Podcasts Archives - Jewish Sacred Aging Rabbi Richard Address-Jewish Sacred Aging

On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Shira Zemel, Abortion Access Campaign Co-Director for the National Council of Jewish Women, discusses the organization’s efforts to protect women’s reproductive freedom.







Since its founding, NCJW has been a leader in the reproductive health and rights movement, and while much advancement has been made in the past 100 years to legally secure a person’s right to abortion and contraception, there is so much more that needs to be done to truly ensure reproductive freedom for all.







Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service







You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.







You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.



















Listen to the Audio Podcast







You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.















About the Guest























Shira Zemel







Shira Zemel is the Co-Director of National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW)’s abortion access campaign, the coordinated Jewish movement for reproductive health, rights and justice. In this role, Shira activates and mobilizes the Jewish community to take action for abortion access.







Prior to coming to NCJW, Shira was the Director of Youth Leadership Development at the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism (RAC). There, Shira led the L’Taken Social Justice Seminars; these high school leadership conferences–focused on advocacy, Jewish values, and the legislative process–bring 2,000 students to Washington D.C. each year to lobby their members of Congress. Over nearly eight years at the RAC, Shira transformed these seminars into the centerpiece of a leadership development pipeline to foster the next generation of Jewish social justice advocates. 







Shira serves as president of the ARCH board, a local abortion fund serving patients seeking care in northern Virginia. When not getting into good trouble and fighting for a just world, Shira enjoys curating feminist yard signs for her front lawn, listening to news and politics podcasts, and working on seasonal craft projects–preferably with her two young kids.

On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch, senior rabbi of the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in New York, discusses the upcoming second annual Re-Charging Reform conference, being held at the synagogue May 29-30.







The conference expects to consider these key topics:









* Israel’s and world Jewry’s confidence in the importance of the Zionist enterprise and its most basic promise — to protect the lives, liberty and dignity of Jews;







* Our liberal values and examine the partnerships we’ve spent decades building in pursuit of social justice;







* Liturgy and spirituality, anchoring them to eloquent expressions of Jewish peoplehood and a yearning for Zion; and







* Educational models that guide the next generation in valuing the significance of Israel and the Jewish people to our identity as Reform Jews.









Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service







You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.







You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.



















Listen to the Audio Podcast







You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.















About the Guest











Shahar Azan Photo











Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch







Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch is the senior rabbi of Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in New York City. With a fiery voice, a listening heart and a brilliant mind, Rabbi Hirsch articulates a clear vision for the survival and success of American Judaism while tending compassionately to the needs of his growing congregation.







Internationally recognized for his leadership in Jewish affairs, Rabbi Hirsch is frequently cited in the media. In 2018, The Jerusalem Post named him among “The 50 Most Influential Jews of the Year.” City & State praised him as “the borough’s most influential voice” for Manhattan’s more than 300,000 Jews and The New York Observer named him among “New York’s Most Influential Religious Leaders.”







The son of Rabbi Richard G. Hirsch z’’l and Bella Hirsch z’’l, Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch grew up in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area before moving to Israel for his high school years. From 1977 to 1980, he served as a tank commander in the Israel Defense Forces.







Rabbi Hirsch earned his LL.B Honors law degree from the London School of Economics and is a member of the New York State Bar. He received his ordination at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York City,

On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Rabbi Address offers a Pesach message and some questions for conversation around the Passover table.







Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service







You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.







You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.



















Listen to the Audio Podcast







You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.

On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Rabbi Peter Kasdan and Dr. Liz Etkin-Kramer discuss Yodeah.org, their online portal for genetic screening and counseling of Jewish families for the BRCA gene and other genetic markers for cancer risk.







Ashkenazi Jewish men and women are disproportionately more likely to carry hereditary genetic mutations that can markedly increase their lifetime risk of cancer. Most people are not aware, and most will not have a family history. Yodeah’s mission is to educate the Jewish community about hereditary cancer genetic mutations and provide access to affordable, clinical grade testing. Yodeah’s goal is to save lives. Knowledge is power. Knowledge saves lives.







Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service







You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.







You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.



















Listen to the Audio Podcast







You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.















About the Guest























Liz Etkin-Kramer, M.D., F.A.C.O.G.







Dr Liz Etkin-Kramer is a board certified gynecologist in South Florida.







In addition to her private practice, she is an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at FIU Herbert Wertheim School of medicine and she holds leadership positions in Florida’s district XII of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology. She founded Yodeah.org, a nonprofit dedicated to educating the Jewish community on their increased risk of carrying hereditary cancer genetic mutations and facilitating cost effective genetic testing.







