Category Archives: Podcasts

Q&A: Evolution and Age of the Universe

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A simplistic reading of Genesis, interpolated from Adam to present day, results in a universe that is less than 6,000 years old. Scientific methods date the universe as being 13.8 billion years old, a discrepancy that is decidedly beyond the margin of error. How do we reconcile our faith with what science has empirically concluded? Perhaps a simplistic reading of Genesis is a mistake? After all, the 31 verses dedicated to the description of Genesis does not seem to be an exhaustive retelling of creation.

The Ugliest Guy Ever

Podcast: Download (Duration: 1:16:03 — 33.3MB)

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Talmud Taanis 20: A Person should always be soft like a reed and not stiff like a cedar. There was a story with Rabbi Eliezer the son of Rabbi Shimon who was coming from Migdal Gedor from the house of his Rabbi, and he was riding on a donkey and traveling on the edge of the river, and was exceedingly happy, and he was feeling aloof because he had studied much Torah. He chanced upon a man who was very ugly. The man said to him: Peace be upon you, my teacher! [Rabbi Eliezer] did not respond, instead he said: Empty one! How ugly is that person! Perhaps all the people of your city are this ugly? He answered: I don’t know, rather go and tell the Craftsman who made me – how ugly is the vessel that You made. Once he realized that he sinned, he descended from his donkey and prostrated himself before him and said: please forgive me. He responded: I will not forgive you until you go to the Craftsman who made me and tell him – how ugly is the vessel that you made![Rabbi Eliezer] followed him until they arrived at his city. The people of the city went out to greet him and said: Peace unto you Rebbe, Rebbe, master, master! The ugly man asked: to whom are you calling, Rebbe, Rebbe? They said – to the man who is trailing you? He said – If this is a Rabbi, may there not be many like him in Israel. The people of the city inquired why not? He recounted the entire story. They persisted and said, despite this, forgive him because he is great in Torah, He said – for you I will forgive him provided that he does not regulate himself in behaving such. Rabbi Eliezer immediately entered the house of study and taught: A Person should always be soft like a reed and not stiff like a cedar. And therefore a reed merited that a quill is made from it to write Torah scrolls, Tefillin and Mezuzahs.

*Temple Beth Torah 4/26/2015

The Afterlife in Jewish Thought, Tradition and Literature

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We find many references scattered throughout Jewish writings regarding Olam Haba, the next world. What exactly this place is, why we ought to strive to get there and how we go about achieving that goal are matters of immense intrigue and importance. This discussion centers around one of the more peculiar and mysterious Talmudic statements regarding Olam Haba that is found in Tractate Berachos 57b:

Three are a measure of the world to come, They are: Shabbos, Sun, and Tashmish. What does Tashmish mean? If you say it means sexual intercourse; it weakens; rather it must mean relieving one’s bowels.

As they are wont to do, the authors of the Talmud chose to convey ideas in a manner that obscures rather than reveals their true intentions. How do we decipher, decrypt, decode and demystify the words of our Sages and what can we learn about Olam Haba from this Talmudic teaching?

*Shalom Cypress 4/22/2015

Why, Pray Tell? The Centrality of Prayer in Jewish Practice and Harnessing it’s Unlimited Power

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Moses prayed 515 times to God that He rescind His decree of banning Moses from entering Israel. After this relentless prayer assault Moses ceased praying. Why would Moses stop after 515 and not continue and what does that teach us about the effectiveness of prayer?

*Shalom Cypress, April 15, 2015

The Golden Calf: A Scriptural Analysis

Podcast: Download (Duration: 1:31:33 — 41.9MB)

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The Jewish attitude to Torah study has always been to not accept the words on a simplistic and superficial level. We view the text of the Torah as having infinite depth and subtle nuances and meanings. In this class we will attempt to dissect and unravel perhaps the most challenging episodes in the Torah: the Golden Calf story of Exodus Chapter 32. We will begin by reading the words at face value and then we’ll try analyzing and critically assessing the words and the narrative in an attempt to plumb deeper and deeper into the endless ocean of Torahidic insight.

Reflections of Genesis: How the Forefathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob Built the Spiritual Profile of Our Nation

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The narratives of Genesis mustn’t be read and understood as important stories or historical context; The Torah in it’s entirety is instructive. The manner in which the Forefathers are presented in the Torah and the content of those narratives and dialogues are reflective of the lessons that they exemplified and perfected that the Torah wants us – the readers – to incorporate into our behavior and spiritual makeup. Indeed, each of the forefathers mastered one of the three qualities that uphold the world: Torah – Jacob; Avodah – Isaac; Chessed (Kindness) – Abraham.

Jewish Life Cycles: From Pre-Conception to Post-Mortem and Beyond

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What is foretold about man even before conception, and what is significant about that?

The Talmud declares that a child studies the entire Torah in utero and as it enters the world an angel strikes it’s mouth and the child forgets it all. What can this possibly mean?

What is the nature of the oath administered to a fetus upon entry to the world?

Why do we have a mitzvah to circumcise young boys?

What happens after we die?

These are but some of the very interesting elements of the Jewish timeline of Pre-Life – Life – Post-Life. In this class we dig in and investigate the various points of interest in a Jewish life and outline the meaning behind the practices associated with these milestones.

TORCH Bar and Bat Mitzvah Program – 2015

How to get your Prayers Answered: An Exposition on the Philosophical and Practical aspects of Prayer and Liturgy

Podcast: Download (Duration: 1:35:15 — 43.6MB)

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Jews are obligated to pray to the Almighty 3 times daily and prayer is named by the Mishna as one of the three pillars that uphold the world. Yet the very principle of prayer is somewhat troubling. For example, when someone is sick the Jewish response is to beseech to God to provide a healing for the ill; Yet the source of the illness is none other than the Almighty Himself. If so, why are mortal and narrow minded humans trying to intercede, intervene and intermediate in matters that are more suited for the Almighty to decide? After all, He knows what is best for His subjects and Judaism teaches that all that all that the Almighty does is for the best? These questions among others are discussed in this class, and additionally a practical approach to getting our prayers answered is outlined.