Jewish Ideas to Change the World

Valley Beit Midrash
  • 4.9 (29)
  • JUDAISM
  • UPDATED DAILY

Jewish Ideas to Change the World delivers thought-provoking content by leading Jewish thinkers with diverse perspectives and backgrounds. It is produced by Valley Beit Midrash. Valley Beit Midrash (VBM) is dedicated to social justice as driven by Torah ethics. VBM's mission is to improve lives through Jewish learning, direct action, and leadership development. Listen to VBM's other podcasts: • Social Justice in the Parsha (weekly divrei Torah by Rabbi Shmuly Yanklowitz) • Pearls of Jewish Wisdom on Living with Kindness (Rabbi Shmuly's class series) Stay Connected: • Website: https://www.valleybeitmidrash.org Attended virtual programs live by becoming a member for just $18 per month: https://www.valleybeitmidrash.org/become-a-member

  1. We Are Free—Now What?

    1D AGO

    We Are Free—Now What?

    A virtual event presentation by Rabbi Marc Gitler About The Event:In this class, we’ll explore the complex reality the Israelites faced after leaving Egypt, when liberation gave way to uncertainty in the wilderness. Drawing on the biblical narrative of their journey through the desert, the class examines how sudden freedom can be disorienting—marked by fear, lack of direction, nostalgia, and the struggle to build a new identity. About The Speaker: Marc Gitler is the Senior Jewish Educator at Valley Beit Midrash and visiting Rabbi of Aish SanDiego. A recipient of the Wexner Fellowship, he was ordained at Yeshivat Chovevei Torah. The founder of Fast for Feast, he lives in Denver, Colorado, with his wife, Sarah, and their four children. ★ Support this podcast ★

    50 min
  2. The Seven Questions That Make a Jewish Leader

    3D AGO

    The Seven Questions That Make a Jewish Leader

    A hybrid event presentation with Rabbi Mike Feuer About The Event: The difference between leading yourself and becoming the hero of your story isn't just semantic - it's spiritual. This talk presents seven questions from the Torah of Jewish heroism that transform personal growth into something greater: a journey of moral courage, service, and sacred purpose. They are a guide for those seeking to lead themselves and others toward a larger narrative of meaning, courage, and purpose. About The Speaker: Rav Mike Feuer is an educator, content creator, and spiritual counselor. Through the Jewish Heroism Project, he brings a Torah of Jewish heroism to leaders, educators, activists, and idealistic Jews seeking to develop courage, capacity, and spiritual strength for our time. ★ Support this podcast ★

    1h 11m
  3. Models of Heroism and Independence in Our Time

    4D AGO

    Models of Heroism and Independence in Our Time

    A hybrid event presentation with Rabbi Mike Feuer About The Event: On the day after Israel’s Independence Day, this talk explores how certain models of Jewish heroism - the warrior and the public leader - have made sovereignty possible, yet cannot by themselves fulfill its deeper promise. Drawing on the Torah of Jewish heroism, we will ask what fuller independence requires today. The answer points to different forms of Jewish heroism: the judge, the healer, and the storyteller - those who shape conscience, restore wholeness, and give meaning to power on the road toward redemption. Source Sheet: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QUrBy2g1WxrKtn7fn-rkw6ULA791P-J6/view?usp=sharingAbout The Speaker: Rav Mike Feuer is an educator, content creator, and spiritual counselor. Through the Jewish Heroism Project, he brings a Torah of Jewish heroism to leaders, educators, activists, and idealistic Jews seeking to develop courage, capacity, and spiritual strength for our time. ★ Support this podcast ★

