This series is sponsored by Mira and Daniel Stokar.

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we speak with Rachel Tova Ebner, translator of a new volume of the teachings of Rav Kook, about what the spirituality of Rav Kook adds to our Jewish practice and to our understanding of ourselves.

As we approach Rav Kook’s yahrzeit (3 Elul), we’re directing our attention to the spiritual dimension of Yiddishkeit outlined in his works. In this episode we discuss:

• What does Rav Kook teach us about our yearning for God?
• What is the role of feelings in our inner work? 
• What does it mean for us to change as the Torah stays the same? 

Tune in to hear a conversation about the paradox inherent in trying to “change the past” via teshuva. 

Interview begins at 14:57.

Rachel Tova Ebner grew up in Manhattan and made Aliyah to Jerusalem with her family in 1982. She is linguist and lyricist, a teacher and translator, with a Master’s degree in Hebrew from the Bernhard Revel Graduate School of Yeshiva University. Her most recent professional endeavor was to participate in the translation of the new Koren Tanach. She has three children and eleven grandchildren.

Chapters (Produced by Sofer.AI):

Teshuvah 0:14

Re‑examining Our Bullseye: The Conceptzia Idea 3:38

Lakewood Yeshiva’s Future and Community Burnout 6:50

Generational Mission Shifts and Klal Yisrael 8:37

Introducing Rav Kook’s Torah of Tomorrow 11:52

Translator Rachel Tova Ebner on Her Father’s Influence 15:00

Early Memories of Learning with Rabbi Bernstein 16:15

Limits on Naming and Speaking About God 21:32

The Classic Child’s Question: Is God in the Toilet? 22:46

Ikveta d'Mishicha: The Era of Messianic Footsteps 25:18

Rav Kook’s Call for New Spiritual Consciousness 26:18

Direct Encounter with God—Beyond Rabbis and Texts 28:01

Rav Kook’s Historical Context and Practical Inner Work 43:28

Compassion and Inner Work with the Soul 45:36

Rav Kook on Teshuva and Cosmic Will 47:30

Personal Metaforms: Smoking as Spiritual Symbol 50:32

Rav Kook’s Vision for Secular Israelis 52:32

Calling Artists of the Sacred in Modern Times 55:00

The Summons to Holy Consciousness Excerpt 57:01

Choosing a Rav Kook Translation for Study 62:23

Evolution as Cosmic Optimism in Rav Kook 64:13

Finding a Spiritual Path Beyond Halacha 67:08

Critique of Galut and Return to Eretz Yisrael 68:17

Personal Sleep Habits: A Goyish Schedule 70:06

Rav Kook’s Vision: Renewing the Old, Sanctifying the New 73:27

Intuition and Faith in Personal Spiritual Direction 75:09

Despair as Catalyst for Renewal in Orot Hateshuva 76:56

Closing Remarks and Sponsor Acknowledgments 80:49

Traditional Closing Prayer and Song 81:50

References:

18Forty Podcast: “Rav Judah Mischel: A Change in Progress”

The Torah of Tomorrow: OneSong by Rachel Tova Ebner

Renewing the Old, Sanctifying the New: The Unique Vision of Rav Kook by Marc B. Shapiro

18Forty Podcast: “Marc B. Shapiro: Where Does Orthodox Judaism Come From?”

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.

This series is sponsored by Mira and Daniel Stokar.

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we speak with rabbi, psychotherapist, and “translator” Joey Rosenfeld about how our generation can understand languages of mysticism, philosophy, and suffering in today’s chaotic world.

In this episode we discuss:

• Where should we channel our spiritual work as we near two years since October 7?
• Will Mashiach come in our lifetime?
• What is the purpose of yearning and desire? 

Tune in to hear a conversation about how “Yiddishkeit is the guardian of deficiency.” 

Interview begins at 8:49.

Rabbi Joey Rosenfeld is a practicing psychotherapist in the addiction field focusing on the interface between philosophy, spirituality, and psychology. His shiurim on Jewish philosophy, Kabbalah and the inner workings of the human soul have been watched and listened to by thousands around the world and he has a dedicated following of students from the entire spectrum of the Jewish community.

References:

Tikkunei Zohar

“The Source Of Faith Is Faith Itself” by Aharon Lichtenstein

Pirkei Avot 4:2

Halakhic Man by Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik

Tanya ch. 36“

Why Is There Something, Rather Than Nothing?” by Sean Carroll

Mishneh Torah by Maimonides 

Sippurei Maasiyot by Rebbe Nachman of Breslov 

“Anthem” by Leonard Cohen

For more 18Forty:
NEWSLETTER: 18forty.org/join
CALL: (212) 582-1840
EMAIL: [email protected]
WEBSITE: 18forty.org
IG: @18forty
X: @18_forty
WhatsApp: join here

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.

