Evolve

In losing her two-year-old daughter, Havi, Myra Sack suffered the kind of loss most people cannot even fathom. By telling her Havi’s story, Sack discovered she can help others live with grief. Sack is the author of Fifty-Seven Fridays: Losing Our Daughter, Finding Our Way, an excerpt of which appears on the Evolve website. She discusses the important role ritual played after Havi’s diagnosis and following her passing. Sack traces her journey into grief literacy and how she has used her own painful experiences to help others process grief. She talks about the tragic consequences of a doctor’s mistake and how she and her husband, Matt, have worked to ensure no family suffers a similar fate. The former collegiate soccer standout also shares the place that sports have played in her life and the blessings she’s looking forward to in the New Year. Theme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb Visit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org Subscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss Read these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1 This podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.Special Guest: Myra Sack.Support EvolveLinks:Support Evolve with a donation of $36 Read Myra's Evolve essay, "Rituals of Grief" Purchase Myra's book, "Fifty-Seven Fridays: Losing Our Daughter, Finding Our Way" From Ritualwell, "The Four Yizkors: Grief and Memory Hold Hands" From Ritualwell, "Balancing Grief and Gratitude" Bryan's previous conversation with Myra Myra's Philly Jewish Sports Hall of Fame profile J-Screen Bearing the Unbearable: Love, Loss, and the Heartbreaking Path of Grief Learn more about Shelley Barnathan, Myra's rabbi

Democracy holds a special place in Reconstructionist teachings, liturgy and practice — though most Jews have embraced American democracy as hospitable to Jewish life. Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D., and Rabbi William Plevan, Ph.D., dive deep into Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan’s — the founding thinker of Reconstructionist Judaism — thinking on democracy and pluralism and why it matters today. Each shares thoughts on the prospects for liberal democracy at a time when the form of government is under strain across the world — and what it might mean for Jewish communities. As a bonus, Rabbi Jacob Staub, Ph.D., who directs the Evolve podcast, shares the process behind Evolve’s series of essays on democracy. Theme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb Visit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org Subscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss Read these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1 This podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.Special Guests: Rabbi Bill Plevan, Ph.D. and Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D..Support EvolveLinks:Sign up for Evolve's free newsletter to stay up to date on the latest essays, videos and podcasts Read Rabbi Deborah Waxman's Evolve essay, "A Jewish Embrace of Democracy: Early Reconstructionist Judaism and America’s Promise" Read Rabbi Bill Plevan's Evolve essay, "Sustaining Democracy Amid Cultural Pluralism: Mordecai Kaplan’s Vision" Explore the full symposium: Practices for Defending Democracy On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century by Timothy Snyder American Crucible: Race and Nation in the Twentieth Century by Gary Gerstle Also on Evolve, "The Year Since October 7" essay collection From the Wisconsin Examiner, "A prescription for overcoming our dangerous political divisions Support Evolve with a donation of $36 Learn more about "Memory Lights The World," Ritualwell's memorial wall

It’s not easy to talk about and process the first anniversary of Oct. 7, 2023, when war continues to widen, hostages remain in Gaza and a ceasefire seems less and likely. This episode aims to model such a conversation. In a wide-ranging interview featuring Rabbi Mira Wasserman, Ph.D., interim vice president of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College and Elliott Glassenberg, senior educator at BINA: the Jewish Movement for Social Change, they and Bryan discuss Oct. 7 and how Israeli and American Jews have been impacted. They also explain the relationship between RRC and BINA and how it may be more important than ever for rabbis serving in the Diaspora to devote time to better understanding the dynamics of Israeli society. Theme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb Visit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org Subscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss Read these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1 This podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.Special Guests: Elliot Glassenberg and Rabbi Mira Beth Wasserman, Ph.D..Support EvolveLinks:Sign up for Evolve's free newsletter to stay up to date on the latest essays, videos and podcasts Support Evolve with a donation of $36 From Evolve: The Year Since October 7 Register for Ritualwell's "A Day of Memory: Holding Each Other on October 7th, 2024" Explore October 7 Resources from Reconstructing Judaism Explore Evolve's essays BINA - The Jewish Social Movement for Change Learn more about RRC's faculty summer study tour of Israel