    1h 1m
  4. The Questions That Never Go Away

    5D AGO

    The Questions That Never Go Away

    A hybrid event presentation with Rabbi Ed Feinstein The event was co-sponsored by the United Jewish Federation of Utah and hosted by Temple Har Shalom. About The Event: A child asks innocently, Where is God? Where did Grandma go when she died? Why do bad things happen? The language may be childlike, but the questions are profound. These are the questions that grow from being human. And Judaism offers answers, profound and moving answers. So let’s open our tradition and share these deep insights into the human condition. Source Sheet: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1NxVE26x_gZgnoqQf3G1skPXCWdQH_ftJ/view?usp=sharingAbout The Speaker: Rabbi Feinstein serves the Valley Beth Shalom community as a teacher, pastor, and visionary leader. He also serves on the faculty of the Ziegler Rabbinical School of the American Jewish University, the Wexner Heritage Program, and the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem, and lectures widely across the United States. He is the author of several books, including: Tough Questions Jews Ask – A Young Adult’s Guide to Building a Jewish Life, (Jewish Lights, 2003), Jews and Judaism in the Twenty-First Century: Human Responsibility, the Presence of God and the Future of the Covenant (Jewish Lights, 2007), Capturing the Moon (Behrman House, 2008) and most recently, Chutzpah Imperative! - Empowering Today's Jews for a Life that Matters (Jewish Lights, 2014).  Rabbi Feinstein was raised in the back of his parents’ bakery on the frontiers of the West San Fernando Valley. He graduated with honors from the University of California at Santa Cruz, the University of Judaism, Columbia University Teachers College, and the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, where he was ordained a rabbi in 1981. Most recently, he received his Doctorate in Education from the Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS) at Park Avenue Synagogue in New York for his dissertation: Rabbi Harold Schulweis and the Reinvention of the American Rabbinate.  An engaging lecturer and storyteller, Rabbi Feinstein unites the ancient Jewish love of ideas with the warmth of Jewish humor. ★ Support this podcast ★

    1h 9m
  5. Forging White Heat: A Post–October 7 Haiku Journey

    APR 23

    Forging White Heat: A Post–October 7 Haiku Journey

    A virtual event presentation by Sara Tropper About The Event: In this book talk, I will present the forging of “White Heat” and read select poems from the volume. I will share what spurred me to write the book, define haiku and its interesting history, and discuss the sumi-e (Japanese pen-and-ink) artwork that accompanies the poems. The talk is designed to give the audience time to absorb the poems and images. About The Speaker: Sara Tropper lives in Israel with her husband, children, grandchildren, and a large, affectionate dog. When she is not editing books for scholars, she enjoys losing on the soccer field to her grandsons. She wrote “White Heat” on the hillside with her canine sidekick. ★ Support this podcast ★

    45 min
  6. Holocaust Testimony Reimagined

    APR 21

    Holocaust Testimony Reimagined

    A virtual event presentation by Martin Herskovitz About The Event: Eighty years after the Holocaust, a new narrative is taking its place alongside the heretofore trauma-based narratives: the artistic narratives of the Second and Third Generations. It is no longer just the atrocities themselves that are at the center of attention, but also how the heirs of the victims, the Second and Third Generations, are taking ownership of these stories and transforming them. The narrative of the Second and Third Generation is a story, not of devastation, but of family connection, allowing the possibility of grieving, compassion, and healing. This new testimony of postmemory transforms Holocaust remembrance from a narrative of destruction and restoration to a personal journey of healing. The listeners are invited to join Martin Herskovitz, a poet and a child of survivors, on his journey. Source Sheet: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MipgxvBueVP1ulYTj4ovCqH6uwsbi3BB/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=118303465191084699356&rtpof=true&sd=trueAbout The Speaker: Martin Herskovitz, from Rehovot, Israel, is a child of Holocaust survivors. He is a public fellow at the Finkler Institute for Holocaust Studies at Bar Ilan University and a poet. Via his poetry and his endeavor, Creating Memory, he propounds a more personal and emotionally resonant approach to Holocaust remembrance. ★ Support this podcast ★

