Torah of Life

Welcome back to the Torah of Life podcast. Thanks for listening.

In these weeks leading up to Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, many Jews focus on our tradition's call for teshuvah, which asks us to examine our lives, identify our shortcomings, and return to our best selves. We often think of this as an individual exercise, yet our guest today shares some wisdom from Rav Kook, who says that when we do teshuvah, we bring new light into the world that brings us closer to the coming of the Messiah.

Rabbi Avraham Itzchak HaCohen Kook was the first Chief Rabbi of the State of Israel, a poet, a mystic, a seeker, and a visionary who sought to bring the lights of Jewish wisdom to the modern state of Israel, along with all who lived there. My guest today is my friend and teacher Rabbi Itzhak Marmorstein, who has spent years learning Rav Kook's holy words, learning and praying in Rav Kook's Bet Midrash, and setting Rav Kook's poetry to beautiful music.

More information about Rav Kook can be found at:

https://haorotlightsofravkook.wordpress.com/

https://soundcloud.com/haorotravkook

youtube.com/haorotravkook

www.facebook.com/haorotlightsofravkook/?ref=br_rs

www.ravkooktorah.org

and in these (and other) books:

https://www.amazon.com/Angel-Among-Men-Impressions-Yitzchak/dp/9657108535/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1536196668&sr=1-1-fkmr0&keywords=A+Giant+Among+Men+Kook

https://www.amazon.com/Abraham-Isaac-Kook-Principles-Spirituality/dp/080912159X/ref=pd_sbs_14_4?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=080912159X&pd_rd_r=b0337330-b172-11e8-ad5d-f9d1f1abea37&pd_rd_w=NkKR0&pd_rd_wg=lrKQ9&pf_rd_i=desktop-dp-sims&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_p=0bb14103-7f67-4c21-9b0b-31f42dc047e7&pf_rd_r=FFD5SDQKC0W8WFT7CD4Q&pf_rd_s=desktop-dp-sims&pf_rd_t=40701&psc=1&refRID=FFD5SDQKC0W8WFT7CD4Q

May our journeys of return be illuminated by these teachings, and may our journeys light the way for others as well.

Thanks for listening to the Torah of Life podcast, your home for transformational wisdom from a Jewish lens.

Like what you hear? Please share the episode with your friends, subscribe to the show and leave us a rating and review on iTunes, or your favorite podcast platform. Have something to say about what you heard today? Great! Be in touch at [email protected] I'll be back again soon with the next episode. Many blessings, Rabbi Ilan

Welcome back to the Torah of Life podcast. Thanks for listening.

Here's a question, since Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur are coming:

If I follow all the rules of public ritual and community, can I do whatever I want inside my own house?

How good do I have to be inside my own home?

This week's Torah reading, Ki Tavo, has some timely wisdom to help us answer those questions, and get us ready for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Moses instructs the people to ritualize their entry into the land of Israel, and to proclaim their allegiance to God's teachings. If they do, they will receive many blessings. If they don't, unfortunately, there will be many curses coming their way. As it turns out, we can't only be good publicly, we have to walk with God privately as well. That may not always be easy; hopefully it is always personally rewarding.

Thanks for listening to the Torah of Life podcast, your home for transformational wisdom from a Jewish lens.

Like what you hear? Please share the episode with your friends, subscribe to the show and leave us a rating and review on iTunes, or your favorite podcast platform. Have something to say about what you heard today? Great! Be in touch at [email protected] I'll be back again soon with the next episode. Many blessings, and Shabbat Shalom, Rabbi Ilan

Welcome back to the Torah of Life podcast. Thanks for listening.

Yesterday was Chai Elul, an auspicious day on the Jewish calendar. The 18th of the month of Elul is the birthday of Rabbi Israel ben Eliezer, the Baal Shem Tov, who was the founder of hasidism. His birthday is celebrated every year, and given that his birthday is always very close to Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, it's always nice to return to his teachings to help us prepare ourselves for the holidays. My guests today are Maggidim Yitzhak Buxbaum and Carole Forman, both masterful teachers and storytellers. I had the great privilege to be ordained by Yitzhak as a Maggid after an intensive two-year course of study. Yitzhak has helped me and so many others learn the light and fire of hasidic stories and spirituality, and I'm so glad to be have a chance to talk with Yitzhak and Carol today. I had hoped to release this episode on Chai Elul itself - we had some technical difficulties that didn't allow us to do so. Nevertheless, I'm sure you'll enjoy learning with Yitzhak and Carol.

