torah' as is made clear in the Talmud and poskim, and all the more so if Heaven forfend he returns to his original religion - then certainly one is obligated to omit the name of Avraham Avinu in his get. According to this, if one finds a get written for a convert that was written by a gittin expert in the era preceding ours, and in the get is written only “X haGer” – then there is great reason to consider that at the time of writing they categorized this convert as having the grave status of a public Shabbat desecrator or that he had returned to his prior religion, rather than attributing the omission of Avraham Avinu's name to incompetence. In other words, by 1972 some Israeli dayyanim wrote “X haGer” rather than ben Avraham Avinu even when the convert was merely an ordinary sinner. An abridgement of the anonymous dayyan's letter was apparently published in a New York daily newspaper. This version made no mention of Rabbi Halevi's practice. Rabbi Ephraim Eliezer Yulis (Divrei Efraim Eliezer EH 219), Av Beit Din of Philadelphia, responded by expressing astonishment that an important dayyan would make so weak an argument. He pointed out that decisors throughout the ages had made clear that “HaGer” and “ben Avraham Avinu” were both valid for all converts, so what evidence could be brought from the use of “HaGer”?! Rabbi Yulis clearly did not believe that standard beit din practice followed Toras Gittin. It therefore seems likely that this practice was not widespread in American batei din. Rabbi Yulis had a second criticism. The validity of a conversion is not affected by a convert's subsequent apostasy. Therefore, how could evidence of apostasy at the time of the get, many years after the alleged conversion, prove anything about the father's Jewishness?! As noted above, the full version of the letter shows that the dayyan supporting Rav Goren actually used the language of the get only to support testimony that the father had never renounced Christianity at all. He did not use the language of the get as evidence that the beit din had questioned the validity of the conversion. Rabbi Halevi's practice is cited with at least one important extension in a 5752 decision (published in Shurat HaDin vol. 4 p. 245) by Dayyan Yosef Goldberg (a member of the Tel Aviv beit din).    The case was as follows: A woman was denied permission to marry because her maternal grandmother's 5728 Tel Aviv beit din divorce file stated that she could not remarry until her conversion was validated. All other records of the beit din's deliberations had been destroyed. The get itself identified the grandmother as “bat Avraham Avinu”. Rabbi Goldberg reports that Rabbi Halevi wrote “haGer” rather than “ben Avraham Avinu” for apostate converts, and also for converts “who desecrated Shabbat publicly, and thereby became a traitor to the entire Torah”. He then cites Rabbi M. Tziyoni, a dayyan who was a signatory on the grandmother's get, as follows: The gaon Rabbi M. Tziyoni shlita said to me that the custom in their beit din was: we ask the convert whether he is shomer Torah umitzvot, and if he says that he was shomer Torah umitzvot – we write “ben Avraham Avinu”, and if he said that he is not shomer Torah umitzvot – we write only “X HaGer” Rabbi Goldberg contends that because the grandmother's get identified her as “bat/ben Avraham Avinu”, she must have claimed to the beit din that she was at least somewhat Shabbat-observant. He then makes a technical argument that the grandmother's claim is a valid basis for affirming the granddaughter's Jewishness, even if it cannot be verified, and even though the officiating beit din had left the grandmother's own status in doubt. The practice reported by Rabbi Tziyoni represents a significant expansion of Rabbi haLevi's practice, and corresponds to the practice criticized by the anonymous dayyan. It also shows that the beit din's decisions were not based on any serious investigation. Rabbi Goldberg in fact never suggests that the language of the get proves anything about the grandmother's actual practice; rather, he uses it to show what the grandmother must have told the beit din about her practice. The anonymous dayyan and Rabbi Goldberg each used an argument from get-language in support of ruling that the parties in front of them were eligible to marry. However, Rabbi Shimon Yakobi, legal adviser to the Israeli beit din system, used a radical extension of this argument for an opposite end in his 2010 book ביטול גיור עקב חוסר כנות בקבלת המצוות (Nullification of Conversion Owing to Lack of Sincerity When Accepting the Mitzvot). Rabbi Yakobi asserts