JOI to the World

Menachem Lehrfield
  • 5.0 (3)
  • JUDAISM
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

JOI to the World is a collection of podcasts by Rabbi Lehrfield of JOI that explore diverse aspects of Jewish life, learning, and culture. Each episode offers a unique perspective, drawing from the rich tapestry of Jewish thought and tradition. You can subscribe to this podcast to get weekly episodes or you can subscribe to the individual shows to receive the monthly episodes as they air.Zero Percent: Discover the profound outsided impact of a people that make up less than 0.2% of the world.Dear Rabbi: Practical answers to questions about Judaism.reConnect: Bridging the gap between ancient wisdom and modern life, this series offers a deep dive into the relationships that matter most.Yada Yada Yiddish: A Jewish perspective on Seinfeld, using the show’s iconic moments as a springboard for exploring Jewish concepts and values.Kids Say the Deepest Things: Meaningful lessons from the funny and insightful things kids say, with reflections on life, parenting, and Jewish tradition.

  1. 4D AGO

    Parshat Mishpatim: The Laws That Make Us Human

    📖 Parshat Mishpatim This Week: Right after the drama of the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai, the Torah shifts to... civil law. Rules about damages, loans, workers' rights, and caring for the vulnerable. Why the sudden shift? Because the Torah is teaching us that spirituality isn't just prayer and study; it's how you treat your neighbor, your employee, the stranger. Being godly means not doing to others what you wouldn't want done to you. It means being kind, gentle, and caring. Judaism's foundation isn't mystical experiences; it's ethical living. You want to serve God? Pay your workers on time. Return lost property. Care for the widow and orphan. Real holiness is interpersonal. Shabbat Shalom. 🤝 Follow us for more: Website - https://www.joidenver.com Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/joidenver Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/JOIdenver YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/c/JOIdenver Pinterest - http://pinterest.com/jewishdiy Subscribe to "JOI to the World" to access all our podcasts, including Yada Yada Yiddish, Kids Say the Deepest Things, Reconnect, and Dear Rabbi. Join us as we uncover the treasures in our backyard and explore what makes the Jewish people extraordinary! 🕎📚🎙️

    1 min

  2. 6D AGO

    Where Did the "All Jews Are Rich" Stereotype Come From? The Surprising Truth

    🎧 Listen to this and other episodes at www.joidenver.com/podcasts In this episode of Dear Rabbi, I tackle a persistent stereotype: Where did the idea come from that all Jews are rich? I can assure you it's not true in my case, and we all know Jews who are wealthy and Jews who are struggling, just like all of society. But the origin of this stereotype reveals something profound about Jewish values. I share a fascinating insight from Mark Twain, who once wrote an article addressing the root causes of antisemitism. While many people are familiar with the end of that article—where he talks about how Jews seem to be immortal, surviving despite everything the world has thrown at them—he makes a remarkable observation in the middle of the article. Mark Twain noted that because Jews take care of each other, you never find a Jewish beggar. Perhaps that's where the stereotype originated. Non-Jewish neighbors assumed Jews were all rich because they never saw Jewish people begging or asking for money on the streets. The reason, of course, wasn't because poor Jews didn't exist—rather, the Jewish community took care of them quietly and effectively. While stereotypes are generally negative, understanding the root of this particular one is something we should take pride in. Jewish people have always taken care of one another. This important Jewish value—sharing what we have with others, taking care of our fellow brothers and sisters, and ensuring no Jew (or any human being) ever goes hungry—has always been central to Jewish identity and community life. Keep the questions coming! If you have a burning question about Judaism, Please email us at Dearrabbi@Joidenver.com📧 Tune in to Dear Rabbi and uncover the wisdom behind Jewish customs and laws. 🎙️🌟 Follow us for more: Website - https://www.joidenver.com Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/joidenver Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/JOIdenver YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/c/JOIdenver Pinterest - http://pinterest.com/jewishdiy Subscribe to "JOI to the World" to access all our podcasts, including Yada Yada Yiddish, Kids Say the Deepest Things, Reconnect, and Dear Rabbi. Join us as we uncover the treasures in our backyard and explore what makes the Jewish people extraordinary! 🕎📚🎙️

    3 min

  3. FEB 6

    Parshat Yitro: How Good People Become Corrupt

    📖 Parshat Yitro This Week: When listing qualifications for judges, the Torah mentions capable, God-fearing, truthful, and last, 'hates gain' (integrity). Why last? Shouldn't integrity be first? The Torah teaches us that corruption rarely starts with bad people. It starts with good people making small compromises. Then another. Then another. Slowly, those compromises erode moral character until integrity is gone. We're all susceptible; you can be capable, well-intentioned, even truthful, and still become morally corrupt through incremental compromises. The warning is clear: stay vigilant. Guard your integrity fiercely. Don't rationalize 'just this once. 'The slippery slope is real, and good people slide down it every day. Don't let it happen to you. Shabbat Shalom. ⚖️ Follow us for more: Website - https://www.joidenver.com Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/joidenver Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/JOIdenver YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/c/JOIdenver Pinterest - http://pinterest.com/jewishdiy Subscribe to "JOI to the World" to access all our podcasts, including Yada Yada Yiddish, Kids Say the Deepest Things, Reconnect, and Dear Rabbi. Join us as we uncover the treasures in our backyard and explore what makes the Jewish people extraordinary! 🕎📚🎙️

