Listen in as Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg analyze pressing issues for 21st century American Judaism. Mixing their own analysis with interviews of leading thinkers, practitioners, and even "regular Jews," Dan and Lex look to push past the bounds of what it means to be Jewish in the 21st century. You can support Judaism Unbound at www.JudaismUnbound.com/donate.
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In its inaugural season Tales of the Unbound follows the Jewish journey of two incarcerated individuals, their chaplain, and the community they co-created in the most unlikely of places. If we are lucky, at some point in our lives, we encounter something that radically changes the way we see and behave in the world. This podcast follows the spiritual journeys of folks who leave one way of being for another, claiming agency as they embrace revolutionary Jewish innovation. They build circles o ...
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Episode 481: Survival Guide for a Spiritual Wilderness II - Chakeh-Mah (Wait for What), with Gemara
1:00:08
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1:00:08We are proud to introduce the 3rd podcast in the Judaism Unbound family of podcasts: Survival Guide for a Spiritual Wilderness, hosted by Jericho Vincent. "We are the ancestors of the future." This new podcast offers a spiritual home for listeners seeking to connect Jewish ancestral, feminist wisdom with their own svara: moral intuition. Each episo…
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Episode 480: Judaism Shouldn't Be About Judaism - Brent Spodek
59:31
59:31
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59:31Brent Spodek, one of Newsweek's "rabbis to watch" and one of the Hudson Valley's "people to watch," joins Judaism Unbound for a conversation linking recent discussions about Israel-Palestine with an upcoming episode (featuring Tirzah Firestone) on intergenerational Jewish trauma. In it, Spodek argues that Judaism shouldn't be "about Judaism" -- but…
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Episode 479: Israel/Palestine - Looking Back, Looking Forward - Dan and Lex
54:02
54:02
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54:02Israel-Palestine, one of the world's most contentious conversations, is also (all the more so!) one of the most contentious conversations among American Jews. Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg close out their recent mini-series of episodes, exploring American-Jewish discourse about Israel-Palestine, with a discussion about Zionism and Anti-Zionism, Jew…
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Episode 478: Passover in 2025 - Marques Hollie, Daniel Spiro
1:07:42
1:07:42
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1:07:42Happy Passover! Chag Sameach! The holiday known simultaneously as Pesach (Passover), Chag HaMatzot (Matzah-Fest), Z'man Cheruteinu (Time of our freedom), and Chag Ha-Aviv (Spring/Barley-Fest) has arrived. Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg, co-hosts of Judaism Unbound, are joined by guests Daniel Spiro and Marques Hollie for a conversation that explores…
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Untangling Tselem Elohim (The Image of God) - Rafael Neis
45:44
45:44
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45:44Rafael Neis is a professor, talmudist, historian, artist, and author of When a Human Gives Birth to a Raven: Rabbis and the Reproduction of Species. They join Judaism Unbound for a conversation about why the notion of Tselem Elohim is more dangerous than it appears. They explore human exceptionalism, rabbinic texts that place humans alongside other…
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Episode 477: Israel/Palestine - V'ahavta (And you will love) - Amichai Lau-Lavie
50:31
50:31
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50:31Amichai Lau-Lavie, co-founder and spiritual leader of Lab/Shul, is a leading voice calling for compassion toward all Palestinians and all Israelis. He joins Dan and Lex for a conversation exploring how the notion of V'ahavta (and you will love) could be channeled more thoroughly in the world -- toward peace and justice for all people. They consider…
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Episode 476: Survival Guide for a Spiritual Wilderness I - Spiritual Chutzpah (with "Gemara")
58:50
58:50
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58:50We are proud to introduce the 3rd podcast in the Judaism Unbound family of podcasts: Survival Guide for a Spiritual Wilderness, hosted by Jericho Vincent. "We are the ancestors of the future." This new podcast offers a spiritual home for listeners seeking to connect Jewish ancestral, feminist wisdom with their own svara: moral intuition. Each episo…
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Episode 475: 'Zionism' and 'Anti-Zionism' -- What do they Mean? - Matthew Boxer, Janet Krasner Aronson
