Orthodox Conundrum

There is a tremendous amount of Torah learning taking place today, and Orthodox Jews should be excited that such study occupies a central place in so many Jewish lives. Daf Yomi has encouraged and inspired people who never before considered learning Talmud to try to learn all of Shas over 7 and a half years. Alongside classes in Talmud, there are shiurim in Chumash, Tanach, Mishnah, Midrash, Halacha, Musar and more. Yes, we spend a lot of time learning G-d’s words. But do we sometimes forget to also learn about G-d? Some Jewish people have intuited this need, and are finding new ways to bring G-d into their lives in a concrete manner. One of these responses has been the growth of what is termed Neo-Chassidut. To find out more about this movement, Scott spoke with Rabbi Dr. Shlomo Zuckier of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

Is belief in Judaism self-evident? Are our principles of faith wholly rational and perhaps even obvious to any thinking person? Or is faith in G-d and Torah more complicated and suffused with questions than many would like to assume? Do we have faith? Do we possess authentic trust in G-d? Deep down, what do we really think about the tenets of Torah Judaism? Do we accept them, doubt them, or maybe both simultaneously? Do we affirm them verbally but question them intellectually? In short, how much do we really believe - and why? In order to address questions of emunah, and to get a better sense of whether belief is logically compelling or whether it requires the proverbial leap of faith, Scott spoke with Jeffrey Bloom and Alec Goldstein, two of the editors of the recent book, Strauss, Spinoza, and Sinai: Orthodox Judaism and Modern Questions of Faith. The book, however, was just a starting point; the main focus of the conversation was around why Jews can believe the things that we believe - and why some people don’t. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

This episode is, in some ways, two distinct podcasts in one: one about outreach, and one about some major spiritual challenges that exist in the Modern Orthodox world. Many in the Centrist or Modern Orthodox world are uncomfortable with kiruv and outreach; it’s often associated with acting with condescension towards people who are not Orthodox, objectifying people who are not Orthodox, and not acting forthrightly towards people who are not Orthodox. Perhaps most concerning, though, is the suspicion that kiruv professionals act as though they have all the answers, that Orthodoxy is a perfect society, and that we need to reach out because everything within Orthodoxy is basically perfect. Many of us would argue that we need to get our own house in order before convincing other people to join the team. Rabbi Mark Wildes, though, is one of the rare Modern Orthodox Jews who is deeply involved in, and believes in, kiruv and outreach to unaffiliated and less-affiliated Jews. Scott asked him how he responds to these criticisms of kiruv professionals and organizations, how we should define the real goals of kiruv organizations, and why most kiruv professionals seem to have a Chareidi or Chassidic orientation. Perhaps even more important, however, was an intense discussion of the problems that Modern Orthodoxy needs to address. Their conversation included a discussion of spiritual anemia, problems that exist in synagogues, the longing - or lack thereof - for the Divine Presence, the differences between experience and intellect in the approach to G-d, how much we should emphasize dogma, and - above all - the need to bring G-d back into the center of our consciousness. This conversation - again, really two conversations - was fascinating, and should give you food for thought as we enter Elul and the days leading up to the Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Join Rabbi Wildes's WhatsApp group at https://chat.whatsapp.com/LM0bsDb4sV3FmESMyauFaw. Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

Lonna Ralbag has been demanding a get from Meir Kin for 18 years and still hasn’t received it. According to Jewish law, this means that she cannot remarry, and is effectively trapped as a type of aguna - a chained woman. Meanwhile, her estranged husband, despite public pressure, seems to revel in having become the king of the get-refusers. He has a YouTube channel and managed to remarry while leaving Lonna unable to do the same. And he does all of this while claiming to be a religious Jew, following Halacha. Indeed, he presents himself as the victim of a smear campaign. It’s clear that Meir Kin’s actions represent a reprehensible perversion of Jewish law and a massive chilul HaShem, desecration of G-d’s name. Lonna’s story is tragic, but she is strong and is working to relieve her plight and that of other women in comparable situations. Lonna’s story is as much a tale of resilience as it is of sadness and frustration. On today's episode, Scott speaks to Lonna Ralbag, her attorney, Daniel Schwartz, and Keshet Starr, Executive Director of the Organization for the Resolution of Agunot. If you are interested in participating in a JCH-ORA postnup party, please email scott@jewishcoffeehouse.com and we'll tell you how you can participate. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

