Machshavah Lab

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 4 minutes Synopsis: This morning (11/21/25), in our Friday morning Machshavah Lab series for women, we had a shorter shiur in the usual. We spent the first portion clarifying some points from Part 3 - specifically, whether Ralbag would be considered a kofer (heretic) according to the Rambam. We then read through the remainde...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of article: 4 pages Length of audio: 16 minutes 8 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 4-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 11/21/25 titled: Toldos: How Different Were Yaakov and Eisav? I was tempted to title this "When Teaching Rashi to Children Promotes Kefirah (Heresy)"...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 27 minutes Synopsis: This morning (11/14/25), in our Friday morning Machshavah Lab series for women, we continued learning through the prologue of Iyov (1:1 - 3:1). We began with a question of Iyov Methodology: Which commentaries would I recommend? This led to another important tangent (the second in three sessions!) about t...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 29 minutes Synopsis: This evening (11/13/25), in our Thursday night Pirkei Avos shiur for women, we continued with the clause we worked on last time. We spent the first part of shiur reviewing everything we covered last time, answering the questions we left off with and sharpening some of the insights we had. Then we moved o...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of article: 2 pages Length of audio: 9 minutes 8 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 2-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 11/13/25 titled: Chayei Sarah: Sarah’s Years — A Peshat-Style Alternative to Rashi’s Midrashic Reading . Rashi’s drash on Sarah’s 127 years is well known and co...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 4 minutes Synopsis: This morning (11/7/25), in our Friday morning Machshavah Lab series for women, we reviewed the first five pesukim and answered our questions based largely on the Malbim's commentary, setting the stage for the drama that unfolds in the remainder of Chapters 1-2. ----- מקורות: איוב א:א-יב מלבי"ם -...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of article: 4 pages Length of audio: 15 minutes 19 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 4-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 11/7/25 titled: Vayeira: Maybe Lote Wasn’t the Bad Guy Rashi Makes Him Out to Be .In Rashi’s “world of midrash,” Lote’s the bad guy—but in the “world of pesha...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 29 minutes Synopsis: This evening (11/6/25), in our Thursday night Pirkei Avos shiur for women, we went back and learned the beginning of the mishnah we started last week. We spent most of the time mining the depths of Rashi on the first clause-and-half. We then moved on to Rambam and Rabbeinu Yonah, attempting to compare an...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 17 minutes Synopsis: This morning (10/31/25), in our Friday morning Machshavah Lab series for women, we began our unit on what I call the Prologue to Sefer Iyov (1:1 - 3:1). The initial plan was to have a brief introduction, then read and translate the entire Prologue, then analyze 1:1-5. Instead, our intro led to a rant (on...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of article: 2 pages Length of audio: 8 minutes 45 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 2-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 10/31/25 titled: Lech Lecha: Shadal on Jewish vs. Egyptian Circumcision . Contrary to what some might assume, circumcision did not originate with Jews. It was...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 2 hours Synopsis: This evening (10/30/25), in our Thursday night Pirkei Avos shiur for women, we took up the famous precept of being dan l'chaf zechus. We ended up raising twenty questions total and answering most (if not all) of them through our in-depth analysis of Rambam and Rashi. If you're interested in a deep-dive i...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of article: 4 pages Length of audio: 15 minutes 24 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 4-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 10/24/25 titled: Noach: Did All Humanity Really Speak One Language?  Though Malbim, R. Mecklenburg, and Rav Hirsch shared a common milieu and similar educatio...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 40 minutes Synopsis: This morning (10/23/25), in lieu of our usual morning Mishlei, we had a Q&A session! We discussed the following three questions: (1) According to the Rambam, if Olam ha'Ba is non-physical, and if our desires only relate to physical enjoyments, how can we desire Olam ha'Ba? (2) What do we mean in t...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of article: 5 pages Length of audio: 14 minutes 57 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 5-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 10/10/25 titled Sukkos 5778: I Hate Sukkah (In a Good Way) . Here's a newly edited version of my first (and favorite) article on Sukkos, originally publi...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of article: 1 page Length of audio: 3 minutes 46 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 3-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 10/6/25 titled: Sukkos 5786: Musings on the “Branding” of Chag ha’Sukkos .  Two years ago, a student of mine asked a question about Sukkos using one quirky word...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of article: 3 pages Length of audio: 11 minutes 24 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 3-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 10/5/25 titled: Haazinu: What If You Find Torah Empty? Chazal would respond, “The fault is yours—you didn’t toil in Torah.” But what about those who have toil...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of article: 2 pages Length of audio: 9 minutes 18 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 2-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 10/1/25, titled: Yom ha’Kippurim 5786 / Acharei Mos: The Order of Vidui . Here’s a quick article I wrote this morning. The idea isn’t fully developed, but I ho...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of article: 2 pages Length of audio: 8 minutes 36 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 2-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 9/29/25, titled: Approaching the “Sweet Secret” of Ha’Melech ha’Mishpat. Does the grammatically anomalous "ha'Melech ha'Mishpat" contain a...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 26 minutes Synopsis: This morning (9/26/25), in our Friday morning Machshavah Lab series for women, we concluded (I think?) the introductory portion of our Iyov shiurim by taking up the question of when and whether Iyov lived. We read through the ten plus opinions in the Gemara, raised questions on what Chazal were trying to...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of article: 3 pages Length of audio: 12 minutes 25 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 3-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 9/25/25, titled: Vayeilech: When Hashem Hides His Face . Twice in this parashah Hashem says He will hide His face: once for sin, and again even after we admit...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 10 minutes Synopsis: This morning (9/19/25), in our Friday morning Machshavah Lab sreies for women, we began with a comprehensive review of what we covered in Part 1, adding and clarifying the points we previously discussed. It was so comprehensive, in fact, that it took up the majority of our shiur! We used the remaining ti...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 43 minutes Synopsis: This evening (9/18/25), in our Thursday night Pirkei Avos shiur for women, we took up the first of two mishnayos in our perek about the relationship between Olam ha'Zeh and Olam ha'Ba. At first, we thought the mishnah was obvious. Then, after learning through four meforshim, we found ourselves...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length of article: 2 pages Length of audio: 8 minutes 20 seconds Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 2-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 9/16/25, titled: Nitzavim: Was Moshe Rabbeinu Pro-Philosophy or Anti-Philosophy? This article's intended audience is those who feel strongly either way, t...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 33 minutes Synopsis: This morning (9/12/25), in this year's first Friday morning Machshavah Lab shiur for women, we began our (hopefully) year-long series on Sefer Iyov! I began by recapping my prior experience with Iyov, but to my delight, this turned into a really great discussion about the various challenges of learn...

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text! Length: 1 hour 48 minutes Synopsis: This evening (9/11/25), in our Thursday night Pirkei Avos shiur for women, we learned the next mishnah in our chapter. This one was more practical, more approachable, and less metaphysical than the last. After raising a ton of questions, we learned the explanations of three commentaries: Rambam, Meiri, a...