that the standard practice of Israeli batei din by 2010, as evidenced by several get manuals, was to write “ben Avraham Avinu” for converts who were shomrei mitzvot (observant of the commandments), and “haGer” for converts who are not. He then contends that beit din records show that the vast majority of Israeli gittin written for converts post-1996 (when batei din began keeping computerized records) used “haGer” rather than “ben/bat Avraham Avinu”. Finally, he uses these statistics to support a decision by Rabbi Avraham Sherman of the Beit Din HaGadol that had retroactively declared thousands of Rabbinate-authorized conversions presumptively invalid. (Rabbi Sherman's own grounds for his decision are beyond the scope of this article. Regardless, his decision served notice that he and his supporters would not refrain from challenging Orthodox conversions even many years later. In other words, it put all converts in permanent fear of challenges to their own or their descendants' Jewishness. I can attest that it had this effect based on contemporary phone calls to the Boston Beit Din and many conversations in subsequent years. Sometimes the ends justify the means; but it would take ultimately important ends to justify such an enormous violation of ona'at hager.)   Rabbi Yisroel Rosen reports that Rabbi Yakobi's statistics were disputed by Rabbi David Bass and Rabbi Mordekhai Brully (ואוהב גר, p. 217). They noted, for example, that according to his chart, the Beersheva beit din had not written any divorces for converts at all! The solution was that the Beersheva beit din wrote ben Avraham for all converts – in other words, that practice in Israeli batei din had not in fact standardized. Moreover, Rabbi Yakobi's argument treats later non-observance as halakhic evidence that the original conversion was insincere. As Rabbi Yulis noted, there is no necessary connection between these phenomena. Finally, Rabbi Yakobi's argument treats a beit din's decision about the get as evidence of the convert's actual level of observance. We saw above that according to Rabbi Tziyyoni, his beit din simply accepted the convert's self-report. Rabbi Rosen reports that according to Rabbi Bass and Rabbi Brully, many batei din probably made judgments based solely on converts' clothing.   But whether or not one regards Rabbi Yakobi's arguments as sound, the reality is that he treated a get that identified a convert as “X haGer/Giyoret” as a basis for challenging the validity of the conversion. Moreover, he found a dayyan who explicitly stated that the language of a get is intended to reflect such a concern. In אבני משפט 4:13 (cited by Rabbi Yakobi in ftnt. 328), Rabbi Mordekhai Ralbag records the following rule, which he presents as based on the practice of Rabbi Shlomo Fisher's beit din: “If the divorcing man or women are converts who observe the mitzvot – one should write ben/bat Avraham Avinu.  But if they do not observe mitzvot, and there is a concern that at the time of conversion they did not intend to accept the yoke of the commandments and the conversion is not good and they are Gentiles – one must hint at this in the get, and therefore one should write only their names and conclude with “the convert”. This rule makes the language of a get a clear basis for challenging the validity of a conversion. Rabbi Ralbag does not present this as an innovation, but rather as established law; in other words, he regards a get that is written “HaGer” to be evidence that the beit din saw reason to question the validity of the conversion. Rabbi Ralbag was appointed by his brother in-law, Chief Rabbi Dovid Lau, to head the beit din system in Yerushalayim (the appointment is on hold because the Attorney General has charged that the process was nepotistic, but Rabbi Ralbag is certainly an intellectually impressive and influential dayyan).    At some recent point, American batei din changed their practice to the one criticized by the anonymous dayyan; that is to say, they began writing “haGer” for converts who were not fully observant. Their intent was probably to match the official standard in Israel (although we saw above that Israeli beit din practice never actually standardized.) In my experience, decisions as to how to identify converts in American gittin are made in the casual manner Rabbi Tziyoni reported, by asking the convert (or sometimes the spouse of the convert) whether he or she is observant at the time. (Most likely some batei din decide based on clothing or appearance.) Converts are not told why the question is being asked. They are not told that an honest answer may lead