    45 min
  7. Mayim Bialik in Conversation with Rabbi Shmuly

    APR 20

    Mayim Bialik in Conversation with Rabbi Shmuly

    A sit-down conversation with Mayim Bialik and Rabbi Shmuly.  Mayim Bialik is best known for her lead role as Blossom Russo in the early-1990s NBC television sitcom Blossom. She played the role of Amy Farrah Fowler on the critically acclaimed CBS comedy The Big Bang Theory, for which she received 2 Critics’ Choice Awards, 4 Emmy nominations, and a SAG Award nomination. She served as host of Jeopardy! for 2 seasons, earning her fifth Emmy nomination for her contributions to the iconic show, which won its first primetime Emmy the year she hosted. In 2021, Bialik wrote and directed the feature film As They Made Us, starring Dustin Hoffman, Candice Bergen, Dianna Agron, and Simon Helberg. She hosts a popular mental health podcast, Mayim Bialik’s Breakdown, with over 100 million downloads. Bialik holds a BS and PhD in Neuroscience from UCLA, and she has authored four books, two of which are on the New York Times Best-Sellers list (Girling Up: How to be Strong, Smart and Spectacular and Boying Up: How to be Brave, Bold and Brilliant). ★ Support this podcast ★

    16 min
  8. An Unfinished Freedom: Passover as the Birth of an Ideal

    APR 1

    An Unfinished Freedom: Passover as the Birth of an Ideal

    An event presentation by Rabbi Dr. Armin Langer and Rabbi Moishe Steigmann About The Event:  This year, we explore what freedom meant for the Israelites, who were included—and who were left out—in the Torah’s vision of liberation. We’ll reflect on how the call for freedom is both aspirational and incomplete and consider how its message resonates today. Together, we’ll imagine ways to carry forward the radical, unfinished work of freedom in our own lives and communities. This session will be co-taught by Rabbi Dr. Armin Langer of Congregation Shir Hadash and Own Your Judaism’s Moishe Steigmann, The Mindful Rabbi. *Source Sheet: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1yxCsRJ6bzxYCemejgqN57ijfZUpN6LEI2aXu77kXvko/edit?tab=t.0 About The Speakers:  Rabbi Dr. Armin Langer serves Shir Hadash as a teacher and community builder, committed to creating a welcoming, intellectually curious, and spiritually grounded Jewish home. Born in Germany to a family of Hungarian immigrants, he brings a deep awareness of Jewish diversity, memory, and resilience to his rabbinate. Before moving to Milwaukee, he taught and led prayer in diverse Jewish communities across Europe, the United States, and Mexico. Ordained by the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, he holds a PhD in Sociology from Humboldt University of Berlin. His writing appears in academic journals and public-facing outlets, including The Forward, Evolve, and The Conversation. He believes in a big-tent Judaism that brings Jewish tradition into conversation with contemporary ethical and social challenges. Moishe Steigmann, The Mindful Rabbi, is the founder and director of Own Your Judaism and is the director of Ohel Ayalah. He seamlessly blends ancient Jewish wisdom with contemporary mindfulness practices. Through his teachings, writings, and workshops, he continues to influence and lead the conversation on mindful living within and beyond the Jewish community. He also speaks, hosts livestream conversations, and offers Jewish Life Coaching and organizational consultation. Born and raised in Milwaukee, Rabbi Steigmann is a proud father of two children, loves sports, is passionate about living gratefully, and enjoys almost all puzzles and games. ★ Support this podcast ★

    57 min
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4.9
out of 5
29 Ratings

About

Jewish Ideas to Change the World delivers thought-provoking content by leading Jewish thinkers with diverse perspectives and backgrounds. It is produced by Valley Beit Midrash. Valley Beit Midrash (VBM) is dedicated to social justice as driven by Torah ethics. VBM's mission is to improve lives through Jewish learning, direct action, and leadership development. Listen to VBM's other podcasts: • Social Justice in the Parsha (weekly divrei Torah by Rabbi Shmuly Yanklowitz) • Pearls of Jewish Wisdom on Living with Kindness (Rabbi Shmuly's class series) Stay Connected: • Website: https://www.valleybeitmidrash.org Attended virtual programs live by becoming a member for just $18 per month: https://www.valleybeitmidrash.org/become-a-member

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