Marc Dollinger has seen a thing or two. In his academic career, the historian of American Jewry has been labeled a “self-hated leftist Jew” and “right-wing Zionist colonialist.” He’s been criticized for failing to capture the full nuance of black-Jewish relations and been abandoned by his publisher for suggesting that Jews bear some responsibility for the continuance of American racism. And, while he studied leftist anti-Israel sentiments for decades — focusing on its origins after the Six Day War — he’s been utterly shocked by the virulence of anti-Israel sentiment on campuses since Oct. 7, 2023. In this packed interview, Dollinger addresses the nature of academic freedom, the importance of DEI work in Jewish communities and the lines between anti-Zionism and antisemitism. He also talks about his previous book Black Power, Jewish Politics and his forthcoming memoir of his campus intellectual battles. Theme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb Visit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org Subscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss Read these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1 This podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.Special Guest: Marc Dollinger.Support EvolveLinks:Read Marc Dollinger's Evolve essay: "Anti-Israel, Anti-Zionist, Antisemitic: Reflections on the San Francisco Bay Area (and beyond) after Oct. 7" Sign up for Evolve's free newsletter to stay up to date on the latest essays, videos and podcasts Support Evolve with a donation of $36 Register for the next Evolve Web Conversation: What If We Stopped Assuming That the Human Species is the Chosen Species? Buy Marc Dollinger's book, Black Power, Jewish Politics: Reinventing the Alliance in the 1960s Explore Evolve's essays about the Israel-Hamas war Explore Evolve's essays about antisemitism Read the open letter, "Brandeis University Press is silencing debate" Read Brandeis University Press' response letter

Rabbi Katie Mizrahi is a Zionist who was beyond devastated by Hamas’ mass killings, rape and kidnapping on October 7th. She reaffirms Israel’s right to defend itself. And she explains why she is opposed to how Israel has conducted its war and why she joined calls for a bilateral ceasefire. She expands on this line from her essay, “But here is the heart of the matter. I am not ready to become monstrous to defend my people from monsters.” We talk about the difficulty of interpreting events and the deluge of information and making informed decisions about where one stands. She shares how B’nai Havurah Denver Reconstructionist Congregation has responded these last seven months and how Zionists and anti-Zionist still inhabit the same community. Bryan and Rabbi Katie reminisce about what it was like to be in Israel in the 90s a time of hope and optimism. She shares her experience working against Israeli demolitions of Palestinian home and the trauma of witnessing the shooting of a Palestinian man. This episode is dedicated to Bryan’s late father, Robert. Theme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb Visit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org Subscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss Read these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1 This podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.Special Guest: Rabbi Katie Mizrahi.Support EvolveLinks:Read Rabbi Mizrahi's Evolve essay, "Zionist Rabbi For Ceasefire" Sign up for Evolve's free newsletter to stay up to date on the latest essays, videos and podcasts Explore Evolve's essays about the Israel-Hamas war Published in the Forward: "I run the Reconstructionist movement. We believe in Israel’s right to exist but reject litmus tests on Zionism" Read Reconstructing Judaism's public statements about the Israel-Hamas war Resources for Shavuot from Reconstructing Judaism The Art of Rebuke (a Sefaria source sheet) Sign up for Ritualwell's free Omer writing workshops Sign up for Ritualwell's in-person immersion, "Count On Telling Your Story"