We all know that there have been numerous high profile scandals involving sexual abuse on the part of teachers and authority figures in the Orthodox world. We also know that as light is shed on these cases, public awareness grows, and the likelihood of coverups is hopefully lessened. At the same time, we need to explore how to put protocols in place so that schools, institutions, and organizations can avoid many of the problems before they happen, and, should these problems occur, have strong guidelines firmly in place. This ensures that the institution will know how to react, and that parents and people who are connected to the institution will receive real information and have confidence that proper procedure is being followed. In order to discuss this very important topic, Scott interviewed Rahel Bayar, CEO of The Bayar Group, on this week's podcast. Rahel and Scott talked about many issues related to institutions and their reactions to sexual misconduct, harrassment, and boundary crossing behavior. These include questions about what protocols should be put in place, what is involved in a proper investigation, how parents can recognize whether a school is being forthright or is engaged primarily in protecting itself, how institutions can determine if an accusation is credible, whether there are warning signs that schools should look for before hiring teachers, and much more. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

Six weeks ago, the Orthodox Conundrum released a panel discussion with Rabbi Moshe Simkovich, Mrs. Rachel Schwartzberg, Mrs. Olivia Friedman, and Rabbi Pesach Sommer entitled The Crisis of Orthodox Teacher Retention. That episode received a fair bit of comment, and at the same time raised as many questions as it solved. For that reason, it was clear that a follow-up episode with expert educational innovators was necessary in order to address additional problems and to suggest further solutions. To that end, Scott invited Rabbi Shmuel Feld and Mrs. Rachel Levitt Klein Dratch to discuss their thoughts about the direction of day school education in much of the Orthodox world. They both combine the expertise that comes from experience and study, with the creativity that is the hallmark of out-of-the-box thinking. Whether they were discussing our overemphasis on titles and how to overcome that problem, or the new ways we need to think about education, or the necessity of involving the totality of community institutions - not just the schools - in using teachers’ skills and hiring them for their programming, Rabbi Feld and Mrs. Dratch were constantly suggesting new ways of thinking about a problem that has been around for decades. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

Join Scott Kahn in this rereleased bonus episode for commentaries on 25 of the 40 kinot (lamentations) that Jews recite on the morning of Tisha B'Av. (The time signatures for each commentary are listed below.) Along with all of the Jewish people, we pray that this be the final Tisha B’Av on which we mourn. May the upcoming year be one of gladness, joy, and redemption for us, for all of Israel, and for the whole world. Kinah 6 (שבת סורו) begins at 0:42 Kinah 7 (איכה אצת) begins at 6:17 Kinah 8 (אאדה) begins at 9:04 Kinah 9 (איכה תפארתי) beings at 13:42 Kinah 10 (איכה ישבה) begins at 17:01 Kinah 11 (ויקונן ירמיהו) begins at 19:59 Kinah 12 (אהלי) begins at 25:16 Kinah 13 (אי כה) begins at 29:40 Kinah 14 (איכה את אשר כבר עשוהו) begins at 34:55 Kinah 15 (איכה אשפתו) begins at 40:19 Kinah 16 (זכר את אשר עשה) begins at 41:56 Kinah 17 (אם תאכלנה) begins at 47:35 KInah 18 (ואתה אמרת) begins at 51:11 Kinah 19 (לך ה' הצדקה) begins at 54:59 Kinah 20 (הטה אלקי אזנך) begins at 1:00:30 Kinah 21 (ארזי הלבנון) begins at 1:03:16 Kinah 22 (החרישו) begins at 1:09:51 Kinah 23 (ואת נוי) begins at 1:16:37 Kinah 24 (על אלה אני בוכיה) begins at 1:18:12 Kinah 25 (מי יתן ראשי מים) begins at 1:20:45 Kinah 27 (אז במלאת ספק) begins at 1:24:34 Kinah 31 (אש תוקד בקרבי) begins at 1:30:26 Kinah 36 (ציון הלא תשאלי) begin at 1:34:24 Kinah 41 (שאלי שרופה באש) begins at 1:37:55 Kinah 45 (אלי ציון) begins at 1:41:43 Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast.

