Not That Kind of Rabbi

Michael Coren has lived many lives. Born to a Jewish cab driver in England, Coren converted to Catholocism in the 1980s, then Evangelicalism in the '90s; he grew into a bombastic right-wing Christian talk radio and TV personality with shows on the Sun News Network and the Crossroads Television System; then he came back to embrace the Catholic Church, before finally leaving again to become not...

Both of Eva Almos's parents were Holocaust survivors. Her mother, from Lithuania, was a kind and gentle soul who went out of her way to uplift strangers and support her daughter. But her father was the opposite: a traditional Greek man with chauvinist ideas who was hardened by the horrors of the Holocaust. The duality sent Almos into therapy, where she spent years trying to piece herself toget...

In the aftermath of Oct. 7, Jesse Brown—who has risen to prominence as a media critic and muckraker with his Canadaland podcast and digital media company—once again stirred up controversy online. But it wasn't a big news investigation that sparked outrage; it was a series of posts about antisemitic attacks on Canadian Jewish-aligned institutions, from synagogues and community centres to bookst...

When Rabbi Victor Gross was looking for a home to grow his congregation in Boulder, CO, he knew he didn't want a dedicated building. It wasn't just the cost, but the environmental impact of operating a space that's only used a few hours a week. Instead, he looked for a church to rent out Friday evenings and Saturday mornings. He asked church leaders two questions: Was the church open a...

While Israel remains on the brink of war with Lebanon in the north, one of the country's most iconic sites—the famous Baha'i Gardens and shrine—sit less than an hour away. That a religion based on unity among humankind, which views all religions and tribes as branches from the same tree, should have its headquarters so close to a warzone is tragically ironic. The irony is not lost on Mary...

Bernie Farber helped create the Canadian Anti-Hate Network (CAHN) in 2018, and sat as its founding chair until shortly after Oct. 7, 2023. The organization—which investigates, publicizes and works with journalists to report on hateful far-right extremist groups—was infamously silent in the weeks following the Hamas slaughter and kidnapping of 1,200 people in Israel, which sparked waves of antisemi...

In 2018, at a time when the faith beat in Canadian newspapers was steadily declining, John Longhurst made an unusual deal with the publisher of the Winnipeg Free Press . He wanted to help expand the paper's audience by reporting on religion, particularly within local communities: Mennonite, Indigenous, Catholic, Muslim, Jewish, whomever. The publisher thought it was a nice idea, but how would...

Rabbi Beni Wajnberg has worked in Brazil, Argentina, Singapore, New York, Tennessee, California, Montana and beyond. When it came down to settle down with his family and put down roots, he chose Hamilton, Ont., where he's now the spiritual leader at Beth Jacob Synagogue. Throughout his travels, he's found that one thing connects all those far-flung places' Jewish communities: they'...

Marsha Lederman is a catastrophizer. As the daughter of Holocaust survivors, the author and Globe and Mail columnist has gone through life worrying about everything that can go wrong, to the point that she wrote a book about things going wrong in her life. Kiss the Red Stairs , released August 2023, investigates the ramifications of intergenerational trauma as she navigates her own divorce while r...

You may not think of keeping Shabbat as environmental activism—but Jonathan Schorsch does. The founder of the Green Sabbath Project is on a mission to tackle climate change by adapting the biblical Jewish practice into something universally good for our planet. After all, in the Venn diagram of environmentalism and observant Judaism, "Not driving one day a week" falls right in the middle...

Alan Zweig was on the road to becoming, like so many other midtown Toronto Jews, a lawyer. Instead, in his early 20s, he zigzagged off the course and wound up taking multiple lengthy trips to India, changing his perspective on life and work. He chose film school instead, propelling him into a decades-long documentary career that began all those years ago with semi-verité shorts made with his frien...

