The Maggid Method

Rabbi Elie Karfunkel is Rabbi of the Forest Hill Jewish Centre in Toronto, ON.

Rabbi Rael Blumenthal is the rabbi of Boca Raton Synagogue West in Sunny South Florida.

He’s a rabbi on a very public journey of change.

In this episode of the Maggid Method, Rabbi Blumenthal candidly shares how a few years back, he became dissatisfied with his body weight and eating habits, and how he set out to shed the pounds in a very methodical  - and public type of way - with the goal of inspiring his congregation to make positive changes in their lives, too.

If there’s one word that defines Rabbi Blumenthal’s Drashos -  it’s relevance.

In this interview, we discuss a fascinating technique Rabbi Blumenthal uses to guarantee that his congregation not only listens to his Drashos - but they actually retain the message long after his Drasha his over. 

We also cover how Rabbi Blumenthal needed to shift his speaking style to reach the current generation of Shul goers, vs how he was trained to speak while growing up.

And we also talk about how you can use the challenge of speaking in an era of distraction and shrinking attention spans to your advantage.

What I love about Rabbi Blumenthal is how seriously he takes his role as rabbi, yet at the same time, how he doesn't take himself too seriously - and how humbled he is at the opportunity to be in his position.

Follow Rabbi Rael Blumenthal at: https://raelblumenthal.org/

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➡️ Did you know there's method for cutting straight through to an audience’s heart, grabbing their attention - and holding it - and making a memorable impact with your presentation?

Rabbi Shmuel Hain is Rabbi of Young Israel Ohab Zedek of North Riverdale/Yonkers, as well as Rosh Beit Midrash at SAR High School.

Shmuel Hain is a rabbi, the son of a rabbi, so the apple didn't fall from the tree when he decided to enter the rabbinate.

He learned invaluable lessons from his father that he was able to apply to his own career, but he’s a different variety of apple, bringing his own flavor and unique style of sermon to the pulpit.

Rabbi Hain has a very specific philosophy about the purpose of a Drasha nowadays - vs how it used to be a generation ago.

He’s very intentional about the content and delivery style of his sermon - because to him, it’s a springboard to connect with his congregants and get them to reach out to him to discuss any challenges they may be going through in their own lives. 

But probably the most effort Rabbi Hain puts in to his speaking is for the life cycle events, like at a bar or bat mitzvah 

Rabbi Hain is an expert in the Jewish laws of death and mourning.

In this interview, he candidly describes his impetus for mastering those skills - with knowledge and compassion.

We also discuss what the goal is of a successful eulogy, and the importance of being your authentic self with your congregation.

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➡️ Did you know there's method for cutting straight through to an audience’s heart, grabbing their attention - and holding it - and making a memorable impact with your presentation?

Rabbi Noah Whittenburg grew up on the East Coast, in Portland ME - but his rabbinic career took him as far west across the country as you can go - to sunny San Diego, CA, where he currently serves as the Assistant Rabbi at Beth Jacob Congregation.

Rabbi Whittenburg wasn’t sure exactly what he wanted to do after graduating from Rutger’s University, but one thing he was certain of: it had to involve learning Torah.

What he found though, was that the more Torah he learned - the more he wanted to share it with other people, which eventually led to his decision to become a rabbi. 

In hindsight, it was such a natural fit for Rabbi Whittenburg, the teaching and forging of deep relationships with people - it’s hard to conceive of him doing anything else. 

In this insightful episode:

Rabbi Whittenburg shares:

- his process for crafting Drashos,

- his goals,

- the book that changed the way he tells stories,  

- his philosophy of "shorter is better",

- And the different ways he measures the impact of his Drashos

As much as Rabbi Whittenburg loves to teach, he remains at heart a lifelong learner, which is evident from the way he approaches his Drasha preparation:

He’s flexible, solicits feedback, places a premium on practice and is hyper focused on growth.

This was a fun and insightful interview and I learned so much, as I hope you do, too.

Follow Rabbi Noah Whittenburg's Weekly Video Vorts here: https://www.youtube.com/@ravdubs

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➡️ Did you know there's method for cutting straight through to an audience’s heart, grabbing their attention - and holding it - and making a memorable impact with your presentation?

Rabbi Daniel Glatstein is Rav of Kehilas Tiferes Mordechai in Cedarhurst, NY and one of the Jewish world’s most popular speakers and respected Torah teachers.

Rabbi Daniel Glatstein is Rav of Kehilas Tiferes Mordechai in Cedarhurst, NY and one of the Jewish world’s most popular speakers and respected Torah teachers. 

He's a published author of several series of Sefarim and numerous volumes of English Torah books published by Artscroll….

But what Rabbi Glatstein is probably most known for is his more than 10,000 recorded classes that have garnered literally millions of views on Torahanytime.com and numerous other platforms. 

Today, Rabbi Glatstein and I talk about his goals for a Drasha, and how you can measure your success as a speaker and disseminator of Torah messages.

