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What is being "Jewish"? What are Jews? What do Jews believe? What do Jews do? What's happening in those mysterious synagogues with all that weird language (it's Hebrew)?
Jew curious?
The thing about being Jewish is, you can't tell us apart by looking (well, not always), we often look the same, dress the same, work and play and eat right alongside our non-Jewish counterparts, and yet, as a teeny tiny minority--only 0.2% of the global population, and 2-3% of the U.S. population--plenty of people have probably never met a Jewish person, or if they did, they didn't even know it.
For as much as we share (and it's probably way more than you think), somehow, moving through the world as a Jew really is different. Everything looks different through a Jewish lens, even for those who aren't particularly religious, the ones who describe themselves as "Jew-ish."
But honestly, none of this is really that mysterious. And, if you're curious or confused, you can always just ask the internet--or, now you can also come here and check in with your new Jewish friend.
So, if you have questions about being Jewish, we're here to introduce, explain, ask alongside, and generally demystify Judaism for Members of the Tribe (Jews) and goyim (non-Jews) alike, exploring and showcasing the infinite ways there are to be Jewish.
30 Episodes
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Send us a text This episode was originally published for Rosh Hashanah on October 9, 2024. One of my nearest and dearest non-Jewish friends asked if she could join me for Rosh Hashanah last year, and we thought it would be useful to other Jew-curious listeners to share some of her questions and thoughts about that experience. You may know Rosh Hashanah as the Jewish New Year, and you're mostly right (it's technically the anniversary of creation), but there's much more to it than that! C...
Send us a text Right after a flurry of activity around Israel and Gaza on the Hill, I connected with Congressman Greg Landsman, one of only 32 Jews in Congress (9 in the Senate, 23 in the House). Landsman has been a voice defending Israel and demanding humanitarian aid to Gaza, and like myself, does not believe the two are mutually exclusive. In June, he declined an invitation to his staff from Qatar, saying they could discuss how to end the war in Gaza instead, and since recording, he joined...
Send us a text Jews and money and babies, oh my! Our mission of destigmatization continues with a look at IVF, and some Jewish perspectives on fertility--and infertility--with Sarah Shah, Director of Operations for the Jewish Fertility Foundation. Appropriately enough, this episode is late because I just had my own egg retrieval as part of my IVF journey; which was aided in part by a JFF grant, as well as by the Hebrew Free Loan Association, which you'll hear more about in another epis...
Send us a text Ask a Jewish question, get a Jewish answer: It's complicated. It would be impossible to fully represent the richness and variety of Jewish experiences, but who better to try than a bunch of writers? So, author, publisher, and podcaster Zibby Owens took on the task in her anthology, "On Being Jewish Now" (see what I did there?); also a Substack where anyone can submit an essay. You may know Zibby from her long-running podcast, Totally Booked, (formerly Moms Don't Have Time to Re...
1Send us a text As a wise rabbi once said (It was Rabbi Susan Shankman, our very first episode), there as many ways to be Jewish as there are Jews. Well, friend-of-the-show Evan Feinberg is a living example of how one can live their "Jewishness"....as a Christian? Evan is Chairman of the Stand Together Foundation, and through the work he's done with non-profits like CarePortal, Points of Light, and Good Soil, among other things, he's kind of become "the faith guy" at work. We bonded when we me...
Send us a text Your Jewish friend is back!! Season 3 of Jew-ish has a whole new roster of stories and voices from all the usual and unusual suspects: Jews, non-Jews, former Jews, and the generally Jew-curious. As usual, we'll tackle the questions you're not sure if you should ask, with our usual irreverence, humor, curiosity and deep thoughts. Jew got questions? We got answers(or know someone who might)! Follow, subscribe and tell a friend! Support the show
Send us a text Content warning below On the first night of Hanukkah 2024, I give to all of you, by way of my seventh-grade bestie and USA TODAY bestselling author Helena Greer, the story of Carrigans Christmasland! Inspired by rage-Tweets about Hallmark movies, these steamy stories dare to ask the important question: "what if this beloved trope was gay?" (and Jewish). Helena and I did the math, and we have known each other for nearly 30 years now (yikes...). We met during the formative, chaot...
Send us a text What is Rosh Hashanah? How do you wish someone a good Yom Kippur? What are the High Holy Days? All this and more with Jewish educators spanning two generations, who happen to also be my family! This episode is republished from 2023, and was recorded while on a work trip, so it's over Zoom and the sound isn't the best, but it's packed full of information and stupid questions I asked so you don't have to! Find the original episode here: Happy Jew Year! What does Rosh Hashana...
Send us a text You may know Rosh Hashanah as the Jewish New Year, and you're mostly right (it's technically the anniversary of creation), but that might be about it. Maybe you have some questions, like: when was Rosh Hashanah 2024 (October 2-4)? What are you supposed to wear (white)? What can you do and not do (don't work, but you don't have to fast)? And a very close friend of mine had a really good one: can I come? The answer: HECK YEAH! So baby had her first Rosh Hashanah, and she ...
