Xai, how are you?

Michael brings a delightful obscure little Rabbi to the pod: Elijah Benamozegh! We'll learn about his universalist vision for Judaism and the strange and beautiful connections it has to other Jewish thinkers throughout the ages. Sign up for Trancestors and Chalices here: bit.ly/shelmaalasadeh To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xa...

We've got grain on the brain! In honor of counting the omer, Xava brought a text about grain, strain, pain and...Torah. Let's see if the sages can find a healthy work/life balance. Sign up for Shel Maala at Sadeh in England here: bit.ly/shelmaalasadeh To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patreo...

A listener wrote in asking how we can mourn the lives lost in Gaza, if kaddish can be said for them, and how to grapple with the enormity of sadness in times like this. We do our very best to give at least a little bit of an answer. Sign up for Shel Maala at Sadeh in England here: bit.ly/shelmaalasadeh To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or emai...

A listener has a question about Noahidism and we've got answers! Also, the Chabad factor, alternate universes and the REAL messianic Jews. Sign up for Xava's class here: https://bit.ly/thornsinthevineyard Sign up for Shel Maala at Sadeh in England here: bit.ly/shelmaalasadeh To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.c...

We're talking about rashes, scorpions, the Leviathan, ancient Messianic political ambitions, campus protests and the power of the small. Sign up for Shel Maala at Sadeh in England here: https://bit.ly/shelmaalasadeh To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Music...

Xava brings a story of politically useful sinning, the Rashbi, a suspiciously convenient demon friend and a truly bizarre system of law abolishment. Sign up for her next class here: https://bit.ly/thornsinthevineyard To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Musi...

Michael returns us to the topic of charisma with a fascinating exploration of the holy spirit in Torah, how it appears linguistically, what kind of powers and effects it gives, and its potential pitfalls. Become a Shel Maala Member here: https://bit.ly/shelmaalajoin, Sign up for Heeling Our Soles here: https://bit.ly/heelingoursoles, Sign up for Thorns in the Vineyard here: https://bit.ly/thornsin...

We're finally answering a listener question! In this case, what's the deal with hatafam dam brit for NB and trans folks and why does it seem like we're following Shammai when the halakaha is like Hillel?! Sign up for Heeling Our Soles here: https://bit.ly/heelingoursoles To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com....

Oops! Both of us forgot who was actually supposed to prepare this episode, so enjoy this minisode about charisma, our personal issues and hints at what our next actual episode will be about. To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowar...

Author and scholar Rafael Neis joins us to talk about their book, "When a Human Gives Birth to a Raven: Rabbis and the Reproduction of Species", featuring a riveting discussion of furries, gender, what happens if your brother is a bird, gay demon divorce and much more! Keep up with them on insta @postrafelite and on their website at https://rachelrafaelneis.com. To ask us questions, text or leaves...

Michael brings a bounty of sources from Talmud to Kabbalah to Xasidut on anger and what the Rabbis say we should do about it (but often don't do themselves). To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by...

Part 2 of Xava's spontaneous series on foxes! Featured are Babylonian pedagogy, greedy wolves, overzealous interpretation and selfishness in the Rabbinate. Sign up for Sacred Wiggles here: https://bit.ly/sacredwiggles To ask us questions, text or leave us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Foll...

Michael has brought us some luscious Xasidic and Kabbalaistic wisdom on the soul, two major Jewish holidays and the extremes of human experience. Sign up for Building Our Brakhas here: bit.ly/3IsrEBj Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on...

Something's fishy as frenemy of the pod Rabbi Akiva returns with a parable about a fox...maybe the start of a fox series? We'll see! Also featuring: love of Torah and struggling with loving Judaism. Sign up for Sacred Wiggles at https://bit.ly/3IsrEBj Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Support us o...

Michael continues his archaeology rampage with some tales and tidbits about burial practices in the first century, which sheds some light on social structures, Jewish denominations in the time and collaborative funeral cookouts. Sign up for Building Our Brakhas here: bit.ly/buildingbrakhas Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619...

Xava brings a source sheet from friend of the pod Olivia Devorah Tucker about bodies, fluids, clay and the strange ways they mix. Sign up for Building Our Brakhas here: https://bit.ly/buildingbrakhas Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on...

Michael has brought our very first archaeology episode, in which we learn about the cultural significance of frittatas in the first century CE, ceramic studio pop ups and pre-revolt material culture. Sign up for Building Our Brakhas Here: https://bit.ly/3wgc215 Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Su...

Xava brings us a (maybe) allegorical story about conquest, revenge, bloodshed and breaking cycles of violence. Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowareyou and @miss_figured. Music by Ben Schreiber.

Michael brings us a sugye exploring the restrictions and stigma surrounding an "am ha'aretz", plus some historical speculation and context about how that role has shifted over time. Listen to Sam's 2023 Year in Review episode here: https://soundcloud.com/historiansplaining/2023-in-historical-context-dividing-the-harvest. Sign up for The Priests Eat at Midnight here: https://bit.ly/TPEAM Visit our...

Finally, part 2 of the TOS series is here! We're discussing the trends in computing that inspired Terry, the meaning of mysticism and the modern in spiritual thought along with friend of the pod, Sam! Sign up for The Priests Eat at Midnight here: https://bit.ly/TPEAM To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Supp...

We all know how the story of Shimon Bar Yoxai ends, right? Right? Wrong, turns out there's agricultural infrastructure projects, moral backsliding, secret sex work detail and edible flowers left to discover. Sign up for The Priests Eat at Midnight here: https://bit.ly/TPEAM To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.co...

Michael is bringing two tasty listener queries this week that get us talking about the first cis nonbinary person in history, as well as fairies, tree antics and the mouth in the earth. Sign up for Who Created These here: https://bit.ly/whocreatedthese To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on patre...

Xava's brought a big long daf with 9 headed demons, bad father son relationships, arrogance, punishment, gay content and everything else you could possibly want in a few short paragraphs. Sign up for Who Created These here: https://bit.ly/whocreatedthese To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gmail.com. Support us on pat...

Continuing our theme of continuing our theme, this week Michael helps us explore the legacy, vibes and snappy one liners of the Kotzker Rebbe, a famed purveyor of misanthropy and shower thoughts. Sign up for Who Created These here: https://bit.ly/whocreatedthese Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. S...

Michael brings some deep lore on the 4 branched shin, the new Torah, the World to Come and our eventual dinner of mythical creatures. Sign up for Divine Decay here: bit.ly/divinedecay Visit our website to ask us questions at xaihowareyou.com and call or Text the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 and leave us a voicemail. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Follow us on twitter @xaihowa...