The Jewish Story season 4

The Jewish Story Season 5

Many nations tell a history of kings and wars, others boast a lineage of art and literature. Am Yisrael has these as well, but our story is really one of consciousness - how an ancient people assimilated its historical experience into new ways of knowing the world. That is the Jewish Story, the evolution of consciousness in historical context.

The Jewish Story Season I

The Jewish Story Season 2

The Jewish Story - season 3

The changing culture of American Jewry after the Yom Kippur War in Israel and the Vietnam War meant leaving old neighborhoods, a surge in Zionism and new developments in the Jewish community like the Havurah movement. We explore the publication of the First Jewish Catalog: A Do-It-Yourself Kit edited by Richard Siegel, and Michael and Sharon Strassfeld and the shift from left-wing liberal to neo-conservative in the writings of Commentary Magazine editor Norman Podhoretz. Plus, Rav Mike gets personal and talks about his own Jewish upbringing.

TJS - American Jewry 1974

TJS S5E1 A portrait of American Jewry, circa 1974

talks about Russian Jewish refuseniks, why they were denied exit visas to immigrate to Israel, and how the Communist regime eventually let them go. Learn about US President Richard Nixon's détente with the Soviets, championed by Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and opposed by Henry "Scoop" Jackson, co-author of the Jackson-Vanik amendment of 1974 and his assistant Richard Perle.

Others discussed regarding the issue of Russian Jews include Shaul Avigur, founder of Israel's Liaison Bureau (Lishkat Hakesher), also known as Nativ, Jacob Birnbaum of the Student Struggle for Soviet Jewry, Moshe Decter of Jewish Minorities Research, and Russian dissident Andrei Sakharov and his influence on the most well known refusenik, Natan Sharansky.

TJS - Let My People Go

TJS S5E2 Let My People Go - the ongoing fight for Soviet Jewry

Sometimes a simple question sparks the deepest thoughts. This episode is in answer to a simple question - what is the story of Rosh Hashanah. It explores the nature of kingship and the crown in Jewish tradition, and offers some guidance on how we can all approach telling a different story of our lives in the coming new year.

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TJS - Rosh Hashannah 5782

TJS S5 Interlude Crowning the King 5782

The feminist movement and Jewish American life came together in the 1960s and 70s - each influencing the other. In this episode we touch on Betty Friedan's Feminine Mystique, the religious activism of women like Sally Priesand and the Ezrat Nashim organization. We will also explore how feminism and antisemitism intersect, from   Elizabeth Cady Stanton's Womens Bible to the 1975 United Nations World Conference on Women in Mexico City which Betty Friedan, and fellow attendee Letty Cottin Pogrebin, founding editor of Ms. Magazine, called a turning point for many things to come.

picture from: Victuallers 
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TJS - Feminism

TJS S5E3 Feminism and American Judaism

Sometimes its seems that joy is the most desirable and least available aspect of human experience. In this episode Rav Mike seeks out some insights from Sukkot, the festival of joy, on how we can enhance this aspect of our lives.

TASCAM DR-40

Interlude Sukkot 5782 seeking joy

Heroism is a precious quality, and one strong enough to change the world. Here is the story of the Israeli mission to free hostages on Entebbe, perhaps the most heroic mission of its time. At its heart lies a person who in many ways embodies the qualities of his generation - Yoni Netanyahu.

TJS - Yoni Netanyahu

TJS S5E8 The raid on Entebbe

The domestic political upheaval of 1977 was followed quickly by an international earthquake in 1978 when Israel and Egypt agree to make peace. Here is the story of how shifts within two societies, and two leaders, led to the signing of the Camp David Accords.

TJS - Camp David Accords

TJS S5E11 The Camp David Accords

It is rare that someone who begins a movement is still leading strong fifty years later. Daniella Weiss was part of the original settlement of the Shomron in the early 70s, and remains a militant force within the settlement movement today. Here is an interview which touches on her experience of past and present, as well as her views of the future.