Send us a text Growing up Conservative Jewish in Ohio, Rabbi Cantor Judy Greenfeld turned away from her family traditions after her beloved father was murdered. Judaism became an unbearably painful reminder of her loss, and she became a "seeker" of other spiritual pathways as she tried to outrun her mourning. She explored, Buddhism, dance, holistic medicine, and psychology. Eventually, she found her way through dreams and mysticism back to Judaism, embracing traditions like Kabbalah, back to ...
Send us a text We all know "in the beginning, there was darkness," right? The first line of the first book of the Old Testament (AKA the Torah). But did you know, there was also “chaos and void”? And then, of course, God created everything. So we're told. Inspired by the places where "creation" began, Rabbi Adina Allen has made a life and a practice of understanding how all creation and creativity–whether art, new understandings, or life itself–comes from darkness, chaos and void, and ...
Send us a text It’s been six months since Hamas attacked Israel, killing nearly 1200 people, kidnapping around 250, and triggering Israel’s devastating war on Gaza. The Hamas-run health ministry says more than 33,000 Palestinians have been killed, the Committee to Protect Journalists and Reporters without Borders say more than 100 journalists, and more than 200 aid workers according to the UN, have also been killed, including seven World Central Kitchen workers. This episode was recorded befo...
Send us a text It's Purim! So when Baby Brother Zev and his girlfriend Osnat came down to DC to peep some cherry blossoms, I made them come to tell you all what is Purim, the super-fun Jewish dress-up party where we celebrate a narrow escape from mass murder and eat cookies named for the bad guy's hat. Or ears. Or pockets apparently. Depends who you ask. Get to the bottom of what the heck Hamantaschen are supposed to be, what is the story of Esther, what to wear for Purim, how they do it in...
Send us a text An American, a Canadian and an Israeli Jewish educator walk into a….well a discussion. About the Israel-Hamas war, the state of Gaza and state of mind of Israelis, no less. So, this conversation is really no joke. Huge thanks to Yair Alon, Adam Levi and Zev Dever for this sometimes hard, always thoughtful, and very nuanced and compassionate conversation, and the healing and shared understanding they are working to reach. You may remember my baby brother Zev from Season ...
Send us a text Have you ever wondered if your “quirks” might actually be manifested trauma? Or more like…that they probably ARE? Victoria Dozer was curious about her mom’s pretty typical Jewish-mom-quirk of stashing huge amounts of things, like dishes and toilet paper--stuff that's useful in principle, but that you probably don’t need 20 of--and uncovered that this behavior, inherited and then passed down to Victoria, is a legacy her mom inherited from her Holocaust-survivor father. She nickn...
Send us a text What is Tu Bishvat (also spelled Tu BiShevat)? Well it's the birthday of the trees, also called the New Year of the Trees, so happy new year to you, and happy new year to the trees, and welcome back to Jew-ish! Trees have a very special place in Jewish life. We call the Torah, our holiest text (also known as the Five Books of Moses and the Pentateuch) the Tree of Life, and we plant trees to celebrate life events like the birth of a new child. Yep, trees are kind of a th...
Send us a text Introducing our sister podcast, the Curl Code! Hosted by Wafaya Abdallah, owner of Curly Oasis, a curl salon and education platform in Rockville, MD, the Curl Code explores individual stories of how learning to embrace our natural hair can be the start of a journey to embracing and empowering our most authentic selves. Each episode reveals a unique story of the day someone acted on a decision to learn about caring for their curls, and started a process of transforming how the...
Send us a text There’s polarization, and then there’s toxic polarization. We all know what that feels like, especially at this moment around Israel and Palestine. For many of us, the temperature of the rhetoric is so incendiary that even though we might have deep and nuanced feelings, let alone education, experience, or personal ties to the issue, the thought of wading into what seems like a totally polarized conversation feels frightening and pointless. But, we still want to be able to engag...
Send us a text Many of us are deeply affected, probably more so than we even know, by the suffering in Israel and Gaza. I didn't release the last episode (though I did have one ready) because it felt bizarre not to address or at least acknowledge the situation, but I was absolutely drained. I was scared for the Hamas hostages, worried about my brother in Israel, terrified for the Palestinians...in short, there was no energy left over and I had nothing to say outside of the small circle of fam...
Send us a text Erick Cloward was raised in the Mormon Church in Utah, in a not-always-happy home. He talks about it a lot on his podcast, The Stoic Coffee Break (which is an absolute must-subscribe, by the way) and the parts of that culture that eventually led him to leave the church, and Utah altogether. In episode 181 of his show, he digs into "asking" vs. "guessing" culture, and the contrast between what was the norm in his lived experience in the Church of Latter-day Saints, and cultures—...
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