Shows
Shofar, So Good!BONUS: A conversation with Rabbi Daniel Raphael SilversteinRabbi Daniel Raphael Silverstein was the perfect person to talk to as I was grappling with what it meant to be Jewish.
He's a rabbi, educator, meditation teacher, MC/poet and director of Applied Jewish Spirituality, an online portal that brings the tradition's spiritual wisdom to life. Among his other accomplishments: He's a cofounder of Lines of Faith, a Muslim-Jewish hip hop and poetry collective.
Please support this podcast! Tell a friend, rate/review the show, and visit shofarsogoodpodcast.com/support to support our Season 2 efforts.
Producer: Kate Mishkin
Music: Nan Sc...2025-03-1228 min
The Spirit of the TorahChanukah & Miketz: The Melody of IntegrationCHANUKAH SAMEACH! HAPPY CHANUKAH!Here are the sources referred to in this week's episode:The start of the parsha:https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.41?lang=bi&aliyot=0The brothers fear that Joseph and his descendants will lead the Jewish People to idolatry:https://www.sefaria.org/Bereshit_Rabbah.84.14?lang=biBrothers departed from brotherhood and sought religious / legal pretexts against Joseph, to justify killing him:https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.37.17?lang=bi&with=Rashi&lang...2024-12-2219 minThe Spirit of the TorahVayeshev: Stories To Wake Us UpWe've arrived at one of the best stories ever written, about Joseph and his brothers, and our mystics have a lot to say about the power of stories...Here are the sources referred to in this episode:Vayeshev: https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.37.3?lang=bi&aliyot=0Kabbalah teaches that the "real" Torah is actually the Infinite Name of the Infinite Creator.Just as the infinite, eternal Torah (which is beyond narrative) was "condensed down" into stories about our ancestors, so too it must be re...2024-12-1517 minThe Spirit of the TorahVayishlach: From Dualistic Conflict to Holistic IntegrationIn this week's episode on Toldot, we explore how the Ba'al Shem Tov and his students took the long-running rivalry and dualism of Jacob and Esau and offered a refreshingly optimistic and holistic perspective on apparent opposites such as good and evil, body and soul.The teaching shows the development from the classical Kabbalah of the Zohar to the new interpretation of Kabbalah pioneered by the early Chasidic masters, and has profound implications for how we today address our highly polarized...2024-12-0811 minThe Spirit of the TorahVayeitzei: Living the Dream-LadderHappy Moon! Chodesh Tov! In this week's episode we'll explore Jacob's dream of the ladder, which is an absolute centerpiece of Jewish spirituality.Below are some of the life lessons we can learn from it, according to our spiritual teachers.Start of the parsha: https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.28.10-32.3?lang=bi&aliyot=0When we unify ourselves with the "lowest level of existence" then our consciousness can expand infinitely: https://www.sefaria.org/Toldot_Yaakov_Yosef%2C_Vayetzei.17?vhe=Eic...2024-12-0114 minThe Spirit of the TorahToldot: Our Patriarchs as Kabbalistic ArchetypesIn this episode, we explore a foundational idea in Kabbalah. The Sefirot (qualities, emanations or characteristics) of the Divine which make up the Tree of Life are said to correspond to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. How do we see this in the Torah, and through the commentaries of the Ba'al Shem Tov and his students?Here's the parsha: https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.25.19?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=enFirstly, we learn from the Patriarchs that everyone has to find their own unique path of Divi...2024-11-2421 minThe Spirit of the TorahChayei Sara: Just Like Starting OverIn this episode, we'll be exploring Reb Noson / Rav Natan of Breslov's Chasidic interpretations of the Torah, Kabbalah and Midrash, centered on this week's Torah portion. Here are the sources referred to in this episode:Opening of the parsha with Rashi:https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.23.1?lang=bi&aliyot=0&p2=Rashi_on_Genesis.23.1&lang2=biWe need to constantly begin anew, seeing ourselves as if we have not even yet begun our journeys, constantly adding sanctity and vitality each an...2024-11-1715 minThe Spirit of the TorahVayera: Teaching the Angels a LessonReb Noson / Rav Natan of Breslov's Chasidic interpretations of the Torah, Kabbalah and Midrash are deeply resonant for me at the moment, and also providing so much guidance that translates into actual practice in our daily lives.Here are the sources referred to in this episode:The amazing teaching from Reb Noson's masterpiece, Likutei Halachot, that this week's entire episode is based on, which says that eating is our ultimate spiritual practice, and which ties together all the sources below:...2024-11-1018 minThe Spirit of the TorahLech Lecha: A Tribe Called