From weekly series examining unique angles on Jews’ place in the world, to inquiries into the details of Jewish text and tradition, Tablet Studios podcasts brin...
How Israel Will Save Western Civilization, with Josh Hammer
In his new and best-selling book, Israel and Civilization, Josh Hammer makes a bold claim: the future of Western civilization depends on the State of Israel and the Jewish people thriving. He joins Liel to talk about the dangers of the Neo-Nietzschean right, about why liberal Jews have lost the historical plot, and about how only a Jewish-Christian coalition can make the West overcome its moment of tumult.
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How to Be a Jew… Who Contemplates the Pig
For more than 3,000 years, prohibitions against eating pig has been central to Jewish dietary laws, but it’s also been a potent symbol of Jewish identity. Other non-kosher animals, like horses, rabbits, squirrels, and even vultures don’t carry the same weight that the pig does in the Jewish imagination.
Jordan Rosenblum, Jewish Studies professor at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, joins us to talk about why. His new book, Forbidden—A 3,000-Year History of Jews and the Pig, traces the history of the pig as a symbol of Jewish identity, and recently won the National Jewish Book Award for Food Writing and Cookbooks.
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How Universities Lost Their Way, With Cary Nelson
Universities are meant to be spaces of free inquiry, knowledge, and rigorous debate. But according to academic and writer Cary Nelson, they’ve instead become hotbeds of ideological conformity—long before October 7. In his new essay Mindless, published in the Jewish Quarterly, Nelson traces how universities abandoned shared intellectual principles, paving the way for the antisemitism and misinformation now taking hold on campuses worldwide. He joins Liel to discuss the forces that led to this institutional failure, the consequences for Jewish students and faculty, and what must happen to restore true academic freedom.
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How to Be a Jew ... At the World Championships
A few weeks ago, we brought you a conversation with AJ Edelman, the first Orthodox Jew to compete in the Winter Olympics and the pilot of the current Israeli bobsled team.
Shortly after that interview, Tablet signed on as a sponsor for his bobsled team, complete with merch you can find at https://tabletmagstore.com/
This week, we’re bringing you a dispatch from his time at the World Bobsled Championships and the three things you need to know about bobsledding.
For more information about the Israel Bobsled team, visit israelbobsled.team.
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Why Dual Loyalty is Good for the Jews, with Rabbi Nolan Lebovitz
The charge of dual loyalty has long been a key weapon in the arsenal of anti-Semites everywhere. But in his new book, The Case for Dual Loyalty: Healing the Divided Soul of American Jews, Rabbi Nolan Lebovitz of Los Angeles’ Valley Beth Shalom argues that it’s time to embrace the idea. He joins Liel to talk about why American Jews should be loyal to Israel and the United States alike, why that is a complimentary rather than contradictory idea, and why it’s time, in the aftermath of October 7th, for Jews to reconsider the way they view their identities
From weekly series examining unique angles on Jews’ place in the world, to inquiries into the details of Jewish text and tradition, Tablet Studios podcasts bring you insight and inspiration for the modern-day Jew. Our shows include How to Be a Jew, Unorthodox, Rootless, Re-Form, and more to come.