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PODCAST

Ḥoni"s Circle

Tamar Libicki and Rabbi Paula Rose

Ḥoni"s Circle is a climate chevruta (partner text study), In which Rabbi Paula Rose and Tamar Libicki explore Jewish texts from the Torah, the Talmud, and Commentaries to grapple with climate change. Rabbi Paula Rose is the associate Rabbi at Congregation Beth Shalom in Seattle, Washington. This Podcast is a project of Congregation Beth Shalom and Ahavat V"Avodat HaAdama, our community"s environmental group.

religion & spirituality judaism

All Episodes

18:17

The Craving for Meat: Part Two

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2026/03/10

This week's episode is part two of a double episode exploring a text from Bamidbar about the Israelites’ intense craving for meat and the subsequent arrival of the quail. We shift our focus from the meat itself to the dynamics of leadership and community, examining how the "riffraff" or asaf-suf influenced the larger group's descent into dissatisfaction and persistent complaint, effectively undermining the leadership trying to move them toward a better future. We discuss Moses' sense of

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20:16

The Craving for Meat: Part One

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2026/02/24

This week's episode is part one of a double episode exploring a text from Bamidbar about the Israelites’ intense craving for meat and the subsequent arrival of the quail. We examine the tension between the miracle of the manna—a versatile food that nonetheless left the people feeling unsatisfied—and their nostalgic, potentially idealized memories of the diverse diet they left behind in Egypt. This narrative provides a framework to discuss the environmental impact of modern meat consumption

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20:23

The Plague of the Death of the Firstborn

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2026/02/10

In this week’s episode we conclude our Ten Plagues series with the plague of the death of the firstborn. We explore how this unprecedented disaster mirrors the modern climate crisis, where significant action is often delayed until a crisis impacts everyone with the same unavoidable universality. By comparing the sudden, collective shock of this plague to our experiences with the pandemic, we examine how upending rigid power structures and traditional leadership can make room for more

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18:56

Tu Bishvat

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2026/01/20

In this week’s episode we celebrate Tu Bishvat by exploring the Shulchan Aruch and the Pri Etz Hadar, examining how a day historically framed as a legal timekeeper and distinguished only by the omission of somber prayers is now seen as a cornerstone for modern Jewish environmentalism. We discuss how the holiday’s timing is rooted in the Gemara’s observation of accumulated rainfall, serving as a ritualized reminder of the essential role water plays in our lives and the shifting patterns of

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16:53

The Plague of Darkness

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2026/01/06

In this week’s episode we continue our Ten Plagues series with the plague of darkness. We explore the stark power imbalance in Egypt, where Pharaoh holds all the agency while his people are rendered immobile, drawing a parallel to our modern struggle where those most affected by climate change often lack the power to enact the changes that those in authority refuse to make. We look at the plague’s unique nature—though not inherently deadly, its disorienting and isolating effect move Pharaoh

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17:11

Energy Conservation in the form of the Menorah

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2025/12/22

In this week’s special Chanukah episode we study a text from the tractate Shabbat, noting how the Rabbis shift the narrative focus from military victory to the miracle of a single jar of oil lasting eight days. We explore the Menorah as a symbol of energy, drawing a parallel between the miracle of olive oil efficiency and modern technological miracles like LEDs that allow us to move away from fossil fuels. We discuss the difficulty of appreciating such slow developments, emphasizing the

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14:40

The Plague of Locusts

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2025/12/09

In this week’s episode we continue our Ten Plagues series with the plague of locusts. We observe the pivotal shift in Pharaoh’s courtiers, who finally use their proximity to power to lobby for a change in policy rather than clinging to the status quo. We analyze the unique threat of this plague—the total and permanent destruction of agriculture—and the terrifying imagery of locusts covering the ground, severing the connection between the people and the earth. This parallels the modern

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18:31

The Plague of Hail

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2025/11/25

In this week’s episode we continue our Ten Plagues series with the plague of hail. We look at the unprecedented nature of this weather event, noting how the language used in the Torah—that such hail had never occurred since Egypt became a nation—parallels modern climate news stories where extreme weather records are constantly being broken. We explore the critical role of trust during climate disasters, contrasting those who trusted the warning and took shelter with those who relied on

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16:35

Plagues of Livestock Disease and Boils

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2025/11/11

In this week’s episode we continue our Ten Plagues series with the plagues of Livestock Disease and Boils. We think about how these plagues are similar to climate related “plagues” in the present (smoke from forest fires) and in the recent past (dust pneumonia in the Dust Bowl) and the theorized link between a rise in epidemics and a warming climate. We also talk about the governmental mechanisms responding to the escalation of the plagues that feel like modern times, including

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16:29

The Plague of Lice & Arov

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2025/10/28

In this week’s episode we continue our Ten Plagues series with the plagues of lice and “arov”. We first address the ambiguity of the plague of arov, most commonly being understood as a plague of wild animals but translated by Rashi as a plague of swarms of insects. We see in arov the first time that the land of Goshen (the dwelling place of the children of Israel) was exempted from the plague. We look at these two plagues from two angles which make them similar to Climate change: climate