This is not an episode about Women of the Wall. It is not an episode about Women for the Wall. It is not an episode about the egalitarian space at Robinson’s Arch. Instead, this is an episode about fairness and respect and dignity - issues that should concern everyone who cares about Judaism, regardless of how you feel about non-Orthodox prayer at the Kotel or about women reading the Torah on the women’s side of the Wall. Let’s be up front about the halachic facts: men have an obligation to pray in a minyan, a quorum, while women do not. For this reason, it’s not unreasonable to expect more men to come to shul than women - and that is often what happens. Moreover, assuming that the Kotel has the status of a synagogue, it’s reasonable to expect more men to come to the Kotel - and, if it’s true that more men visit the Kotel than women, the men’s section should be larger than the women’s. (Of course, we can't ignore the fact that if the ezrat nashim were larger, perhaps more women would come in the first place.) But based on anecdotal experience, the women’s section is frequently - usually? - significantly more crowded than the men’s section. Are we really OK with women having to squeeze in to touch the Kotel while the men have no problem doing so? At the same time, the problem with space at the Kotel is emblematic of a problem with space in general. While as Orthodox Jews, we believe that communal prayer should not involved mixed-gender space, and that synagogues halachially require a mechitza, is there a reason that this has started to extend to places where it’s not required halachically - and that the women’s sections that exist are often treated with such disrespect? To discuss this Scott invited the hosts of the Chochmat Nashim podcast, Anne Gordon and Shoshanna Keats-Jaskoll, to talk about the Kotel and the larger problem of disrespecting women in Orthodox spaces, in ways that have nothing to do with halacha. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

Today’s episode deals with the very difficult topic of eating disorders from the perspective of a parent, as Judy Krasna tells the personal story of her child’s battle with anorexia nervosa. Some may wonder how this topic is relevant to a podcast that deals with issues within Orthodoxy. While Scott and Judy also discuss specifically Orthodox manifestations of anorexia, the issue of eating disorders frankly concerns Orthodox Jews primarily because we are no more immune to them than any other population. Indeed, some Orthodoxy communities may have additional challenges in their desire to cover it up, to pretend that it’s not a problem. Quite apart from our religious background, we need to confront the reality of eating disorders because, as Judy says at the end of the podcast, they affect so many people. We need to talk about eating disorders in order to eliminate the stigma associated with them. They are illnesses, and they are illnesses that involve tremendous pain, suffering, and sometimes death. We treat them as something other than illnesses at our own peril. Judy Krasna is the Executive Director of F.E.A.S.T.(Families Empowered and Supporting Treatment for Eating Disorders - https://www.feast-ed.org/). She is a writer and an eating disorders advocate, both in Israel and globally. Judy is an active “expert by experience” volunteer in the Academy for Eating Disorders and has been offering peer support to families of people with eating disorders for over a decade. Judy is deeply committed to educating the public about eating disorders and promoting awareness about their danger and consequences, especially after her daughter Gavriella took her own life after a prolonged battle with anorexia nervosa. Judy may be reached at judy@feast-ed.org. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

About two weeks ago, two bar mitzvahs and a bat mitzvah took place at the Robinson’s Arch section of the Kotel, which has been designated for egalitarian prayer services. Very sadly, a relatively large number of religious zealots attempted to interrupt and disrupt them in various ways, causing a massive Chilul HaShem and doing nothing productive other than causing additional hatred - this time, perhaps not baseless hatred - in the weeks leading up to our commemoration of the Destruction of the Beit HaMikdash. It’s sickening and represents the opposite of how the Torah expects us to behave, regardless of our opinions about the halachic validity of egalitarian prayer. This unfortunate event offers an opportunity to discuss the ways that Orthodox Jews - who likely would not pray in an egalitarian davening - should relate to the new egalitarian section of the Kotel. In this week’s episode, Scott first speaks to Laura Ben-David, who was the photographer at one of the bar mitzvahs, to find out exactly what happened that day at the Kotel. Following that conversation, he talks to Rabbi Kenneth Brander and then Rabbi Yitzchok Adlerstein to find out their attitudes and feelings regarding the presence of an egalitarian section at the Kotel. Following the three interviews, Scott offers his own thoughts about the issue. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Photo: Laura Ben-David Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com