I encourage everyone to listen to the show, and then visit www.jewishspirit.com to read more about Yitzhak and his magnificent books. For anyone wishing to grow spiritually, his Jewish Spiritual Practices is a must-read, and his other works are all on my bookshelves as well. Yitzhak and Carol also put on wonderful storytelling programs for children and adults of all ages. Please connect with them to bring them to your synagogue, school, or community. You won't regret it!

Thanks for listening to the Torah of Life podcast, your home for transformational wisdom from a Jewish lens.

Like what you hear? Please share the episode with your friends, subscribe to the show and leave us a rating and review on iTunes, or your favorite podcast platform. Have something to say about what you heard today? Great! Be in touch at [email protected] I'll be back again soon with the next episode. Many blessings, Rabbi Ilan

If you want to get ahead in life, you have to learn from those who've already succeeded. Last Wednesday, I was privileged to learn from Gary V and Tony Robbins at Success Resources's National Achievers Congress. I've been a fan and student of Tony's for many years, and I've heard a few interviews with Gary Vaynerchuk as well, so I was excited to hear them live for the first time. They didn't disappoint (the other speakers, including Robert Herjavec from Shark Tank, were also good). On this episode I share a few nuggets of inspiration that are already helping me prepare for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, and for 5779, which I know can be even bigger and better than 5778!

I hope you enjoy this episode. Thanks for listening to the Torah of Life podcast, your home for transformational wisdom from a Jewish lens.

Like what you hear? Please share the episode with your friends, subscribe to the show and leave us a rating and review on iTunes, or your favorite podcast platform. Have something to say about what you heard today? Great! Be in touch at [email protected] I'll be back again soon with the next episode. Many blessings, Rabbi Ilan

Welcome back to the Torah of Life podcast. Thanks for listening.

This week's Torah reading talks about a whole host of issues, including what happens when we make a vow to God.

Simply put, the Torah says that if we make a vow to God, we absolutely, 100%, must honor it.

What if we made a vow we didn't mean to make? Is there any way around it?

Isn't there a way to get out of fulfilling our vows? What if they become too hard? Can we get credit just for trying?

And do the same rules apply to promises we make to others as well? What about those promises we make to ourselves?

Listen now for some answers to these questions, which will serve us well as we get closer to Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.

 

Thanks for listening to the Torah of Life podcast, your home for transformational wisdom from a Jewish lens.

Like what you hear? Please share the episode with your friends, subscribe to the show and leave us a rating and review on iTunes, or your favorite podcast platform. Have something to say about what you heard today? Great! Be in touch at [email protected] I'll be back again soon with the next episode. Many blessings and Shabbat Shalom, Rabbi Ilan

Welcome back to the Torah of Life podcast. Thanks for listening.

Have you been enjoying these interviews? I've loved spending time with great Jewish thinkers and activists. I learn so much from them each week. If you haven't listened to the previous interviews with Rabbi Ari Saks, Rabbi Moshe Givental, Rabbi Lauren Tuchman, and Dr. Dan Unowsky, check them out for some great inspiration.

Today's interview is with my friend Chava Gal-Or, who survived Hurricane Harvey in Houston and founded an organization called Door L'Door, whose mission is to help bring new mezuzzot and Jewish ritual objects to families who've lost their homes to hurricanes, wildfires, and other natural disasters. The Jewish Telegraphic Agency named Door L'Door's founding one of the seven most heartwarming stories of 2017. I'm honored to talk with Chava about Hurricane Harvey and its impact on the Houston Jewish community, and hear her inspiring story of using her experience to help others rebuild.

For more information about Chava's work with Door L'Door, please visit www.door-ldoor.org

I encourage everyone to watch the video found on her website about the hurricane, and join me in donating whatever you can to help continue this wonderful project. Chava can be reached at [email protected]

Chava's blog can be found at https://lightwavejourney.wordpress.com

Thanks for listening to the Torah of Life podcast, your home for transformational wisdom from a Jewish lens.

Like what you hear? Please share the episode with your friends, subscribe to the show and leave us a rating and review on iTunes, or your favorite podcast platform. Have something to say about what you heard today? Great! Be in touch at [email protected] I'll be back again soon with the next episode. Many blessings, Rabbi Ilan

Welcome back to the Torah of Life podcast. Thanks for listening.

Some days we just don't have the energy to face life as we normally want.

Some days we get behind on the bills and the to-do lists, and somedays we're in bed with the flu, a fever, a difficult diagnosis, or some other germs that have us down.

How to we respond when life gets the better of us? How do we stay inspired when we'd rather be under the covers?

Here's a little advice to brighten our lives even when we don't want to face the world.

