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Orthodox Conundrum

The Orthodox Conundrum is a forum in which we look honestly at the Orthodox Jewish community, identifying what works well and what does not, so that, through an honest accounting, we can find solutions that will be successful. We will examine some of the major issues that affect the Orthodox world, without exaggeration, whitewashing, or pretending that they don"t exist. Our hope is that the Orthodox Conundrum will spark wider discussion that will enable Orthodox Judaism to continue moving forward

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All Episodes

32:41

The Ceasefire: What It Means, Who Benefits, and What...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2025/01/16

With the news that Israel and Hamas have agreed to a ceasefire deal, Scott spoke to counterterrorism and intelligence expert Dr. Matthew Levitt to learn what the ceasefire entails, in what ways this falls short of Prime Minister Netanyahu's insistence upon total victory, how victory should be defined, why this ceasefire is happening now, whether Hamas is deterred, the the possibility of another October 7th taking place, what happens if a power vacuum forms in Gaza, the future of Palestinian

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01:10:13

Do You Care Enough About Israel? (And Do Israelis...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2025/01/13

Do Jews outside of Israel care enough about Israel? This is a loaded and perhaps unfair question. How could anyone make that determination? Nevertheless, it’s something I’ve been grappling with for some time, and I decided to pose this question on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook. Many people commented, both on the group and in private communications. And today's episode confronts that question directly through a panel discussion with Israel-engaged individuals in both Israel and

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01:29:31

Downplaying Sexual Abuse, and Writing to a Judge to...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2025/01/06

This episode of the Orthodox Conundrum discusses sexual abuse and child sexual abuse material. Listener discretion is advised. Sexual abuse is a problem everywhere, and the Orthodox community is no exception. While there unquestionably is more awareness of the problem today than there was in the past, there is still a long way to go before we can be proud of our record. One of the ongoing and very upsetting issues is when people in power cover up and downplay sexual abuse perpetrated by people whom

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01:04:59

“The Torah is Hospitalized and in Bandages” - The...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2024/12/30

We live in times in which, I believe, we in the Orthodox world need to open ourselves to new ideas and new thinking that will help enhance our love and appreciation for God and His Torah. Maybe the best example of a contemporary thinker who has opened the doors of perception while remaining fully committed to Torah, halacha, the Jewish people and the Land of Israel is Rabbi Shimon Gershon Rosenberg, colloquially known as Rav Shagar. I spoke with Rabbis Zachary Truboff and Yehoshua Engelman about Rav

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01:10:31

Children Under the Radar: A Live Orthodox Conundrum...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2024/12/23

An almost insidious problem that affects so many kids is being “under the radar”... that is, they’re generally ignored in school, camp, or other social settings by the teachers or group leaders because they’re doing “fine” - and I use that word advisedly. He or she is not the class genius, not the kid who asks questions, not the troublemaker, not the class clown. I’m talking about kids who likely have so much more to offer, but are never given that opportunity when the people who should inspire them

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51:50

It's Time for a Jewish Middle Earth: Cultivating...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2024/12/16

Is Jewish education too focused upon a rationalist and scientific worldview, such that we sometimes don’t leave enough room for the imagination? I think that this may be true for large segments of the Orthodox world, particularly among the Modern Orthodox population. While we dare not undermine the great advances that our scientific worldview has given humanity, an overemphasis on rationality can also eliminate wonder and mystery from our understanding of the universe - and that can undermine our

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01:12:26

Inviting God Into Partnership: Finding Resilience...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2024/12/09

While the Jewish people, and all people of good will, continue to face deep uncertainty about what’s happening in Israel and around the world - as I record this on Sunday afternoon, we are just beginning to process the end of Assad’s rule in Syria and trying to figure out if it’s a net positive or negative for democratic countries in general and Israel in particular - we all are in some ways looking for sources of resilience. What are the ways that we can move forward and figure out our roles, while

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01:21:20

'Tis the Season to Spend Lavishly: Confronting the...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2024/12/02

"Anything is permitted, as long as it's for a mitzvah." Really? We live in a world where consumerism and materialism are not only dominant themes of everyday life, but also positive values in their own right. It’s disturbing that the Orthodox Jewish community is not at all immune to this influence; in fact, many sub-communities within the Orthodox world revel in materialism to the point that any argument that an overemphasis on materialism is not in line with Torah values would likely be met with

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01:07:33

Hope, Gratitude, and Faith in a Time of Anxiety,...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2024/11/25

Every time I speak with Dr. Erica Brown, I come away enriched by her deep thinking and religious and emotional sensitivity. And this conversation, which delves into psychological and theological questions surrounding anxiety, hope, gratitude, and faith, may be our most memorable discussion yet. The Thanksgiving holiday takes place later this week in the United States; three days later, Erica’s newest book, Morning has Broken: Faith After October 7th, will be released. Those two events, along with

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01:03:11

"Just Because It Didn't Happen, Doesn't Mean It Isn't...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2024/11/18