the Israeli Rabbinate to treat their divorce documents as evidence against the validity of their conversions. In many cases, the beit din itself may not realize this. But it is nonetheless true, for two reasons. First, some prominent Israeli dayanim regard later nonobservance as probative halakhic evidence that the initial conversion was insincere. (For a while, Rabbi Leib Tropper's Eternal Jewish Family used bribery and intimidation to spread this position in the United States. The exposure of some of his many scandals has discredited it for now, but that may not be permanent.) Second, some prominent Israeli dayanim assume that the language of the get reflects genuine concern about the validity of the conversion. The Israeli nonprofit ITIM, headed by Rabbi Seth Farber, has repeatedly sued the Rabbinate to prevent them from using the divorce process as an occasion to reopen question of Jewish status. Doing so is now illegal, but it remains unclear whether the practice has ceased. Regardless, there is no bar to the Rabbinate using the divorce documents of converts as evidence in an initial inquiry into Jewish status, such as when converts from abroad apply for Aliyah. In other words, distinguishing between “haGer” and “ben/bat Avraham Avinu” in gittin puts converts in permanent danger of challenges to their own or their descendants' Jewishness. American batei din have a moral obligation to return to the simple halakhah, which requires no such distinctions in the get. We should regardless not be asking anyone about their religious practice when they come for divorce, , all the more so converts, all the more so without being transparent about the stakes. Asking such questions raises anxieties in every convert about every imperfection in their halakhic practice and violates ona'at hager. We certainly must not continue a practice that raises unfounded doubts about many legitimate conversions, aids and abets those who seek to invalidate conversions we regard as perfectly legitimate, and makes many converts and their descendants permanently insecure. [1] בגט כתוב 'אברהם הגר', לא 'אברהם בן אברהם אבינו' כנהוג לכתוב בכל גט של גר, כמבואר באהע'ז סימן קכ'ט. הנימוק הוא, משום שבשעת עריכת הגט בביה'ד הוא היה מוחזק כבלתי שומר מסורת, וכנראה, שהוא היה מוחזק למומר לע'ז, ובגט כזה אין אנו מיחסים אותו אחרי אברהם אבינו, כמבואר בספר תורת גיטין בסימן קכ'ט אות י'א: 'דבקהל כזה בודאי לא ייחד כבודו ואין מייחסים אחר אברהם אבינו ע'ה'. וכן איתא ב''פתחי תשובה' בסדר גיטין אות כ'א כהתו'ג, וכן אנו נוהגין כיום בביה'ד לגיטין במתא ת'א-יפו, וכך היה נוהג האב'ד לגיטין באותה תקופה הרב ר' יוסף הלוי זצ''ל, שסידר גט זה לאברהם בורקובסקי בשנת תשי'א. [2] אלו הדיינים המתיחסים לכל דבר הנוגע לכשרות הגט בקלות הדעת, ומחפשים את הבדיעבד לעשותו לכתחילה, והתחילו לנהוג לכתוב בגט של גר רק 'פלוגי הגר', ולפי דעת הפוסקים מרמז זה שהמגרש איננו ראוי להתיחס לאברהם אבינו ע'ה משום שהוא מחלל שבתות בפרהסיא או יותר גרוע מזה יתכן שחזר לסורו – הם עוברים על מנהג ישראל מקדמת דנא, ולדעתי, עוברים הם על הרבה לאווין בתורה שהוזהרנו על אונאת הגר, כי בארנו עד כה בראיות חותכות שלכתחילה חייבים להזכיר את שם אברהם אבינו או לכתוב 'פלוני הגר בן אברהם' כנ'ל, אלא אם קורה שהגר הבא להתגרש הוא מחלל שבתות בפרהסיא, וע'י זה נעשה מומר לכל התורה כולה כמבואר בש'ס ופוסקים, וכל שכן אם חס ושלום חזר לסורו - אז בודאי חייבים להשמיט את שמו של אברהם אבינו בגט שלו. ולפי זה, אם מוצאים גט של גר שנכתב על ידי מומחה לגיטין מן התקופה שקדמה מלפנינו, וכתוב בגט רק 'פלוני הגר' – יש חשש גדול שתפסו את הגר בשעת כתיבת הגט בעבריינות חמורה של מחלל שבתות בפרהסיא או שחזר לסורו, אבל אין לתלות בוקי סרוקי בהשמטת שם אברהם אבינו. This podcast is powered by JewishPodcasts.org. 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:Episode text: This week, Blake, Ysabella, and Noah discuss the Civil Marriage in Israel, Iran and Lebanon, Soviet Jews, and most importantly, Hillel Neuer. The New Zionist Podcast is hosted by Blake Flayton (@blakeflayton), Noah Shufutinsky (@WestSideGravy), and Ysabella Hazan (@ysabellahazan), and offers a smart, fresh, fun weekly take on all things Israel, Jewish culture, and more. The New Zionist Podcast is brought to you by the New Zionist Congress. Learn more at newzionists.org, and follow along on Twitter, Instagram, and Clubhouse.

That's right: Kibbitzing w/o Kiddush is back from our longer-than-expected-hiatus! And have we got some juicy Torah for youse to nosh on this week!  Join our triumphant return as we dish the deli with Rabbi Yanoff on COVID in the Rabbinate, get the scoop on why such a nice jewish boy would want to be a rabbi, and, of course, clarify for our listeners which dish to save for him at kiddush! A must listen, tell your mother! 

