In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to author and journalist Judith Shulevitz about the world of Shabbos.
Through The Sabbath World: Glimpses of a Different Order of Time, Judith introduced the secular world to the concept of Shabbos. She explores the power of a day of rest and the communal aspect that elevates it.
Tune in to hear a conversation about the world of Shabbos.
Judith is a journalist, editor, author, and critic. She is currently a contributing op-ed writer for The New York Times. Judith’s book, The Sabbath World: Glimpses of a Different Order of Time, is a deep exploration of our favorite day of rest, from its ancient origins until today. This book weaves together the story of a day but also the story of one person, with ideas and memories melting into each other. Judith joins us to talk about the complex beauty, and challenges, of Shabbos.
David Bashevkin responds to listeners’ feedback and comments, in conversation with Denah Emerson.
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.
In this episode, we talk to a father and daughter who were estranged and then reunited.
Jonnie Schnytzer joins us to discuss teshuva, Jewish governance, and how Torah study is the pathway to personal growth.
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.
We talk to Michael Olshin about the purpose of the gap year in Israel.
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Aliza and Ephraim Bulow, a married couple whose religious paths diverged over the course of their shared life.
On this episode of 18Forty, we explore the world of Jewish dating.
We revisit the topic of agunot by talking to Sarah Nissel, Yona Elishis, and Keshet Starr.
Rabbi Gil Student speaks with Rabbi Aryeh Klapper and Sofer.ai CEO Zach Fish about how AI is reshaping questions of Jewish practice.
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.
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 talk to Lizzy Savetsky, who went from a career in singing and fashion to being a Jewish activist and influencer, about her work advocating for Israel online.
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Judah, Naomi, and Aharon Akiva Dardik—an olim family whose son went to military jail for refusing to follow to IDF orders and has since become a ceasefire activist at Columbia University—about sticking together as a family despite their fundamental differences.
Dina Etigson answers eighteen questions on Jewish mysticism, including God’s greater goals for the Jewish People.
David Bashevkin discusses how to embrace holiness, the purpose of prayer, and the search for meaning in an age of distraction.
We talk to David Magerman and his daughter Sydney, who decided to make aliyah while on her gap year in Israel.
The true enemy in Israel’s current war, Einat Wilf says, is what she calls “Palestinianism.”
Rabbi Yehoshua Pfeffer answers 18 questions on Israel, including the Haredi draft, Israel as a religious state, Messianism, and so much more.
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, David Bashevkin opens up about his mental health journey.
Talking about the “Haredi community” is a misnomer, Jonathan Rosenblum says, and simplifies its diversity of thought and perspectives.
In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Moshe Koppel, professor of computer science at Bar-Ilan University to discuss some of the ideas in his books Judaism Straight Up and Meta-Halakhah. We discuss how to conceptualize the halachic system and explore how Halacha’s development can be seen through the prism of language and…
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.
Where Parshat Shlach asks us what we see in the land, one Israeli musician helps us hear what it has to say.
Parshat Shlach asks whether faith in God means anything at all if you cannot muster faith in the person God made you.
In the eyes of the great architect of the yeshiva world, the world itself is a Torah text—and we ought to study…
Perhaps the most fundamental question any religious believer can ask is: “Does God exist?” It’s time we find good answers.
A tour of some of Jerusalem’s used bookstores, which tell a story of a city’s readers, wanderers, and regulars
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…
Children cannot truly avoid the consequences of estrangement. Their parents’ shadow will always follow.
Yes, the Israeli army needs Jews to draft, but more than that, Jews need to experience what it means to serve.
To talk about the history of Jewish mysticism is in many ways to talk about the history of the mystical community.
Children don’t come with guarantees. Washing machines come with guarantees.
Israeli minister Itamar Ben-Gvir wears the mantle of Kahane in Israel. Many Orthodox Jews welcomed him with open arms.
I consider the Rebbe to be my personal teacher, and I find this teaching particularly relevant for us now.
A 94-year-old Holocaust survivor, a lone soldier, and more. Here are seven olim sharing their stories of aliyah.
Israel is clearly important to Jews. The question becomes: To what extent?
My family made aliyah over a decade ago. Navigating our lives as American immigrants in Israel is a day-to-day balance.
It isn’t only censorship that creates the narrative of our history, but it is every creative endeavor that we engage in.
Until recently, I too found myself almost entirely estranged from Jewish tradition. My return is showing me what we need to do…
From Freud through today, our desire to heal asks us to consider why we care so badly—and maybe if it’s hindering the…
A Hezbollah missile killed Rabbi Dr. Tamir Granot’s son, Amitai Tzvi, on Oct. 15. Here, he pleas for Haredim to enlist into…
If You’re Reading These Words is a book in which all the heroes have died, yet it overflows with life.
In Acharei Mot-Kedoshim, we learn that holiness requires moving beyond the letter of the law to its spirit.
Christianity’s focus on the afterlife historically discouraged Jews from discussing it—but Jews very much believe in it.
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we speak with Diana Fersko, senior rabbi of the Village Temple Reform synagogue, about denominations…
18Forty is a new media company that helps users find meaning in their lives through the exploration of Jewish thought and ideas.…
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, we speak with Mark Wildes, founder and director of Manhattan Jewish Experience, about Modern Orthodox…
Rabbi Moshe Gersht first encountered the world of Chassidus at the age of twenty, the beginning of what he terms his “spiritual…
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, recorded live at Stern College, we speak with Rabbi Moshe Benovitz, director of NCSY Kollel,…
In this special Simchas Torah episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we speak with Rachel Goldberg-Polin and Jon Polin—parents of murdered hostage Hersh…
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we speak with Rabbis Eitan Webb and Ari Israel, head of a campus Chabad and…
In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we speak with Shais Taub, the rabbi behind the organization SoulWords, about shame, selfhood, and…
What does it mean to experience God as lived reality?
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