The article I referenced is here: http://www.beliefnet.com/columnists/freshliving/2009/04/10-ways-to-stay-positive-when-youre-sick.html

And a few of the quotes I shared are in this list: http://www.beliefnet.com/wellness/health/8-inspiring-quotes-for-the-sick.aspx

 

Thanks for listening to the Torah of Life podcast, your home for transformational wisdom from a Jewish lens.

Like what you hear? Please share the episode with your friends, subscribe to the show and leave us a rating and review on iTunes, or your favorite podcast platform. Have something to say about what you heard today? Great! Be in touch at [email protected] I'll be back again soon with the next episode. Many blessings, Rabbi Ilan

Welcome back to the Torah of Life podcast. Thanks for listening.

This week we read Parshat Shoftim, which focuses on judges and an orderly rule of law.

It happens to be the 26th anniversary of my Bar Mitzvah, and I will hopefully always remember the wise words of the Torah reading: Justice, justice, you shall pursue. (My mother liked that verse so much she embroidered it on the tallit she made for me).

Reading the parasha today, I was struck by the instructions not to offer any less-than-perfect animals as sacrifices to God. Why does God care what the animals look like? And does the same law apply to our prayers today? Is it better not to pray than to offer impure prayers? What do we do with our wandering thoughts when we're trying to pray? Does it matter where we pray and what clothes we where? Can those become impure and if so, can we still pray there? What does God really want from our prayer anyway? Tune in for wisdom about all of the above!

You can find some of the sources I referenced here:

https://islamqa.info/en/125879

https://www.yeshiva.co/midrash/shiur.asp?id=10573

Thanks again for listening to the Torah of Life podcast, your home for transformational wisdom from a Jewish lens.

Like what you hear? Please share the episode with your friends, subscribe to the show and leave us a rating and review on iTunes, or your favorite podcast platform. Have something to say about what you heard today? Great! Be in touch at [email protected] I'll be back again soon with the next episode. Many blessings, and Shabbat Shalom, Rabbi Ilan

Welcome back to the Torah of Life podcast. Thanks for listening. This week's interview is with Dr. Daniel Unowsky, who teaches at the University of Memphis. Professor Unowsky's latest work, The Plunder, examines several months of anti-Jewish violence in Hapsburg in 1898. After protesting the Unite the Right rally in Washington, I was especially intrigued by the rise and fall of nationalist movements. When do they arise? Why do they happen? How do or should Jewish communities respond? What lessons can we learn from the terrible violence of 1898, and how can we use that learning to ensure a better 2018 and beyond?

 

For more information and to purchase copies of The Plunder, visit: https://www.sup.org/books/title/?id=25946 or

https://www.amazon.com/Plunder-Anti-Jewish-Habsburg-Galicia-Stanford/dp/0804799822/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1534131337&sr=8-1&keywords=unowsky

To connect with Dr. Unowsky, or to see his other works, visit: http://www.memphis.edu/history/faculty/faculty/daniel-unowsky.php

 

Thanks again for listening to the Torah of Life podcast, your home for transformational wisdom from a Jewish lens.

Like what you hear? Please share the episode with your friends, subscribe to the show and leave us a rating and review on iTunes, or your favorite podcast platform. Have something to say about what you heard today? Great! Be in touch at [email protected] I'll be back again soon with the next episode. Many blessings, Rabbi Ilan

How should we respond when hate comes to town, when people question our very right to exist?

Yesterday was the "Unite the Right 2" rally in Washington, DC. Its organizers wanted to promote their toxic worldview which speaks for the rights of white people to live as they wish in the United States. Unfortunately, their viewpoints are often condoning racism, anti-semitism, and hatred of immigrants and anyone who doesn't look like them. Sherri and I felt it was our civic and Jewish duty to participate in the counter-protest, along with several thousand others. I'm glad we went, glad those who came to spread hate were vastly outnumbered, and I hope that those who came to protest them will not just yell slogans but also work hard to make peace.

Thanks for listening to the Torah of Life podcast, your home for transformational wisdom from a Jewish lens. Like what you hear? Please subscribe to the podcast, and then leave a rating and review on iTunes, which helps others find the podcast. Have a comment, question, disagreements or appreciation for something I shared? Great - be in touch at [email protected]

I'll be back on Wednesday with an interview with Professor Daniel Unowsky, who will share with us about another lesser-known time in history when anti-Jewish violence reared its ugly head. You won't want to miss his words of wisdom, and his thoughts on what we need to learn so we can spread peace today.

Blessings,

Rabbi Ilan