18Forty Podcast

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to an anonymous email sender about life upon the bridge between the truth of fact and the truth of feeling.

Our anonymous guest sent an email in to 18Forty, which we read previously on the Malka Simkovich episode. In his email, he describes struggling with the Oral Torah and clinging to his faith despite the unknown.

- How has practical Jewish religious observance evolved since the canonization of the Oral Torah?

- Are the struggles of modern day Jews the same struggles Jews faced in the Second Temple period ?

- Where does the divinity of the Jewish People lie?

- Is Judaism intended to be a socially arbitrated system?

Tune in to hear a conversation on authenticity within spirituality.
Interview begins at 16:39

References:

Torah Musings Blog by Gil Student
18Forty - “Malka Simkovich: The Mystery Of The Jewish People”
Zakhor: Jewish History And Jewish Memory by Yosef Hayim Yerushalmi
Stories Of Your Life And Others by Ted Chiang
Exhalation: Stories by Ted Chiang
Arrival
18Forty - “Moshe And Asher Weinberger: Heart Of The Fire: Together Even With Small Differences”
18Forty - “Larry And Tzipora Rothwachs: Here Without You — A Child’s Eating Disorder”
18Forty - “Andrew Solomon: Far From The Tree”
“Welcome To Holland” by Emily Perl Kingsley
18Forty - “The Legacy Of Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks”
18Forty - “Chaim Saiman: Is Talmud The Jewish Constitution?”
18Forty - “Ari Bergmann: Talmud As An Agent Of Chaos”
18Forty - “Joshua Berman: What Should We Believe?”
“Is It Really the Torah, Or Is It Just the Rabbis?” by Tzvi Freeman
Josephus: The Complete Works by Flavius Josephus
From Text to Tradition, a History of Judaism in Second Temple and Rabbinic Times: A History of Second Temple and Rabbinic Judaism by Lawrence Schiffman
The Rambam’s Introduction to the Mishna
Iggeres d'Rav Shrira Gaon
The Thirteen Principles of Torah Elucidation by Rav Yishmael
Ace Ventura: Pet Detective
The Shulchan Aruch by Rabbi Yoseph Karo
”Left and Right Brain Judaism” by Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks
COVID responsa from Rav Herschel Schachter
Show & Tale: Pinny Stieglitz
Game of Thrones
The Matrix
18Forty - Intergenerational Divergence
Mishna Berurah by Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan
“Rupture and Reconstruction” by Haym Soloveitchik
Judaism Straight Up by Moshe Koppel
Sin-a-gogue: Sin and Failure in Jewish Thought by David Bashevkin
Discovering Second Temple Literature: The Scriptures and Stories That Shaped Early Judaism by Malka Z. Simkovich
Outside the Bible: Ancient Jewish Writings Related to Scripture by Louis H. Feldman

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

This series is sponsored by our friends, Daniel and Mira Stokar.

In this episode, we discuss parental alienation. In some way or another, almost all of us struggle with alienation. Who among us doesn’t feel too far from someone that we love? The meeting points of religion and family in religious communities can make navigating change in the family unit difficult, sometimes leading to alienation. As we approach Yom Kippur, we spoke to five people who have lived through the stressors that lead to alienation. These guests are people that might be your neighbors, your rabbis, your siblings, or your parents, talking about the cost and challenge of keeping family close, no matter how hard it might be.

In this interview, we discuss:

— How does parental alienation start, and where might it lead?
— What can someone do to avoid or rectify alienation?
— What can we learn from those who have struggled with familial alienation?

Thank you to each of these guests for sharing their stories with openness, vulnerability, and honesty, and thank you to Eitan Katz for permission to use his song, Ki Karov.

Resources:
"Somebody’s Son," Richard Pindell
Kesher Nafshi
Toldos Support Group for parental alienation

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

This series is sponsored by our friends, Daniel and Mira Stokar.

This episode is sponsored by our friends, The Aleph Institute.

On this episode of 18Forty, we have a deeply moving conversation with Mark Moskowitz, an author, speaker, and coach, to talk about his search for meaning in federal prison. After being incarcerated for defrauding his investors, Mark found meaning and himself in the least likely of places. This conversation moves from the challenges of living meaningfully amidst pressures to perform your success to the challenging work of teshuva. Our episode with Mark also features Rabbi Sholom Lipskar, founder of Aleph Institute.

In this interview, we discussed:
—How does one find a sense of self when they are expected to be someone for other people?
—How does someone start to veer towards crime, and how do they come back from a mistake of that magnitude?
—What can we learn about teshuva from the experience of prison?

Interview begins at 6:34.