    1 min

  4. JAN 30

    Parshat Beshalach: Faith Requires the First Step

    📖 Parshat Beshalach This Week: Trapped between the Egyptian army and the sea, the people pray desperately. God's response? 'Move forward.' But the sea doesn't split until Nachshon ben Aminadav steps in. Water to his ankles. His knees. His waist. His shoulders. Only when it reaches his nostrils does the sea miraculously part. This is Jewish faith, not blind belief, but active trust. God waits for us to take the first step, to show we're invested, that we care enough to act. Then He meets us there. It's a partnership: we do our utmost, step into the water even when we can't see the path, then hand over the reins and say, "God, You're in control." 'What sea are you standing before? Take the step. Shabbat Shalom. 🌊 Follow us for more: Website - https://www.joidenver.com Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/joidenver Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/JOIdenver YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/c/JOIdenver Pinterest - http://pinterest.com/jewishdiy Subscribe to "JOI to the World" to access all our podcasts, including Yada Yada Yiddish, Kids Say the Deepest Things, Reconnect, and Dear Rabbi. Join us as we uncover the treasures in our backyard and explore what makes the Jewish people extraordinary! 🕎📚🎙️

    1 min

  5. JAN 30

    Robin Chotin: Living Forever Through Legacy - A Lifetime of Jewish Giving

    🎧 Listen to this and other episodes at www.joidenver.com/podcasts. Welcome to Zero Percent, the podcast that explores the outsized impact of the Jewish people! 🌟 Join us as Robin Chotin shares her deeply moving journey of Jewish philanthropy alongside her late husband, Stephen, of blessed memory, whose impact on Denver's Jewish community remains unparalleled. Discover how Robin's parents quietly instilled a sense of responsibility through their actions rather than words, teaching her that "if you are blessed in this world, if you have the capacity to be able to help other people, then it's what you have to do." Hear Robin's transformative story about her missions to Israel with Federation, where walking into apartment buildings riddled with bullet holes from Gaza brought the struggles of the Jewish people directly to the forefront of her eyes. Learn how seeing something firsthand—not just reading about it—changed everything about her commitment to giving. Robin opens up about the challenges of passing on philanthropic values to the next generation, revealing how her children initially resented her constant community involvement yet ultimately embraced the same values, now taking their own children to volunteer at assisted living facilities. From her grandchildren's service work in New York to her daughter Whitney's community involvement in Denver, Robin's greatest accomplishment isn't measured in dollars but in the saplings that grew from her family tree. Whether you're navigating difficult times reminiscent of World War II and the Depression or seeking to create lasting impact through Federation, JFS, National Jewish Hospital, or your local community, Robin's wisdom reminds us why firsthand experience and persistent commitment matter more than the size of any single gift. This episode challenges us to recognize that we live comfortably in Denver while others face unimaginable struggles and asks what we will do with that blessing. Discover why Robin wants to "live forever" to witness the potential still ahead and what it truly means to leave a legacy that transcends generations. CONNECT WITH US: 🎧 Listen to all our podcasts: [www.joidenver.com/podcasts] Follow us for more: Website - https://www.joidenver.com Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/joidenver Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/JOIdenver  YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/c/JOIdenver Pinterest - http://pinterest.com/jewishdiy Subscribe to "JOI to the World" to access all our podcasts, including Yada Yada Yiddish, Kids Say the Deepest Things, Reconnect, and Dear Rabbi. Join us as we uncover the treasures in our backyard and explore what makes the Jewish people extraordinary! 🕎📚🎙️

    50 min

  6. JAN 28

    Why Does Hanukkah Change Dates Every Year? Jewish Calendar Explained

    🎧 Listen to this and other episodes at www.joidenver.com/podcasts In this episode of Dear Rabbi, I answer a question many people wonder about: What's up with the Jewish calendar? Why was Hanukkah on December 2nd one year, late December another year, and even overlapped with Thanksgiving a few years ago? Why does this calendar seem so different from the regular calendar we use? I explain that here in America and most of the Western world, we use the Gregorian calendar, which is purely solar at 365.2524 days. Other cultures use lunar calendars, like Islam, which track cycles of the moon. In lunar calendars, years are arbitrary, which is why Muslim holidays like Ramadan can fall in winter one year and summer another - the season doesn't matter. The Jewish calendar is unique because it's neither purely solar nor purely lunar - it's a luni-solar calendar. Unlike lunar calendars, our holidays must fall in specific seasons because they're intimately connected to the time of year. The Torah explicitly commands that Passover take place in springtime - a season of rejuvenation where everything comes to life and is reborn, mirroring how the Jewish people left Egypt and became a nation during the Exodus. To accomplish this seasonal alignment while following lunar months, we add an extra month of Adar seven times in every 19-year cycle. This means seven times every 19 years, we have 13 months instead of 12. If you're born in the month of Adar, you get to celebrate two birthdays during those leap years! This is why the Jewish calendar doesn't align with the English calendar exactly - it only does so every 19 years. Every 19 years, your English birthday and Hebrew birthday will fall on the same day. Keep the questions coming! If you have a burning question about Judaism, Please email us at Dearrabbi@Joidenver.com📧 Tune in to Dear Rabbi and uncover the wisdom behind Jewish customs and laws. 🎙️🌟 Follow us for more: Website - https://www.joidenver.com Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/joidenver Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/JOIdenver YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/c/JOIdenver Pinterest - http://pinterest.com/jewishdiy Subscribe to "JOI to the World" to access all our podcasts, including Yada Yada Yiddish, Kids Say the Deepest Things, Reconnect, and Dear Rabbi. Join us as we uncover the treasures in our backyard and explore what makes the Jewish people extraordinary! 🕎📚🎙️

