18Forty Podcast

This series is sponsored by Unpacking Israeli History. In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Lahav Harkov, senior contributing editor and diplomatic correspondent of The Jerusalem Post, about the media we consume regarding Israel. Living in the diaspora and caring deeply about Israel can be challenging when one does not have first-hand knowledge of current affairs in the land. Lahav H...

This series is sponsored by Unpacking Israeli History. In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Noam Weissman, executive vice president of OpenDor Media, about Israel education. In a world in which Israel is a key component of Jewish identity, young people often are given a sanitized, doctrinaire understanding of the Jewish state, rather than getting to build on an authentic experience o...

This series is sponsored by our friends Sarala and Danny Turkel. In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to a son who almost intermarried, the mother of a daughter who married a non-Jew, and Huvi and Brian, a couple whose intermarriage turned into a Jewish marriage—about intergenerational divergence in the context of intermarriage. This Pesach, we have the opportunity to reflect on our chi...

This series is sponsored by our friends Sarala and Danny Turkel. In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Liel Leibovitz and Lisa Ann Sandell about what happens when one partner wants to increase their religious practice. Liel grew up a secular Israeli, while Lisa was raised in a traditional home of loosening observance. When, eight years ago, Liel brought up the idea of keeping kosher,...

This series is sponsored by our friends Sarala and Danny Turkel. 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. With the loss of a son, granddaughter, and grandson, Ephraim lost his faith in Judaism while Aliza remained an observant believer. As they describe it, now, when making kidd...

In this special Purim episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we bring you a recording from our live event with the comedian Modi, for our annual discussion on humor. As a preeminent Jewish comedian of only growing popularity, Modi finds himself needing to navigate the nuances of public and private life while he brings “Moshiach energy” to audiences all over the world. In this episode we discuss: What mak...

This series is sponsored by Ari and Danielle Schwartz in memory of Danielle’s grandfather, Mr. Baruch Mappa, Baruch Ben Asher Zelig HaLevi. In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to three different advocates for affordable Jewish education about the state of the tuition crisis. While it is a sensitive subject to discuss, the cost of Jewish education remains one of the most vital issues at...

This series is sponsored by Ari and Danielle Schwartz in memory of Danielle’s grandfather, Mr. Baruch Mappa, Baruch Ben Asher Zelig HaLevi. In this edition of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Dr. Leslie Ginsparg Klein—an expert on the history of Orthodox girls’ education—about the value of education for all people. With the founding of the Bais Yaakov movement, Sarah Schenirer sought to create a cu...

This series is sponsored by Ari and Danielle Schwartz in memory of Danielle’s grandfather, Mr. Baruch Mappa, Baruch Ben Asher Zelig HaLevi. In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we speak to Michael A. Helfand, a Pepperdine Law professor specializing in religious liberty, about the meaning of the First Amendment as it relates to the funding of religious schools. With education so deeply essential...

In this edition of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to David’s rebbe, Rabbi Yisroel Kaminetsky, longtime principal of DRS Yeshiva High School, about the state of Jewish education in America. We find ourselves in a transformative time in the realm of Jewish education. Jewish literacy is at an all-time high, and yet we are still faced with existential angst. In this episode, Yisroel Kaminetsky tells us...

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast , you, our listeners, feature as our guests as we listen to your responses to our series on Romance & Commitment and the Origins of Judaism. It is our double-absolute privilege to hear how 18Forty’s explorations of the big, juicy Jewish ideas have interacted with your own lives. In this episode we discuss: What are the audience’s reflections on dating, lo...

In this edition of the 18Forty Podcast, we are privileged with the return of Dr. Malka Simkovich—Crown-Ryan Chair of Jewish Studies and director of the Catholic-Jewish Studies program at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago—who helps us explore Second Temple Judaism and how it relates to Jewish life today. By diving deep into the Jewish past, Malka enables us to understand the narratives and comm...

This episode is sponsored by Daniella and Ari Schwartz in memory of their grandfather Mr. Baruch Mappa a”h - Baruch Ben Asher Zelig HaLevi. In this edition of the 18Forty Podcast , we speak with Rav Yitzchak Breitowitz—Rav of Kehillos Ohr Somayach and host of the Q & A with Rabbi Breitowitz Podcast —about the key Jewish issues of our time and how we should handle them. Rabbi Breitowitz helps u...

