Orthodox Conundrum

Check out Orthodox Conundrum Commentary on Substack and get your free subscription by going to https://scottkahn.substack.com/ - and paid subscribers get this and other episodes of the Orthodox Conundrum Podcast ad-free and with early access and additional bonus content! For generations, religious Jews prayed for a return to Zion. Today, for the first time in nearly two thousand years, there is a sovereign Jewish state, most Jews may soon live there, and millions of Jews around the world have the practical ability to move there if they choose. That reality raises profound questions that previous generations could barely imagine. What does it mean to be a fully realized Jewish community outside the land of Israel in an age of Jewish sovereignty? Is Jewish life in the diaspora inherently incomplete, or can it possess its own enduring religious integrity? Does affirming the centrality of Israel require seeing Jewish communities abroad as temporary, marginal, or even destined to disappear? Or is there a way to embrace a deep Zionism without negating the legitimacy of Jewish life outside Israel? Perhaps all of the above can be true: diaspora communities may be seen as temporary without losing their religious legitimacy. These questions have become increasingly urgent since October 7th, as Jews around the world have wrestled with issues of solidarity, responsibility, sacrifice, destiny, and identity. They also touch on larger questions about messianism, exile, religious authenticity, and the relationship between ideals and lived reality. To explore these issues, I'm joined by two thoughtful and deeply committed Zionist thinkers who approach these questions from different perspectives: Dr. Malka Z. Simkovich, Editor-in-Chief of the Jewish Publication Society and author of Letters From Home: The Creation of Diaspora in Jewish Antiquity, and Rabbanit Atara Eis, Dean of Nishmat and a leading educator in the Religious Zionist world. This is a conversation about Israel, the diaspora, and the future of the Jewish people - but also about how Orthodoxy speaks about aspiration, belonging, sacrifice, and the tensions that serious religious life sometimes demands. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). If your business is interested in advertising to our engaged Orthodox audience, or if you'd like to sponsor an episode in honor of a loved one or simcha, please reach out to [email protected] to support meaningful Jewish conversations. Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Write to [email protected] to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

Check out Orthodox Conundrum Commentary on Substack and get your free subscription by going to https://scottkahn.substack.com/ - and paid subscribers get this and other episodes of the Orthodox Conundrum Podcast ad-free and with early access and additional bonus content! Why do some of our most deeply held truths end up pushing people away instead of drawing them closer? It's a question that comes up in all areas of religious life, but it becomes especially charged when we talk about aliyah. Few topics generate as much passion, and sometimes as much frustration, as the question of whether Jews living outside of Israel should move, and how people who sincerely believe that the answer is yes, should convey that message. Rabbi Efrem Goldberg argues that we need to carefully consider what we promote, and the way that we promote it. Even when we are right, we can still be ineffective, and sometimes even counterproductive. In this candid conversation, we examine how aliyah is often promoted, why certain approaches can alienate rather than inspire, and how some of Chazal's tough statements about those who do not make aliya should be interpreted today. We also ask whether there are legitimate reasons not to make aliyah, and what it really means to struggle seriously with that question, and whether someone's Judaism is lacking if he or she fails to consider aliya at all. From there, we widen the lens to explore a growing disconnect between Israeli and American Jews. We talk about questions of sacrifice, gratitude, and misunderstanding, and how the events of the past two and a half years have reshaped the conversation in ways that many of us are still trying to process. At its core, this episode asks a simple but difficult question. Do we want to be right, or do we want to be effective? To read Rabbi Goldberg's article, "Are you trying to inspire... but pushing people away?" click here. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Write to [email protected] to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

Check out Orthodox Conundrum Commentary on Substack and get your free subscription by going to https://scottkahn.substack.com/ - and paid subscribers get this and other episodes of the Orthodox Conundrum Podcast ad-free and with early access and additional bonus content! I'm joined by Rabbi Zach Truboff and Daniel Goldman for a conversation about the changing discourse within the Religious Zionist community. Before diving in, a brief warning of sorts: this is an episode that listeners are likely to react to in very different ways. This is not a critique from the outside. All of us are speaking from within the Religious Zionist world. And it is not a debate about whether Israel has the right or obligation to defend itself. Instead, we focus on something more subtle, and more difficult: discourse. How we speak, how we think, and what feels legitimate to say within our community today. Over the past couple of years, and especially since the war began, many have sensed a shift in tone, in language, and in the range of acceptable views. Others, however, would argue that nothing essential has changed, or that any shift reflects a necessary and even positive response to a changing reality. That tension is at the heart of this episode. This is not a conversation with easy answers. It is an attempt to surface a real disagreement, to articulate it honestly, and to ask whether we are still able, as a community, to listen to perspectives that challenge us, especially when they come from within our own camp. Some listeners will find this framing compelling. Others may disagree strongly, even vehemently. But if we care about the health of our community, and about the integrity of our moral and religious language, this is a conversation worth having. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Write to [email protected] to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

