
Xai, how are you?
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.
Latest episodes

Dec 5, 2022 • 40min
147. Mailbag Part Deux
We're answering a bunch of questions at once! Thanks to all our listeners for such wonderful topics: vampires, evil, BDSM, the origins of the minyan, and the mussar movement.
Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Nov 28, 2022 • 43min
146. Russian Doll 2:2
Can any of us escape our pasts? Is time travel Jewish? We explore these questions on today's Russian Doll epi! Also featured: spiritual ennui, living in the present, and Satanist pawn shops.
Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Nov 21, 2022 • 37min
145. Praying East
A listener asks why we pray facing east, and the answer lies somewhere along this episode's meandering path through Talmudic disagreements, shifting historical meanings, and a discussion of sacred place.
Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Nov 14, 2022 • 41min
144. Venice Pilled
A listener asks: what's the deal with halakhic water rights? The answer? Flooding the world, a floating throne, legislating the commons and proximity to the source.
Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Nov 6, 2022 • 40min
143. Russian Doll 2:1
Season 2 premiere of Russian Doll is finally here! It asks us the question we're all always thinking about: are we all pregnant with ourselves? Is HaShem pregnant with themselves?
Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Oct 31, 2022 • 38min
142. Justice: What Is It Anyway?
Listener question time! What is tzedek, who is Tzadok, and would we hook up with the wife of Potiphar? The answers are in this episode! Featured: venn diagrams, outfit repeaters, awkward dudes and the 8 levels of charity.
Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Oct 24, 2022 • 37min
141. Dirty Rotten Government
Finally, listener questions return! This week: Talmudic insults, arguments, and lessons about distrusting the government. Anarchism, communism, friendship and ostriches all make an appearance.
Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail! Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Oct 17, 2022 • 31min
140. Russian Doll 1:8
Finally, the Russian Doll season finale! It is a true quagmire of sincerity. We've got Jodorowsky, getting to be alone with ourselves, Maimonides returns and some Pirkei Avot greatest hits. Register for It Is In The Heavens here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/it-is-in-the-heavens-jewish-astrology-in-the-talmud-and-beyond-tickets-422556155837
Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail! Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Oct 10, 2022 • 24min
139. Vacation: A Close Bechdel
We're taking another vacation week, so here's replay of a patron episode. We'll be back next week! Michael has a Talmudic tale that nearly passes the Bechdel test! It features fake bread, smoke, nosy neighbors, miracles, and a humble guy who (maybe) sustains the world by only eating carobs.
Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail! Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Oct 2, 2022 • 21min
138. Vacation: Cucumbers or Honey?
Xava is getting new boobies, so we're taking a week off. Enjoy this patron replay, and we'll be back next week! Michael brings a sugye addressing the age old question: are halakhic loopholes more like a barrel of cucumbers or a vat of honey?
Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail! Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.