This episode is sponsored by Anonymous who is fond of Shalom Task Force & 18Forty. In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we speak with Channah Cohen, a researcher of the OU’s study on the “Shidduch Crisis.” Channah helps us unpack the two sides to this crisis—“Crisis of Process” and “Crisis of Experience”—and considers some potential solutions to the frequent cruelty of the current culture....

This episode is sponsored by Anonymous who is fond of Shalom Task Force & 18Forty. On this episode of 18Forty, we explore the world of Jewish dating. We spoke to insiders and experts from the Chassidic community, “Yeshiva Orthodox” community, and Modern Orthodox community, looking at the commonalities and differences between each community’s approach to finding and building loving relationship...

In this minisode of the 18Forty Podcast, we reflect upon a year beyond words (and numbers). At every stop of the process in the wild journey that has been 18Forty, we’ve been motivated by our fantastic community members who have pushed us to ask deeper questions, to be more honest with ourselves, and to think more sharply and profoundly about what it means to be a Jew today. We’ve grown with you a...

This episode was sponsored by Anonymous who is fond of Shalom Task Force & 18Forty In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we sit down with Zahava Moskwowitz, host of the Singled Out podcast. Zahava shares insight into the challenges of singlehood, debates the pros and cons of pictures on shidduch resumes, and brings us into the world of singlehood in the Orthodox community. What does market i...

This episode is sponsored by Esther & Jerry Williams in honor of all those who support Shalom Task Force. If you are in crisis please reach out to the Shalom Task Force Hotline at 888-883-2323. On this episode of 18Forty, we have a deeply moving conversation on the topic of red flags in relationships. We speak with Esther Williams and Dr. Shoshannah Frydman from Shalom Task Force, and one pers...

This episode was sponsored by Jerry and Esther Williams in honor of 18Forty and the Shalom Task Force. In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, Dovid Bashevkin dives deeply into the world of dating. As we explore the realm of relationships, Dovid uses his own journey to help us find the proper framework for balancing one’s romantic, religious, and professional identities. How can one stay connected...

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Rabbi Dr. Yosef Bronstein. A deep thinker with scholarship and experience in many areas of Jewish thought, Yosef has a PhD in Talmud, an upcoming book on the Lubavitcher Rebbe, work editing at the Reshimos Shiurim on Kiddushin of Rabbi Joseph B. Soleveitchik, and countless lectures, classes, and students on Talmud, mysticism, and Jewish philosophy...

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Dr. Yonatan Adler about the intersection of halacha and archaeology. Yonatan Adler is a professor of archaeology at Ariel University in Samaria where he teaches about halacha in early Judaism as we see it through the lens of archeology. - Why do we view the past in light of the present and not the present in light of the past? - What does archeolo...

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Dr. Tova Ganzel about biblical Judaism, and the shift of rabbinic authority over time.  Tova Ganzel is a professor of Judaics at Bar Ilan University. In our discussion with her, we discuss the evolution of mitzvah observance from biblical times and the transmission of authority within Judaism.  - Who gives rabbis their authority?  - How did Jewish...

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Professor Lawrence Schiffman about Second Temple and Rabbinic Judaism. Lawrence Schiffman is a professor at New York University, where he lectures on topics such as the Dead Sea Scrolls, Midrashei Halacha, and Second Temple Judasim. He joins us today to discuss the evolution from early Judaism to modern observance, as well as the outcomes of super...

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to an anonymous email sender about life upon the bridge between the truth of fact and the truth of feeling. Our anonymous guest sent an email in to 18Forty, which we read previously on the Malka Simkovich episode. In his email, he describes struggling with the Oral Torah and clinging to his faith despite the unknown. - How has practical Jewish religi...

This series is sponsored by our friends, Daniel and Mira Stokar. In this episode, we discuss parental alienation. In some way or another, almost all of us struggle with alienation. Who among us doesn’t feel too far from someone that we love? The meeting points of religion and family in religious communities can make navigating change in the family unit difficult, sometimes leading to alienation. A...