Though Vilna was known as the Jerusalem of Lithuania, it hadn't had an official chief rabbi since a dispute about the position ended in 1791. As a result of the Polish government requiring the hiring of chief rabbi in the 1920's, the Vilna Jewish community council hired Rav Yitzchak Rubinstein (1880-1945) as the official chief rabbi of the city. He had served as the official 'Rav Mitaam' government rabbi since 1910, and was beloved by the community to his leadership and activism during the First World War. This appointment was made despite the fact that Rav Chaim Ozer Grodzinski was the undisputed Torah leader in Vilna and across the Jewish world, as well as serving as the unofficial chief rabbi for decades. This led to a bitter dispute which was to have a lasting effect on the community, as well as the wider scope of inter Jewish politics. The Chofetz Chaim protested on behalf of the honor of Rav Chaim Ozer, and other protests followed. Though the dispute eventually calmed down, resentment remained. Rabbi Rubinstein himself ultimately escaped to New York at the beginning of the Second World War and passed away there in 1945.   Sponsored by: With the New York City election day around the corner, it's time to drop the excuses and VOTE.  When it comes to funding for our schools and communities, elected officials pay attention to the people who vote.  It's simple: If you're not voting, you don't have a voice.   Make sure you vote early, by mail, or on June 22!  Have questions or need help with your voter plan? Call or email the Orthodox Union's Teach NYS at (646) 459-5162 or email frandm@teachcoalition.org. When you vote, elected officials take note.   For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history contact Yehuda at:  yehuda@yehudageberer.com   Subscribe To Our Podcast on:    PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/   Follow us on Twitter or Instagram at @Jsoundbites You can email Yehuda at yehuda@yehudageberer.com

On the eve of the World Union for Progressive Judaism (WUPJ) conference, Connections 2021, we are delighted to welcome WUPJ President, Sergio Bergman, to our virtual couch. Sergio tells us about his life and journey to the Rabbinate and the WUPJ - from being born “at the bottom of the world” in Argentina to being ordained as a Rabbi - despite his father-in-law thinking that this was not a suitable profession for a nice Jewish boy!We look ahead to this week's conference - its main themes, objectives and highlights - and talk about the role that Liberal Judaism can play in the wider worldwide movement for progressive Jewry.A fascinating conversation and insight into the life of Sergio Bergman - have a listen!Find out more about the conference, and register, here: https://wupj.org/connections/program/On Twitter:WUPJ - https://twitter.com/WUPJudaismSergio Bergman - https://twitter.com/sergiobergmanLeo - https://twitter.com/WFCKeegoCharley - https://twitter.com/RabCharleyRebecca - https://twitter.com/RSingerman or https://twitter.com/KingstonLibShulFind out more about Liberal Judaism, the home for your Jewish story here: https://www.liberaljudaism.org/ See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In this episode we have the pleasure of being joined by 2 guests - both of whom have the surname Baginsky. Not a coincidence as they happen to be Charley's brothers Abe and Ben.Abe joins us from New York and Ben from Tel Aviv. Sadly, there is a paucity of dirt-dishing on Charley although we do hear about how they viewed her decision to enter the Rabbinate and how having a ‘badass Rabbi' as a sister is a great first-date opener. The siblings also reflect on how growing up in the Liberal Judaism youth movement has made them each empowered to hold conversations in their very different spheres - the Rabbinate, Advertising, and Organisational consulting. The serious subjects revolve around US and Israeli politics and populism - how optimistic are we that progressivism will win through? We spend some time on our cultural recommendations (yes, Leo talks about the West Wing again)You can find Abe at AbeBaginsky.com and Ben at BenBaginsky.com, and us on Twitter at: @JewKnowWhatLeo - @WFCKeegoCharley - @RabCharleyRebecca - @RSingerman or @KingstonLibShul See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Inspired by Tamara Jenkins's critically acclaimed Private Life, detailing a husband and wife's struggles to have a child, Doctor Juni sets forth some steep psychological challenges that threaten any happy resolution to many Orthodox couples faced with the same quandary confronting the fictional characters in the film.Rabbi Kivelevitz points out that adoption was originally restricted to orphans and viewed solely as an act of kindness to abandoned children. The discussants outline the religious, cultural, and psychological aspects of the Fertility Anguish Syndrome.Kivelevitz eloquently depicts the prevalent pain of childlessness which he sees as a potential threat to the self-concept of some couples as it mitigates marital viability. This is especially true in cultures where childrearing is the cardinal purpose of marriage. This, in addition to the positive value children have on the richness of the marital relationship proper.On the flip side, Prof. Juni elaborates on the pernicious effects of mandates on any human endeavor. They are in agreement, however, that resentment