This episode was sponsored by Jerry and Esther Williams in honor of 18Forty and Shalom Task Force. 

While we wait for the next new episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we revisit Dovid Bashevkin's 2022 deep dive into the world of dating. As we explore the realm of relationships, Dovid uses his own journey to help us find the proper framework for balancing one’s romantic, religious, and professional identities.  

• How can one stay connected to their religious self while simultaneously evolving?
• What’s Dovid’s best advice for dating and marriage?
• Why are we afraid to commit to no?
• How can we ensure that the years ahead are the best years yet? 

Tune in to hear a conversation on love, commitment, and commitment to commitment. 

References:

Shalom Task ForceThe Orchard: A Novel by David Hopen 

Tehillim 27:10“

Evolving Religiously During Singlehood” on Singled Out Podcast by Zahava Moskowitz

Bambi

Garden State

Dovid Bashevkin on Twitter

“Spending the Seder Alone” by Dovid Bashevkin

Solitude, A Philosophical Encounter by Philip Koch

Cast Away18Forty – “Rav Moshe Weinberger: Can Mysticism Become A Community?” 

“Bashert: My One and Only?” on YUConnects CandiDate Podcast

“The Paradox of Choice” by Barry Schwartz

“The Howard Stern Show: Actor And Comedian Aziz Ansari Visits The Show”

“Signed, Sealed, Delivered” by Dovid Bashevkin

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.

As the 15th of Av approaches, we are returning to this episode on how different Jewish communities date to honor the Jewish "holiday of love."

This episode is sponsored by Anonymous who is fond of Shalom Task Force & 18Forty. 

On this episode of 18Forty, we explore the world of Jewish dating. We spoke to insiders and experts from the Chassidic community, “Yeshiva Orthodox” community, and Modern Orthodox community, looking at the commonalities and differences between each community’s approach to finding and building loving relationships. Each community emphasizes different dynamics and difficulties of the process of dating, and by considering them together and independently we can gain a greater understanding of the pressure points around love. How a community approaches dating is a test case for so many of a community’s values and vulnerabilities. In this episode, you’ll hear from representatives of each community that are intimately involved with the project of communal norms around dating, and be asked to think about your own assumptions and hopes for love. In this interview, we discussed: 

• How does each Jewish community approach dating, from shadchans to dating apps and everything in between? 
• What does a community’s approach to dating tell us about the Jewish approaches to love and commitment? 
• What can we learn from the dating practices of communities that are different from our own? 

Interviews start at 10:31

Dr. Yosef Sokol, one of our representatives from the yeshiva world, is a psychologist and the lead researcher of the recent study on the data behind the “shidduch crisis.” We also speak with Dr. Isaac Schechter, another author of the study, Dr. Efrat Sobolofsky, director of the YUConnects matchmaking-and-education program, and Dr. Devorah Mansdorf Agami, an endodontist who met her husband on JSwipe.

References:
Rabbi Mordechai Lightstone

“Examining Average Age at First Marriage within Orthodox Judaism: A Large Community-Based Study” by Yosef Sokol, Naomi Rosenbach, Chayim Rosensweig, Chynna Levin, Shifra Hubner, and Isaac Schechter

Bikur Cholim of Rockland CountyARRC Institute 

YUConnects

JSwipe

Dovid Bashevkin on YUConnects CandiDate

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we speak with Hadas Hershkovitz, whose husband, Yossi, was killed while serving on reserve duty in Gaza in 2023—about the Jewish People's loss of this beloved spouse, father, high-school principal, and soldier.

In the second year of the war, we’re grappling not only with the depth of our losses, but with how to make meaning of them as we continue to live in their aftermath. In this episode, we discuss:

• How has the loss of Hadas’s husband sparked a renewed urgency in her dedication to uplifting the Jewish People?
• How do we confront the anger and blame we may feel toward others in the wake of collective tragedy?
• How can we cultivate the positive thoughts and spiritual clarity needed to uphold our moral responsibilities in difficult times?

Tune in for a heartfelt conversation on what it means to transform Torah into a living song sung by the Jewish People.

Interview begins at 30:30

References:

Psalms 23

Hasidic Tales of the Holocaust by Yaffa Eliach

Seinfeld: “The Bottle Deposit”

“יש כאן יותר מזה" by Hanan Ben Ari 

Deuteronomy 31 

Arukh HaShulchan by Yechiel Michel Epstein

For more 18Forty:
NEWSLETTER: 18forty.org/join
CALL: (212) 582-1840
EMAIL: [email protected]
WEBSITE: 18forty.org
IG: @18forty
X: @18_fortyWhatsApp: join here

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to author Elissa Felder and her daughter Sonia Hoffman—both of whom have experienced the loss of a child and serve on a chevra kadisha—about what the Jewish burial society teaches us about confronting death. In this episode we discuss: 

• How does the process of purifying a dead body work—and how is it possible to purify a dead body at all?
• What Kabbalistic practices are performed by chevra kadisha to bring dignity to the body and soul? 
• How can we “normalize” discussions about grief and death? 

