This week we bring you a conversation that Rabbi Josh had recently with Raghad Jaraisy, a Palestinian-Israeli advocating for Palestinian equality and civil rights in Israel. Jaraisy is the Co-Executive Director, along with Ofer Dagan, of Sikkuy Aufoq, "a shared Jewish and Arab nonprofit organization that works to advance equality and partnership between the Arab-Palestinian citizens of Israel – descendants of those who remained within the Israeli borders after the founding of the state in 1948 – and the country’s Jewish citizens."  

We discuss the particular challenges faced by Palestinians in Israel, we discuss how the Gaza war has affected Palestinian Israelis and Jewish Israelis, and what it means to have hope in the current climate. 

Raghad is an profoundly inspiring person who is committed to peace, co-existence, and equality. She and Rabbi Josh delve into the complexities of contemporary Israel with compassion and honesty. Enjoy the conversation.  

This event was hosted by the New Israel Fund (NIF) and was co-sponsored by the Eastside Jewish Commons, Congregations Shir Tikvah, Congregation Havura Shalom, J-Street, and Co/Lab: Reimagine Jewish. 

Rabbi Micah Streiffer is a friend of the podcast, colleague, a teacher of Jewish ideas, and the founder of the Jewish organization Laasok, which is an online center of liberal Jewish teaching - a virtual 'beit midrash.'  We talk about truth claims and what they mean for the Jewish tradition, we discuss Jewish belonging, the changing landscape of Jewish orgnaizational life and a whole lot more. Enjoy this conversation with the always thoughftul Rabbi Micah Streiffer. 

This is the first in what will be an ongoing series of reflections about Israel and the Palestinians and the many complex feelings and thoughts that I have and I bet you do too.

This week I have the pleasure of talking with a graduate of Art/Lab's second cohort, illustrator, humorist, observer of life, and Jewish identity navigator Leanne Grabel.

Leanne Grabel is a writer, illustrator, performer  and has written and produced numerous spoken-word multi-media shows. Leanne was the 2020 recipient of Soapstone's Bread and Roses Award for contributions to women's literature in the Pacific Northwest. Brontosaurus Illustrated was published in 2022 by The Opiate Books; My Husband’s Eyebrows was published in 2022 by The Poetry Box; and Old with Jokes was published in 2023 by RuthieRocks Press. 

We talk about her Jewish upringing, how Jewish ideas find their way into her work, her new and wonderful piece "Waiting to Hate....Maybe" about life in the Trumpian US, and a lot more. Enjoy the conversation. 

Ketzia Schoneberg is a gifted painter with a unique artistic vision. Her work has been showed widely in galleries in Portland and beyond.  We talk about how her work expresses her personal biography and her Jewish identity, we discuss the impact of Judaism on her life and in her work, and we also tease out some of the conncetions between artistic and religious expression. And, of course, she weighs in on the important question of what is the best Jewish food. Enjoy! 

Rabbi Josh discusses the political and 'spiritual' significance of freedom as we head into the end of Passover.  Is there a Jewish take on freedom and what's happening in the United States under Donal Trump?  How should Jewish people think about political and spiritual freedom? 

Shoshana Gugenheim Kedem is a social practice artist, a soferet (Torah scribe), activist, and she also happens to be the Director of Art/Lab, our cohort program for Jewish artists.  We have been working together since the inception of Co/Lab and it's been a powerful partnership. Our conversation covers Shoshana's work, her foray into the ethics of parchment making, synagogues and Jewish creativity, to name just a few subjects.   

Please subscribe/follow the show if you like what you hear! 

Enjoy!

A reflection about the message of Passover and what it means right now. 

My guest this week is Marc Blattner, President and CEO of Portland's Jewish Federation. How are mainstream Jewish institutions adapting to the rapid pace of change in the Jewish world?  What are the limits of adaptability and flexibility as legacy Jewish institutions engage a Jewish world with shifting attitudes towards synagogues, Jewish affiliation, and.... Israel? What does it look like when an organization that is tasked with serving the whole Jewish community stretches to serve the existing Jewish community and the newer, younger, emergent community at the same time?  All of these come up in the conversation with Marc. I enjoyed the conversation and I hope you do, too. 

Gadi Golan is a Jewish human living in Portland Oregon. Gadi's own Jewish bio says a lot about 21st century Jewish life, and we talk about how his traditional-ish upbringing forms the background of this very modern fella.  He has a fascinating tattoo on his arm, but not as fascinating as Gadi himself.  Enjoy this wide-ranging conversations, plus: learn about the very best kind of matza ball!