Star Trek and the Jews

Star Trek and the Jews episodes:

• 12.06.2021

  Where We‘ve Gone Before

  A reflection on two years using Trek to boldly explore the worlds of Jews and Judaism. Joined by the one and only Dr. Adam Sniderman, we look back at what we've learned, consider favourite moments, and weigh our show against...

  
• 11.04.2021

  Oral Traditions (Or, The One with Picard‘s Flute)

  An exploration of oral traditions in Judaism and Star Trek with two very different interviews. Xava De Cordova, Torah scholar and co-host of the queer Talmud podcast Xai, How Are You, joins to teach about study of the Jewish oral tradition,...

  
• 10.05.2021

  Space Nazis (Or, Misadventures on the Paramount Backlot)

  Star Trek often uses metaphors and allegory to depict issues in human history and society. But sometimes... Star Trek just says 'screw all that subtly, here are some aliens dressed up as Nazis'. Joined by guest Leah Mauer, a teacher...

  
• 09.13.2021

  Bonus: Live from the Jewish Museum

  Shana tova! In this bonus episode, we're revisiting our February 2021 virtual live show at the Jewish Museum of Maryland. -- JIAS Toronto donation page: https://jiastoronto.org/jias-toronto-donate/ Jewish Museum of Maryland Jews in Space exhibit: https://jewishmuseummd.org/events/jews-in-space/

  
• 09.09.2021

  For You Were Strangers

  Refugees, Judaism and Star Trek, examined through the lens of DS9 Sanctuary. How has Star Trek depicted refugees? What obligations do we as Jews have to welcome refugees? Guests Jodi Block and Naomi Kramer of JIAS Toronto, a Jewish agency...

  
• 08.10.2021

  Part II - Captain David Gold: Don't Call it a Midrash

  Part two our deep dive in Captain David Gold, lead character of the Starfleet Corps of Engineers eBook series, with authors Glenn Hauman, Aaron Rosenberg and Keith R.A. DeCandido. -- HSHW: "Creative Couplings" by Glenn Hauman & Aaron Rosenberg, which can be...

  
• 08.09.2021

  Part I - Captain David Gold: Don't Call it a Midrash

  The first half of our deep dive in Captain David Gold, lead character of the Starfleet Corps of Engineers eBook series, and one of the most prominent Jewish characters in the Star Trek literary world. Guest Heidi Rabinowitz, host of...

  
• 07.08.2021

  Time Helix

  Time. David Zvi Kalman joins to discuss Jewish time keeping technologies and the use of time in Star Trek. Maxine Lee Ewaschuk offers a d'var Torah on Tisha B'Av and the passage of time. -- Note for upcoming HSHW. In August, we'll...

  
• 06.09.2021

  Conversion (no, not matter/anti-matter conversion)

  Joined by Yacov Fruchter, we're exploring contemporary issues and practices surrounding conversion to Judaism. We'll hear short vignettes from people who've undergone the process, and talk about how Star Trek has approached conversion through the lens of joining a Klingon...

  
• 05.11.2021

  Benny Russell is Dreaming of Us

  Joined by writer and advocate Tema Smith, we explore ideas connected to Jews and the struggle for racial equality; white privilege and racial identify among white Jews; antisemitism and anti-Black racism; and ongoing barriers within the Jewish community faced by...

  
• 04.12.2021

  NOT CANON!!!

  'Canon'--the body of work designated as genuine, sanctioned, important or official--is a concept that intersects fandoms and religions. In this episode, we discuss all things canon including: Star Trek's nebulous official and unofficial approaches to a canon; the historical formation...

  
• 03.11.2021

  After the Burn

  Discovery season 3's Jewish themes and ideas. The crew of Discovery find themselves in a galaxy where the institutions they relied on are shattered, and where collective memory and the values of the Federation are under great threat. Rabbi Dov...

  
• 02.11.2021

  Time, Space and Courage

  What might possibly link a scroll, written on goatskin, found in the Judean Mountains 2,000 years after its composition with an astronaut whose space shuttle disintegrated during its return to Earth? On the 18th anniversary of the Columbia Disaster and...