Tune in to hear a conversation about how care for the deceased is a “love story” between the Jewish People and God.

Interview begins at 15:31.

Elissa Felder started and actively manages Core’s community of practice for women who serve on a traditional chevrah kadisha. The knowledge she acquired through her work motivated her to write From One Life to the Next Life; The Sacred Passage after Death, a memoir about the loss of her baby son. She is the head of her local chevrah kadisha and speaks widely on this topic.

Sonia Hoffman is a Limmudei Kodesh teacher at Kohelet Yeshiva in Philadelphia. She is a daughter, mother, wife and member of the Bala Cynwyd community. She is also an active member of the Philadelphia Chevra Kadisha, having started during COVID to help with this mitzvah. After the loss of their daughter in 2016, she began speaking about her experience with loss and sharing resources with the community on ways in which we can move forward after tragedy. In addition, Sonia began hosting an annual event in her daughter's memory to bring awareness to the community around the topic of infant loss and relationship with God.

References:

Teshuvot HaRadbaz Volume 3, 985

Torat HaAdam, Introduction 

“Passing Through” by David Bashevkin

Berakhot 10a

“​​Reconciling Opposites: Uncommon Connections in the Halakha of Mourning” by Emanuel Feldman

From One Life to the Next Life; The Sacred Passage after Death by Elissa Felder

The Wild Edge of Sorrow: Rituals of Renewal and the Sacred Work of Grief by Francis Weller

The Choice: Embrace the Possible by Dr. Edith Eva Eger

Consolation: The Spiritual Journey Beyond Grief by Maurice Lamm

Gesher Hachaim - The Bridge of Life by Rabbi Yechiel Michel Tucazinsky

Rabbi Yitzchak Hutner's Theology of Meaning by Alon Shalev

For more 18Forty:
NEWSLETTER: 18forty.org/join
CALL: (212) 582-1840
EMAIL: [email protected]
WEBSITE: 18forty.org
IG: @18forty
X: @18_fortyWhatsApp: join here



Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Rabbi Shlomo Brody and Dr. Beth Popp, who work with Ematai, an organization focused on end-of-life care, about the process of death and how we ought to live with our own mortality. 

In this episode we discuss: 

• How do we connect to eternity within this finite existence? 
• What halachic issues must we consider when making end-of-life decisions?
• What happens to the body of someone who’s died? 

Tune in to hear a conversation about how we can sanctify life in the face of mortality. 

Interview begins at 18:30

Rabbi Dr. Shlomo Brody is the executive director of Ematai and a columnist for The Jerusalem Post. His first book, A Guide to the Complex: Contemporary Halakhic Debates, received a National Jewish Book Award. His newest book, Ethics of Our Fighters: A Jewish View on War and Morality, was published in 2023. A summa cum laude graduate of Harvard College, he received rabbinic ordination from the Israeli Chief Rabbinate, an MA in Jewish philosophy at the Hebrew University, and his PhD from Bar Ilan University Law School.

Dr. Beth Popp is a professor on the faculty of Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, specializing in Hospice and Palliative Medicine. She has served on hospital ethics committees for most of her career and presents regularly to community groups to clarify the role of hospice and palliative care in the healthcare system. She has been extensively involved in educating rabbinic leaders about the medical aspects of serious illness and end-of-life care. 

References:

Rabbi Yitzchak Hutner's Theology of Meaning by Alon Shalev

Pachad Yitzchak al Shavuot by Rabbi Yitzchak Hutner

“Letters of Love and Rebuke From Rav Yitzchok Hutner” by David Bashevkin

Halakhic Man by Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik

Ethics of Our Fighters: A Jewish View on War and Morality by Rabbi Dr. Shlomo Brody

A Guide to the Complex: Contemporary Halakhic Debates by Rabbi Dr. Shlomo Brody

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

The Denial of Death by Ernest Becker

Seinfeld: “The Comeback”

Being Mortal by Atul Gawande

Kaddish by Leon Wieseltier

When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi

For more 18Forty:
NEWSLETTER: 18forty.org/join
CALL: (212) 582-1840
EMAIL: [email protected]
WEBSITE: 18forty.org
IG: @18forty
X: @18_fortyWhatsApp: join here


Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.

While we await our next episode, we invite you catch up with 18 Questions, 40 Israeli Thinkers.

Micah Goodman doesn't think Palestinian-Israeli peace will happen within his lifetime. But he's still a hopeful person.

Named by the Jerusalem Post as one of the 50 most influential Jews, Micah is a public intellectual, writer, and author whose voice is central to the moral, political, and religious debates raging within Israel.

