Judaism Unbound

Hanukkah 2025 - ApocryFest #2 - Genesis Apocryphon

Lex Rofeberg, Lexi Kohanski, and Liana Wertman [https://www.judaismunbound.com/apocrypha] (the latter two our friends at The Torah Studio [https://www.thetorahstudio.org/]) bring the 2nd conversation in a 4-episode mini-series entitled ApocryFest: Hanukkah Unbound and Un-Canonized. In this episode, they explore a text called Genesis Apocryphon. They explore the power of texts written in the 1st-person (unlike most of the Bible), ask whether it may be spiritually productive to engage with texts that are fragments (allowing us to fill in the blanks ourselves), and wonder aloud what changes when allow stories from our tradition to have multiple versions that can all simultaneously be "authentic." You can sign up for ApocryFest 2025 by heading to www.JudaismUnbound.com/apocryfest [https://www.judaismunbound.com/apocryfest]. Do so, and we’ll send you all sorts of cool Apocryphal stuff, during Hanukkah, to help enrich your experience of this holiday! And you can register for The Hanukkah Apocrypha Extravaganza on December 21st, via this link! [https://judaismunbound.zoom.us/meeting/register/cgkEYcPPSL-adcByEP7KHQ#/registration] For all of our episodes from past years' ApocryFests, click here. [https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4eF3NaCZEaSTEplJ5g0MqZ?si=SHAvPx24Rc2PHzvpuPILJw&pi=u-6gokT3GfSjKi&nd=1&dlsi=44708620a83740aa] Head to JudaismUnbound.com/classes to check out our up upcoming 3-week mini-courses in the UnYeshiva! This time around we are offering The Torah of Kink, Hasidism and Neo-Hasidism, Queering Kedusha (Holiness), and Brit Milah Unbound: Exploring Circumcision! [https://www.judaismunbound.com/classes]

Episode 513: Hanukkah 2025 - ApocryFest

Hanukkah is here! Lex Rofeberg, Lexi Kohanski, and Liana Wertman (the latter two from our friends at The Torah Studio [https://www.thetorahstudio.org/]) kick off the 2025 edition of ApocryFest: Hanukkah Unbound and Un-Canonized -- a 4-part mini-series of Judaism Unbound. They ask why texts of the apocrypha are worth exploring, why it's worth doing so on Hanukkah in particular, explore some beloved apocryphal faves (Judith and Maccabees) along with introducing a few texts (Genesis Apocryphon and 4 Ezra) which will get bonus episodes of their own once Hanukkah begins. You can sign up for ApocryFest 2025 by heading to www.JudaismUnbound.com/apocryfest [https://www.judaismunbound.com/apocryfest]. Do so, and we’ll send you all sorts of cool Apocryphal stuff, during Hanukkah, to help enrich your experience of this holiday! And you can register for The Hanukkah Apocrypha Extravaganza on December 21st, via this link! [https://judaismunbound.zoom.us/meeting/register/cgkEYcPPSL-adcByEP7KHQ#/registration] For all of our episodes from past years' ApocryFests, click here. [https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4eF3NaCZEaSTEplJ5g0MqZ?si=SHAvPx24Rc2PHzvpuPILJw&pi=u-6gokT3GfSjKi&nd=1&dlsi=44708620a83740aa] Head to JudaismUnbound.com/classes to check out our up upcoming 3-week mini-courses in the UnYeshiva! This time around we are offering The Torah of Kink, Hasidism and Neo-Hasidism, Queering Kedusha (Holiness), and Brit Milah Unbound: Exploring Circumcision! [https://www.judaismunbound.com/classes]