TJS -  Daniella Weiss interview

TJS S5 Interlude - interview with Daniella Weiss

Menachem Begin has been part of our exploration of the Jewish Story since the uprising against the British back in 1944, and the Lebanon War was the last chapter in which he took an active role. In order to give a fitting wrap up to such an important character,  here is an interview with Dr. Daniel Gordis, author of the biography Menachem Begin: the battle for Israel's soul.

picture credit: Yoram Reshef studios

TJS - Daniel Gordis Interview

TJS S5 Interlude Interview with Daniel Gordis

American Jewry in the Eighties were as safe and comfortable as a Jewish community had ever been - and yet the shadow of the Holocaust still loomed large over their identity. Here is an exploration of how the political power and personal charisma of Meir Kahane intersected with this fear - and had explosive results. 

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TJS - Kahane & the Holocaust

TJS S5E24 Meir Kahane and the memory of the Holocaust

A second wrap up interview for season five. Dr. Zhenia Fleisher lived in all three of the 20th century's major centers of Jewish life - USSR, Israel and the USA. Tune in for her thoughts on past present and future.

TJS - Zhenia Fleisher

TJS S5 Interview with Dr. Zhenia Fleisher

Season six has finally begun! Here is a prologue to help frame the chapter to come. In it I touch on the power of prophetic sight, the book of Daniel and why in the month of Elul we say that the king is in the field.

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Season 6 Prologue

TJS S6E1 Prologue: A new perspective

Here is the final installment in the series detailing the evolution of Israel's electoral system. It brings us almost all the way to the present, touching on topics like the Oslo Accord, electoral reform and Israel's Supreme Court along the way. If you want to have a better understanding of our current electoral dysfunction, then tune in now.

Elections 3

TJS S6E4 Electoral dysfunction part III

In this episode we take a break from tracking the evolution of Israel's separation wall to consider the deeper issues of violence on which it is built. Rav Yehuda Hakohen of the Vision Movement joins me for a conversation about Max Nordau, Zev Jabotinsky and Frantz Fanon. Along the way we consider issues of decolonization, settlement and the hope for a new Jewish consciousness that might soon emerge.

On Violence

TJS S6 Interlude - On violence

Part six of the series on Antisemitism takes a turn toward the manifestation of hate in the progressive culture of America. In addition to outlining some of the theory and history of hate on the American left, this episode also outlines the glory and complications of the rise of 'tikkun olam' as the civil religion of liberal Jews.

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American Anti-Semitism part 6

TJS S6E15 -  American antisemitism part VI - progressing toward hate

Every tale has a point around which it revolves, and for the Jewish Story that is the Temple Mount. Here is the opening round in a new series tracing the way in which the sacred mountain in the middle of Jerusalem is still at the center of our story.

www.jewishstory.co

TJS S6E17 The Temple Mount part I - the hinge point

Should Jews be allowed to pray on the Temple Mount? Or will it inflame Muslim sensitivities? Learn the history of this debate from the Six Day War in 1967 when General Moshe Dayan argued with Rabbi Shlomo Goren on the issue, to the fire started by Australian tourist Denis Michael Rohan, the shooting by Allan Goodman, through the 1980s up until the riots in 1990. Plus learn more about Zionist philosopher Shabtai Ben-Dov, radical activist Yehuda Etzion, Gershon Salomon and the Temple Mount Faithful. What Muslims call the Haram al-Sharif and Al Aqsa Mosque and what Jews call the Har HaBayit and Beit HaMikdash have ramifications for today's conflict.

Temple Mount part 2

TJS S6E18 Temple Mount part 2 - the status quo

Was Ariel Sharon's visit to the Temple Mount in 2000 the trigger for what the Arab community calls the Al Aqsa Intifada? Or was this a pre-planned assault orchestrated by the likes of Marwan Barghouti, Raed Salah of the Northern Branch of the Islamic Movement in Israel and even the Palestinian Authority?
In this final installment of the Temple Mount series, learn about the assassination attempt against Rabbi Yehudah Glick, the lynching of two Israelis in Ramallah, the rejection of Jewish history by PLO leader Yasser Arafat during his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and US Secretary of State Madeline Albright, the and the rioting that took the lives of thousands including that of Muhammad al-Durrah during the Second Intifada. Plus, Yehuda Etzion and the Hai Vekayam movement who sought to ensure Jewish people had the right to pray at the Har HaBayit, the site of the Beit HaMikdash. 
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Temple Mount part 4

TJS S6E20 Temple Mount part IV

There is no way to give closure to six seasons of a story, but you have to try! Here is an interview with R' Mike that looks back on the lessons of history and reflects on the challenges of today. It also announces tomorrow's new project - so stay tuned for more amazing stories!