59:47
59:47
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59:47Matthew Boxer and Janet Krasner Aronson are both sociologists whose work focuses on American-Jewish life. They join Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg for a conversation about two studies that they've been working on, that explore the wide range of meanings that the terms "Zionism" and "Anti-Zionism" hold for American Jews. This episode is the 8th episo…
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Episode 474: Israel/Palestine - Jewish Diasporism - Alissa Wise, Andrue Kahn
1:01:07
1:01:07
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1:01:07Alissa Wise is the founder and lead organizer of Rabbis for Ceasefire. Andrue Kahn is the executive director of The American Council for Judaism. They join Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg for a conversation about the role of rabbis in this heightened political moment, the work of their two organizations, and the growing movement of Jews creating comm…
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Episode 473: Lost Jewish Books - Eva Mroczek
1:00:12
1:00:12
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1:00:12People sometimes call Jews "people of the book." And when they say that, they tend to be referring to the Bible, or the Torah (first five books of the Bible). But Eva Mroczek, the Simon and Riva Spatz Chair in Jewish Studies at Dalhousie University, thinks that Jews may actually have a relationship to far more books than we've realized -- including…
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Episode 472: Israel-Palestine -- "What You're Against" and "What You're For" - Danya Ruttenberg, Ilana Sumka
59:43
59:43
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59:43Danya Ruttenberg is an award-winning author, activist, and rabbi, whose most recent book -- On Repentance and Repair: Making Amends in an Unapologetic World -- won a National Jewish Book Award. Ilana Sumka is a nonprofit leader, experiential educator and community organizer with over 20 years of experience, who recently founded Shleimut: Jewish Pat…
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Bonus Episode: Dan & Lex on BYU Radio's In Good Faith Podcast
27:36
27:36
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27:36In October 2024, Dan and Lex participated in Elevate -- a summit for podcasters hosting shows in the realm of faith and spirituality -- to connect and collaborate with one another. The gathering took place at BYU – Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah – and was hosted by In Good Faith, a podcast produced by BYUradio. After an amazing few days at…
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Episode 471: Israel-Palestine Echo Chambers - Jay Michaelson
58:33
58:33
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58:33Jay Michaelson, an award-winning journalist, professor, rabbi, and author, joins Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg for a conversation exploring centrism and radicalism, misinformation that circulates far and wide on the topic of Israel-Palestine, and how we might strive for a better Jewish collective relationship to this important issue. This episode i…
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Episode 470: Tales of the Unbound VII - Happily Ever After?
28:06
28:06
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28:06This week, we’re bringing you an episode of another podcast in the Judaism Unbound family of podcasts -- Tales of the Unbound! In its inaugural season Tales of the Unbound follows the Jewish journey of two incarcerated individuals, their chaplain, and the community they co-created in the most unlikely of places. In Tales of the Unbound, Episode 7: …
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Episode 469: Israel/Palestine -- Discourse Online - Mira Sucharov, Joshua Shanes
54:24
54:24
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54:24Mira Sucharov is professor of Political Science at Carleton University. Joshua Shanes directs the Norman and Gerry Sue Arnold Center for Israel Studies at the College of Charleston. Together, they are the co-founders of a digital discussion group called D’rachim — a New Path Forward for Israel/Palestine. They join Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg for …
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Episode 468: Being Jewish After the Destruction of Gaza - Peter Beinart
1:06:48
1:06:48
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1:06:48Peter Beinart, a columnist and political commentator, is the author of a new book entitled Being Jewish After the Destruction of Gaza: A Reckoning. He joins Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg for a conversation exploring narratives of Jewish victimhood and survival, how Biblical texts like Joshua and Esther are mobilized in contemporary debates, and how…