There was a time not long ago when aggadah - which, broadly speaking, refers to the non-legal passages in the Talmud - was largely ignored; students studying in yeshiva would run through these texts quickly, if at all, using almost all of their mental energy and time thinking through the halachic, or legal passages of the Gemara. While that was likely a successful methodology for most Talmud students in the past, we have witnessed in the 20th and 21st centuries a renewed emphasis on aggadah; and

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42:12

Chareidi Political Influence in Jewish Life, and Why...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2024/11/11

Over the past two weeks, there has been increasing conversation in Israel among the Religious Zionist community about the continued refusal of many ultra-Orthodox Jews to consider enlisting in the Israeli army. Many of us have been discussing this issue for months or years; but it came to a head in the past couple of weeks largely because of the attempt by the Chareidi political parties in the Knesset to enshrine this exemption through legislation. The most recent attempt was the so-called Daycare

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01:17:04

Why Orthodox Jews Should Vote for Trump... Why...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2024/11/04

With the United States presidential election only hours away, I wanted to offer a supporter of each major presidential candidate the opportunity to explain why Jews in general, and Orthodox Jews in particular, would be better off supporting either Donald Trump or Kamala Harris for president. To that end, I invited two politically involved Orthodox rabbis, Rabbi Pesach Wolicki and Rabbi Benjamin Kelsen, to explain why you should give your vote to their candidate. This is not a debate; I spoke to

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01:14:51

The Biggest Desecration of God's Name (224)

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2024/10/28

Today I’m talking about something that I’ve spoken about before, repeatedly, both on this podcast and on my Substack, Orthodox Conundrum Commentary: the problem of a large number of Chareidi, or ultra-Orthodox Jews, who receive army exemptions, usually (though not always) because they’re learning in yeshivot. Why am I talking about this again? Haven't we dealt with this issue too many times already? No. There's more to say, and there's good reason to say it. I think that this issue represents, in a

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01:00:14

Biblical Criticism, Academic Bible Study, and...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2024/10/14

As we complete our seventh season of the Orthodox Conundrum, we're pleased to present a classic episode from three years ago, in which Professor Joshua Berman of Bar Ilan University discusses academic Bible study, Biblical criticism, and Orthodox Judaism. It was a very interesting episode, which raised crucial questions that Orthodox Jews need to confront, as well as suggestions of how we should do so effectively. Because we soon complete the annual cycle of Torah readings and begin again in less

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48:53

The Day That Never Ended... And What We Can Learn...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2024/10/07

"Today marks one year since one of the worst days of all of our lives, October 7th. I actually was unsure of how to record an appropriate episode; what, exactly, could I add to the conversation? What is there to say that hasn’t yet been said? And how can I relate it to the season in which we find ourselves, right in between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur?" Fortunately, Scott was joined by the outstanding rav of his shul in Ramat Beit Shemesh, Rav Chayim Soloveichik, who provided insights and guidance

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49:19

Gavriel Bloom z"l: A Hero in a Land of Heroes (222)

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2024/09/30

Later this week we will celebrate Rosh Hashanah, also known as the Day of Remembrance, Yom HaZikaron. According to Chazal, Hashem (so to speak) remembers us on this day for the good… and we, too, should look at those people who set sterling examples for us over the past year, and try to learn from their deeply meaningful lives. One of those people whose life was exemplary was Gavriel Bloom, zichrono livracha. Gavriel was killed on January 8th during a mission in central Gaza. He was the second of

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01:08:11

Reorganizing the Letters of Reality: A Mystical and...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2024/09/22

One of the beautiful aspects of Torah Judaism is its insistence on eilu v’eilu divrei Elokim chayim - that two different and even potentially contradictory approaches can both represent the words of the living God. Opening our minds to differing ways of seeing Torah - that, in the words of many ancient texts, there are seventy facets to the Torah, and accordingly endless ways of explaining its ideas - is not merely a theological truth, but also a mandate. By accepting that, in the words of Rav

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01:09:33

How Does Prayer Work? A Rationalist Approach to...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2024/09/16

We stand in the middle of the month of Elul, and are moving quickly towards Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur - days largely spent in the synagogue in prayer. Throughout those days as well as the rest of the Ten Days of Repentance, we ask that God grant us a year of life, goodness, and peace. While we have so much to be thankful for, we may be forgiven for looking at the past year - and the prayers we offered last Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur - and wondering if our prayers failed. We may even wonder what

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51:04

"The Gamblification of Everything" - Gambling,...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2024/09/09

Many people often talk about addiction and dependence; and in doing so, they may use those terms inexactly. When it comes to gambling, however, those words are, unfortunately, correct. Problem gambling is a growing problem in the United States - particularly online gambling, which has been growing exponentially since the Supreme Court decided, in 2018, that the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act violated the Tenth Amendment of the Constitution. This in turn meant that states, rather than

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01:02:47

Teaching Our Students to be Zionists Rather than...

Orthodox Conundrum ·

2024/09/03

Scott recorded this interview with Dr. Noam Weissman on Monday afternoon, the day after we learned about the terrible execution of six hostages soon before they were discovered by the IDF, presumably in order to make sure that they did not make it back home alive. And today, Hamas continued its psychological torture by saying that it will release video of these six victims. The pure, unbridled evil implicit in these acts and so many others is a reminder of the existential battle that Israel is

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298 results

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