Final Episode

TJS S6E21 The Final Episode

The Israeli Judicial Reform protests come the same week 18 years after the Gush Katif protests and 2,000 years after the destruction of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. What can we learn from Tisha B'Av and the Nine Days about modern Jewish and Israeli unity? Sometimes the echoes of history are so loud that they seem to drown out the present. This conversation with Rabbi Aaron Leibowitz, former Jerusalem City Council member, was recorded in Jerusalem at a Jewish unity tent with the sounds protesters  in the background.

Aaron Leibowitz Interview

A 9 Days conversation with Rabbi Aaron Leibowitz

Here is a pre-Pesach conversation with R' Yehuda HaKohen of the Vision Movement where we explore the narrative arc of the Passover story and the nature of freedom. Along the way we touch on the State of Israel's struggle to be free of foreign influence, and how every Jew can become more of who they truly are.

Jewish Heroism Project

JHP S1 From servitude to service with R' Yehuda HaKohen

Join me for a live class at The Torah Cafe. We explore the intersection between the ten days of repentance and October 7th, asking how to take a heroic stance on teshuva.

JHP - A Heroic Stance on Teshuva

Rav Mike's annual Hanukkah shiur given in honor of his father's yartzheit. The commandment to sanctify God's name was foundational to the Hanukkah story, and has taken a central role once again today as the Jewish people are faced with war. What light can it help us shine in the world?

Hanukkah 5785 Kiddush Hashem

Here is an introduction to a new way of being. If you are seeking the Torah's guidance on how to become your best self, looking for tools of growth and frames for new consciousnes - tune in and take the Jewish Hero's Journey.
Find more information at www.jewishheroism.com and sign up to join a the seven paths workship live or online here - https://forms.gle/N2fauG5MPy4jANzv8

The seven paths of the Jewish Hero's Journey

What is the difference between fantasy, myth and Torah? How does the sacred imagination serve as a vessel for prophecy? What are we meant to be doing on Seder night? Hear about these questions and more as Rav Mike and Eitan engage in a deep conversation about this unique human capacity.

JHP - Sacred Imagination: a conversation w/Eitan Ben Avraham

A conversation on memory and self actualization. Rav Mike and Eitan dig deep into the struggle to be part of the national experience, and dream bid about the opportunity presented by national independence.

JHP - Yom Hazikaron - Yom Haatzmaut 5785

A backstory conversation w/David Goodwin. Follow all the way to hear the best anecdotes about my life in the woods!

Return of the Jew eps 3 Mike Feuer

Tears of futility, words of hope and wisdom on the question - what model of heroism could best serve us now?

JHP - A 9 Days conversation w/ R' Aaron Leibowitz

Rav Mike discusses the rise and fall of the Hasmonean dynasty, from a kingdom of priests to Hellenestic kingdom. Also hear how Judean society began to tear along lines which will define things for some time to come.

Rav Mike Feuer

TJS I Episode 6: The Hasmonean Kingdom

In this episode Rav Mike describes the rise of Hellenistic Judaism as the background for the Channukah story. Judah and his brothers rose in revolt because they understood that identity is a matter of life and death. Their determination liberated the Temple, but what was the nature of the light they kindled there?

TJS I Episode 5: The Channuka Revolt

The encounter between Greek and Jewish culture was love at first sight. The two cultures were bridged by language, and one of its great products of their fusion was the Septuagint - the Greek translation of the Bible. But every translation is an interpretation, and it was not clear how long Hellenistic Judaism could walk the line between acculturation and assimilation.