Mark Moskowitz is an author, speaker, and coach, who speaks about his search for meaning in federal prison. After being incarcerated for defrauding his investors, Mark found meaning and himself in the least likely of places. You can learn more about Mark on the profile on him at Aish.com, “Mark Moskowitz's Story: In Prison for Defrauding Investors, I Turned My Life Around.”

You can pre-order his book, Within: How I Found My Happy and Authentic Self in Federal Prison, here (https://www.markjmoskowitz.com/offers/9jpH7Z2k/checkout) and use the coupon code 18FORTY to receive 20% off.

References:
The Six Pillars of Self-Esteem by Nathaniel Branden
Real Power by Dr. Dovid Lieberman
Joe Dispenza
The Shawshank Redemption

We'd like to thank our dear friends at the Aleph Institute for their help coordinating this episode. If you would like to be a part of the amazing work they do, especially in these days of Yimei din vrachamim - days of judgment and mercy - then you can head on over to https://aleph-institute.org/wp/ and donate to their annual matching fundraising campaign and help them reach their goal for the coming year. Their work is entirely made possible by caring people like you.

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

This series is sponsored by our friends, Daniel and Mira Stokar.

On this episode of 18Forty, we have a wide ranging conversation with Shais Taub, a renowned Chabad scholar and author of the book God of Our Understanding: Jewish Spirituality and Recovery from Addiction, about the mechanics of teshuva. It's hard to put Rabbi Taub in a box. He is a candid speaker and an eclectic thinker who brings authenticity and honesty to otherwise formulaic topics. During our conversation we discussed:

—What's the difference between teshuva of innocence and teshuva of experience?
—What does Kafka have to do with teshuva?
—Why did the Alter Rebbe, the first Rebbe of Chabad, call his work the Sefer of Beinonim, the book for people in the middle?

Interview begins at 4:35

Rabbi Shais Taub is a rabbi and author. He writes about Jewish spirituality, addiction, and mysticism, and is the author of God of Our Understanding: Jewish Spirituality and Recovery from Addiction. Rabbi Taub is a noted speaker, and he currently serves as scholar-in-residence of Chabad of the Five Towns.

References:
Franz Kafka's The Trial
Tanya
SoulWords.org
Franz Kafka's The Trial
Tanya
SoulWords.org
B’Rogez Rachem Tizkor by David Bashevkin
The Trauma of Everyday Life by Mark Epstein
Laughing with Kafka by David Foster Wallace
Vidui HaTeshuvah by Tzemech Tzedek (Part 1, Part 2)
Orot HaKodesh by Rav Kook
Kabbalistic Writings on the Nature of Masculine and Feminine by Sarah Schneider

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

This series is sponsored by our friends, Daniel and Mira Stokar.
On this episode of 18Forty, we have a frank conversation with author Kayla Haber-Goldstein about her personal, painful journey to find God. Kayla proudly describes herself as FFB/BT, a reference to her identifying as a ba’al teshuvah despite growing up in a religious, rabbinic home in Australia and Jerusalem.

—How do you align Judaism to your life so that religious practice doesn’t feel like a burden?
—How can Orthodox education be improved to encourage spiritual-seeking?
—How can you make changes to your life while under intense social scrutiny?

Kayla Haber-Goldstein is an interior designer living in New York. Born to a rabbinic family, Kayla set out to explore her own relationship with Judaism, resulting in her book, Questioning The Answers. Kayla is passionate about questioning the answers—and questions—of Judaism, in order to be consciously religious.

Interview begins at 15:30.

References:
Questioning the Answers by Kayla Haber-Goldstein
Crash Course in Jewish History by Ken Spiro
Orot Hatorah by Rabbi Abraham Isaac HaCohen Kook

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

This series is sponsored by our friends, Daniel and Mira Stokar.

In this episode of 18Forty, tech entrepreneur Antonio Garcia Martinez discusses his powerful “Why Judaism?” essay series, chronicling his conversion to Judaism and his views on the deficiencies of secular liberalism. A formerly Orthodox man who was moved to change his life after reading Martinez’s essays chimes in.

—What is the toll of a culture of optionality?
—What is the value of unchosen commitments?
—How does Martinez reconcile his deeply scientific worldview with Judaism?

Interview begins at 10:21.

Antonio García Martínez is a New York Times best-selling author and tech entrepreneur. He is a former product manager for Facebook, the CEO-founder of AdGrok, and a former quantitative analyst for Goldman Sachs. His book Chaos Monkeys: Obscene Fortune and Random Failure in Silicon Valley, an insider look into Silicon Valley, was a New York Times bestseller. Antonio reflected on his choice to engage with Judaism in a deeply thoughtful piece, “Why Judaism? On abandoning secular modernity.”

