What's the Point of the Midrash? - Rabbi Josh Yuter

What's the Point of the Midrash? - Rabbi Josh Yuter episodes

June 21, 2021 Balak 2021 – The Case of the Missing Midianites

What happened to the Midianites who were recuited by Balak but seemingly disappeared off-camera?
14 min
June 14, 2021 Hukkat 2021 – Cowing Obedience

In which we challenge the sacred cow of prioritizing the personal in religion.
20 min
June 08, 2021 Korach 2021 – Finding the Wicked

If God knows who is righteous and wicked, why doesn’t God just punish the wicked?
13 min
May 31, 2021 Shelach 2021 – Are We Not Men?

In which the 10 spies described as great and righteous nevertheless devolve into fools
11 min
May 24, 2021 Beha’alotcha 2021 – Pointing the Way

In which we see that sometimes God has to point the way, and even when he does, we’re not always able to follow.
8 min
May 20, 2021 Naso 2021 – Ranking Jews

In which we see a detailed ranking of the Jewish comminity
16 min
May 15, 2021 Shavuot 2021 – Judging our Judges

As we commemorate the giving of the Torah on Shavuot, we cannot forget the importance of actually *following* it.
18 min
May 11, 2021 2021 – Heights of Righteousness, Depths of Justice

In which we discuss a key difference between God’s righteousness and God’s justice
14 min
May 05, 2021 Behar 2021 – Gratitude for Grifters

In a surprisingly subversive midrash, we give thanks to the frauds and scoundrels.
10 min
April 27, 2021 Emor 2021 – Bastardized Justice

In which law and ethics of mamzerut are addressed from the mamzer‘s point of view
18 min

From the publisher's feed

Rabbi Josh Yuter takes a look at a rabbinic teaching and offers a suggestion to answer question: What’s the point of the Midrash?