Category Archives: personal growth

The Eight Wonders of Repentance

Our Sages enumerates a list of seven things that preceded the world. Included in this list is repentance. Why was it necessary to create repentance before the creation of the world? In this podcast we speculate an answer: repentance is a supernatural miracle that thoroughly violates the rules of this world, and therefore once the world would have been created, repentance can no longer be created. It is such an outlier, it is such a miracle, it is so wondrous and unprecedented, that there is no way to have created it post creation of the world. In this podcast – as we experience the Ten Days of Repentance spanning Rosh Hashana to Yom Kippur – we explore the eight wonders of repentance. When you finish listening you will emerge with a renewed understanding and appreciation for the value and the miraculous nature of repentance.

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The Spiritual Edifice

The Jewish holiday calendar is not evenly distributed. Mush of our Festivals are clumped together in one month, followed by a long winter with few special days, none of them of Biblical origin. Our Sages explain that the clustering of the High Holidays and the Festival of Sukkot is no coincidence. These days constitute one, continuous process. Over the course of the Festival season we are building the spiritual edifice in which we will reside for the entire year.

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

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The Righteous Soul, its Travails and Destiny

Where does the soul come from and to where is it going? This is a question that we don’t think about often, but it is of vital importance if we want to spiritually succeed in life. In this sprawling episode – originally recorded in 2016 and only released now – we examine the soul, what it must accomplish in this world, and the consequences thereof. The subject matter of this podcast makes up a large portion of my book, Upon a Ten-Stringed Harp. This podcast brings together a lot of the ideas featured in the book, and can serve as a helpful recap for readers of the book, and whet the appetite of those who have yet to do so.

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Please email me at rabbiwolbe@gmail.com with any questions or comments

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

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Agency, Urgency, Insurgency: Six Powerful Pointers on Self-Development

There is a widespread custom to study Pirkei Avos, the Mishnaic Book of the Ethics of our Fathers, between the festivals of Pesach and Shavuot. As we prepare for the reenactment of the Sinai Revelation and the giving of the Torah, we prime ourselves to become worthy vessels for Torah by refining and improving ourselves. The authoritative Jewish book for self-improvement is Pirkei Avos. In this podcast, we share an incredible Mishnah in Pirkei Avos with the exquisite commentary of Rabbeinu Yonah. What he lays out before us is a complete masterclass on how to develop our talents and fulfill the mission that we were entrusted with. We learn about the imperative for agency and urgency in undertaking our spiritual agenda, and we learn about the terrifying formidability of the Yetzer Hara’s insurgency against us.

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

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On Death and Dying: Part 2 – How to Prepare

How do you prepare for your day of death? Is that an important question? One can argue that living is much more important than dying. Death, this line of reasoning argues, is something that happens on its own and not something that we need to concern ourselves with. In this podcast, we present a completely different perspective. Calling from many sources in Jewish literature, we present the day of death as the actualization of an entire lifetime. Not only is the day of death an important day, it is the most important day of a person’s life. It is a day and a moment that determines everything! We also present a series of life-changing insights for how to prepare for our audience with the Almighty.

Disclaimer: This podcast is not intended for children or young adults. The target audience is anyone older than 35.

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

Please email me at rabbiwolbe@gmail.com with any questions or comments

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On Death and Dying: The Jewish View

Death is the destiny of mankind. Since Adam and Eve made the regrettable decision to consume from the Tree of Knowledge, Good and Evil, man has been condemned to die. But what exactly is death? How does the experience differ from person to person? Why is it a subject worthy of our focus? These should be a simple questions to answer, or so it would seem. In this very special and unique podcast, we will explore the subject of death in a way that will both terrify and inspire you. This subject was suggested by the participants of one of my classes. I am glad they suggested it. I found the topic really interesting, and I am sure you will too.

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

Please email me at rabbiwolbe@gmail.com with any questions or comments

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But I’m a Good Person with Dan Kullman

When my dear friend, Dan Kullman, asked me to join him on The Shema Podcast to discuss the phenomenon of people saying, “But I’m a good person,” I was not aware of how pervasive such a sentiment is and why discussing it would be interesting. In the end we had a delightful and stimulating conversation. Dan was kind enough to allow me to post the conversation on my podcast, so here it is.  If you enjoy this conversation, be sure to check out Dan’s podcast, The Shema Podcast.

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

Please email me at rabbiwolbe@gmail.com with any questions or comments

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Tips and Tricks to Secure a Positive Judgment on Yom Kippur

Yom Kippur is the end of the annual judgment. On Yom Kippur, the verdict written on Rosh Hashana gets sealed. Until that deadline, however, we can effectuate our judgment. The verdict can be rewritten and amended; the bad decrees can be annulled. But it won’t happen automatically. We need to expend effort to ensure that we earn a positive outcome on Yom Kippur. In this special pre-Yom Kippur podcast we survey 8 different tips and tricks – hacks – to gain a positive judgment on Yom Kippur. If you want to be cleansed from all your spiritual maladies and blemishes this Yom Kippur; if you want to emerge from this powerful day with a fresh, clean slate – this podcast is for you.

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

Please email me at rabbiwolbe@gmail.com with any questions or comments

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SUBSCRIBE to my Newsletter

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TORAH 101

Reconciliation and Forgiveness: The Interpersonal Component of Yom Kippur

Yom Kippur is a day of atonement and expiation. On this auspicious day, the Almighty forgives us for all our transgressions and we become purified before God. But the purification of Yom Kippur is limited to sins between man and God. For interpersonal transgressions, there is no atonement unless the aggressor appeases and secures forgiveness from the aggrieved. In this sweeping episode we discuss the nature of interpersonal transgressions and the tremendous sensitivity and delicateness required to not cause another person pain or loss; we scour the process of how to gain atonement for interpersonal transgressions; and we talk about the importance and the challenge of forgiving others who have wronged us.

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

Please email me at rabbiwolbe@gmail.com with any questions or comments

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DONATE Crypto to TORCH

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Man In The Arena: Three Ways To Understand The Judgment of Rosh Hashana

In addition to the many other themes and motifs of the day, Rosh Hashana is called the Day of Judgment. The Mishnah tells us that on Rosh Hashana every human has an individual audience with the Almighty in the same way that a shepherd counts each sheep individually. The judgment is comprehensive: all of a person’s income for the year is determined on this day. But the most important decree of Rosh Hashana is who will live and who will die.

In this podcast, we study a difficult statement in the Talmud regarding the judgment on Rosh Hashana. On the surface, this statement is quite inexplicable. Upon further analysis, however, we discover the central goal of Rosh Hashana, and, frankly, what we are trying to accomplish in our lives.

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Sponsorship: Please consider sponsoring a podcast by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!

Please email me at rabbiwolbe@gmail.com with any questions or comments

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DONATE Crypto to TORCH

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TORCH Shabbat Light Switch Cover

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or CLICK this LINK to access the form directly

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SUBSCRIBE to my Newsletter

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TORAH 101