Judaism Unbound

Dan Libenson's farewell. Dan's proverbial "sermon on the mount." We really don't know what to write in this "description" area for an episode that marks a momentous turning point for Judaism Unbound, but we're trying our best. In this conversation, Dan says goodbye to his role as co-host of Judaism Unbound, as we turn next week to welcome Rena Yehuda Newman as a co-host. He decided to bid farewell...

This week, Judaism Unbound is thrilled to feature the 3rd episode of Door to Door: A Pilgrimage Across Generations -- another podcast in Judaism Unbound's family of podcasts! ------------------------- Head to JudaismUnbound.com/classes to check out our up upcoming courses in the UnYeshiva! This time around we are offering courses on an Intro to Judaism (Judaism Inbound), the book of Genesis, the M...

Jewish Journeys , an unprecedented population study of Jewish Americans’ perspectives on psychedelics, explores the attitudes, practices, and needs of the emerging Jewish psychedelic community in the United States. Zac Kamenetz and Josh Lipson join Dan and Lex for a conversation about this study, its implications for American Judaism, and how we might take lessons from the field of psychedelics an...

We reveal some HUGE JUDAISM UNBOUND NEWS in this episode. And yes, we are gonna be that organization and make you listen in order to find out what that news is. What we will say is that this big news offers an opportunity for a conversation reflecting on 10 years of the Judaism Unbound podcast, along with looking into its future. Head to JudaismUnbound.com/classes to check out our up upcoming cour...

Juan Mejia , a beloved guest in past episodes of Judaism Unbound (here's Episode 57 and Episode 387 ), is back! He joins Dan and Lex to reflect on conversion to Judaism -- what has changed in the past 10 years since he initially was a guest on Judaism Unbound, and what remains constant? What parallels can we observe between discourse about Jewish conversion, and discourse about immigration to the...

What is Jewish placemaking, and why might it matter to the present and future of Jewish education? Beverly Socher-Lerner , founder and executive director of Makom Community in Philadelphia, joins Dan and Lex to explore that question. This episode is the second in a mini-series exploring Jewish education, following up on a recent Judaism Unbound episode featuring Leah Robbins, founder of Achvat Ola...

This week, Judaism Unbound is thrilled to feature the 2nd episode of Door to Door: A Pilgrimage Across Generations -- another podcast in Judaism Unbound's family of podcasts! Door to Door is a deeply personal, five-part podcast series tracing one Jewish family’s multigenerational pilgrimage from a once-lost home in Wachenbuchen, Germany, to the present-day echoes of inherited memory, trauma, and r...

Leah Robbins is the founder of Achvat Olam: Diaspora Community Day School , a Jewish day-school "rooted in love, diasporism, and the Torah of justice," that hopes to launch in the 2029-30 school year. She joins Dan and Lex for a conversation about the importance of Jewish day-schools, the idea of diasporism, and visions for a brighter Jewish future -- in classrooms and beyond. Learn more about Ach...

Margot Valles is teaching a mini-course in the UnYeshiva called The Torah of Kink: Jewish Text Through the Lens of BDSM . She joins Dan and Lex for a conversation about what kink is, why discussions about kink can add to contemporary Jewish experience, and where we might find kink in the Torah.  Head to JudaismUnbound.com/classes to check out our up upcoming 3-week mini-courses in the UnYeshiva! T...

Judaism Unbound kicks off the new year by hearkening back to our recent mini-series exploring Jewish music: past, present, and future. Anthony Russell , a multidisciplinary artist working in the medium of Yiddish language and culture, joins Dan and Lex for a conversation. Together they explore Yiddish music, as a springboard into a broader exploration of how music can transform individuals and Jew...

Dan and Lex are joined by Tomer Persico , author of a recent book entitled In God's Image: How Western Civilization Was Shaped by a Revolutionary Idea . Together they explore the notion of B'tzelem Elohim (the idea that all human beings are created "in the image of God") from the book of Genesis -- what are its implications, why might it be important to us, and might it have a shadow side?  Head t...

Lex Rofeberg is joined again by Lexi Kohanski, and Liana Wertman (our friends at The Torah Studio ) for the 4th and final conversation in our 2025 edition of ApocryFest: Hanukkah Unbound and Un-Canonized . In this episode, they consider how we can channel our newfound Apocryphal ideas into the world today. They consider the importance of texts that are both canonical and non-canonical, along with...

Today we are thrilled to feature an episode from Judaism Unbound’s family of podcasts on our flagship podcast’s feed. The podcast is The Oral Talmud , hosted by our founder Dan Libenson and Benay Lappe – founder of SVARA: a Traditionally Radical Yeshiva . Join Benay Lappe and Dan Libenson in their chevrutah , their partnered study and exploration of the Talmud through the “traditionally radical” l...