will prove inevitable in reaction to the traumas often connected to IVF and adoption procedures, and will burst to the surface with negative repercussions.Prof. Juni is emphatic that there is always an underlying feeling of resentment on the part of adopted children. Arguing that children are best off if they never become aware of their adoption, Dr. Juni acknowledges that Halachic guidelines preempt this possibility in religiously observant families – particularly when adopting a non-Jewish child.From the Rabbinic perspective,. Kivelevitz shares details of the keen sensitivity to personal issues by the contemporary Rabbinate and outlines Halachic innovations in the IVF and adoption arenas. He also shares his experiences in the Modern Orthodox community, where he finds no evident prejudice toward adopted children who bear tell-tale signs of hailing from non-Jewish heritages.The episode stresses the value of couples having their eyes wide open before considering a response to childlessness . Kivelevitz promotes the option of coming to terms with the reality of infertility and considering adoptive or other options, while Juni stresses the need for preemptive counseling to anticipate the negative effects inherent in any steps they may consider.Doctor Samuel Juniis one of the foremost research psychologists in the world today.He has published groundbreaking original research in seventy different peer reviewed journals, and is cited continuously with respect by colleagues and experts in the field who have built on his theories and observations.Samuel Juni studied inYeshivas Chaim Berlinunder Rav Yitzchack Hutner, and in Yeshiva University as aTalmidof Rav Joseph Dov Soloveitchick.ProfessorJuni is a prominent member of theAssociation of Orthodox Jewish Scientists, and has regularly presented addresses to captivated audiences.Associated with NYU since 1979,Juni has served as Director of MA and PhD programs, all the while heading teams engaged in important research.Professor Juni's scholarship on aberrant behavior across the cultural, ethnic, and religious spectrum is founded onpsychometric methodologyand based on a psycho-dynamicpsychopathologyperspective.He is arguably the preeminent expert inDifferential Diagnostics, with each of his myriad studiesentailing parallel efforts in theory construction and empirical data collection from normative and clinical populations.Professor Juni created and directed NYU's Graduate Program in Tel Aviv titledCross-Cultural Group Dynamics in Stressful Environments.Based inYerushalayim, he collaborates with Israeli academic and mental health specialists in the study of dissonant factors and tensions in the Arab-Israeli conflict and those within the Orthodox Jewish community, while exploring personality challenges of second-generation Holocaust survivors.Below is a partial list of the journalsto which Professor Juni has contributed over 120 articles.Many are available on lineJournal of Forensic PsychologyJournal of Aggression, Maltreatment, and Trauma.International Review of VictimologyThe Journal of Nervous and Mental DiseaseInternational Forum of PsychoanalysisJournal of Personality AssessmentJournal of Abnormal PsychologyJournal of Psychoanalytic AnthropologyPsychophysiologyPsychology and Human DevelopmentJournal of Sex ResearchJournal of Psychology and JudaismContemporary Family TherapyAmerican Journal on AddictionsJournal of Criminal PsychologyMental Health, Religion & CultureAs Rosh Beis Medrash, Rabbi Avraham Kivelevitz serves asRavandPosekfor the morningminyanat IDT.Hundreds of listeners around the globe look forward to his weeklyShiurinTshuvos and Poskim.Rav Kivelevitz is aMaggid ShiurforDirshu Internationalin Talmud and Halacha as well as a Dayan with theBeth Din of America.Please leave us a review or email us at ravkiv@gmail.comFor more information on this podcast visityeshivaofnewark.jewishpodcasts.org See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. 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An interview program that seeks to pick the brain of one of the most influential Rabbinic figures of North America.RabbiReuben Joshua Poupko has been the Rabbi ofBeth Israel Beth Aaron Congregation in Montrealfor over 30 years.Please leave us a review at ravkiv@gmail.com See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This podcast is powered by JewishPodcasts.org. Start your own podcast today and share your content with the world. Click jewishpodcasts.fm/signup to get started.

An interview program that seeks to pick the brain of one of the most influential Rabbinic figures of North America.RabbiReuben Joshua Poupko has been the Rabbi ofBeth Israel Beth Aaron Congregation in Montrealfor over 30 years. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This podcast is powered by JewishPodcasts.org. Start your own podcast today and share your content with the world. Click jewishpodcasts.fm/signup to get started.

An interview program that seeks to pick the brain of one of the most influential Rabbinic figures of North America.RabbiReuben Joshua Poupko has been the Rabbi ofBeth Israel Beth Aaron Congregation in Montrealfor over 30 years. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This podcast is powered by JewishPodcasts.org. Start your own podcast today and share your content with the world. Click jewishpodcasts.fm/signup to get started.