TJS I Episode 4: The Greek Encounter

The Men of the Great Assembly lie on the other side of the mists of the Persian period from Daniel. They will begin to lay the foundations of Judaism as we know it, guiding Israel away from prophecy and toward wisdom. Aside from their place in chronology, what makes them so great?

TJS I Episode 3: The Men of the Great Assembly

In Episode 2 of The Jewish Story, Rav Mike explores the walls built by Ezra and Nechemia, and the power which exclusivity over our story gives in the shaping of identity.

TJS I Episode 2: The Return To Zion, Re-building the Walls of Identity, Religion, and Jerusale

The opening episode of the Jewish Story! Rav Mike touches his perspective on history and then tells the story of Daniel as the link between the age of prophecy and the age of wisdom.

TJS I Episode 1: The Time Between the 1st and 2nd Temples - Daniel, The Mythic Link

Moses Mendelssohn was a critical philosopher of the German Enlightenment and the most controversial figure of the Jewish Enlightenment. Whether you think that he was a light to his generation or a boundary breaker who led many to sin, his life story deserves to be heard.

TJS II Episode 14: The German Socrates

The printing press helped spark a knowledge explosion which changed the world, and of course, less than fifty years after Gutenberg printed his Bible, Jewish presses were already transforming the face of the Hebrew book. As one good revolution deserves another - this episode also explores the role that text played in the dawn of the Protestant Reformation. Europe will never be the same, but is it good news for the Jews?

TJS II Episode 3: The Power of Print

As the Jews of Ashkenaz moved eastward, they brought their customs and language with them. What they found waiting in Poland was a refuge that would allow them to prosper for hundreds of years.

TJS II Episode 1: The New Homeland

You can tell a historian by where he begins and ends his story.Here is a prologue to season two, which begins at the Expulsion from Spain and ends at the rise of the State of Israel. The question is - why is this episode about the 3rd Temple?

TJS Season Two Prologue: The Third Temple

The history of Zionism can be seen as a long discussion about what it means to be a nation. In honor of the State of Israel's 70th birthday, Rav Mike gives an overview of the meaning of the word Am, and makes a call to continue the conversation.

TJS II Interlude: Seventy Faces of the Nation

Here is a break from our story for a conversation with dear friend and fellow traveler Eitan Press, creator of Aleph Male brand. But as you will hear, it's not really a break - the question of a healthy, holy masculinity is one of the issues of our time.

TJS II Interlude: Sacred Masculinity

One of the most complex expressions of sovereignty comes through the interplay between religion and state. Listen in to this interview with R' Aaron Leibowitz, social activist fighting to bring a more healthy and redemptive face to that relationship.

TJS II Interlude: Religion and State

Epistemology is not about what you know, but about how you know anything all. The word may seem unsettling, but that is nothing compared to the breakdown which Europeans suffered as the foundations of medieval thought dissolved in the 16th century. Copernicus started a revolution which removed the Earth from the center of the Universe and the Church from the middle of science, and we want to know whether this was good news for the Jews.

TJS II Episode 4: Epistemological Breakdown

One of the hallmarks of the early modern era is mobility, which means we will be jumping around a bit. This episode follows the story of the exiles upon their arrival in Italy. They take with them a messianic hope that the end is near, and they find their the spirit of Italian humanism. When the two unite, new horizons will open for Christian and Jew alike.

TJS II Episode 2: Hope Eternal

The 1930's saw the hate triangle of Arabs, British and Jews explode into an unprecedented scale of violence known as the Arab Revolt. The revolt brought on yet another cycle of repression and political concessions, and it split the Jews of the Yishuv over the question of whether restraint or retaliation was the proper response to Arab violence. Meanwhile, as violence spirals in the land of Israel, and Jews argue with one another, the darkness of Nazi Germany has begun to cast its shadow over Europe.

TJS II Episode 33: The Arab Revolt

As European Jewry was consumed by the Shoah, the Zionists in the land of Israel gradually came to see the British blocking the gates of Israel as their main enemy. The episode explores the split between the Irgun and the Lechi, the rise of Menachem Begin as a leader and the internecine war which almost doomed their struggle.