We discuss which kinds of stories are most effective and the kinds of stories that fall flat.

Rabbi Glatstein also shares with us some of his pet peeves, like when speakers and teachers of Torah demonstrate a lack of regard for their audience by failing to put in the proper amount of preparation before their talk.

There are plenty of golden nuggets and pearls of public speaking wisdom contained in today’s episode.

It’s clear to me that Rabbi Glatstein takes the role and responsibility of speaking and teaching very, very seriously.

I’m grateful for the time he took out of his busy schedule to talk with me and I learned so much from our conversation.

You can connect with Rabbi Glatstein at Rabbidg.com where you can subscribe to his newsletter and join his WhatsApp groups for his shiurim. 

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➡️ Did you know there's method for cutting straight through to an audience’s heart, grabbing their attention - and holding it - and making a memorable impact with your presentation?

Rabbi Mordechai Becher is a world-renowned teacher, lecturer, and author whose latest book - Gateway to Judaism - is in its 10th printing. 

Originally from Australia, Rabbi Becher is known for his Torah wisdom, his dry wit, and his encyclopedic knowledge of Jewish history. 

Rabbi Becher taught at Ohr Somayach in Jerusalem, where I was privileged many years ago to sit in on many of his memorable classes and lectures.

He’s an alumni rabbi of Neve Yerushalayim, an instructor at YU, and did I mention he also served in the IDF?

In this lively conversation - we discuss: 

Plus, a great joke you can use to get people to graciously turn off their cell phones before you begin speaking.

Rabbi Becher is a natural born teacher who wants everyone who attends his classes to walk away with a positive association with Torah Judaism.

I learned so much from this interview, and I’m sure you will too.

So without further ado, here’s my conversation with Rabbi Mordechai Becher.

Connect with Rabbi Becher on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mordechai-becher-34841611/

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➡️ Did you know there's method for cutting straight through to an audience’s heart, grabbing their attention - and holding it - and making a memorable impact with your presentation?

Rabbi Kalman Topp is senior rabbi at Beth Jacob Congregation in Beverly Hills, CA. 

Rabbi Topp sees his primary role as rabbi as being a motivator, and inspirer of his congregation.

He challenges the members of his congregation to become great, and the vehicle he accomplishes that with is the weekly Drasha.

Of course, we talk about how to use humor as an opening, as well as other various audience engagement technique.

But we also talk about having the requisite respect for your congregation, and the unique approach required for rabbis of affluent communities.

Visit Beth Jacob Congregation here: https://www.bethjacob.org/

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➡️ Did you know there's method for cutting straight through to an audience’s heart, grabbing their attention - and holding it - and making a memorable impact with your presentation?

Eliezer Blatt is a public speaking expert who’s spent the last 25 years training the who’s who on the Jewish speaking circuit today.

He also coaches emerging Jewish clergy, educators, and leaders  in his role as adjunct professor at Yeshiva University, and he’s been the public speaking trainer for over 300 couples over the last 20 years at the Jerusalem Kollel.

Eliezer flies around the globe, working in-person and virtually coaching CEO’s, business owners, speakers, top organizations and high achievers, building people into speakers and speakers into leaders.

But what most people don't know about Eliezer Blatt, is that his background is just as fascinating as any of the stories he helps his students tell. 

When he was 18 years old he was the drummer of a rock band that got signed by a major music label.

Then, he worked behind the scenes at MTV, The Cosby Show, and PBS’s Reading Rainbow...

And somehow he ended up studying at Aish HaTorah in Jeusalem and served as  Rabbi Noach Weinberg’s personal assistant.

Join me as we discuss TV, Torah and talking with the man Mishpacha Magazine called “The Dale Carnegie of the Jewish World” - Eliezer Blatt.

Follow Eliezer Blatt on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eliezer-blatt-366a756a/

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➡️ Did you know there's method for cutting straight through to an audience’s heart, grabbing their attention - and holding it - and making a memorable impact with your presentation?

Rabbi Yisrael Motzen serves as rabbi of Ner Tamid Greenspring Valley Synagogue in Baltimore, MD.

He’s someone who takes his sermon speaking slot very seriously.

Rabbi Motzen is that rare dichotomy of high intention - he’s very thought out about how he goes about preparing and delivering his Drashos - but on the other hand - he places a premium on flexibility; he refuses to be pinned down to any one style or system of Drasha, 

He’s even been known to dispense with the weekly Parsha in his sermon altogether 

What I love about Rabbi Motzen is the high standard he holds himself to, and his philosophy that the live drasha needs to be an experience you can’t get anywhere else

We cover so many topics in our time together like:

- How to strike a balance between being vulnerable with your congregation and not oversharing

- The time Rabbi Motzen fainted in the middle of his sermon

- The power of having a partner to collaborate with 

- The need for truly honest feedback

- And how to stay hyper attuned to audience attention and engagement 

I learned so much from my conversation and I’m sure you will, too.

Follow Rabbi Motzen on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sruli.motzen/