A seemingly local and insignificant event, the election for the Tel Aviv rabbinate in 1935 had an impact on the future of Jewish life in many ways and places. The first Ashkenazic Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv was Rav Shlomo Ahronson. With his passing, three primary candidates arose over the summer of 1935 - Rav Moshe Avigdor Amiel, who was the ultimate winner, Rav Yitzchak Isaac Herzog and Rav Yosef Dov Soloveitchik, at that time a young Rabbi in Boston. The leaders of the Mizrachi backed Rav Amiel, though Rav Moshe Soloveitchik wrote a strong letter of support on behalf of his son. Rav Soloveitchik made his only visit to the Land of Israel that summer, and met the ailing Rav Kook.  Meanwhile the nascent Tel Aviv based Poalei Agudath Israel was eager to participate in the upcoming elections. Wary of the official Agudah position of non participation with the Zionist establishment, the PAI leadership penned a letter to the Ger Rebbe the Imrei Emes asking his opinion about voting in the election. The final result ensconced Rav Moshe Avigdor Amiel as the Chief Rabbi. He would go on to have a major impact on religious life in the first Hebrew city.     Subscribe To Our Podcast on:   PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/   Follow us on Twitter or Instagram at @Jsoundbites You can email Yehuda at yehuda@yehudageberer.com

Rabbi Amy Eilberg is the first woman ordained as a Conservative rabbi by the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. She serves as a spiritual director, kindness coach, and peace and justice educator.  She recently served as the Coordinator of Jewish Engagement for Faith in Action Bay Area, a multi-faith, multi-racial social justice organization in the San Francisco Bay Area. Prior to that she served as the director of the Pardes Rodef Shalom (Pursuer of Peace) Communities Program, teaching Jewish civil discourse to rabbis, synagogues and Jewish organizations.  Her book, From Enemy to Friend: Jewish Wisdom and the Pursuit of Peace, was published by Orbis Books in March 2014. She received her Doctor of Ministry degree from United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities in 2016. See Rabbi Eilberg interviewed in: And the Gates Opened: Women in the Rabbinate,  a 2005 JTS retrospective produced on the twentieth anniversary of Rabbi Eilberg's ordination. During the interview, Rabbi Eilberg discusses her teacher Sylvia Boorstein. Here is an interview of Sylvia Boorstein on the program “On Being” with Krista Tippett. Rabbi Bernstein cites Sylvia Boorstein's work in his 2019 Yom Kippur sermon, "Don't just do something, sit there! And other ways to confront mortality."  Rabbi Eilberg's mentor at Brandeis University, Rabbi Al Axelrad, will be recognized by readers of Mitch Albom's best-seller Tuesdays With Morrie, the ultimate "My Teacher" story. Dr. Morrie Schwartz, Albom's beloved teacher, was a sociology professor at Brandeis and was a friend of Rabbi Axelrad. After Schwartz succumbed to ALS, Rabbi Axelrad conducted his funeral in 1995. On the last page of Tuesdays With Morrie, Albom writes: "The funeral was held on a damp, windy morning. The grass was wet and the sky was the color of milk. We stood by the hole in the earth, close enough to hear the pond water lapping against the edge and to see ducks shaking off their feathers. "Although hundreds of people had wanted to attend, Charlotte kept this gathering small, just a few close friends and relatives. Rabbi Axelrad read a few poems. Morrie's brother, David—who still walked with a limp from his childhood polio—lifted the shovel and tossed dirt in the grave, as per tradition. "At one point, when Morrie's ashes were placed into the ground, I glanced around the cemetery. Morrie was right. It was indeed a lovely spot, trees and grass and a sloping hill. “'You talk, I'll listen,' he had said. I tried doing that in my head and, to my happiness, found that the imagined conversation felt almost natural. I looked down at my hands, saw my watch and realized why. "It was Tuesday."Albom, Mitch. Tuesdays with Morrie (p. 206). Crown. Kindle Edition.  For questions and comments, email Rabbi Ed Bernstein at myteacherpodcast@gmail.com.Follow the My Teacher Podcast on social media:Twitter: @PodcastTeachFacebookInstagram

A brand new interview program that seeks to pick the brain of one of the most influential Rabbinic figures of North America.RabbiReuben Joshua Poupko has been the Rabbi ofBeth Israel Beth Aaron Congregation in Montrealfor over 30 years.Rabbi Poupko from his Canadian perch sketches cogently the debate in the Jewish community over supporting President Trump.He explains why Orthodox Jews have a more cynical attitude to politics, and the reasons why Trump polls so strongly among them.Poupko draws parallels and distinction between the support Canadian Jewry began to give to the Conservative Party, and how the George W, Bush period stirred Jews to the Republican party.He enlightens Kivelevitz about the real politick that the Parti Québécois used not to alienate their Jewish constituents when they came into power.Kivelevitz and Poupko reminisce over some of the important political figures in the United States over the last fifty years, with Poupko cogently describing why who the next American President is serves as the the hottest topic under discussion globally across all religious communities.Rabbi Poupko predicts that many of the positive changes the Trump administration engendered in Israel policy will probably survive into the Biden-Harris era with the realization of the changes to the facts on the ground as they relate to Iran and the new peace accords with the U.A.E, and Bahrain.Kivelevitz hopes that Biden will bring in top flight intellectual thinkers as Richard Nixon did whose surveying of the political landscape can be free of ugly bias.Rabbi Poupko opines about Netanyahu's political chances in the coming months and how an incoming Democratic administration will struggle to maintain a positive bond with some one they see as a Republican foreign agent.He also provides many interesting insider tidbits as to what might have caused the thawing of relationships with the Saudis. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This podcast is powered by JewishPodcasts.org. Start your own podcast today and share your content with the world. Click jewishpodcasts.fm/signup to get started.

