Sivan Says: Taking the Torah Personally

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JUDAISM
UPDATED WEEKLY

Each week, Israeli journalist and Torah scholar Sivan Rahav-Meir and Tablet’s own Liel Leibovitz discuss the week’s parsha, giving practical advice from our holiest book.

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Chayei Sarah

On this week’s parsha, Chayei Sarah, the Torah gives us one profoundly brilliant life hack: always do more. But what does it mean in practice? And how can we apply this principle, embodied by Rebecca, to continue and grow as people in every area of our lives? Tune in to find out. Sivan Rahav-Meir is a leading Israeli journalist, media personality and Torah scholar. You can sign up for her The Daily Portion WhatsApp group, where Sivan sends small insights about Judaism and current affairs. Check out Liel’s new book, How the Talmud Can Change Your Life: Surprisingly Modern Advice from a Very Old Book, available directly from the publisher, or wherever you purchase books. You can find all of Tablet’s podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts.

19 min
NOV 13

Vayera

On this week’s parsha, Vayera, the Torah teaches us that if we want to help people, we have to do more than merely offer them food, drink, and other basic necessities. True charity, we learn, involves giving people the education they need to have faith and strive to uplift themselves and others. What can we learn from Abraham about being kind to strangers? Tune in to find out. Sivan Rahav-Meir is a leading Israeli journalist, media personality and Torah scholar. You can sign up for her The Daily Portion WhatsApp group, where Sivan sends small insights about Judaism and current affairs. Check out Liel’s new book, How the Talmud Can Change Your Life: Surprisingly Modern Advice from a Very Old Book, available directly from the publisher, or wherever you purchase books. You can find all of Tablet’s podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts.

21 min
NOV 6

Lech Lecha

On this week’s parsha, Lech Lecha, the Torah gives us a master class on journeys, not just towards destinations unknown but also, and more importantly, into our own souls, our own destinies, and our own best selves. But what must we do when we’re seized by doubt and uncertainty? Tune in to find out. Sivan Rahav-Meir is a leading Israeli journalist, media personality and Torah scholar. You can sign up for her The Daily Portion WhatsApp group, where Sivan sends small insights about Judaism and current affairs. Check out Liel’s new book, How the Talmud Can Change Your Life: Surprisingly Modern Advice from a Very Old Book, available directly from the publisher, or wherever you purchase books. You can find all of Tablet’s podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts.

21 min
OCT 30

Noach

On this week’s parsha, Noach, the Torah reminds us that we can’t really expect to make it through the flood of life unless we have an ark of our own, a safe and sturdy vessel to carry us when things get too choppy. What’s the best sort of ark we can find now that the challenges that plague us are a bit more modern than a good, old fashioned flood? Tune in to find out. Sivan Rahav-Meir is a leading Israeli journalist, media personality and Torah scholar. You can sign up for her The Daily Portion WhatsApp group, where Sivan sends small insights about Judaism and current affairs. Check out Liel’s new book, How the Talmud Can Change Your Life: Surprisingly Modern Advice from a Very Old Book, available directly from the publisher, or wherever you purchase books. You can find all of Tablet’s podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts.

19 min
OCT 22

Simchat Torah

This week, our parsha-less streak reaches its home stretch, as we celebrate the holiday of Simchat Torah. It's a loaded one this year, as this otherwise joyous holiday marks the one year anniversary of the October 7 massacre. What do the families of those murdered on that dark day think we should do now that we're heartbroken yet are commanded to sing and dance and be merry? Tune in to find out. Sivan Rahav-Meir is a leading Israeli journalist, media personality and Torah scholar. You can sign up for her The Daily Portion WhatsApp group, where Sivan sends small insights about Judaism and current affairs. Check out Liel’s new book, How the Talmud Can Change Your Life: Surprisingly Modern Advice from a Very Old Book, available directly from the publisher, or wherever you purchase books. You can find all of Tablet’s podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts.

21 min
OCT 15 · BONUS

Introducing Dreyfus: A Very Modern Affair

Dreyfus: A Very Modern Affair is an October 7th story, but one that begins not in 2023, but in October of 1894 with the arrest of French military officer Alfred Dreyfus, who also happened to be a Jew. The implications of his framing, arrest, incarceration and the fallout of his eventual exoneration reverberate today. Over this five-episode series, we examine how these events unfolded, and how they connect to the antisemitism that exists today. Visit https://www.tabletmag.com/dreyfuspodcast or search for Tablet Studios on your podcast app for the rest of the series.

15 min
OCT 15

Sukkot

This week, we continue with our parsha-less streak, celebrating the High Holidays And this week, it’s time for Sukkot, the festival that commands us to take all of our meals for one week in a rickety outdoor hut. But could it be that this rickety hut is actually more stable than our homes? And is Sukkot the natural antidote to a life made so much more complicated and stressful by digital technology? Tune in to find out. Sivan Rahav-Meir is a leading Israeli journalist, media personality and Torah scholar. You can sign up for her The Daily Portion WhatsApp group, where Sivan sends small insights about Judaism and current affairs. Check out Liel’s new book, How the Talmud Can Change Your Life: Surprisingly Modern Advice from a Very Old Book, available directly from the publisher, or wherever you purchase books. You can find all of Tablet’s podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts.

20 min
OCT 9

Yom Kippur

This week, there’s no parsha. Because this Friday evening we mark the beginning Yom Kippur, the only Jewish festival that we celebrate even when it falls on Shabbat. Most of us consider it a solemn, somber day of awe, but is it also, maybe, joyous? And what does it have to teach us about not letting our good ideas and good intentions just fade away without action? Tune in to find out. Sivan Rahav-Meir is a leading Israeli journalist, media personality and Torah scholar. You can sign up for her The Daily Portion WhatsApp group, where Sivan sends small insights about Judaism and current affairs. Check out Liel’s new book, How the Talmud Can Change Your Life: Surprisingly Modern Advice from a Very Old Book, available directly from the publisher, or wherever you purchase books. You can find all of Tablet’s podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts.

19 min

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Coming Soon - Sivan Says: Taking the Torah Personally

Each week, Israeli journalist and Torah scholar Sivan Rahav Meir and Tablet’s own Liel Leibovitz discuss the week’s parsha, giving practical advice from our holiest book.

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1 min

5

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66 Ratings

This is everything I needed!

Nov 14

ETJ

Such a beautiful show and very needed in these times. Thank you!
Love it

Nov 13

basichedgewitch

I look forward to this podcast every week. It breaks down Torah in a way that is accessible and digestible with practical ways to apply it in everyday life.
Heart-Opening and Eye-Warming

Nov 6

yayahoni

Every week, the Torah portion is a blessing, and Sivan delivers this wonderful gift with her unique, smart, well-read and well-meaning insight. The best podcast of the week!
Brilliant ⭐️

Nov 1

JasonSuperPisces

Such a positive and accessible approach to a Torah study and reflection. Thank you for putting this show out there in the world. 🙏🏻🪬🩵

Each week, Israeli journalist and Torah scholar Sivan Rahav-Meir and Tablet’s own Liel Leibovitz discuss the week’s parsha, giving practical advice from our holiest book.