Good Faith Effort

An Orthodox Jewish rabbi, a Coptic Christian from Egypt, and a Syrian-Lebanese Jew from Mexico City walk into a bar… On this episode Ari talks to the hosts of his new favorite podcast “American-ish”, a show bringing together first-generation immigrant women from two very different (yet strikingly similar!) Middle Eastern communities to discuss culture, love, religion, politics…and everything in between.

In a wide-ranging conversation, Ari, Adela, and Mariam cover what Middle Eastern culture has to teach America; what Adela and Mariam have been most surprised to learn about each other; how their appreciation for each other’s communities has deepened; why it’s important to be able to talk about difference without trying to erase it; and much, much more!

Good Faith Effort is a production of Bnai Zion and SoulShop.

Both grew up in Long Island, both grew up in strong religious traditions, both have a love for the liberal arts. But where Ari grew up an Orthodox Jew, Scott grew up Catholic. In a wide-ranging conversation, Ari and Scott reflect on the self-contained dignity and beauty of their respective traditions, and think about what they can bring to the wider world of learning.

When we think of the roots of American liberty and attitudes towards monarchy, we usually think of classically trained statesmen pondering the glories of Athens and Rome. But what if I told you that in fact, the two most important sources undergirding the American Founding were: the Bible…and the Talmud?

In today’s episode, Rabbi Ari brought on Harvard’s Eric Nelson to talk about the revival of Hebrew learning among Christians during the Renaissance; the origins of the idea, popular during the American Revolution, that monarchy is idolatry; the role that royalism played in American thought; the benefits and pitfalls of technocracy in contemporary America; how to study important texts that seem inaccessible; and much more!

How does a minority community that has long suffered state-sanctioned oppression take control of its own destiny, build wealth, invest in education about its past, and promote pride in its distinctive culture? This is a question that applies equally to the historical Jewish experience AND the experience of the Black community in America. So this week Rabbi Ari brought on thinker, entrepreneur, and political activist Felecia Killings of the Conscious Black Conservative movement, whose political star has been rising across the country.

They talked about Black history; securing Black wealth; the role of faith and the Bible in the Black experience; how to win elections; the case for reparations; solving the criminal justice system; and much more!

Did you ever grow up watching a show as a kid and think “Oh yeah, I identify with THAT character”... even if that character seemed to have nothing to do with you at all? In his gorgeous new book “Piccolo Is Black,” Jordan Calhoun of The Atlantic tackles the joys, challenges, and ultimately the depth of meaning in the pop culture we all loved as kids, and continue to love as adults.

Along the way, Rabbi Ari and Jordan discuss their favorite shows from the 80s and 90s; cultural confidence in minority communities; why animation is underrated; the relationship between religion and community; whether Tommy was cooler as the Green Ranger or White Ranger; and why Gargoyles was perfect.

Good Faith Effort is a production of Bnai Zion and SoulShop.

One of the most common questions by far that I get from listeners to this podcast is: “I know you’re an Orthodox Jew, and you mention it a lot on the pod, but…what does that actually mean?”In this episode, I brought on fellow Orthodox Jewish podcaster Rabbi Scott Kahn to unpack this. Along the way we talked about our go-to explanations for people who aren’t Jewish about what Orthodox Judaism is; the challenge of feeling excitement during prayer; why Orthodox Jews seem to spend so much time engaged in ritual after ritual; what’s more interesting: dogma or practice?; the unique perspective that Jewish sages have brought to the study of the Bible; what valuable lessons American society might be able to take from the Orthodox Jewish experience; and much more!

Good Faith Effort is a production of Bnai Zion and SoulShop.

If you had to look for one of the most spiritually and religiously exciting places in the world, you might not think the place to go would be…Silicon Valley. And yet it’s precisely there that Rabbi Noa Kushner created one of the most exciting experiments in communal entrepreneurship in the world: The Kitchen. On this episode, Ari spoke to Rabbi Kushner about the challenges and opportunities of leading a religious revival in the heart of Tech World; what it takes to be a religious entrepreneur and how to get more of it; how to think about religious conversion; why it’s bad to think about religion purely in terms of project-market fit; why the Tower of Babel is such an important story for modern society; how to do community not just be in a community; and much more!

Good Faith Effort is a production of Bnai Zion and SoulShop.

It’s become overwhelmingly common to think of the Bible primarily as a text—a book full of words that we read. But while this is an important way of interacting with the Bible, it only develops later. If you look at how the Bible expects itself to be taught and studied, it’s much more about passing wisdom from parent to child, or from teacher to student. The Bible is something we’re supposed to perform or experience, not just read it. Living in the Digital Age, what opportunities do we have for doing this at a high level? To unpack all of this, Ari spoke with Jon Collins, one of the founders of the international phenomenon, The Bible Project, which has now reached over 100 million people across platforms with visual storytelling about the Bible. They spoke about how visual art can help teaching Biblical texts and ideas; why it’s important for readers to understand the Bible in its Hebraic context; what creative influences Jon brings to his artistic work on The Bible Project; why shared storytelling is so important for American society at this point in time; what the word “Shalom” means to Jon; and so much more!

Good Faith Effort is a production of Bnai Zion and SoulShop.

How do we expand learning and idea generation to broader populations? How do we create communities around ideas? Can traditional community and individual excellence coexist? Rabbi Lamm spoke about all of this to Anna Gát, one of the most exciting intellectual entrepreneurs in the world about her quest to do exactly this.

To learn more about the community Rabbi Lamm and Anna talked about, visit https://interintellect.com/

Good Faith Effort is a production of Bnai Zion and SoulShop.

Human societies are built on stories, and there are few domains of public life as ripe with storytelling potential as sports. Now, often the kinds of stories we tell around sports involve heroes, conquest, getting to the mountaintop and seeing the promised land. It’s much rarer to tell stories about striving mightily before accepting defeat, and learning to live with and grow from failure. So that’s why Ari brought on Sport Illustrated’s Chris Herring to talk about the most famous teams ever…that didn’t make it: the 1990s New York Knicks. Along the way they talk about resilience, the spiritual value of sports fandom, the importance of tradition, Chris’s own spiritual journey, the reason why NBA players seem so disproportionately faith-inclined, the trajectory of hip hop in Chicago, and much more! You can order a copy of Chris’s new book today: Blood in the Garden: The Flagrant History of the 1990s New York Knicks

Good Faith Effort is a production of Bnai Zion and SoulShop.