A brand new interview program that seeks to pick the brain of one of the most influential Rabbinic figures of North America.RabbiReuben Joshua Poupko has been the Rabbi ofBeth Israel Beth Aaron Congregation in Montrealfor over 30 years.Rabbi Poupko explains why the bans issued in the 1950's against Orthodox participation with the Synagogue Council and the New York Board of Rabbis is no longer relevant.He also describes the delicate yet effective bonds that have been forged with the various other faiths in Quebec that have helped promote the opening of religious life safely in the pandemic. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. This podcast is powered by JewishPodcasts.org. Start your own podcast today and share your content with the world. Click jewishpodcasts.fm/signup to get started.

It may sound like science fiction, but it's happening right now in Israel: the Rabbinate has begun using DNA tests to prove Jewishness. Is there such a thing as reliably Jewish DNA? Chochmat Nashim explores how that happened and why it's raising alarm bells. Music: "Misery" by the Whips

Abbas announces halt to all agreements with Israel   Palestinians remain skeptical of Abbas' claim and believe nothing will come of threats #PALESTINIAN #ABBAS __________________________________________ Arrow 3 missile defense system completed  Cooperative Us-Israeli tests in Alaska prove successful after years in development.  Maj. Gen. (ret.) Dr. Yom-Tov Samia, former head of IDF Southern Command and  Brig. Gen. (ret.) Ram Shmueli, former head of IAF Intelligence are in the ILTV studio to discuss this monumental event. #RAMSHMUELI #YOMTOVSAMIA ___________________________________________ European powers attempt to save nuclear deal  Meeting in Vienna aims to prevent Western tensions with Iran from escalating #IRAN #EUROPE _________________________________________ Three of four Arab parties announce joint run  For now, only the Balad party remains outside the new Arab unity-bloc #ELECTIONS #BALAD ___________________________________________ LGBT youth stabbed in Tel Aviv  Gay rights groups allege the attack was a hate crime #LGBT #TELAVIV ___________________________________________ Israeli shot dead in Mexico was ‘underworld legend'  Female assassin kills Israeli crime bosses in Mexico in broad daylight #MEXICO #ASSASINATION ___________________________________________ Cypriot police release all Israelis in rape case  Investigations continue and alleged British victim is reportedly detained #CYPRUS #INVESTIGATION ___________________________________________  UN singles out Israel for oppression of women  “Israeli occupation is why Palestinian women can't realize their full potential” #WOMEN #UN ___________________________________________  Rabbinate increasingly skeptical of Jewishness  Conflict with Rabbinate stops many Israelis from marrying according to Jewish law #MARRIAGE #RABBINATE ___________________________________________ ‘Red Sea Diving Resort' premiers at 39th SFJFF  Film adaptation of incredible, true rescue-mission hits Netflix July 31st #NETFLIX #SFJFF ___________________________________________  Today in History - July 28, 1885  Death-anniversary of Sir Moses Montefiore #TODAYINHISTORY #HISTORY ___________________________________________ The Weather Forecast Tonight should be clear to partly cloudy, and warm– with a low of seventy-five… or twenty-four degrees celsius. Then tomorrow should be clear, sunny, and hot again… with a high of eighty-seven; or thirty-one degrees celsius.  #ISRAELWEATHER   #ISRAELFORECAST See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Egyptian Intel official visits Tel Aviv; Ramallah Senior Egyptian intelligence official Abbas Kamal was in Tel Aviv to discuss the ongoing peace efforts in the region including Palestinian reconciliation, and a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. This also comes amidst ongoing talks with other involved parties in Cairo including both the D-F-L-P and the popular front for the liberation of Palestine terror group. Is the Democratic Party becoming anti-Israel? Abe Katsman, Council, Republicans Overseas Israel and Heather Stone, Chair of Democrats Abroad, Israel speaking at ILTV Studio about the Israel critics gain traction in United States congressional primary elections. A.G. threatens the Rabbinate's kosher monopoly Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit has just warned Israel's Rabbinate that he would end the monopoly on kosher certification if they didn't comply with a high court ruling by the end of the month deadline. The court ruled back in May 2017 that by September 2018, the rabbinate would have to end the practice of taking payments directly for inspectors to review their products. 