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17:45

Shemini Atzeret Replay: Ep. 26 - The Blessing of Rain

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2025/10/12

In this week’s Shemini Atzeret replay episode of Honi's Circle we study the Prayer for Rain, Geshem, and a supplemental piyyut (liturgical poem) by Ruth Gan Kagan that adds Miriam to the list of ancestors whose merit we call upon to be given rain for a blessing. We talk about how this ancient prayer points to the fact that humans have always understood that water is a powerful force on which our lives depend, and in the times of floods, droughts, forest fires and hurricanes, having this

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20:15

Sukkot Replay: Ep. 22 - Reconnecting with Nature as a...

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2025/10/06

In this week’s Sukkot replay episode of Honi's Circle we read a section from Nehemiah about the Jewish people returning from Babylon and celebrating their first Sukkot, according to the text, in centuries. We talk about the value of tying new rituals back to old traditions, Sukkot as a holiday that connects us to the nature around us, and needing diversity in both our ecosystems and the people that are part of the climate movement. Follow along with the source sheet here:

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17:57

Yom Kippur Replay: Ep. 24 - The Role of Forgiveness...

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2025/09/30

In this week’s pre-Yom Kippur replay episode of Honi’s Circle we study the book of Jonah, 3:6-4:4, where Jonah goes to Nineveh to proclaim the city’s destruction if they don’t repent, the city repents and is not destroyed, and Jonah gets mad. We discuss Nineveh’s amazing turnaround and what we might implement in our own lives to be able to change our own community’s habits and practices that contribute to climate change. We also discuss Jonah’s inability to forgive and how that reflects on

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16:22

The Shofar Wake-up Call

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2025/09/09

In this week’s special Elul episode, we study a text from Maimonides’ Mishneh Torah on Repentance that explores the shofar’s role as a spiritual wake-up call. We discuss how the shofar calls us to set aside our normal preoccupations with vanities and focus on what is most important in life. We see a powerful parallel in the moments of clarity within the climate movement—often sparked by climate disasters—that serve as clarion calls for us to focus on the big picture and take meaningful

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16:56

The Plague of Frogs

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2025/08/26

In this week’s episode we are on plague number two of our Ten Plagues series with the plague of frogs. We talk about how the plague of frogs can be seen in the light of air pollution, since the smell of the frogs is specifically described. We talk about how involving a strong motivation like fear of disease (frogs everywhere including places involving preparing and consuming food, or air pollution causing asthma and heart disease) can be a strong motivator for change. We also talk about how

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15:17

The Plague of Blood

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2025/07/22

In this week’s episode we kick off our Ten Plagues series with the first plague, the plague of blood, seeing how changing water availability (which climate change fundamentally does), has a cascading effect on ecosystems and agriculture. We also see the speed of human ingenuity and thus climate resilience as the Egyptians start to build wells and create our own midrash about Israelite cultural knowledge of well-building being shared in this difficult time. Follow along with the source sheet

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16:59

Food Waste

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2025/07/08

In this week’s episode we study another excerpt from Maasechet Taanit about Rav Hunah and how he would buy all the leftover vegetables from the farmer’s market on Friday afternoon and throw them in the river. This sparks a discussion about food waste, what methods we have on a large, medium, and personal scale to address food waste, including innovative selling of imperfect produce, donating food to food banks, buying only what we need, and composting and preserving. We also talk about the

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15:57

Weatherization and Incentives

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2025/06/24

In this week’s episode we look at an excerpt from Maasechet Taanit about Rav Hunah and how he would ride around in his golden carriage identifying walls that were in danger of falling, notifying the owners, and requiring the walls to be repaired, either with the owner’s money or Rav Hunah’s (if the owner couldn’t afford repairs). We talk about how this story shows an early rabbinical form of regulating buildings, but also incentivizing their upgrades, and how building weatherization and

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20:18

Prozbul

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2025/06/10

In this week’s episode (third installment in the Shmita series with guest Avi) we study another text from Mishna Sheviit talking about how Shmita, an exemplar of a traditional Jewish attitude towards the land, is also a remittance of all loans. How does a respect for the autonomy and sacredness of the land interact with our economic system? We discuss land as collateral, conflicts between helping the poor and protecting the environment, and instituting our own personal and communal

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18:23

The Corners of the Field

Ḥoni"s Circle ·

2025/05/28

In this week’s special Shavuot episode of Honi’s Circle, we study a text from Leviticus and one from Ruth—first, in Leviticus, the commandment in the Torah to set aside a corner of your field for the poor to glean from; second, the story in Ruth, seeing gleaning in action. We speak about how Shavuot is a holiday of recommitment to the Torah, embodying loving-kindness and a system of laws that ask the community to sustain those without resources, and how developing a system to recommit to

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