In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Mickey and Ortal Flaumenhaft—David Bashevkin’s Israeli neighbors in Teaneck—about their experiences living Jewishly in three different countries.
Tune in to hear a conversation about what it means to hold the entirety of the Jewish People in our hearts, no matter where we might be.
Interview begins at 7:45.
Mickey Flaumenhaft is the Director of Development at American Friends of Migdal Ohr, a welfare organization for Israel’s orphaned and at-risk youth. Mickey served reservist duty in Gaza this past year. Ortal Flaumenhaft is first-grade teacher for Hebrew and Judaic studies at Yeshivat He’Atid in Teaneck
References:
A Man Without a Country by Kurt Vonnegut
To Heal a Fractured World: The Ethics of Responsibility by Jonathan Sacks
The Legends of Rabbah Bar Bar Hannah with the Commentary of Rabbi Abraham Isaac Hakohen Kook by Bezalel Naor
18Forty Podcast: “Bezalel Naor: Rav Kook’s Mystical Vision of Zionism”
Transcripts are typically available the week an episode is released.
We talk to Jenna Weissman Joselit about the everyday expressions of Judaism that reinforce the identity and distinctiveness of the Jewish People.
We talk to historian Zev Eleff about what 250 years of Jewish life in America can teach us about religion, identity, and the future of American Judaism.
David Bashevkin moderates a discussion on finances within the Orthodox Jewish community.
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, David sits down with Leah Forster, a world-famous ex-Hasidic comedian, to talk about how her journey has affected her comedy.
Efraim Palvanov answers questions on misinformation, prayer as self-reflection, and every Jew’s role in bringing Mashiach.
We talk to Elana Moskowitz about how her American Jewish upbringing shaped her life and worldview.
We talk to Rabbi Shaanan Gelman and his son Ziggy about the persistence of a parent-child relationship when the latter faces addiction.
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Rabbi Menachem Penner—dean of RIETS at Yeshiva University—and his son Gedalia—a musician, cantor-in-training, and member of the LGBTQ community—about their experience in reconciling their family’s religious tradition with Gedalia’s sexual orientation.
In this episode, we talk to a father and daughter who were estranged and then reunited.
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we sit down with Rav Moshe Weinberger, rabbi and educator, to discuss the role of mysticism in modern-day Judaism.
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we sit down with Joey Rosenfeld, social worker and kabbalist, to talk about the differences between mysticism and rationalism and the roles they should play in our lives.
Haviv answers 18 questions on Israel.
We talk to Michael Eisenberg about the state of the Jewish People in Israel and the diaspora.
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we sit down with Dr. Ora Wiskind, professor and author, to discuss her life journey, both as a Jew and as an academic, and her attitude towards mysticism.
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we sit down for a special podcast with our host, David Bashevkin, to discuss the podcast’s namesake, the year 1840.
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we sit down with Rabbi David Fohrman – author, lecturer, and founder of the Aleph Beta Academy – to discuss in what genre the Torah is meant to be, and how that should influence the way we think about it.
On this episode of 18Forty, we have a deeply moving conversation with Mark Moskowitz, an author, speaker, and coach, to talk about his search for meaning in federal prison.
We talk to Alana Newhouse about why seemingly everyone is arguing about Israel.
Rabbi YY Jacobson joins us to discuss Torah, spirituality, and the function of humility in religious growth.
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Frieda Vizel—a formerly Satmar Jew who makes educational content about Hasidic life—about her work presenting Hasidic Williamsburg to the outside world, and vice-versa.
Times of Israel Editor-in-Chief David Horovitz answers 18 questions on Israel, including Western media, Gaza after the war, Israel’s future, and so much more.
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Joshua Leifer and Shaindy Ort, married progressive activists who are reembracing traditional Jewish life.
Fruma Schapiro discusses the role of prayer for women and how Jewish mysticism can influence our relationships.
The Torah’s most controversial hero raises a question every society must answer: When, if ever, is conviction enough?
Perhaps the most fundamental question any religious believer can ask is: “Does God exist?” It’s time we find good answers.
Tisha B’Av, explains Maimonides, is a reminder that our collective fate rests on our choices.
A personal return to the poems that taught me how to imagine America
Joy and meaning can be found not only despite the brokenness, but even because of the brokenness.
Rav Froman was a complicated character in Israel and in his own home city of Tekoa, as people from both the right…
Until recently, I too found myself almost entirely estranged from Jewish tradition. My return is showing me what we need to do…
Children cannot truly avoid the consequences of estrangement. Their parents’ shadow will always follow.
My family made aliyah over a decade ago. Navigating our lives as American immigrants in Israel is a day-to-day balance.
A Hezbollah missile killed Rabbi Dr. Tamir Granot’s son, Amitai Tzvi, on Oct. 15. Here, he pleas for Haredim to enlist into…
From classics to digital minimalism to friendship, the perfect summer reading list is making its way to your bookshelf.
To talk about the history of Jewish mysticism is in many ways to talk about the history of the mystical community.
What does it mean to live Jewishly in public—and why does it matter?
I consider the Rebbe to be my personal teacher, and I find this teaching particularly relevant for us now.
Children don’t come with guarantees. Washing machines come with guarantees.
A 94-year-old Holocaust survivor, a lone soldier, and more. Here are seven olim sharing their stories of aliyah.
Christianity’s focus on the afterlife historically discouraged Jews from discussing it—but Jews very much believe in it.
Israel is clearly important to Jews. The question becomes: To what extent?
From Freud through today, our desire to heal asks us to consider why we care so badly—and maybe if it’s hindering the…
Their motivations are not ideological extremism but a basic survival instinct to protect their families from the past’s failed paradigms.
If You’re Reading These Words is a book in which all the heroes have died, yet it overflows with life.
Yes, the Israeli army needs Jews to draft, but more than that, Jews need to experience what it means to serve.
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we speak with Diana Fersko, senior rabbi of the Village Temple Reform synagogue, about denominations…
In order to study Kabbalah, argues Rav Moshe Weinberger, one must approach it with humility.
Rabbi Moshe Gersht first encountered the world of Chassidus at the age of twenty, the beginning of what he terms his “spiritual…
What is Jewish peoplehood? In a world that is increasingly international in its scope, our appreciation for the national or the tribal…
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast—recorded at the 18Forty X ASFoundation AI Summit—we speak with ASF’s Julia Senkfor and AI researcher…
We speak with Naftuli Moster about how and why he changed his understanding of the values imparted by Judaism.
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, David Bashevkin answers questions from Diana Fersko, senior rabbi of the Village Temple Reform synagogue,…
There is circularity that underlies nearly all of rabbinic law. Open up the first page of Talmud and it already assumes that…
Support Jewish explorations today by supporting 18Forty. Your partnership makes our work possible.
Donate today.