Lex Rofeberg is joined again by Lexi Kohanski, and Liana Wertman (our friends at The Torah Studio ) for the 3nd conversation in our 2025 edition of ApocryFest: Hanukkah Unbound and Un-Canonized . In this episode, they explore a text called 4 Ezra.  You can sign up for ApocryFest 2025 by heading to www. JudaismUnbound.com/apocryfest . Do so, and we’ll send you all sorts of cool Apocryphal stuff, du...

Lex Rofeberg, Lexi Kohanski, and Liana Wertman (the latter two our friends at The Torah Studio ) bring the 2nd conversation in a 4-episode mini-series entitled ApocryFest: Hanukkah Unbound and Un-Canonized. In this episode, they explore a text called Genesis Apocryphon. They explore the power of texts written in the 1st-person (unlike most of the Bible), ask whether it may be spiritually productiv...

Hanukkah is here! Lex Rofeberg, Lexi Kohanski, and Liana Wertman (the latter two from our friends at The Torah Studio ) kick off the 2025 edition of ApocryFest: Hanukkah Unbound and Un-Canonized -- a 4-part mini-series of Judaism Unbound. They ask why texts of the apocrypha are worth exploring, why it's worth doing so on Hanukkah in particular, explore some beloved apocryphal faves (Judith and Mac...

Dan and Lex are joined by Sarah Hurwitz , author of a recently-published book entitled As a Jew , which explores ways in which antisemitism has shaped Jewish identity -- and how Jews can reclaim their tradition. This episode is the second in a short mini-series on antisemitism, following up on a conversation last week with Daniel May .  Access full shownotes for this episode via this link . If you...

Daniel May , publisher of Jewish Currents , joins Dan and Lex for a conversation about anti-semitism. May is the author of a recent piece in Harper's Magazine entitled "An Outrage to Common Sense: On the Meanings of Anti-Semitism," a piece that serves as a great launching point into a discussion of antisemitism's history, its contemporary manifestations, along with debates about when it manifests...

Barbara Thiede (also known as Shulamit Sapir) is a multi-time guest on Judaism Unbound in the past, a key figure in our recent book Judaism Unbound...Bound , a past teacher in the UnYeshiva, and a major influence on Judaism Unbound in many respects over the years. She joins Dan and Lex for a conversation that extends a previous appearance of hers ( Episode 101: Not Your Rabbis' Judaism ), and cont...

David Kraemer is the author of a recent book entitled Embracing Exile: The Case for Jewish Diaspora , and the Joseph J. and Dora Abbell Librarian and Professor of Talmud and Rabbinics at the Jewish Theological Seminary. He joins Dan and Lex for a conversation that uses that book as a springboard into a conversation about diaspora and exile in the Jewish past, present, and future. Access full shown...

This week, Judaism Unbound is thrilled to feature the 1st episode of Door to Door: A Pilgrimage Across Generations -- another podcast in Judaism Unbound's family of podcasts! Want to connect with Judaism Unbounders all around the world? Join our Discord server , which we have just opened to any and all Judaism Unbound listeners, all around the world! Just head to Discord. JudaismUnbound.com to joi...

Basya Schechter -- a songwriter, musician, performing artist, and cantor -- wants to remind everyone that you don't need to be in a synagogue to have powerful experiences with Jewish music. She joins Dan and Lex for a conversation about her evolutions as a musician, her experiences performing in contexts as different as a college dining hall and a sprawling concert venue, and so much more. This ep...

Benay Lappe , founder and rosh yeshiva of SVARA: a Traditionally Radical Yeshiva , returns to Judaism Unbound! She was our first ever guest on this show, in Episode 3: Exodus , and she's returned many times before -- but this time, she specifically is here to reflect on how American-Jewish life has transformed over the course of the past 10 years, since that first appearance.  Love what you hear?...

On October 20th, 2025, Arthur Waskow – a revolutionary activist and teacher of Torah – died at the age of 92. He was an inspiration to our work at Judaism Unbound in more ways than we can articulate. Even as our organization was launched when he was already in his 80s, he found so many ways to collaborate with us and offer his unique forms of Torah to our audiences. He presented at 5 consecutive S...

Should we be reviving the Nazirite vow, a practice that is typically seen as "ancient," "outdated," or "antiquated?" Might it have liberatory potential for Judaism and the world? Xava De Cordova and Michael Sokolovsky of Xai, How are You? join Lex Rofeberg and Rena Yehuda Newman of Judaism Unbound for a crossover episode about Nazirite philosophy, rabbinic agendas, the Kol Nidrei declaration, and...