He is the author of several best-selling books — including The Wondering Jew, Catch 67, The Dream of the Kuzari, and The Last Words of Moses — and co-host of the popular Israeli podcast Mifleget Hamachshavot.

Now, he joins us to answer 18 questions on criticizing Israel, resettling Gaza, and Jewish democracy.

This interview was recorded on July 6.

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Ayala Fader—an anthropologist who studies American Haredi communities and their “hidden heretics”—about the personal, familial, and communal factors that pull us toward and push us away from different Jewish communities. 
In this episode we discuss: 

• How should we respond to the discomfort we experience when the communities we live in don’t measure up to the communities we desire?
• How has the internet changed Hasidic and yeshivish cultures over the past three decades? 
• How has the surge of antisemitism and anti-Zionism affected the views of Hasidic Jews? 

Tune in to hear a conversation about the ways we seek out and build communities that nourish us. 

Interview begins at 12:48.

Ayala Fader is a professor of anthropology at Fordham University. Her research investigates contemporary North American Jewish identities and languages and engages key issues at the intersection of religion, Jewish Studies, gender, and linguistic anthropology, including language and media. She is also the founding director of the Demystifying Language Project, a partnership between academia and public high schools, housed in the New York Center for Public Anthropology at Fordham. Fader is the author of Mitzvah Girls: Bringing Up the Next Generation of Hasidic Jews in Brooklyn and Hidden Heretics: Jewish Doubt in the Digital Age. 

References:

“Failure Goes to Yeshivah” by David Bashevkin

Mitzvah Girls: Bringing Up the Next Generation of Hasidic Jews in Brooklyn by Ayala Fader

Hidden Heretics: Jewish Doubt in the Digital Age by Ayala Fader

Naftuli Moster with Frieda Vizel: "Why I left Hasidic education activism"

When Prophecy Fails by Leon Festinger, Henry W. Riecken, and Stanley Schachter 

Jew Vs Jew by Samuel G. Freedman

18Forty Podcast: “Rav Moshe Weinberger: Can Mysticism Become a Community?”

For more 18Forty:
NEWSLETTER: 18forty.org/join
CALL: (212) 582-1840
EMAIL: [email protected]
WEBSITE: 18forty.org
IG: @18forty
X: @18_fortyWhatsApp: join here

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.

On June 29, Eden will be hosting a webinar to speak in detail about the vision for this project. In order to register please click here or email [email protected] to find out more.

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, David Bashevkin moderates a debate between Rabbi Itamar Rosensweig and Rabbi Yitzchak Blau on whether morality exists independently of Judaism. 

This is a recording of a live event hosted at Young Israel of Teaneck on May 4. In this episode we discuss: 

• What does it mean for God to be good, and who defines the “good” in the first place? 
• Do Torah Jews base their values on halacha, or something else?
• Should we make any changes to halachic and moral education in the Jewish community? 

Tune in to hear a conversation about how halacha and morality bring order and prioritization to our chaotic and confusing lives. 

Debate begins at 10:57.

Rabbi Itamar Rosensweig is a professor of Jewish law and jurisprudence at Yeshiva University, a rabbinic judge and chaver beit din at the Beth Din of America, and the rav of the Shtiebel of Lower Merion. He holds a secondary appointment as an assistant professor of philosophy at Yeshiva College and serves as the chair of Jewish studies at the Sy Syms School of Business. He received his semikha, Yoreh Yoreh and Yadin Yadin, from RIETS, where he was a fellow of the Wexner Kollel Elyon and editor-in-chief of the Beit Yitzchak Journal of Talmudic and Halakhic Studies.

Rabbi Yitzchak Blau is the author of Fresh Fruit & Vintage Wine: Ethics and Wisdom of the Aggada and is Tradition's associate editor. He has taught at Yeshivat Hamivtar, Yeshivat Shvilei Hatorah, and the Yeshivah of Flatbush and currently also teaches at Midreshet Lindenbaum. Rabbi Blau has a BA in English Literature from YU, an MA in Medieval Jewish History from Revel, and semikha from RIETS. Rabbi Blau lives in Alon Shevut with his wife and four children.

References:

"Curb Your (Shul) Enthusiasm"

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis

Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis

Fresh Fruit & Vintage Wine: Ethics and Wisdom of the Aggada by Yitzchak Blau

HaEmunot veHaDeot by Saadia Gaon

Religion And Morality by Avi Sagi and Daniel Statman

Plato's Euthyphro

Genesis 9

The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky

Eight Chapters by Maimonides 

Halakhic Man by Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik

A Theory of Justice by John Rawls

For more 18Forty:
NEWSLETTER: 18forty.org/join
CALL: (212) 582-1840
EMAIL: [email protected]
WEBSITE: 18forty.org
IG: @18forty
X: @18_fortyWhatsApp: join here

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/18forty-podcast--4344730/support.