QuestKabbalah teaches that our lives are a quest. How do we keep going in the right direction, one step at a time? Here are the sources referred to in this episode:The Infinite one tells Avram to "go forth" or "go to yourself" or "go for your own benefit" - https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.12.1?lang=bi&with=Rashi&lang2=enAlso Rashi (on "the land that I will show you"): Hashem didn't tell Avram where he was going, in order to make the place more beloved to him."The Land of Israel" (both the ...2024-11-0312 minThe Spirit of the TorahNoach: Kabbalistic Perspectives on Being a Righteous PersonRashi, the great French medieval commentator on the Torah, comments on the opening of our weekly Torah portion in a very provocative manner. Through bringing multiple perspectives on the righteousness of Noach, he challenges us to consider: What does it mean to be a righteous person (Tzadik)?Here are the sources referred to in this episode:The Torah calls Noach a Tzadik (Righteous Person).How is that discerned?Is it innate, or is it relative to one's context?https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.6....2024-10-2720 minThe Spirit of the TorahThe Infinite Spiral of Compassion - Simchat Torah, VeZot HaBracha & BreishitOn Simchat Torah, we conclude our year-long reading of the entire Torah, and then immediately begin it once again. What is the kabbalistic meaning of this endless circle of Torah?Here are the sources referred to in this episode:When we've learned the entire Torah, then we understand that we actually don't know anything at all. https://www.sefaria.org/Me'or_Einayim%2C_Bereshit.48?vhe=Me%27or_Einayim_--_OYW&lang=biCreation could not endure unless Compassion (Rachamim, aka Emet and Ti...2024-10-2123 minThe Spirit of the TorahSukkot: The Divine Embrace and Manifesting UnityWelcome to The Spirit of the Torah from Applied Jewish Spirituality (AJS).In every episode, Rabbi Daniel Raphael Silverstein explores insights arising from the Hebrew calendar or our weekly Torah portion, and related practices that can help us to effect positive change in our lives.In this episode, we explore the spiritual meaning of the beautiful festival of Sukkot and its emphasis on joyful, embodied, earth-based practices.Here are the sources referred to in this episode:The embrace or hug ...2024-10-1315 minThe Spirit of the TorahThe Kabbalah of Yom Kippur: Narrative Therapy and Self-forgivenessWelcome to The Spirit of the Torah from Applied Jewish Spirituality (AJS). In every episode, Rabbi Daniel Raphael Silverstein explores insights arising from the Hebrew calendar or weekly Torah portion, and related practices that can help us to effect positive change in our lives. Yom Kippur is our holy of holies, and its central theme is forgiveness. Our sages teach that the day itself can erase our past mistakes, if we harness its unique power. This episode about Yom Kippur explo...2024-10-0611 min
The Spirit of the TorahRosh Hashanah: Joseph Remembers the FutureWelcome to The Spirit of the Torah from Applied Jewish Spirituality (AJS). In every episode, Rabbi Daniel Raphael Silverstein explores insights arising from the Hebrew calendar or weekly Torah portion, and related practices that can help us to effect positive change in our lives. Rosh Hashanah, our new year festival, has a lot to teach us about beginning, and our relationship with our own future self. In this, our first episode, we will explore how the story of Joseph is intrin...2024-09-3018 min
Uri L'Tzedek: Orthodox Social JusticeJews and Humanity: Evolution of a Conversation - Rabbi Daniel Raphael SilversteinRabbi Daniel Raphael Silverstein at Uri L’Tzedek on "Jews and Humanity: Evolution of a Conversation"For this session where we will explore diverse views of Gentiles in key Jewish texts, from our earlier biblical texts, and down through the many generations of rabbinic teachings. Some of the texts we will read together emphasize Jewish chosenness or even superiority, while others emphasize the common attributes and/or destiny of all human beings. As we will see, there is a fascinating story here of the evolution of ideas in various historical contexts. Our primary focus wi...2023-05-1759 min
Jewish Ideas to Change the WorldRabbi Daniel Raphael Silverstein - Mystical and Psychological Perspectives on the SederABOUT THIS EVENT: In this session, we will explore together the centrality of speech and storytelling to the Seder night. How do our biblical, rabbinic, and mystical texts understand the connection between speech and freedom? And how can we harness their wisdom to use our own speech to bring greater freedom to ourselves, and to our world?
ABOUT THIS SPEAKER: Daniel Raphael Silverstein is a rabbi, educator, meditation teacher and MC/poet. He lives in Israel with his family, where he is a faculty member of Pardes, Or HaLev, the Conservative Yeshiva, and the Romemu Yeshiva (NY). Daniel recently launched...2021-03-1759 min