Toby Lloyd didn't grow up religious. But the British Jewish author became fascinated with Orthodoxy—how different people, even in the same family, can interpret biblical texts as either literal or metaphorical. Wanting to tap into the meaning and effects of people's belief systems, as well as reinterpreting stories from the Torah and wrapping it in the guise of horror, Lloyd wrote his debu...

Diane Flacks has always felt the power of Jewish guilt. But when when she decided she wanted a divorce, that guilt grew to a whole new level. She constantly questioned the process, even while she was going through it, thinking about whether it was the right move or not. To process these thoughts and emotions, the theatre artist decided to transform this experience into her latest one-woman show, G...

Last month, the flagship Yuk Yuk's location in downtown Toronto hosted a stand-up comedy fundraiser for Friends of the Israel Defense Forces. Predictably, anti-Israel protesters swarmed it . The club's founder and owner, Mark Breslin—who organized the event—tried to get in through a back entrance, only to find more protesters waiting there for him and his family. Through cries of "Bab...

The climate crisis is the fault of no single person or country, but rather a widespread ideology of materialism and overwhelming lack of compassion for the natural world. What's worse—the crisis is intensifying each year. These are some of the themes espoused by Rabbi Yonatan Neril, the founder and director of the Interfaith Center for Sustainable Development in Jerusalem, and the author of th...

If you're feeling anxious and afraid, you should know: you're not alone. Tensions are high everywhere across the Jewish community right now as Hamas and Israel engage in a violent war with ramifications across the world. But instead of doom-scrolling social media, finding horrible images and hate-filled comments, it's important to find time to step back—far away from social media—and a...

Many lifetimes ago I was a stand-up comic. There were a lot of great comics that started with me back then. Way funnier too. One was Lawrence Morgenstern. He loved the craft and put his heart and soul into it Lawrence passed away a little while ago . This time on NTKR I speak with his longtime partner Rosalynne Gelade as we swap stories about one very funny gentle giant.

Two of the top three Jewish holidays are about to happen. Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah and the day of atonement, Yom Kippur. They are referred to as the days of awe. Or, if you're fasting on Kippur for 25 hours with no food, water, cars, cell phones or even sex, then for some it's the days of awww. Avrum and I will talk High Holidays and what they mean to us on this edition of Not That Kind of R...

This time on Not That Kind of Rabbi we begin a new chapter by welcoming friend ad wise person, Avrum Rosensweig to the podcast. We'll talk about God, the journey to and away from that G word and why Avrum threw out his yellow suede shoes.

This time on Not That Kind of Rabbi it's the Passover edition. I'm joined by one of Toronto's Rabbinic brightest lights. Rabbi Aaron Levy from Makom Creative Downtown Judaism. We talk freedom, slavery and what the heck the Passover meal (Seder) is really all about. We start by showing Charlton Heston (Moses) the door.

Brian Fraser is many things. A Minister, organizational development wizard, runner and tying it all together, a jazz lover. We talk about the whole darn mess in a jazzy kinda way on this episode of Not That Kind of Rabbi.

When I first saw Jeremy Hotz do stand-up, he looked nervous, very nervous. Turns out in the end he has extreme anxiety disorder, oh and he's very funny. After 30 years it's so great to reconnect.

Lara Rae is a comedian. A very good one. Lara Rae is Trans and a comedian. Lara Rae is deeply spiritual, Trans and a comedian. She is also someone I have had the pleasure of knowing for a very long time. Thing is, it's been years since we've had a chance to come together. Well, the time has come. Listen and enjoy.

Jaffa Road is a street name in Israel. It also happens to be the name of a wonderful group of musicians who bring elements of middle eastern, south asian and yes, even jazz together to make a wonderful soulful stew. They have a new album, Until When. I speak with Aaron Lightstone, the band leader, and we play some of this soulful music.

My dad used to love pointing at the TV when I was a kid when someone would appear and declare, "He'/She's Jewish. Most of the time he was right. But now a new book, Under The Radar, tells us about 30 Canadian artists who were.