How can Jewish and Christian leaders engage in meaningful dialogue about the most pressing issues of our time? In this episode of Speaking Torah, we explore the power of interreligious learning and leadership through the eyes of two remarkable faith leaders.

Discover how Rabbi Or Rose, director of Hebrew College's Miller Center for Interreligious Learning and Leadership, and his colleague Reverend Rob Schenck, a dissenting evangelical voice, are modeling the kind of courageous conversations we need to build bridges of understanding across faiths. Learn about the importance of confronting difficult issues head-on, the demographic shifts happening within religious communities, and the urgent need for honest and informed dialogue.

Get full show notes and more information here: http://hebrewcollege.edu/podcast-22

Over the past year, discussing the subject of Israel has been incredibly difficult for families everywhere. Does it feel like you're speaking different languages when it comes to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? Many Jewish parents are grappling with a growing generational divide on this complex and emotionally-charged issue.

Join us as we discuss with Rabbi Dan Judson, the Hebrew College Provost, the historical context of Zionism, the impact of recent events on the younger generation's views, and practical strategies for fostering open and honest dialogue within families. Whether you're a parent, grandparent, or simply someone who cares deeply about the future of Israel and the Jewish people, this episode offers valuable insights into the changing landscape of the Israel conversation.

Get full show notes and more information here: http://hebrewcollege.edu/podcast-21

Have you ever wondered how traveling to the places where Jewish history unfolded can deepen your understanding and connection to Judaism? In this episode of Speaking Torah, we explore the educational power of travel and learning with Rabbi Leonard Gordon, instructor for Tamid of Hebrew College, and Kim Bodemer, Tamid's director.

Tune in to discover how Tamid of Hebrew College is creating unique travel learning experiences that engage the head, heart, soul, and body. From meeting with civil rights leaders in the American South to imagining Jewish life in medieval Spain, these trips offer a chance to build community, challenge assumptions, and find renewed inspiration for building a more just world.

Get full show notes and more information here: http://hebrewcollege.edu/podcast-20

This week, Hebrew College rabbinical student Jessica Spencer is here to talk about how she helped found a yeshiva in her hometown of Edinburgh, Scotland. Modeled after projects like Pardes and Hadar, Azara brings together Jews from across the denominational spectrum to study sacred texts and stories.

Tune in this week to discover how Azara is guiding Edinburgh’s Jewish community through their first encounters with Talmudic texts. Among other things, Jessica is showing us how they make meaning out of difficult or problematic texts in the modern day while guiding people in making connections between the texts and their own lives, and sharing Azara’s unique approach to cross-denominational teffilah.

Get full show notes and more information here: http://hebrewcollege.edu/podcast-19

This week, we’re pleased to bring you a discussion with three Hebrew College rabbinical students, Becca Heisler, David Mahfouda, and Chaim Spaulding, who have started a food coop for the Hebrew College community.

Using local sources, students work together in preparing the meals, taking turns, and sharing responsibilities. Spending all day filling up your brain can only sustain you for so long, but the Food Coop brings minds and bodies together, nourishing the stomach as well as the heart.

Get full show notes and more information here: http://hebrewcollege.edu/podcast-18

On this episode of Speaking Torah, we’re introducing you to a tefillah with a difference. In this particular tefillah group, Rabbi Sharon Cohen Anisfeld leads the students not only in writing reflections on the prayers, but writing as an act of prayer. It is both the writing and the reading of poetry that allows for a deeply creative connection to The Divine. The poems are based on liturgy, combining ancient voices with their own, resulting in a truly timeless prayer.

Get full show notes and more information here: http://hebrewcollege.edu/podcast-17

In this episode, we’re sharing a discussion between Hebrew College faculty member Rabbi Rachel Adelman and her Rabbinical Student Risa Dunbar, about the power of poetry as midrash: the stories that open our text to even more questioning, along with understanding. Both writers bring their individual voices and experiences into the conversation with the text, allowing the ancient words a new place in the modern era.

Get full show notes and more information here: http://hebrewcollege.edu/podcast-16

Rabbi Jane Kanarek shares a story about humility.