Meaningful Judaism

The Blasphemer: Why Would Someone Curse God? [Introducing our new season of A Book Like No Other]

2024-01-1546:44

Rabbi David Fohrman and Imu Shalev study the tale of the blasphemer, a dark and puzzling episode buried deep in Leviticus. The details of this story are scarce: an anonymous man provokes a fight in the Israelite camp, curses God, and ultimately is stoned to death as punishment. But a close read of these few short verses sends Rabbi Fohrman and Imu on a surprising journey, raising provocative moral questions about God’s judgment and uncovering an unlikely connection between the condemned blasp...

What Else Is Meaningful About Tzitzit and Kashrut? (Season Finale)

2023-07-0238:16

Season 1 of Meaningful Judaism is ending, but before we go, we just have to share some extra Torah that didn’t make it into earlier episodes. There’s the beautiful idea about angels that got cut from our episode on tzitzit – but we’ve found some amazing new evidence, so we’re bringing it back! And then there’s the problem of fish and birds. They got left out of the episode on kosher animals, so how do they fit into our theory of why some animals are kosher and not others? Join Imu Shalev and ...

What’s Meaningful About Not Eating Bacon?

2023-06-2859:50

It’s one of the most famous of the Torah's laws: no eating bacon! But is there any particular reason for this restriction? Why does God permit us to eat cow but forbid pig? In this episode, Imu Shalev and Beth Lesch look for clues in the Torah’s language and zoom in on something that’s easy to miss: The Torah never actually says "Pigs aren't kosher." Actually, the word “kosher” doesn't appear at all in the Chumash (the Five Books of Moses). The Torah uses an entirely different word to describ...

Questioning Whether This Podcast Should Exist

2023-06-1839:01

Yep, you read the episode title right. Should this podcast even exist?? We here at Meaningful Judaism put our hearts into creating quality podcasts that probe the meanings behind the mitzvot… but what if this whole premise is misguided? What if there’s a fundamental flaw? Does God really want us to be demanding reasons for the mitzvot? If we were really pious, maybe we would be satisfied keeping the mitzvot simply “because the Torah says so”?? And if we’re trying to figure out the “real” reas...

What’s Meaningful About Tzitzit? (Part 2)

2023-06-0428:03

(Part 2 of 2) Are tzitzit supposed to “mean” something? Most people who wear tzitzit probably don't find it especially objectionable or burdensome, but how many people can honestly say that wearing tzitzit is a deeply meaningful spiritual practice? That it helps them to be a better Jew, a better person, to feel closer to God? Probably not so many. For everyone else, tzitzit is, at best, a testament to one's commitment to following the Torah but without any unique meaning or character, and at ...

What’s Meaningful About Tzitzit? (Part 1)

2023-06-0436:40

(Part 1 of 2) Are tzitzit supposed to “mean” something? Most people who wear tzitzit probably don't find it especially objectionable or burdensome, but how many people can honestly say that wearing tzitzit is a deeply meaningful spiritual practice? That it helps them to be a better Jew, a better person, to feel closer to God? Probably not so many. For everyone else, tzitzit is, at best, a testament to one's commitment to following the Torah but without any unique meaning or character, and at ...

What’s Meaningful About Keeping Shabbat?

2023-05-2848:50

What’s meaningful about keeping Shabbat? Lots of things, right? It’s a day of rest, a chance to put down our phones, learn and pray, focus on our family and friends. But Shabbat has its challenging aspects too. Sometimes the restrictions of Shabbat weigh on us and make it hard for us to appreciate how meaningful it is. So how do we hold on to a sense of the beauty of this day? Well, what if we knew that keeping Shabbat actually makes something important, something kind of magical, happen...

What's Meaningful About Niddah? (Part 2)

2023-05-1441:47

What is the meaning of the ‘niddah’ law? Why does the Torah require husbands and wives to separate when the wife has her period? The laws in Vayikra describe the “whats” of niddah but not the “why.” Why would God want to keep husbands and wives apart from one another? And what does menstruation have to do with it?And those are just the easy questions! In this episode, guest host and scholar Beth Lesch respectfully yet candidly raises questions about the challenges of observing these laws. In ...

What's Meaningful About Niddah? (Part 1)

2023-05-1449:28

What is the meaning of the ‘niddah’ law? Why does the Torah require husbands and wives to separate when the wife has her period? The laws in Vayikra describe the “whats” of niddah but not the “why.” Why would God want to keep husbands and wives apart from one another? And what does menstruation have to do with it?And those are just the easy questions! In this episode, guest host and scholar Beth Lesch respectfully yet candidly raises questions about the challenges of observing these laws. In ...