The Jewish Story S2:E36 The Revolt Against British Rule and the Struggle Within the Underground

It is time to get a new season started. This prologue introduces the idea that every story has a topography on which it unfolds. In particular, it is a framing of the season ahead through questions in three dimensions - a people in its land, Diaspora Jewry and Israel among the nations. Next stop - 1967!

TJS S3 Prologue - The questions which drive the Jewish Story post-1948

Season 3 opens with a long awaited introduction to the American chapter of the Jewish Story. This first segment traces the back story of the three waves of Jewish immigration to American and explores the tension between assimilation and ethnic solidarity. Help me make history by becoming a patron at https://www.patreon.com/mfeuer

TJS S3 E1 The Evolution of American Zionism, part I

Part I presented America as an environment of formation for American Zionism, part two adds the other element of evolution - competition.  The struggles between American Zionists and first the European Zionist leadership and then the heads of the new State of Israel still define our political landscape today. Help me make history by supporting the Jewish Story at https://www.patreon.com/mfeuer

TJS S3E2 The Evolution of American Zionism part II: Two conflicts which shaped American Zionism

It is time to move away from  the divisive question of who is a Jew to ask something more essential - what is a Jew? The first half of this episode offers Rav Mike's thoughts on the subject. The second half is a conversation on the same with R' Aaron Leibowitz, social activist and head of the Chuppot initiative offering marriage to Israelis outside of the aegis of the state rabbinate. Help me make history by supporting the Jewish Story at - https://www.patreon.com/mfeuer



The art is by Dan Levkovitch מאת דני לבקוביץישראלי, יליד צרפת, 2002-1927 - The Israeli Cartoon Museum, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=32910158

TJS3 Interlude What is a Jew?

Hatred of the Jews is the oldest and most pervasive form of prejudice which humanity knows.  In this episode Rav Mike uses the comments of Haman to ask not only why we are hated, but also what we can do about it. Help me make history by becoming a supporter at https://www.patreon.com/mfeuer

Illustration attribution https://www.maxpixel.net/Aggression-Violent-Hatred-Meanness-Attack-656795

TJS S3 Purim 5779: The Oldest Hatred, a practical analysis

History is all about telling the story after the fact, but there is a particular wisdom to be gained in the heat of the moment which is easily lost in hindsight. The first episode of season four begins to explore the impact of the Six Day War on American Jewry through the wisdom of the moment itself.

TJS - US Jewry Post 67 - 1

TJS S4E1 American Jewry after 1967 part I The Wisdom of the Moment

As each decade passes, the Holocaust retreats in time and grows in memory and this is not a linear process - some years count more than others. This episode looks at American Jewry's relationship to the Shoah before and after the Six Day War and adds an important piece for understanding how Israel and Auschwitz became twin pillars of American Jewish identity.

TJS - US Jewry Post 67 - 2

TJS S4E2 American Jewry after 1967 part II From Auschwitz to Jerusalem

How we chew and swallow what history shoves down our throat can define us as individuals and nations. Here is an interview with R' Yitz Greenberg, foundational thinker on post-Holocaust theology. In it we explore how American Jewry began to process the memory of the Holocaust, the impact of the SIx Day War on their identity, and if one can see the God of History in the post-modern era. If you want to explore more of R' Yitz's thoughts, check out - https://rabbiirvinggreenberg.com/

TJS - Yitz Greenberg

TJS S4 Interlude R' Yitz Greenberg and the God of History

There are stories which are turning points in a larger tale, and there are those which prove to be tempests in a tea cup. The story of the 1968 NYC school strike could be read as both. Either way, this episode offers a look at a microcosm of Black/Jewish relations in 1968 which will have a profound impact down to our day.

TJS - NY Teachers Strike

TJS S4E3 American Jewry after 1967 part III, the Ocean Hill-Brownsville strike

Here is a thought to help focus your practice during these powerful days. May we all be blessed with a sweet, healthy and productive year! Shana tova, Rav Mike.

Jewish Heroism Project

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