Kol Hadash Humanistic Congregation Podcasts

Israel is simultaneously one of the most inspirational and challenging elements of our curriculum. We are inspired by the achievements of secular Jews: a Jewish state, a revived secular Hebrew language and culture, a new ethos of self-confident Judaism. But the challenges of war and peace, religion and government remain. This topic is taught in 7th/8th grade. [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast di...

Shabbat Sermon: Many animals besides humans demonstrate generosity for the good of the colony or the herd. But human generosity can help individuals and communities that have little survival value for ourselves. From where does this impulse spring, and how can it be taken too far? What is the right balance of giving to others and strengthening ourselves? [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast directl...

In 2004, Kol Hadash hired Rabbi Adam Chalom as our full-time cultural and philosophic guide. Rabbi Chalom immediately used his energy, talents and good humor to move our congregation forward into our second stage. In this retrospective, Rabbi Chalom's inaugural address to the congregation is featured. [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes. [ RSS MP3 ] Add the Kol Hadash Podcast fe...

The history of American Jews is changing. The immigrant experience is fading, and new challenges and dynamics are more intriguing. How have we negotiated multiple identities? What have been our successes and failures? An important part of knowing who we are is discovering how we came to be. [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes. [ RSS MP3 ] Add the Kol Hadash Podcast feed (in MP3...

In December of 1910, the first ethnic (secular) Jewish school opened in New York City. One hundred years later, we are the heirs not only to traditional Jewish culture, but also specifically the secular and sometimes radical innovations of our precursors in cultural Judaism. What can we glean from this legacy? [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes. [ RSS MP3 ] Add the Kol Hadash P...

Education has always been central to Judaism. Explore how teachers are part of that core and how a good teacher is defined. [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes. [ RSS MP3 ] Add the Kol Hadash Podcast feed (in MP3 format) Download the podcast Listen (MP3) Listen (AAC)

Aaron Elster is a child survivor of the Holocaust. He was born in 1933 in the small northeastern village of Sokolow, Podlaski in Poland. Aaron lived in the Sokolow Ghetto with his two sisters, mother and father until the liquidation of the ghetto in September, 1942. He escaped the liquidation and hid in the surrounding forests and farms. Eventually, Aaron found refuge in the attic of a Polish fami...

Rabbi Chalom explores in further detail the institution of the synagogue by looking towards the future and theorizing the role it will play in modern Jewish life. [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes. [ RSS MP3 ] Add the Kol Hadash Podcast feed (in MP3 format) Download the podcast Listen (MP3) Listen (AAC)

On March 31, 2011, Rabbi Chalom visited Georgetown University and answered the question of "What is Secular Humanistic Judaism?". We hope you enjoy this bonus edition of the Kol Hadash podcast. [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes. [ RSS MP3 ] Add the Kol Hadash Podcast feed (in MP3 format) Download the podcast Listen (MP3)

Sunday School Guest Speaker Marguerite tells her story to the 7th/8th grade class of growing up in Nazi occupied Belgium. During WWII, Mishkin and her sister Annette were placed under the care of a Belgian Catholic family in 1943 following the death of her father in the Auschwitz concentration camp in 1942. Her mother was able to bring the two girls to safety through the help of the Belgian Resist...

The central Jewish institution for the past 2000 years has not been a house of God; it has been a house of meeting (beit knesset, or “synagogue”). The synagogue has enabled a dispersed nation to survive, and even to thrive, in very diverse circumstances and surroundings. Discover what the origins of the synagogue can teach us about its current challenges and its future. [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the...

Sunday School for Adults. When we only have our students for a few hours a week, why do we spend their precious time learning about other religious beliefs and traditions? Because the more we know about other visions of reality and the good life, the stronger our choices will become. The secret of a Humanistic Jewish education is, that in the end, your life and your beliefs are your own. [ iTunes...

Rabbi Chalom reviews Start-Up Nation: The Story of Israel’s Economic Miracle. This book is a fascinating view of Israeli society and culture and what made it one of the world’s leaders in high-tech industry and creativity. [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes. [ RSS MP3 ] Add the Kol Hadash Podcast feed (in MP3 format) Download the podcast Listen (MP3) Listen (AAC)

Rabbi Chalom discusses the political climate in America and analyzes the most recent election results. [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes. [ RSS MP3 ] Add the Kol Hadash Podcast feed (in MP3 format) Download the podcast Listen (MP3) Listen (AAC)

Sunday School for Adults. In our 4th/5th-grade Sunday School class, our students begin discovering who they are (and want to become) by exploring the concepts of heroes. Drawing on myth, movies, literature and history, these examples open up conversations of dignity, identity, and choice. These questions remain relevant our entire lives. [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes. [ RS...

Shabbat Service. Jewish communities have bemoaned intermarriage for generations, and it still happens to Jewish families of all affiliations because love has a way of breaking down barriers in a free society. Is it time for new, more welcoming answers to Jews who fall in love with "the other?" And how can this improve Jewish prospects for the future? [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in...

Shabbat Service. Recorded on 10/29/2010. Available at Amazon.com - Jews and the Muslim World: Solving the Puzzle Three years ago, in the aftermath of the death of Humanistic Judaism founder Rabbi Sherwin Wine, the International Institute for Secular Humanistic Judaism held its Colloquium program under the leadership of newly-appointed Dean for North America, Rabbi Adam Chalom. Now the selected pro...

Yom Kippur Memorial Service. Recorded on 9/18/2010. Hope: Grief is a part of life. Those who love, will lose. We seek love, nurture children and work for a better world because of hope. Those who gave us life and love have proven the power of hope through their example. [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes. [ RSS MP3 ] Add the Kol Hadash Podcast feed (in MP3 format) Download the...

Yom Kippur Morning Service. Recorded on 9/18/2010. Balance: We face many desires, demands and priorities. What we need above all is our sense of self amid the pushes and pulls of life. To maintain composure, find integrity and live with dignity, we seek balance. [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes. [ RSS MP3 ] Add the Kol Hadash Podcast feed (in MP3 format) Download the podcast...

Yom Kippur Evening Service. Recorded on 9/17/2010. Recorded on 9/17/2010. Beauty: Imagination and the quest for beauty are essentially human -- and necessary for the good life. Finding beauty in nature and in human creativity not only pleases the senses; it attunes us to seek beauty in human interactions. Aesthetics and ethics inspire each other. Subscribe to the podcast [ iTunes ] Subscribe to th...

Rosh Hashana Morning Service. Recorded on 9/9/2010. Joy - There is no substitute for happiness. Without the energy, enthusiasm and satisfaction that joy brings to our existence, no amount of concentration and effort can significantly transform our existence. Subscribe to the podcast [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes. [ RSS MP3 ] Add the Kol Hadash Podcast feed (in MP3 format)...

Rosh Hashana Evening Service. Recorded on 9/8/2010. Purpose - A life without meaning is difficult. That is why we must seek purpose through our choices and actions. No outside authority will tell us what to do -- we are condemned, and liberated, to define a life worth living for ourselves. Subscribe to the podcast [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes. [ RSS MP3 ] Add the Kol Hada...