4. Herzliya youth handball coach arrested 35 year old youth sports coach, and father of two from Herzliya, Beno Reinhorn has been arrested on suspicion of contacting at least 140 young girls for the purposes of molestation, rape, sexual harassment, computer crimes, indecent acts, and more against children between the ages of 9 and 15. New report claims proof of Israeli nuclear tests An explosive new report has just been published by the science and global security journal which claims to have definitive proof that Israel conducted atomic weapons testing over the Indian Ocean in 1979. Researchers say they found this evidence, by studying sheep. 6. Israel looks to sell off Dead Sea mining rights In major news surrounding the Dead Sea, Israel is now reportedly looking to auction off the rights to mine the salty body of water by 2022, 8 years ahead of schedule. All in a bid to prevent the exacerbation of an environmental tragedy. 7. Top 5 Micro Breweries The best Israeli beers that you just have to try with ILTV'S Emanuelle Kadosh's top five. 8. Hebrew word Of The Day: KEVESS | כבש = LAMB / SHEEP Learn a New Hebrew word every day. Today's word is "kevess" which means "lamb/sheep" See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A fresh offense? Unconfirmed reports from Arab media sources today have been saying that Israeli jets have just struck a military target in Syria just outside of Damascus. Witnesses say they heard explosions coming from a warehouse nearby, a well-known Hezbollah stronghold. The I-D-F, as policy, does not comment on alleged military strikes like these. Gaza ceasefire holds through the night Following the most intense exchange of fire between Israel and Palestinian Terror cells in Gaza since the 2014 war, things have returned to a relative calm. Both Israel and Hamas have upheld the ceasefire deal reached yesterday – but only after Palestinian terrorists launched at least a hundred missiles from the Gaza strip into Israeli territory. Rabbinate proposes criteria for recognition abroad Rabbi Meir Azari, Beit Daniel, Tel Aviv ,Rabbi Seth Farber, Modern Orthodox Rabbi, Historian, & Founder of ITIM, Rabbi Ariel Konstantyn, Founding Rabbi at the Tel Aviv Int'l Synagogue, and Rabbi Ronen Neuwirth, Chairman of Ve'ahavta TLV Jewish Experience speaking at ILTV Studio about the draft that would require unrecognized foreign Rabbinates to undergo new exams. White House addresses settlement growth Yesterday the Israeli government advanced construction plans for nearly two thousand new Jewish homes throughout the West Bank. Nearly half of these homes would be built outside of current settlement blocks in areas that some argue is Palestinian-owned territory. Knesset cracks down on smoking The dangers of smoking are quite well-known by now but despite these dangers more and more Israelis every year continue to smoke and while it's certainly anyone's choice to do so the Israeli government has finally decreed a new set of smoking restrictions in public areas in order to protect public health. Israeli life expectancy up Now on a related albeit equally morbid topic, the Health Ministry has just published its findings on the central causes of death in Israel but before the bad news, let's give the good. Studies conducted over the last few years also show that while disease is still the major killer life expectancy for Israelis overall is on the rise. Blue whale sighted in Eilat Israel's Southern resort-city of Eilat just received an extraordinary visitor. I'm talking bigger than Kim and Kanye… bigger than any president, even bigger than Beyonce. This one-of-a-kind visitor is actually one of the largest mammals on earth, a rare, beautiful, endangered blue whale. Surf's up with reading! If you're a bookworm, you may already know about ‘books-surfing', the idea started out as one Israeli's way to reconnect with his friends through his love of books. Well that idea has exploded over the years into a worldwide phenomenon –paving the way for the first-ever world Booksurfing day on June 2nd. 9. Top 5 cocktail bars in Tel Aviv ILTV'S Emanuelle Kadosh has the top 5 of the week with this week that marks the first ever Tel Aviv cocktail week.   Hebrew word Of The Day: LEVIATAN | לויתן = WHALE Learn a New Hebrew word every day. Today's word is "Leviatan" which means "whale" The Weather Forecast Tonight should be partly cloudy and warm with a low of sixty-nine, or twenty-one degrees Celsius. Over the weekend, temperatures are set to be about the same with a high of around eighty or twenty-seven degrees Celsius, but there is a high chance of rain across the center and north. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.