Judaism Unbound

Sara Lippman and Seth Rogoff believe that "foundational texts must be read anew or they become tools of conservatism and reaction." But it's not just a belief they hold -- together, they actualized it into a new book, entitled Smashing the Tablets: Radical Retellings of the Hebrew Bible. This book offers a wide variety of new texts, radically revisioning stories from the Bible in many creative forms. The two co-editors join Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg for a conversation about their book, about re-envisioning the Bible more generally, and why "smashing" inherited texts is not only a rebellious act, but also an important tool in the spiritual toolbox.

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Judaism Unbound's offerings for 3-week mini-courses in the UnYeshiva are now open for registration! Check out class descriptions (on topics ranging from "Elul: Your on-Ramp into Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur" to "The Siddur Unbound: Making the Prayer-Book Your Own") at JudaismUnbound.com/classes. Financial aid is available for all UnYeshiva classes! 

Interested in thinking about how to reframe and reinvigorate your meditations on the cycles of grief and change? Sign up for Elul Unbound 2025 to receive biweekly wisdom and introspective prompts to guide you through the late summer days.

Access full shownotes for this episode via this link. If you're enjoying Judaism Unbound, please help us keep things going with a one-time or monthly tax-deductible donation -- support Judaism Unbound by clicking here!

Even the most intimate relationships can experience strain around the topic of Israel-Palestine. Dan and Lex are joined by Amy Eilberg and Penina Eilberg-Schwartz, who share their experience discussing and processing their conversations about Israel-Palestine across generational divides.

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Judaism Unbound's offerings for 3-week mini-courses in the UnYeshiva are now open for registration! Check out class descriptions and more to sample a taste of everything from Comix/Comics-making to Anti-Fascist Mussar.

Interested in thinking about how to reframe and reinvigorate your meditations on the cycles of grief and change? Sign up for Elul Unbound 2025 to receive biweekly wisdom and introspective prompts to guide you through the late summer days.

Access full shownotes for this episode via this link. If you're enjoying Judaism Unbound, please help us keep things going with a one-time or monthly tax-deductible donation -- support Judaism Unbound by clicking here!

Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg discuss the inherent potential, along with the limitations, of the Jewish holiday of Tisha B’av (the 9th of Av) — understood by many to be the saddest day on the Jewish calendar. What does it mean to mourn a past pain in the present? In this week’s episode, Dan and Lex consider the meanings of grief and reflection as the month of Av progresses and we move towards the month of introspection, Elul.

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Tisha B’av punctuates the end of the Jewish calendar with a bright, momentary grief. Soon after comes the month of Elul, often thought of as the on-ramp to the contemplations and reflections asked of us during the High Holiday period. Interested in thinking about how to reframe and reinvigorate your meditations on the cycles of grief and change? Sign up for Elul Unbound 2025 to receive biweekly wisdom and introspective prompts to guide you through the late summer days.

Access full shownotes for this episode via this link. If you're enjoying Judaism Unbound, please help us keep things going with a one-time or monthly tax-deductible donation -- support Judaism Unbound by clicking here!

For Mandie McGlynn, founder of Selah Spiritual Care, tarot can serve as a deeply meaningful modality for Jewish experience. McGlynn joins Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg on this week’s episode to discuss her use of tarot as part of the preparatory work of the month of Elul (the on-ramp month before the High Holidays), through an initiative she created called “Turning Toward Life.” This episode is the second in a mini-series of Judaism Unbound episodes exploring tarot through Jewish lenses.

Access full shownotes for this episode via this link. If you're enjoying Judaism Unbound, please help us keep things going with a one-time or monthly tax-deductible donation -- support Judaism Unbound by clicking here!

Tarot is known to be a practice of reading, of uncovering important meaning behind the symbols each card evokes. But what if there’s an even deeper, secret connection to not just our lives as a whole, but our lives as Jews? For data scientist and author Stav Appel, happening upon a 17th century forgotten tarot deck took him on a journey through Torah and time.

Appel’s Deck and accompanying Booklet, analyzing the Noblet Tarot’s connections to Jewish tradition, are available for preorder through our friends at Ayin Press -- order it here!

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Access full shownotes for this episode via this link. If you're enjoying Judaism Unbound, please help us keep things going with a one-time or monthly tax-deductible donation -- support Judaism Unbound by clicking here!