What’s Meaningful About Not Mixing Milk and Meat? (Kashrut Part 2)

2023-05-0753:38

What’s meaningful about not mixing milk and meat? Observant Jews who follow the Torah know that cheeseburgers are forbidden… but do you ever stop to ask why? What’s the problem with adding a slice of cheese to your hamburger? Why is it so important to God that we abstain? Is it some kind of test, that God wants us to not eating certain yummy things to prove that we’re committed to the Torah? Is it that God wants to make it extra complicated to keep kosher, so Jews will be more likely to socia...

What’s Meaningful About Keeping Kosher?

2023-04-3053:32

What’s meaningful about keeping kosher? In this premiere episode of Meaningful Judaism, a brand-new podcast from Aleph Beta Labs, Imu Shalev and Beth Lesch tackle the topic of kashrut, or keeping kosher, beginning by raising a fundamental question that you might not have thought to ask: Does the Torah want us to eat meat?Yes, we know that no Jewish holiday table seems complete without the brisket. But does that mean that the Torah wants us to kill animals and eat them? Is it a spiritually lau...

Rediscovering Tzitzit: Insights from Parshat Shelach (Re-release of "What’s Meaningful About Tzitzit? Part 2)

2024-06-2728:33

(Part 2 of 2) Are tzitzit supposed to “mean” something? Most people who wear tzitzit probably don't find it especially objectionable or burdensome, but how many people can honestly say that wearing tzitzit is a deeply meaningful spiritual practice? That it helps them to be a better Jew, a better person, to feel closer to God? Probably not so many. For everyone else, tzitzit is, at best, a testament to one's commitment to following the Torah but without any unique meaning or character, and at ...

Rediscovering Tzitzit: Insights from Parshat Shelach (Re-release of "What’s Meaningful About Tzitzit? Part 1)

2024-06-2637:10

(Part 1 of 2) The Aleph Beta Team is hard at work on new episodes of Meaningful Judaism. But in the meantime, we decided to go back to our archives and share this episode about tzitzit, which is discussed in this week's parsha. Are tzitzit supposed to “mean” something? Most people who wear tzitzit probably don't find it especially objectionable or burdensome, but how many people can honestly say that wearing tzitzit is a deeply meaningful spiritual practice? That it helps them to be a be...

The Hidden Angels in the Megillah [Introducing our new season of A Book Like No Other]

2024-03-1133:08

The Book of Esther has no Divine instructions, no prophecies, no outright miracles. God doesn’t even get mentioned. We all love hearing how Mordechai and Esther saved their people in a time of crisis – but does this story have any moral message for us? As we’re listening to the Megillah on Purim, what can we learn about coming close to God in our everyday lives?Join Imu Shalev and Rabbi David Fohrman as they dive deeply into Megillat Esther to find an answer to this question. They start off w...

A Book Like No Other: Season 3 - Trailer

2024-03-1002:00

A Book Like No Other is a chance to learn alongside Aleph Beta Founder and Lead Scholar, Rabbi David Fohrman, a master close reader of Torah, as he embarks on his most far-reaching and in-depth explorations. Each season is a stand-alone journey into a different Torah text. Our only goal: reading the Torah carefully, on its own terms, and following wherever that leads. Together, we'll unwrap remarkable patterns and surprising connections that lie just beneath the Torah's surface, revealing the...

Join Us for a Meaningful Tisha B'Av

2023-07-2701:04

Support Meaningful Judaism today and gain access to tons of meaningful Tisha B'av content on the Aleph Beta website. Visit www.alephbeta.org and use the coupon code MJ2023. Check out the 2024 Perks campaign here! Go ahead, treat yourself and make a difference at the same time! Thank you for your support!Meaningful Judaism is a project of Aleph Beta Labs. Aleph Beta is a Torah media company dedicated to spreading the joy and love of meaningful Torah learning worldwide. For our full librar...

What is 'Meaningful Judaism'?

2023-04-2007:14

Meaningful Judaism is a podcast dedicated to exploring why we do what we do in Jewish life, by diving deep into the Torah text. So many of our practices can feel like they’re just there; we go through the motions but they don’t feel especially meaningful. In this podcast, we search for that meaning. Each episode will take you on a journey, tackling questions such as “Why can’t we mix milk and meat?” and “What’s the meaning behind the laws of niddah?” Join our host, Imu Shalev, along with Rabb...

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