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PODCAST

Martini Judaism

Religion News Service

For those who want to be shaken and stirred. Join one of American Judaism’s most prolific thought leaders and his special guests as they talk about the current state of Judaism, American culture, politics, religion, and spirituality.

religion & spirituality judaism

All Episodes

48:14

Antisemitism Is as American as Apple Pie + Pamela Nadell

Martini Judaism ·

2025/10/30

Historian Pamela Nadell joins us to confront an unsettling truth: antisemitism didn’t come to America—it was born here. In her powerful new book, Antisemitism: An American Tradition, Nadell traces how hatred of Jews took root in the New World, evolved with the nation itself, and continues to shape our politics, culture, and conscience.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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47:08

How do you go from hatred to hope? + Arno Michaelis

Martini Judaism ·

2025/09/29

The Days of Awe are upon us. They always hit me with a familiar, bracing urgency: Look at your life. Consider your words, your choices. Where have you failed? Whom have you harmed? What will it take to begin again?If we’re honest, most of us spend these days trying to clean up the usual messes: the casual slight, the simmering resentment, the careless word that cut deeper than we knew. We rehearse our regrets, and we whisper our promises to do better. But once in a while, a life comes along that

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50:17

The book every Jew should read before the High Holy Days

Martini Judaism ·

2025/09/10

Former Obama speechwriter Sarah Hurwitz on faith, identity, and resilience.What happens when a White House insider turns her attention to Jewish wisdom, identity, and survival in a turbulent age? Rabbi Jeff Salkin sits down with Sarah Hurwitz—former speechwriter for President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, and author of Here All Along and As a Jew—for a conversation that is sharp, soulful, and deeply relevant. Together they explore the challenges of antisemitism on campus, the tug-of-war

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55:03

The Scopes "monkey" trial has not adjourned

Martini Judaism ·

2025/07/09

What if everything you think you know about the Scopes “Monkey Trial” is—well, a little off? Jeff Salkin sits down with Doug Mishkin—lawyer, singer-songwriter, and amateur Scopes trial historian—for a deep dive into Inherit the Wind, the 1960 Hollywood classic that shaped generations of assumptions about religion and science.They explore what the film gets right, what it gets deeply wrong, and what the real Clarence Darrow, William Jennings Bryan, and John Scopes might say about today’s culture

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12:52

'Have you changed your mind about President Trump?'

Martini Judaism ·

2025/06/25

The late Arthur Hertzberg was one of American Judaism’s greatest rabbis and intellectual leaders.But he did not start out that way. More than 70 years ago, he was a rabbinical student at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. One of his teachers was Mordecai Kaplan, one of American Judaism’s most seminal thinkers and rabbis, and the founder of the Reconstructionist movement. The day came for young Arthur to deliver a trial sermon before the student body and the faculty. Afterward, Rabbi

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55:34

Why Southern Judaism Matters - with Shari Rabin

Martini Judaism ·

2025/05/26

As we mark Jewish Heritage Month, how do we embrace the heritage of Southern Jews?Ask Shari Rabin, one of the rising stars of Jewish studies in America. She is associate professor of Jewish studies, religion, and history and chair of Jewish studies at Oberlin College. This "born-in-Milwaukee-moved-to-Atlanta-after-her-bat-mitzvah" woman has just written a new book -- "The Jewish South: An American History." I could not put it down, and you will love our conversation.

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61:09

When Did October 7 Really Begin? A Conversation With...

Martini Judaism ·

2025/04/29

Trigger warning: this episode contains references to sexual violence.October 7 reminds Jews of what happened in Hebron on August 24, 1929. In her book "Ghosts of a Holy War: The 1929 Massacre in Palestine That Ignited the Arab-Israeli Conflict," Yardena writes: On that morning, 3,000 Muslim men armed with swords, axes, and daggers marched through the Jewish Quarter of Hebron. They went from house to house, raping, stabbing, torturing, and in some cases castrating and burning alive their unarmed

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56:19

Why Pope Francis mattered for the Jews

Martini Judaism ·

2025/04/23

Why does the death of the Pope touch me, as a Jew? I cannot think of a Pope who had the depth of relationships with the Jewish community as this Pope had enjoyed. As Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, he had a close working relationship with the Argentinian Jewish community. His response to the 1994 bombing of the AMIA center in Buenos Aires -- until 2001, the most lethal terrorist attack in the Western Hemisphere -- was notable for its compassion. He had visited synagogues in Argentina. Moreover,

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55:42

The cafeteria approach to religion isn't only for...

Martini Judaism ·

2025/03/25

I was talking with a Roman Catholic-raised friend who no longer practices the religion of his youth. At a certain point in the conversation, he snorted about "cafeteria Catholics," which sardonically describes those who adhere to parts of Catholic teachings or practice certain rituals, but dissent from others.It made me realize I am a "cafeteria Jew." Which brings me to Kate Mishkin, the creator of a compelling podcast with an enviable pun as its title, "Shofar, So Good." In her podcast, she

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56:03

Vanessa Hidary is a "bad Jew." That's OK with her.

