Translations

Project Shema
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Translations is a new initiative from Project Shema exploring how we can approach complex issues with nuance and empathy. Every six months, we dive into a different topic shaping our world and our work. Through conversations with leading academics, practitioners, and community voices, this podcast invites listeners to learn alongside us as we translate big questions into deeper understanding. http://projectshema.org/translations

Episodes

  1. Andrew Mbuvi

    2D AGO

    Andrew Mbuvi

    Kara and Eli are joined by Andrew Mbuvi, distinguished scholar of biblical studies whose work bridges theology, race, and social justice. A leading voice in antiracist pedagogy, his scholarship examines how the histories of the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament intersect with the realities of race, violence, and power. This conversation is a powerful foundation for understanding why Project Shema is so interested in translation in the first place—how the words we use shape our understanding of both text and one another. Chapter Breakdown: :54 - What does “inclusion” mean to Andrew?2:21 - How we think about the problem of division4:39 - How to expand our understanding of one another’s humanity6:17 - The idea of “superficial differences” between people9:44 - How Andrew’s background informs his inclusion practice16:00 - How coming to America changed his self-understanding18:50 - Language and the need to translate different aspects of yourself and one another31:54 - Translation and true inclusion41:21 - The importance of maintaining curiositySubscribe wherever you get your podcasts, and please be sure to rate & review:  Visit our website: www.projectshema.org. Translations is a new initiative from Project Shema exploring how we can approach complex issues with nuance and empathy. Every six months, we dive into a different topic shaping our world and our work. Through conversations with leading academics, practitioners, and community voices, this podcast invites listeners to learn alongside us as we translate big questions into deeper understanding. http://projectshema.org/translations

    44 min
  2. Kara & Eli

    2D AGO

    Kara & Eli

    In this episode, Kara and Eli explore how our inability to translate our language, and ourselves, undermines meaningful dialogue. How can we challenge complex norms and ideas if we remain more committed to binary frameworks than to understanding one another’s lived experiences? The antidote, they argue, is storytelling. By illuminating how our experiences shape our perspectives, storytelling has the power to depolarize conversation. It’s an approach at the heart of Project Shema’s work. Chapter Breakdown: 0:00: The role of translating2:51: The idea of “binary rage”3:58: How we change complex social norms4:58: How do we start to translate from a place of stories? 8:11: How Kara translates herself in her experiences as a Black Jewish woman9:51: How Eli translates himself as a white member of a Black Jewish family12:00: The impact of ideological insularity13:00: Project Shema’s mission to translate and “wrestle”19:34: The notion of harmful speech21:50: Going beyond translating just antisemitism24:01: Previewing future episodesResources: Matt Boxer, What is Zionism? Assessing the Diversity of Discourse in a Charged Environment, Brandeis University: https://scholarworks.brandeis.edu/esploro/outputs/report/What-is-Zionism-Assessing-the-Diversity/9924331186501921?institution=01BRAND_INST. Damon Centola, Change: How to Make Big Things Happen: https://www.amazon.com/Change-How-Make-Things-Happen/dp/0316457337. Jonathan Haidt, The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion: https://www.amazon.com/Righteous-Mind-Divided-Politics-Religion/dp/0307455777 Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts, and please be sure to rate & review. Visit our website: www.projectshema.org. Translations is a new initiative from Project Shema exploring how we can approach complex issues with nuance and empathy. Every six months, we dive into a different topic shaping our world and our work. Through conversations with leading academics, practitioners, and community voices, this podcast invites listeners to learn alongside us as we translate big questions into deeper understanding. http://projectshema.org/translations

    27 min
  3. Introducing Translations

    08/27/2025

    Introducing Translations

    A lot of our conversations are closing space for empathy and care instead of opening new pathways for understanding. Much of that can be attributed to binary thinking and the refusal to engage with and translate the lived experiences of others.  Translations is about breaking down binaries by practicing dialogue across differences. We are here to translate words that carry weight so they don’t end conversations, they open them up. Each episode will share stories, skills, and real conversations that show how people can stay in the room even when the tension is real. As we know, these differences are not going away.  Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts, and please be sure to rate & review. Visit our website: www.projectshema.org.  Translations is a new initiative from Project Shema exploring how we can approach complex issues with nuance and empathy. Every six months, we dive into a different topic shaping our world and our work. Through conversations with leading academics, practitioners, and community voices, this podcast invites listeners to learn alongside us as we translate big questions into deeper understanding. http://projectshema.org/translations

    1 min

Trailer

About

Translations is a new initiative from Project Shema exploring how we can approach complex issues with nuance and empathy. Every six months, we dive into a different topic shaping our world and our work. Through conversations with leading academics, practitioners, and community voices, this podcast invites listeners to learn alongside us as we translate big questions into deeper understanding. http://projectshema.org/translations

Information

  • Creator
    Project Shema
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    3
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Translations
  • Show Website
    Translations