Archive

Meet Our Guest: Rabbi Scott Westle

Rabbi Scott Westle is now in his 5th year as Rabbi-in-Residence at Heschel, a community TK-8th grade Jewish Day School in Northridge, CA. Scott earned his rabbinic ordination from the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies at the American Jewish University in 2014 with a concentration in philosophy. Previously, he earned his BA in International Security and Conflict Resolution in 2004 from the San Diego State University.

Scott has worked for a number of Jewish organizations in the LA area, including Shomrei Torah Synagogue, Camp Ramah, Hillel at UCLA, Sinai Temple, Los Angeles Hebrew High School, and Temple Aliyah. Scott has also helped lead High Holiday programs and other Jewish content, and serves on the board of directors, at downtown’s Pico Union Project, an interfaith and interethnic art and prayer space. Scott loves his (now) Los Angeles Chargers, the band Phish, Game of Thrones theories, the NBA, and most flavors of Ben & Jerry’s.

Recommended Resources

• Bob Dylan’s 10 Most Jewish Songs from the Forward
• Who by Fire by Leonard Cohen

Shout-Out to the Designers of Our New Podcast Cover

• Small + Sole – Go-t0 design services for small business and solo entrepreneurs looking to launch or re-launch their brand online with clean, simple, and beautiful design.

Musical Shout-Out for Our Intro & Outro Beats

• Nola Nigun by Joey Weisenberg and the Hadar Ensemble

Join the Jewcurious Community Center

• CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP & JOIN THE CONVERSATION

Finally…Sign Up to Join the Upcoming Webinar

I’m offering a new webinar I hope you’ll attend: “4 Ways To Improve Your Day of Rest (Without Feeling Like A Shabbat Failure) .” Click the big blue button to sign up…and don’t worry, if for some reason you can’t make it (and even if you can) I’ll send you a link to the recording after it’s over.

Hope to see you there!

 

Meet Our Guest: Rabbi Ben Newman

Rabbi Ben Newman is the founder and spiritual leader of Shtiebel, a new paradigm Jewish community in the Rivertowns of Westchester, NY. He served for 7 years as the rabbi of Congregation Har Shalom in Fort Collins, CO, along with his wife Rabbi Shoshana Leis. Rabbi Ben received a B.A. from Skidmore College in Religion and Culture, an M.A. in Jewish Studies from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, and rabbinical ordination from the Academy for Jewish Religion in New York.

He previously served as the Associate Rabbi for JRF Congregation M’vakshe Derekh in Scarsdale, New York. Rabbi Ben is the author of a series of childrens’ books called The Enchanted Sukkah about a time travelling sukkah. In addition to being a writer and a rabbi, Ben is a singer-songwriter who delights in chanting, playing guitar, and using an Indian instrument called a sruti box. He also enjoys reading Jewish literature of all types, as well as science fiction (his favorite author is Philip K Dick), philosophy, and beat poetry. Rabbi Ben lives by the shores of the Hudson River in Dobbs Ferry, NY and his greatest joy is being father to his daughter and his son.

Recommended Resources

• Shtiebel, Rabbi Newman’s start-up community
• Bayit: Your Jewish Home, a great source for DIY Jewish resources
• “One Day” by Matisyahu
• Rabbi Newman’s book (just in time for Sukkot) The Enchanted Sukkah
• Mordecai Kaplan’s book Judaism as a Civilization
• Books by Reb Zalman Schachter-Shalomi
• Books by Rabbi Art Greene: Seek My Face: A Jewish Mystical Theology & Ehyeh: A Kabbalah for Tomomorrow
• “Believe It or Not” – Theme song for The Greatest American Hero

Full disclosure: Links to these books are affiliate links. This means: If you buy the books through these links, a small commission goes to support the show, at no additional cost to you.

Disclosure addendum: Man, that song takes me back! (both of them)

Shout-Out to the Designers of Our New Podcast Cover

• Small + Sole – Go-t0 design services for small business and solo entrepreneurs looking to launch or re-launch their brand online with clean, simple, and beautiful design.

Musical Shout-Out for Our Intro & Outro Beats

• Nola Nigun by Joey Weisenberg and the Hadar Ensemble

NEW CLASSES Coming Soon with Rabbi Carrier

• Miller Introduction to Judaism Class (I’m teaching the AJU August 2018 session)
• Florence Melton School of Adult Jewish Learning (I’m teaching the Wednesday Year 1 CORE class & the Jewish Denominations graduate class)

Introducing…the Jewcurious Community Center

In this episode I shared that I was inspired/challenged by a listener named Brian to create a forum for Jewcurious people to gather, share your stories, share your challenges, support each other, and celebrate your growth.

So here goes!

I’ve created a private Facebook group called the Jewcurious Community Center.

(This is a working title; early adopters of the group can help pick a new name, if you like!)

If you’re curious about how this community might help you (and who you might help), click this big button to try it out and see…

 

Meet Our Guest: Rabbi Mark Wildes

Rabbi Mark Wildes is the founder and director of the nonprofit, Manhattan Jewish Experience. Before becoming a rabbi, Wildes received his JD from the Cardozo School of Law, as well as a Masters in International Affairs from Columbia University. Since founding MJE in 1998, Wildes has mentored thousands of Jewish millennials in NYC, helping them achieve career, personal and spiritual ambitions. Wildes has just written his first book, condensing 4,000 years of Jewish wisdom into a relatable take on how spirituality can guide us to lead happier and more fulfilling lives.

Wildes has made waves in broadcast including Fox News, PBS, HuffPost Live, Fatherly, Bustle and actively blogs on contemporary Judaism.