Rabbi Haviva Ner-David, an activist and author, shares what it is like to live in Israel – and be a parent - right now, with all the heartbreak, confusion and glimmers of hope. In this conversation, the author and spiritual director discusses the personal losses she suffered on October 7 and after (9:18) She also shares anxiety about living in Israel’s north and how and why she’s recommitted herself to interfaith peace activism (22:10) and her work with the Standing Together, the grassroots movement mobilizing Jewish and Palestinian citizens of Israel in pursuit of peace . With views on the conflict becoming ever more entrenched, Ner-David’s perspective is refreshingly iconoclastic. Whatever your perspective, left, right or center, she says something to challenge you. Theme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb Visit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org Subscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss Read these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1 This podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.Special Guest: Rabbi Haviva Ner-David.Support EvolveLinks:Reconstructing Judaism joins call for ceasefire, release of all hostages and increase in humanitarian aide to Gaza Sign up for Evolve's newsletter to receive exclusive content Celebrate 10 years of Rabbi Deborah Waxman's leadership Support Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations Rabbi Haviva's website Rabbi Haviva's memoirs, novels, and more Read Rabbi Haviva's February 2024 Evolve Essay, "The Other Side of the Rain: At a Cemetery in the Galilee" Read Rabbi Haviva's October 2023 Evolve essay, "Let Not Our Anger Blind Us: Jews and Palestinians in Israel" Read Rabbi Haviva's August 2023 Evolve essay, "Standing Together: A Redemptive Vision for Palestinian-Jewish Partnership" From JTA: "I’m an Israeli advocate for Israeli-Palestinian coexistence. We’re still in this together." From Rabbi Haviva's Times Of Israel blog: "Minding Our Own Business, and that of the Country" From Rabbi Haviva's Times of Israel Blog: "This is a Story to Open Your Hearts. Are you Willing?" Next Evolve Web Conversation: Against Free Will

After 20 years of work, Jay Michaelson —scholar, rabbi, lawyer, activist, meditation teacher —has published his first book of fiction, “The Secret That Is Not a Secret: Ten Heretical Tales” (03:30). The linked short stories focus on a range of Jewish characters: Men and women, Orthodox and secular, straight and gay, Israeli and American. Yet each carries a secret desire that could be described as queer, and their stories explore the nature of heresy, queerness, kabbalah, mysticism and the sometimes-thin line between erotic desire and religious yearning. Michaelson would probably have preferred we discussed “The Secret That Is Not a Secret” for the full episode. Yet, we’re living in a post October 7 world and Michaelson, who’d stopped writing about Israel about a decade ago, felt compelled to jump back in. In the Forward and Rolling Stone, he’s written about the ethics of war, the charged nature of the term genocide, the debate about campus antisemitism and the fates of the two Ivy League presidents forced to resign after public uproar. We delve into some of these op-eds (31:40) and discuss how’s he taken care of himself during one of the most emotionally trying times of his life. Theme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb Visit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org Subscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss Read these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1 This podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.Special Guest: Jay Michaelson.Support EvolveLinks:Support Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations Sign up for Evolve's newsletter to receive exclusive content Order Jay Michaelson's new book, "The Secret That is Not a Secret" Jay Michaelson's writing in The Forward Jay Michaelson's writing in Rolling Stone Ten Percent Happier (meditation and mindfulness) Jay Michaelson's Evolve Essay, "The Allure of the Antinomian … or How Jacob Frank Seduced Me" Jay Michaelson's website

Halakhah is for Orthodox Jews. It means Jewish law: what you can do and can’t do. Right? Not according to Laynie Soloman, a passionate teacher of Jewish text and thought at SVARA: A Traditionally Radical Yeshiva. Soloman says that Halakhah isn’t law, per se, since law – especially when it comes to queer and trans folks – can serve as an instrument of oppression. Rather, Soloman speaks of Halakhah as “Jewish practice and its surrounding discourse,” i.e. what Jews do. Soloman discusses SVARA’s Trans Halakhah Project, which seeks to empower trans Jews. Soloman talks with hosts Bryan Schwartzman about what the project means in a political climate hostile to trans people. “Celebrating our transness is a political act.” Recorded early in the Israel-Hamas War, Soloman describes how they have turned to ancient rabbinic sources to understand how Jews have dealt with catastrophe and violence in the past. Theme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb Visit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org Subscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss Read these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1 This podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.Special Guest: Laynie Soloman.Support EvolveLinks:Read Laynie Solomon's Evolve Essay, "Euphoric Halakhah: The Trans Halakhah Project" Read Rabbi Xava De Cordova's Evolve Essay, "Are Trans Women Obligated in Niddah? (Jewish Menstrual Law): Embracing Halakhah That Was Not Addressed to You" Watch Rabbi Xava De Cordova's Evolve Web Conversation, "Are Trans Women Obligated in Niddah Embracing Halakhah That Was Not Addressed to You" Register for an upcoming Evolve Web Conversation Follow Reconstructing Judaism on Instagram Follow Reconstructing Judaism on Facebook