    3 min

  7. JAN 23

    Parshat Bo: Breaking False Loyalties

    📖 Parshat Bo This Week: Before leaving Egypt, God commands the Israelites to take a lamb, Egypt's deity tie it to their bedposts, then slaughter it as the Korban Pesach. Why specifically a lamb? Because freedom requires letting go of competing allegiances. The Egyptians worshiped lambs. To become God's people, the Israelites had to publicly reject what Egypt held sacred, releasing the Egyptian mentality, culture, and false gods that once defined them. Only then could they embrace true freedom. We all carry 'lambs', old identities, toxic beliefs, relationships that no longer serve us. Real liberation isn't just escaping physical bondage; it's releasing the internal chains that keep us enslaved. What false gods are you still tied to? What do you need to let go of to be truly free? Shabbat Shalom. 🐑 Follow us for more: Website - https://www.joidenver.com Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/joidenver Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/JOIdenver YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/c/JOIdenver Pinterest - http://pinterest.com/jewishdiy Subscribe to "JOI to the World" to access all our podcasts, including Yada Yada Yiddish, Kids Say the Deepest Things, Reconnect, and Dear Rabbi. Join us as we uncover the treasures in our backyard and explore what makes the Jewish people extraordinary! 🕎📚🎙️

    1 min

  8. JAN 21

    Why Does the Jewish Day Start at Sundown? Biblical Wisdom Explained

    🎧 Listen to this and other episodes at www.joidenver.com/podcasts In this episode of Dear Rabbi, I answer a fascinating question: Why does the Jewish concept of a day start at sundown instead of midnight or sunrise like most modern calendars? As Jews, we do tend to do things differently, and this includes how we mark time - but there's profound wisdom behind it. I explain that in the biblical narrative of creation, throughout every day of creation, the Torah states: "And it was evening, and it was morning - day one..,. and it was evening, and it was morning - a second day, a third day," etc. By consistently placing evening before morning, the Torah teaches us that the Jewish concept of time begins with night. This is why all Jewish holidays begin the evening before, and every Jewish day actually begins at sundown. But there's a deeper meaning here. Perhaps Jewish wisdom is teaching us that "all is good in the end, and if it's not good, it's not the end." Night symbolizes difficulty, darkness, and challenge - things we all face in life. Daytime represents clarity, when things are going well and proceeding the way we want them to. We praise God openly in the day when His presence is clear, while at night we trust and have faith even when we don't see His presence. By beginning our day at night, before the morning comes, Judaism teaches us that there is always light ahead, always a positive following the darkness. The day always comes after the night, reminding us that challenges are temporary and goodness prevails in the end. Keep the questions coming! If you have a burning question about Judaism, Please email us at Dearrabbi@Joidenver.com📧 Tune in to Dear Rabbi and uncover the wisdom behind Jewish customs and laws. 🎙️🌟 Follow us for more: Website - https://www.joidenver.com Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/joidenver Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/JOIdenver YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/c/JOIdenver Pinterest - http://pinterest.com/jewishdiy Subscribe to "JOI to the World" to access all our podcasts, including Yada Yada Yiddish, Kids Say the Deepest Things, Reconnect, and Dear Rabbi. Join us as we uncover the treasures in our backyard and explore what makes the Jewish people extraordinary! 🕎📚🎙️

    2 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

JOI to the World is a collection of podcasts by Rabbi Lehrfield of JOI that explore diverse aspects of Jewish life, learning, and culture. Each episode offers a unique perspective, drawing from the rich tapestry of Jewish thought and tradition. You can subscribe to this podcast to get weekly episodes or you can subscribe to the individual shows to receive the monthly episodes as they air.Zero Percent: Discover the profound outsided impact of a people that make up less than 0.2% of the world.Dear Rabbi: Practical answers to questions about Judaism.reConnect: Bridging the gap between ancient wisdom and modern life, this series offers a deep dive into the relationships that matter most.Yada Yada Yiddish: A Jewish perspective on Seinfeld, using the show’s iconic moments as a springboard for exploring Jewish concepts and values.Kids Say the Deepest Things: Meaningful lessons from the funny and insightful things kids say, with reflections on life, parenting, and Jewish tradition.

Information

  • Creator
    Menachem Lehrfield
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    155
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright Menachem Lehrfield
  • Show Website
    JOI to the World