You can find out more about Wildes on www.markwildes.com.

About Beyond the Instant

‘Beyond the Instant’ — Rabbi Mark Wildes’ first book — demonstrates to young adults how to enrich their lives through spiritual teachings, guiding millennials away from the frenzied, social-media oriented society that’s warping core values. The book examines ten different areas of modern life – including friendship, family, dating, money, and career – to demonstrate how a return to spirituality can help people find happiness and long-term fulfillment.

Topics include:

• What is the significance of failure?
• How can people really make a difference in the world?
• What is the role of sex in a relationship?
• What should I look for in a partner?
• How do I achieve long-term happiness?

Wildes draws his wisdom from the Torah and traditional teachings, as well as contemporary stories from pop culture. The book is relatable and engaging, and instead of pushing beliefs and religion, it shows people how teachings can be practically implemented to live a better life.

Comedian Elon Gold said ‘Beyond the Instant’ is “like reading all of Malcolm Gladwell’s books, except this will not only better your life, it will actually nourish your soul. It’s not just self-help. It’s self-fulfillment.”

‘Beyond the Instant’ launches September 4 on Amazon and select bookstores. It is currently available for pre-sale on Amazon.

About the Manhattan Jewish Experience

Founded by Rabbi Mark Wildes in 1998, the Manhattan Jewish Experience is a warm and open community where millennial men and women can explore Jewish life and meet new people. As a nonprofit, MJE runs a wide range of inclusive, engaging and innovative programs for thousands of young Jewish professionals, including Shabbat dinners, holiday events and parties, ski trip, classes, beginner services, and trips to Israel.

Learn more about MJE at jewishexperience.org

Resources Mentioned

• Pre-order Rabbi Wildes’s book, Beyond the Instant (affiliate link)
• Manhattan Jewish Experience
• Beyond the Instant Book Launch Party at MJE
• High Holy Days at MJE

Connect with Rabbi Wildes

• Email: markwildes at gmail dot com
• Facebook
• Twitter

Shout-Out to the Designers of Our New Podcast Cover

• Small + Sole – Go-t0 design services for small business and solo entrepreneurs looking to launch or re-launch their brand online with clean, simple, and beautiful design.

Musical Shout-Out for Our Intro & Outro Beats

• Nola Nigun by Joey Weisenberg and the Hadar Ensemble

NEW CLASSES Coming Soon with Rabbi Carrier

• Miller Introduction to Judaism Class (I’m teaching the AJU August 2018 session)
• Florence Melton School of Adult Jewish Learning (I’m teaching the Wednesday Year 1 CORE class & the Jewish Denominations graduate class)

One More Thing

If you’d like to learn more about these holidays, I highly recommend you join us for the Jewish Holidays Fall Challenge. If you join us for this unique learning experience, you will get:

• A downloadable guide to all the major Jewish holidays, with their dates for the Hebrew Year 5779 (2018-2019)
• A new video for every single day in August teaching you some aspect of the Fall holidays
• Your chance to win a Starter Jewish Library of the 6 books I recommend as a rabbi to people learning about Judaism

To learn more & accept this challenge, click on this big gold button:

 

Meet Our Guest: Archie Gottesman

Archie Gottesman knows in her kishkes that warm, meaningful Jewish rituals are the key to keeping Jewish people connected to their roots. This includes people who have a regular Jewish practice as well as those who are new to Judaism through marriage or haven’t thought about their Jewish practice in a while.

This is what led her to founding JewBelong.com, a groundbreaking website focused on rebranding Judaism to younger generations. JewBelong creates ads like, “Even if his mother still calls you ‘her’,” and “Even if the closest you get to a synagogue is walking by one on the way to SoulCycle.”

Archie knows about connecting with people through compelling branding. For 20 years, she was the voice behind Manhattan Mini Storage’s iconic billboard and subway ads.

Archie has sat on various boards including: Animal Haven Shelter, Foundation for Jewish Camp and the Women’s Board of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) and is a new board member of Zioness.org. She is also a guest lecturer about family business at Columbia University.

Archie is a graduate of Northwestern University and a Wexner Heritage Program alum. She lives in Summit with her husband, Gary DeBode. They have three daughters and an ever-changing number of shelter dogs.

Resources Mentioned

• Archie’s Rosh Haggadah an other Rosh Hashanah resources
• Shabbat Dinner at Archie Bunker’s Place (different Archie, no relation)
• Gandhi goes to a yoga class (from College Humor…colorful language)

Shout-Out to the Designers of Our New Podcast Cover

• Small + Sole – Go-t0 design services for small business and solo entrepreneurs looking to launch or re-launch their brand online with clean, simple, and beautiful design.

Musical Shout-Out for Our Intro & Outro Beats

• Nola Nigun by Joey Weisenberg and the Hadar Ensemble

NEW CLASSES Coming Soon with Rabbi Carrier

• Miller Introduction to Judaism Class (I’m teaching the AJU August 2018 session)
• Florence Melton School of Adult Jewish Learning (I’m teaching the Wednesday Year 1 CORE class & the Jewish Denominations graduate class)

One More Thing

If you’d like to learn more about these holidays, I highly recommend you join us for the Jewish Holidays Fall Challenge. If you join us for this unique learning experience, you will get:

• A downloadable guide to all the major Jewish holidays, with their dates for the Hebrew Year 5779 (2018-2019)
• A new video for every single day in August teaching you some aspect of the Fall holidays
• Your chance to win a Starter Jewish Library of the 6 books I recommend as a rabbi to people learning about Judaism

To learn more & accept this challenge, click on this big gold button: