

Xai, how are you?
Michael Sokolovsky and Xava De Cordova
Queer Jews Michael Sokolovsky and Rabbi Xava De Cordova play with the multi-millennial dialectic that is the Talmud. Join them as they throw drash, seek prophetic insight and uncover the rabbinic smuttiness inherent in the system.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Aug 15, 2024 • 35min
222. Protesting Exactly the Right Amount
Xava brings a series of property law sugyes that tell us about how, why, and how much we should protest, halakhically speaking. Sign up for Shel Maala's Alef Bet class here: https://bit.ly/decodingalefbet, Sign up for Sand into Pearls here: https://bit.ly/sandintopearls
To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Aug 13, 2024 • 28min
221. Mommy Issues
Michael brings us all a text about ascending and descending holiness rules, relocation, divorce, parental abandonment and taking other people's opinions too seriously. Sign up for Decoding the Alef Bet here: bit.ly/decodingalefbet
To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Jul 15, 2024 • 49min
220. Tales of the Unbound
Rabbi Miriam Terlinchamp of Judaism Unbound joins us to talk about incarcerated Jews, the problems with the way we handle conversion, what's next for Judaism and how the Rabbi's themselves responded to potential converts. Check out Tales of the Unbound here: http://www.judaismunbound.com/tales, sign up for Shel Maala at Sadeh here: bit.ly/shelmaalasadeh
To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Jul 9, 2024 • 30min
219. Everything was Beautiful
Xava brings some kabbalah and xasidut about the transcendent nature of beauty, plus some Talmud and Torah that seems to contradict it by saying that beauty is basically worthless. Sign up for Trancestors and Chalices here: bit.ly/shelmaalasadeh
To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Jun 24, 2024 • 26min
218. Weirdos No One Has Heard Of
Michael brings a delightful obscure little Rabbi to the pod: Elijah Benamozegh! We'll learn about his universalist vision for Judaism and the strange and beautiful connections it has to other Jewish thinkers throughout the ages. Sign up for Trancestors and Chalices here: bit.ly/shelmaalasadeh
To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Jun 17, 2024 • 26min
217. To Work, or not to Work?
We've got grain on the brain! In honor of counting the omer, Xava brought a text about grain, strain, pain and...Torah. Let's see if the sages can find a healthy work/life balance. Sign up for Shel Maala at Sadeh in England here: bit.ly/shelmaalasadeh
To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Jun 5, 2024 • 22min
216. Mourning and Ritual
A listener wrote in asking how we can mourn the lives lost in Gaza, if kaddish can be said for them, and how to grapple with the enormity of sadness in times like this. We do our very best to give at least a little bit of an answer. Sign up for Shel Maala at Sadeh in England here: bit.ly/shelmaalasadeh
To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Music by Ben Schreiber.

May 18, 2024 • 27min
215. Noahide and Seek
A listener has a question about Noahidism and we've got answers! Also, the Chabad factor, alternate universes and the REAL messianic Jews. Sign up for Xava's class here: https://bit.ly/thornsinthevineyard Sign up for Shel Maala at Sadeh in England here: bit.ly/shelmaalasadeh
To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Music by Ben Schreiber.

May 15, 2024 • 24min
214. Wake Me Up Before You Gecko
We're talking about rashes, scorpions, the Leviathan, ancient Messianic political ambitions, campus protests and the power of the small. Sign up for Shel Maala at Sadeh in England here: https://bit.ly/shelmaalasadeh
To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Music by Ben Schreiber.

May 5, 2024 • 24min
213. The Rabbi and the Helpful Demon
Xava brings a story of politically useful sinning, the Rashbi, a suspiciously convenient demon friend and a truly bizarre system of law abolishment. Sign up for her next class here: https://bit.ly/thornsinthevineyard
To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Music by Ben Schreiber.