  
• 01.13.2021

  Literally Saving the Whales

  Environmentalism, Star Trek and Judaism discussed in celebration of the upcoming holiday of Tu BiShvat. We're looking at ways Trek has depicted environmental issues and the environmental movement. Approaching ancient and modern sources, we try to understand a Jewish response...

  
• 12.15.2020

  Four Ensigns Enter the Pardes

  Jewish themes and ideas in Lower Decks season 1. Hava and Josh examine ways Star Trek and Judaism approach the separation of labour time from leisure time, a divide which feels threatened in our era. Guest Tiffany Shlain, author of...

  
• 11.16.2020

  The Clerk of Gallitep

  "Duet" is perhaps the most thought-provoking episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. It is a chilling quest for justice in the aftermath of genocide, examining the nature of guilt and complicity. In this episode, we are talking about the...

  
• 10.19.2020

  Seventy Facets: Jews, Gender, Jadzia and J'naii

  This month we're talking about gender in Judaism and Star Trek. We look at episodes where Trek and has tried (and usually failed) to have a conversation about gender and sexuality, and episodes where Trek maybe isn't trying to say...

  
• 09.21.2020

  Bonus: Day of Atonement / Day of Honor

  Shana tova! As we approach Yom Kippur, this bonus episode looks back at our interview with Rabbi Steve Wernick of Beth Tzedec Congregation. We talk about Jewish ideas of wrongdoing, repentance, community, and the season 4 Star Trek: Voyager episode...

  
• 09.17.2020

  The Goatee Inclination

  Two inclinations, the Jewish tradition holds, exist within each person: good and evil. In this episode, we explore concepts of the nature of evil in Star Trek and Judaism. We welcome back Rabbi Jennifer Gorman to teach us about the...

  
• 08.19.2020

  Harrison and Libenson at Tanagra

  Sokath, his eyes uncovered. We welcome Benjamin Ahr Harrison of The Greatest Generation and Dan Libenson of Judaism Unbound to talk TNG Darmok and the Jews. We chat about shared stories and metaphor, insider/outsider language, and the search for meaning...

  
• 07.21.2020

  The Lobed Elephant in the Room

  It's the Ferengi episode we've been dreading. Eek! We're jumping into the decades-old controversy about antisemitism in Star Trek. Reb Alert guest Jonathan Branfman helps us trace the historic origins of pop culture depictions of Jews, and how these tropes...

  
• 06.21.2020

  Spock Z"L, Leonard Z"L

  Spock and Leonard Nimoy are at the core Trek's Jewishness. This month, we look back at them both with love. Hava and Josh examine the Jewishness of Spock, and how that legacy has shaped Star Trek and our own identities....

  
• 05.24.2020

  Jews in Space

  Imagining Jewish life in Star Trek's 24th century. Hava and Josh look at TNG Journey's End and Sub Rosa to explore how Trek has depicted modern human national groups, leaving a whole balagan to unpack. Reb Alert guest Rabbi Jennifer...

  
• 04.24.2020

  Golem Picard

  Picard season 1's Jewish themes, references and ideas. Reb Alert guest Aaron Rotenberg of the Annex Shul (Toronto) teaches us about the Golem. Hava and Josh consider if showrunner Michael Chabon delivered Star Trek's most Jewish season of Star Trek...

  
• 03.25.2020

  Q the Accuser, and Other Creatures

  How do Star Trek's most powerful creatures relate to Jewish ideas of the divine? Reb Alert guest Rabbi Mimon Mamane of Congregation Magen David of Manhattan talks to us about monotheism, as well as HaSatan (the Accuser), Malachim (angels) and...

  
• 02.25.2020

  A Delta Quadrant Yom Kippur

  Voyager's "Day of Honor" is Trek's only Yom Kippur special. Reb Alert guest Rabbi Steve Wernick of Beth Tzedec Congregation (Toronto) explains the concepts of "teshuva" and "vidui". Hava and Josh explore why B'Elana Torres--a secular Klingon--feels connected to this...

  
• 02.18.2020

  Where No Jew Has Gone Before

  Introductory episode. We discuss goals of the show and situate ourselves in the Jewish world and Star Trek world. We question if this show should even exist given Gene Roddenberry's views on religion, discuss the explicit mentions of Jews in...