References:

Why Judaism? On abandoning secular modernity by Antonio García Martínez
Why Judaism?, part שני: On the question of God in modernity by Antonio García Martínez
Nineteen Letters by Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch
The Benedict Option by Rod Dreher
Rethinking Sex by Christine Emba
Seven Types of Atheism by John Gray
The Sabbath by Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel

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

In the first episode of our Teshuva series, R. Beryl Gershenfeld, one of the leaders of the Jewish outreach movement, joins us in talking about what we can learn about the process of transformation that occurs in Jewish outreach.

- What can the Jewish world learn from Jewish outreach?
- How do we engage in meaningful growth?

This series has been generously sponsored by our friends Daniel and Mira Stokar.

Interview begins at 15:25

References:

Sin•a•gogue: Sin and Failure in Jewish Thought by David Bashevkin
The Road Less Traveled: A New Psychology of Love, Traditional Values and Spiritual Growth by M. Scott Peck
Sefiras Haomer: The Link Between Tushuva And Torah by Yaakov Elman
Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl
Atomic Habits by James Clear
Dedicated: The Case for Commitment in an Age of Infinite Browsing by Pete Davis
Mesilas Yesharim
Chovot HaLevavot
Or HaTzafun
Aspiration by Agnes Callard

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

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we listen to voicemails sent in by you, our listeners, and reflect on the community we have built beyond our conversations.

- Which episode is the favorite, or least favorite, of 18Forty listeners?
- Why did David Bashevkin get outraged about pagination?
- Is “undoubtably” a word in the English language?

Tune in to hear a conversation between Batman and the Joker, and other fun feedback.

Voicemails begin at 7:24.

References:

“Portlandia”
IFC YouTube channel
Malka Simkovich: The Mystery Of The Jewish People
Bnei Yissaschar by Tzvi Elimelech Spira of Dinov
Tzidkas HaTzaddik by Rav Tzadok HaKohen of Lublin
Oz VeHadar Mesivta Talmud
“Show and Tale”
“I Read This Over Shabbos”
Jewish Mediation: A Practical Guide by Aryeh Kaplan
The Birth of the Spoken Word by Dovid’l Weinberg
If You Were God by Aryeh Kaplan
Tefillin by Aryeh Kaplan
Waters of Eden by Aryeh Kaplan

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

Among the many questions we receive at 18Forty, there are some we find recurring: Who does 18Forty serve? What is its purpose? In this episode, 18Forty Founder Rabbi David Bashevkin reflects upon those questions—except he isn’t the one interviewing. Instead, Rabbi Ari Koretzky, host of the Jews You Should Know Podcast, interviews him.

—What is the story of David’s personal religious development?
—What were 18Forty’s greatest challenges and successes?
—Where is it heading?

Interview begins at 5:44.

References: 

Jews You Should Know
Saturday Night Live – "Father-Son Podcasting Microphone"
"Rav Moshe Weinberger: Can Mysticism Become a Community?"
The Bedwetter by Sarah Silverman
"Journey to 18Forty: A Conversation with Mitchell D. Eichen"
"Malka Simkovich: The Mystery of the Jewish People"
"Dr. Ora Wiskind: How do you Read a Mystical Text?"
Introduction to Love's Executioner by Irvin D. Yalom

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

This episode is sponsored by our friends Victor and Jessica Kagan in honor of Rochel Mindel bas Noson Nuteh and Naftali ben Chaim Shraga Feivel.

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Mirlana Morris about the loss of her son, Donny, and perpetuating the memory of a loved one.

Mirlana lost her son, Donny, in last year’s Meron tragedy when he was 19 years old. Mirlana speaks about choosing to live a life of emunah instead of being angry with God, and shares how she perpetuates the legacy of her beloved son.

- Where does a mother find the strength to move forward after confronting a loss of such large magnitude?
- How can one comfort the bereaved with sensitivity?
- What does mourning have in common with Chol HaMoed and what does it teach us?

Tune in to hear a conversation on love, loss, and moving forward.
Interview begins at 12:21

Musical Credit: Im Eshkachech by Itzhak Azulai

References:

Kedusha, Shabbos Davening
“Mimkomcha” as sung at the funeral of Donny Morris
“Donny Morris’ schedule”
Daniel Ish Chamudot: A Parsha Companion in Bein Adam L'chaveiro in Memory of Donny Morris z”l by Yeshivat Sha’alvim
Living Emunah by Rabbi David Ashear
“B’Yadcha” by Rinas Amcha

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