Episode 512: Antisemitism Beyond Christian Hegemony - Sarah Hurwitz

Dan and Lex [https://www.judaismunbound.com/team] are joined by Sarah Hurwitz [https://www.sarahhurwitz.net/], author of a recently-published book entitled As a Jew [https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/as-a-jew-sarah-hurwitz/1146705078;jsessionid=CCED78038C6F2E00957B4ABEE647C33D.prodny_store02-atgap18?ean=9780063374973&st=AFF&2sid=HarperCollins%20Publishers%20LLC_7310909_NA&sourceId=AFFHarperCollins%20Publishers%20LLC], which explores ways in which antisemitism has shaped Jewish identity -- and how Jews can reclaim their tradition. This episode is the second in a short mini-series on antisemitism, following up on a conversation last week with Daniel May [https://www.judaismunbound.com/podcast/episode-511-daniel-may].  Access full shownotes [https://www.judaismunbound.com/podcast/episode-512-sarah-hurwitz] for this episode via this link [https://www.judaismunbound.com/podcast/episode-512-sarah-hurwitz]. If you're enjoying Judaism Unbound [https://www.judaismunbound.com/], please help us keep things going [https://www.judaismunbound.com/donate] with a one-time or monthly tax-deductible donation -- support Judaism Unbound by clicking here! [https://www.judaismunbound.com/donate] Join the Judaism Unbound discord, where you can interact with fellow listeners all around the world, by heading to discord.judaismunbound.com [https://discord.judaismunbound.com/].

Episode 511: Antisemitism Beyond Eternalism - Daniel May

Daniel May [https://jewishcurrents.org/author/daniel-may], publisher of Jewish Currents [https://jewishcurrents.org], joins Dan and Lex for a conversation about anti-semitism. May is the author of a recent piece in Harper's Magazine entitled "An Outrage to Common Sense: On the Meanings of Anti-Semitism," [https://harpers.org/archive/2025/09/an-outrage-to-common-sense-the-meanings-of-anti-semitism-daniel-may-on-antisemitism-word-in-history-mark-mazower/] a piece that serves as a great launching point into a discussion of antisemitism's history, its contemporary manifestations, along with debates about when it manifests and when it doesn't. If you've noticed that some parts of this description use a hyphen in "anti-semitism," and others use "antisemitism" with no hyphen, you're a sharp reader! That punctuation choice and its ramifications is part of this episode as well.  Access full shownotes [https://www.judaismunbound.com/podcast/episode-511-daniel-may] for this episode via this link [https://www.judaismunbound.com/podcast/episode-511-daniel-may]. If you're enjoying Judaism Unbound [https://www.judaismunbound.com/], please help us keep things going [https://www.judaismunbound.com/donate] with a one-time or monthly tax-deductible donation -- support Judaism Unbound by clicking here! [https://www.judaismunbound.com/donate] Join the Judaism Unbound discord, where you can interact with fellow listeners all around the world, by heading to discord.judaismunbound.com [https://discord.judaismunbound.com/].

Episode 510: Not Your Rabbis' Judaism...Still! - Barbara Thiede (Shulamit Sapir)

Barbara Thiede [https://pages.charlotte.edu/barbara-thiede/] (also known as Shulamit Sapir) is a multi-time guest on Judaism Unbound in the past, a key figure in our recent book Judaism Unbound...Bound [https://www.judaismunbound.com/book], a past teacher in the UnYeshiva, and a major influence on Judaism Unbound in many respects over the years. She joins Dan and Lex for a conversation that extends a previous appearance of hers (Episode 101: Not Your Rabbis' Judaism [https://www.judaismunbound.com/podcast/2018/1/10/judaism-unbound-episode-101-not-your-rabbis-judaism-barbara-thiede]), and continues a mini-series of Judaism Unbound episodes where we look back on what has shifted in Jewish life since our founding ten years ago. Access full shownotes [https://www.judaismunbound.com/podcast/episode-510-barbara-thiede] for this episode via this link [https://www.judaismunbound.com/podcast/episode-510-barbara-thiede]. If you're enjoying Judaism Unbound [https://www.judaismunbound.com/], please help us keep things going [https://www.judaismunbound.com/donate] with a one-time or monthly tax-deductible donation -- support Judaism Unbound by clicking here! [https://www.judaismunbound.com/donate] Join the Judaism Unbound discord, where you can interact with fellow listeners all around the world, by heading to discord.judaismunbound.com [https://discord.judaismunbound.com/].