Martini Judaism ·

2025/03/11

My friend, Vanessa Hidary.Vanessa Hidary is a cool person. She is a spoken word artist, an educator, and an advocate. She is a trail-blazer. Her work has had a profound impact on both the Jewish community and beyond. Recently, the ADL honored her as a "Hero Against Hate." Vanessa embodies the bravery of Queen Esther, the pride of Mordecai, and a little bit of Vashti's attitude thrown in for good measure. She is a one woman megillah. How did we first meet? We were at a Jewish conference together –

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62:21

Do Jews have dual loyalty?

Martini Judaism ·

2025/02/24

What do Batman and Superman have to do with Jewish identity?Other than the fact that their creators were Jews: Batman by Bob Kane, and Superman by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster? It is more than that. It is about having multiple identities. About a decade ago, I interviewed for a rabbinical position. A past president of the synagogue asked: "Rabbi, are you a Jew first, or an American?” This was my answer. "With all due respect: If that question could wear clothing, it would be a Nehru jacket. It

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54:43

When are we allowed to yell at God?

Martini Judaism ·

2025/02/03

"If God lived in our neighborhood, we'd throw stones through His [sic] windows."I do not know who originally said that, though I think that the original was in Yiddish. But, it's true. And, if you were to ask me whether Jewish worship has a "design flaw," I would say that this is it: almost nowhere in our services do we get to yell at God, and to protest God's actions and in-actions. We want our worship experiences to be uplifting and inspirational. But, we are missing out on the emotional richness

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13:17

Bishop Budde was speaking Hebrew

Martini Judaism ·

2025/01/31

Remember the 10th commandment?"Thou shalt not covet"? This past week, many preachers violated that commandment. They were coveting the sermon Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde delivered at the National Cathedral during a service the day after President Donald Trump's inauguration, in which she pleaded with Trump to show mercy to the most vulnerable among us. (Speaking Jewish right now: If I had been blessed with the opportunity to address the president, I would not have used the word "mercy." I would have

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53:38

Amy Spitalnick: How Dangerous is Christian Nationalism?

Martini Judaism ·

2025/01/15

It happened exactly four years ago.I am speaking of January 6, 2021 -- the attack on the US Capitol Building by supporters of Donald Trump – claiming that President Biden had stolen the election. It was, to quote Bill Kristol, our national day of shame. It was, to borrow FDR’s iconic phrase, a day that will live in infamy. There were many things that we cannot unsee, and that we cannot unhear. Among the rioters that stormed the Senate chamber was a man who provided us with one of the most memorable

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54:42

Remembering David Ellenson

Martini Judaism ·

2024/12/19

Last week, we observed the first yahrzeit (anniversary of a death) of Dr. David Ellenson -- past president of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, past provost of that institution, a professor at that institution for a generation – a teacher, a theologian, a historian of Jewish ideas, a world class thinker. Someone said that “David was always the smartest person in the room, and he never let you remember that.”If you could look up the word mensch in a dictionary, you would see David's

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55:39

Are Jews God-phobic? With Arnold Eisen

Martini Judaism ·

2024/12/11

If you encounter someone who wants to talk about God, odds are that person isn't Jewish. Why?I am talking to a friend of mine about his experience on various dating sites. He tells me that from time to time, he will come across a profile that seems promising. And then, right there in the first paragraph, the woman will write: “Must love God.” As he scrolls down a little further, he sees that she is a Christian – and that she inevitably describes her politics as “conservative.” “I don’t get it,” he

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52:44

The Election and the Jews

Martini Judaism ·

2024/11/20

Rabbi Jeff Salkin sits down with Rabbi Jonah Pesner, one of American Judaism's most prominent voices and the director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism. Together, they dive into the deeply rooted relationship between Judaism, politics, and social justice, exploring why so many Jews align with liberal causes while maintaining a vibrant spectrum of political thought within the community.From the historical and spiritual foundations of Jewish values to modern-day challenges in

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9:30

Remembering the late Alex Dancyg, a hostage from Warsaw

Martini Judaism ·

2024/10/14

On Tuesday, July 16, I and a group of rabbis traveled south from Jerusalem — to the Gaza envelope.There, we visited the places that Hamas had ravaged on Oct. 7, 2023. We visited the site of the Nova music festival, where we said kaddish for the young victims. We visited Kibbutz Nir Oz. We walked through the rubble of the burnt houses, the burnt kitchen, the places where people died, and the places where people were taken hostage. One-quarter of the residents of Nir Oz were killed or taken

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53:22

A Reform Jewish woman and an Orthodox rabbi talk...

Martini Judaism ·

2024/09/23

Two of my favorite people — Abigail Pogrebin and Rabbi Dov Linzer — who have just written a new book, "It Takes Two To Torah: An Orthodox Rabbi and Reform Journalist Discuss and Debate Their Way Through the Five Books of Moses," with a foreword by Mayim Bialik. This is a book about each Torah portion, as read through their lenses, and is a series of conversations and intellectual wrestling matches.

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52:54

It's More Than L'chaim: Judaism Is a Celebration of...

Martini Judaism ·

2024/09/06

First, this modern Orthodox rabbi was one of the first rabbis to really touch my life and to engage me in what my Protestant colleagues would call “formation.”Rabbi Yitz Greenberg was a congregational rabbi in Riverdale, NY; the founder of the Jewish studies program at City College of New York; the creator of CLAL, the Center for Learning and Leadership – which is a think tank for Jewish pluralism and intra-Jewish conversation. I first met Rabbi Greenberg and his wife, Blu, the major Jewish

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59 results

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