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Episode 467: Israel and Palestine on Campus - Susannah Heschel
40:38
40:38
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40:38Susannah Heschel, the Eli M. Black Distinguished Professor of Jewish Studies at Dartmouth College, joins Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg for a conversation about one of the most high-intensity issues there is -- Israel-Palestine on college campuses. This episode is the second in an ongoing mini-series of podcasts exploring conversations about Israel-…
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Episode 466: Israel-Palestine in American Jewish Discourse
53:33
53:33
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53:33Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg, co-hosts of Judaism Unbound, explore one of the most contentious topics in Jewish (and broader) life today — Israel-Palestine. They ask how we can build Jewish communities that are able to support one another across difference and serve justice in our world. This episode is the first in an ongoing mini-series of podca…
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Episode 465: Jewish Ritual Lab - Vanessa Ochs
54:34
54:34
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54:34Vanessa Ochs, a scholar of Jewish ritual and the second-ever guest on Judaism Unbound way back in episode 5, makes a grand return to our podcast! She connects with Dan and Lex to discuss an upcoming UnYeshiva mini-course she's teaching, entitled Jewish Ritual Lab: Experiments in Jewish Creativity and Invention. If you love what you hear in this epi…
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Episode 464: Judeo-Futurism - Becca Leviss
57:04
57:04
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57:04Becca Leviss, currently studying at Harvard Divinity School, wants to push us beyond the Jewish "right-now" and into the Jewish "not-yet." She joins Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg for a conversation about Judeo-Futurism -- a framework she is building, and which she wants to co-create with Jews all around the world. If you love what you hear in this …
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Bonus Episode: Hanukkah 2024-25 #4 - ApocryFest Now
19:29
19:29
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19:29Lex Rofeberg and Liana Wertman (from Judaism Unbound and The Torah Studio, respectively) conclude ApocryFest 2024-25: Hanukkah Unbound and Un-Canonized. This is the 4th bonus episode in a 4-part mini-series of Judaism Unbound, exploring the topic of canon, and apocrypha, in observance of the festival of Hanukkah. In this final episode, they zoom ou…
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Bonus Episode: Hanukkah 2024-25 #3 - ApocryFest - The Letter of Aristeas
23:51
23:51
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23:51Lex Rofeberg and Liana Wertman (from Judaism Unbound and The Torah Studio, respectively) continue with their third conversation of ApocryFest 2024-25: Hanukkah Unbound and Un-Canonized -- a 4-part mini-series of Judaism Unbound. In this episode, they explore a wild text entitled The Letter of Aristeas. You can sign up for ApocryFest 2024-25 by head…
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Episode 463: Queering Theology - Brian G. Murphy, Shannon TL Kearns
59:58
59:58
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59:58Queer Theology is the longest running podcast by and for LGBTQIA+ spiritual seekers. Its two co-hosts -- Brian G. Murphy and Shannon TL Kearns -- join Judaism Unbound for an episode exploring what it means to queer theology ("queer" as a verb!). If you love what you hear, head to www.judaismunbound.com/classes and register for their upcoming (in Ja…
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Hanukkah 2024-25 #2 - ApocryFest - Joseph and Aseneth
24:22
24:22
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24:22Lex Rofeberg and Liana Wertman (from Judaism Unbound and The Torah Studio, respectively) continue with their second conversation of ApocryFest 2024-25: Hanukkah Unbound and Un-Canonized -- a 4-part mini-series of Judaism Unbound. In this episode, they explore a fascinating text called Joseph and Aseneth (and sometimes just Aseneth). You can sign up…
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Episode 462: Hanukkah 2024-25 - ApocryFest (Judith)
21:34
21:34
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21:34Lex Rofeberg and Liana Wertman (from Judaism Unbound and The Torah Studio, respectively) kick off the 2024-25 edition of ApocryFest: Hanukkah Unbound and Un-Canonized -- a 4-part mini-series of Judaism Unbound. They open up big questions about what “Jewish canon” does and doesn’t mean, why those questions are worth discussing on Hanukkah in particu…
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