Check out Orthodox Conundrum Commentary on Substack and get your free subscription by going to https://scottkahn.substack.com/ - and paid subscribers get this and other episodes of the Orthodox Conundrum Podcast ad-free and with early access and additional bonus content! When people talk about emunah, faith, it is often framed as a simple question. Do you believe in God, or don't you? But what if that question misses the point? In this episode, Rabbi Simi Lerner argues that emunah is not a binary yes or no. It is not something a person simply has or lacks. It is something that develops over time, shaped by experience, thought, and personal struggle. Together, we explore why so many thoughtful people find themselves wrestling with faith, even when they genuinely want to believe. We discuss the difference between a more rational, philosophical approach to Judaism and an approach predicated upon a more Kabbalistic worldview, and whether those approaches are in tension or can work together. We also examine how the way emunah is often taught may be part of the problem, especially when it is presented in overly simplistic terms that do not reflect the complexity of real life. This is not a conversation about proving that God exists. It is a conversation about what it actually means to live with faith in the modern world, and how a more honest and nuanced understanding of emunah might open the door for people who feel stuck, uncertain, or disconnected. In a bonus segment for paid subscribers to Orthodox Conundrum Commentary, Simi tells the personal story behind his journey and how he arrived at the approach to emunah he lives by today. Make sure to check out Rav Simi's podcasts Judaism From Within and Two Rabbis, Three Opinions, as well as his online classes on Horeb and Kuzari. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Write to [email protected] to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

Check out Orthodox Conundrum Commentary on Substack and get your free subscription by going to https://scottkahn.substack.com/ - and paid subscribers get this and other episodes of the Orthodox Conundrum Podcast ad-free and with early access and additional bonus content! Today's episode deals with a topic that many people have heard about, but far fewer people actually understand. Terms like get refusal or seruv are often mentioned, sometimes with strong reactions, but often without a clear sense of what they mean in practice. So in this conversation, we're going to take a step back and try to understand the system itself. What exactly is a seruv? How does the Beit Din process work when a couple is going through a divorce? At what point does a difficult or contentious situation cross the line into something more serious? And where does the system function as it is meant to, and where does it sometimes break down? My guests today are Jen Lankin, co-CEO of ORA, the Organization for the Resolution of Agunot, and Rabbi Jonathan Hefter, ORA's Director of Partnerships and Innovation. ORA works closely with individuals navigating some of the most complex and painful cases in the Jewish divorce system, and they bring both practical experience and a broader perspective on how these situations unfold. One of the important ideas you will hear in this episode is that these situations can become complicated very quickly, but that complexity does not change the underlying reality. When a get is being withheld or used as leverage, that is a serious problem. And understanding how and why that happens is essential if we want to address it effectively. We also talk about concepts that are not always part of the public conversation, like "get delay," the role of community responsibility, and an emerging view that the get may need to be given earlier in the process in order to avoid becoming a point of leverage. And just as importantly, we discuss the idea of survivor led advocacy. Public pressure, including rallies, protests, and communal action, can sometimes be effective, and ORA does use those tools. But they are not always the right approach, and even when they are, it is essential that the agunah herself is the one guiding that decision. The process matters, not just the outcome, and supporting someone through this kind of situation means ensuring that she retains agency over how her case is handled. This is a serious and sometimes uncomfortable topic. But it is also an opportunity to better understand how the system works, and to think more carefully about how we, as a community, respond when things do not go as they should. ORA website: https://www.getora.org/ The Get Guide: https://www.getora.org/getguide Jewish Divorce Helpline: (844) 673-5463 or [email protected] Email: [email protected] Social media: @OraAgunot Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Write to [email protected] to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com