With the late Lauren Corduck,  founder of One in Forty, she co-founded the Prevent Hereditary cancer coalition. In 2020 she was appointed to the American College of Obstetrics of gynecology presidential task force on knowledge gaps in breast and ovarian cancer risk assessment, management and genetic testing, and created educational videos for practicing OB/GYNs.







She is passionate about breast and ovarian cancer risk assessment, early detection and prevention.













RABBI PETER E. KASDAN







Rabbi Peter E. Kasdan was named Rabbi Emeritus when he retired in July 2001, after serving as Rabbi of Temple Emanu-El of West Essex, Livingston, New Jersey, for thirty years. Known, most widely, for his social justice work, he helped create and was the first president of both the Livingston Interfaith Clergy Association and the Livingston Interfaith Council,

On this week’s ENCORE broadcast of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, South Jersey resident Bill Fisher discusses his wife Carol’s terminal illness and decision to use New Jersey’s Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) option.







Carol had been a nationally recognized book editor until her retirement in 2016. (You can read her obituary in the Philadelphia Inquirer here.)









Their lives took a dramatic change back in fall 2016, when Carol was diagnosed with brain cancer. Luckily Carol was able to take advantage of a clinical trial at Jefferson Hospital in Philadelphia. She responded well to the experimental vaccine which kept her cancer in check for 7 years. Less than 10% of patients with this form of cancer ever survive this long.







However, in the past year, the Carol’s cancer re-emerged and difficult decisions needed to be considered for the final months of Carol’s life.









Luckily Carol’s faith and support from medical professionals, family and friends helped Carol and Bill navigate the difficult decisions necessary in participating in New Jersey’s Medical Aid in Dying (MAID) program.







With a diagnosis of less than 6 months to live and diminishing functionality, Carol chose to end her life in the comfort of her own home in the presence of her family. 







Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service







You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.







You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.



















Listen to the Audio Podcast







You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.















About the Guest























Bill Fisher







Bill Fisher is a retired real estate executive who was trained as an architect and spent most of his professional life managing the planning, design and construction of commercial, industrial and medical buildings in the mid-Atlantic and Southwest United States and London, England. He currently resides in South Jersey where he and his wife, Carol Fisher raised their two children Haddon and Lauren.

On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Rabbi Joel Soffin discusses his new book, The Mitzvah on Your Forehead: A Rabbi’s Journey to Improve the World.









In The Mitzvah on Your Forehead, Rabbi Joel E. Soffin presents life stories that invite the reader to follow his journey as he shares his experiences and insights into family, community, and social action worldwide. Luminaries in the Jewish world as well as inspirational leaders from all walks of life provide commentary on each of his essays. From discussing personal ethical decisions to relating experiences such as those with Rwandan genocide widows and Ethiopian Jewish immigrants, the stories and essays in this book are thought-provoking, entertaining, and inspirational. Rabbi Soffin contends that each one of us has a unique mitzvah “on our forehead,” a special calling or ability to make life better for others. Here, you’ll discover many of them and perhaps, ultimately, your own. In a world where there is so much chaos and pain, this book is a helpful reminder that we all, both individually and collectively, can find ways to be of service in making the world a better place.









Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast Now Available on Roku Streaming Service







You can add the Jewish Sacred Aging TV channel to your Roku streaming subscription by visiting this page: https://channelstore.roku.com/details/600964/jewish-sacred-aging.







You can also watch this week’s show in the player below. The shows now include closed-captioning for the deaf or people with a hearing loss. Click the “CC” button on the video player to activate closed-captions.



















Listen to the Audio Podcast







You can listen to the audio podcast version in the player below, or subscribe to the podcast in one of the popular platforms by clicking one of the buttons below the player.















About the Guest























Rabbi Joel E. Soffin







Rabbi Joel E. Soffin has been a life-long social activist, addressing the needs of the poor and the vulnerable in many places around the world. He initially studied economics and has a PhD pending at Yale.







In 1971, he began his studies for the rabbinate at Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion in New York City where he was ordained in 1976. Three years later, he became the Rabbi of Temple Shalom in Succasunna, NJ. While there, he developed a long series of social action projects, rescuing and resettling Vietnamese boat people and Soviet Refuseniks, supporting the Argentinian Jewish community of Mendoza and the Zvenigorodka community of Ukraine and providing over a million meals to Ethiopian Jewish children waiting to make aliyah to Israel.







Rabbi Soffin also created the Adult Mitzvah Corps of the Reform Movement and the teen Bonim Banim – Building Youth projects, organizing weeks of Jewish Religious Living in New Orl...