58th Century Judaisms

Josh Weiner
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58th Century Judaisms

I believe that the world we live in is understood through words. I believe the more words we have the more we can be in this world. I feel lucky to have inherited a 3,000-year old Jewish tradition of expressing the world in words, and try to be a bridge between the old texts and where people are at today.​​I don't have so many answers to the fundamental questions of existence. I don't try to convince people about anything. But I like learning, I like to facilitate Jewish discussions, I like to help people explore how to be a Jewish human.

  1. 05/02/2022

    Bread and Matza

    Some post-Pesach thoughts.... if chametz is so bad, why does Jewish law require it? Why is chametz central to Shavuot, and to life? Rebbe Nachman gives us some clues. *Sources can be found here: www.sefaria.org/sheets/33290?lang=bi *More Torah thoughts on my site: 58thcentury.worldSupport the show

    19 min

  2. 03/29/2022

    New Faces

    One text leads to another, faces are masks are words are invitations are interpretations. We go on a journey within Jewish law and lore, from wedding feasts to Purim costumes to heretical readings of the Torah. You can find all the texts here, and maybe reading along will make the listening easier: https://www.sefaria.org/sheets/395527?lang=biYou can find more Torah thoughts on my website, 58thcentury.worldSupport the show

    23 min

  3. 03/06/2022

    Called by Desire : 'Objet Petit a' and Vayikra

    The introduction to Leviticus is strange: God calls Moses and only then speaks to him (what is the function of the calling? What does it mean to be called?) And the word for calling, 'Vayikra', is traditionally written with a little letter alef at the end. You can read the sources I used here: www.sefaria.org/sheets/389441Using the texts of Rashi, Jacques Lacan and Maimonides, we try and figure out the function of this 'objet petit a', this surplus of meaning that drives the desire to t...

    19 min

  4. 02/02/2022

    Wings of Desire: what is a 'cherub'?

    I dug into the sources and commentaries, trying to find out what a 'cherub' looks like.Bull?Bird?Baby?Two lovers?Symbols of symbols of symbols...* You can see the texts I used here: https://www.sefaria.org/sheets/380622?lang=bi* You can see more Torah-related work of mine on 58thcentury.worldSupport the show

    14 min

  5. 01/26/2022

    When does Justice Begin?

    A Torah exploration. Were the basics laws of justice given at Sinai, or after the crossing of the sea, or during slavery in Egypt, or to Noah, or to Adam, or even before creation itself?I'll tell you why I think it matters. The last two years have severely weakened the authority of law for many people. The constantly changing regulations, uncertainty, protests and cynicism has brought us to treat the question "What's the law today?" as normal. And although we are usually referring to Covid-re...

    15 min

  6. 12/12/2021

    God Sneezes Too

    What blessing could be appropriate for COVID vaccinations? Using a Talmudic text as a starting point, we look at some little-known blessings for medical procedures, at the correct response for a sneeze, the creation of sneezes, and the spirituality of the randomness of disease and healing. Prepare for confusion! * You can find the sourcesheet, including a few sources I didn't cover in the recording, here: https://www.sefaria.org/sheets/368754* A project of 58th Century Judaisms: ht...

    23 min

  7. 11/21/2021

    Beautiful God / Beautiful Me - Channukah Thoughts

    This is my God and I will anvehu (Exodus 15)While the simple meaning of anvehu is probably a vague sense of worship or exaltation, it's been used as the base for two important rabbinic teachings: having beautiful things, and acting like God. This shiur, in a sense, was an attempt to explore both of those teachings, look at the radical idea of 'Me' as a divine name, and eventually to integrate the two of them into a single theo-aesthetic concept. Well, that's what I tried to do, at least!...

    22 min

  8. 10/27/2021

    Grafting Trees: Is the world perfect?

    The Torah seems to be against mixing distinct things: meat and milk, holy and profane, and even grafting one kind of tree onto another. But why? The laws of grafted trees are extreme: some say the trees should be uprooted, others say that all of humanity needs to keep this particular Jewish law. It's true that nature is great as it is, but we're also here to change the world, not just be passive. Lots of questions arise! * You can find the sourcesheet with all the texts here: https://www...

    27 min
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About

I believe that the world we live in is understood through words. I believe the more words we have the more we can be in this world. I feel lucky to have inherited a 3,000-year old Jewish tradition of expressing the world in words, and try to be a bridge between the old texts and where people are at today.​​I don't have so many answers to the fundamental questions of existence. I don't try to convince people about anything. But I like learning, I like to facilitate Jewish discussions, I like to help people explore how to be a Jewish human.

Information

  • Creator
    Josh Weiner
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2022
  • Episodes
    19
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2022 58th Century Judaisms
  • Show Website
    58th Century Judaisms

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