Jew-ish
What is being "Jewish"? What are Jews? What do Jews believe? What do Jews do? What's happening in those mysterious synagogues with all that weird language (it's Hebrew)?
Jew curious?
The thing about being Jewish is, you can't tell us apart by looking (well, not always), we often look the same, dress the same, work and play and eat right alongside our non-Jewish counterparts, and yet, as a teeny tiny minority--only 0.2% of the global population, and 2-3% of the U.S. population--plenty of people have probably never met a Jewish person, or if they did, they didn't even know it.
For as much as we share (and it's probably way more than you think), somehow, moving through the world as a Jew really is different. Everything looks different through a Jewish lens, even for those who aren't particularly religious, the ones who describe themselves as "Jew-ish."
But honestly, none of this is really that mysterious. And, if you're curious or confused, you can always just ask the internet--or, now you can also come here and check in with your new Jewish friend.
So, if you have questions about being Jewish, we're here to introduce, explain, ask alongside, and generally demystify Judaism for Members of the Tribe (Jews) and goyim (non-Jews) alike, exploring and showcasing the infinite ways there are to be Jewish.
Episodes
24 episodes
The Christmas Hanukkah (Chrismukkah?) Hallmark-style romance novels you've been waiting for!
Content warning belowOn the first night of Hanukkah 2024, I give to all of you, by way of my seventh-grade bestie and USA TODAY bestselling author Helena Greer, the story of
•
Season 2
•
Episode 10
•
1:05:29
Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur questions answered, repub from 2023
What is Rosh Hashanah? How do you wish someone a good Yom Kippur? What are the High Holy Days? All this and more with Jewish educators spanning two generations, who happen to also be my family! This episode is republished from 2023, and...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 9
•
40:47
A non-Jew's first Rosh Hashanah, one year after the October 7 Hamas attacks
You may know Rosh Hashanah as the Jewish New Year, and you're mostly right (it's technically the anniversary of creat...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 8
•
40:32
Mysticism and Judaism and dreams, oh my!
Growing up Conservative Jewish in Ohio, Rabbi Cantor Judy Greenfeld turned away from her family traditions after her beloved father was murdered. Judaism became an unbearably painful reminder of her lo...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 7
•
52:03
Don’t be afraid of the dark, that’s where creation begins
We all know "in the beginning, there was darkness," right? The first line of the first book of the Old Testament (AKA the Torah). But did you know, there was also “chaos and void”? And then, of course, God created everything. So we're told....
•
Season 2
•
Episode 6
•
51:25
What’s really going on in Israel, Part 2: how do we even begin to talk about a "solution"?
It’s been six months since Hamas attacked Israel, killing nearly 1200 people, kidnapping around 250, and triggering Israel’s devastating war on Gaza. The
•
Season 2
•
Episode 5
•
48:27
What is Purim and why do we celebrate it: the story of Purim, what to wear, what we eat, and how it's done in Israel
It's Purim! So when Baby Brother Zev and his girlfriend Osnat came down to DC to peep some cherry blossoms, I made them come to tell you all what is Purim, the super-fun Jewish
•
Season 2
•
Episode 4
•
24:29
What's really going on in Israel, Part 1
An American, a Canadian and an Israeli Jewish educator walk into a….well a discussion. About the Israel-Hamas war, the state of Gaza and state of mind of Israelis, no less. So, this conversation is really no joke. Huge thanks to Yair Alon, Adam...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 3
•
50:41
When you discover your generational trauma and nickname it Holocaust hoarding
Have you ever wondered if your “quirks” might actually be manifested trauma? Or more like…that they probably ARE? Victoria Dozer was curious about her mom’s pretty typical Jewish-mom-quir...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 2
•
36:07
It's Tu BiShvat and Jews Love Trees!
What is Tu Bishvat (also spelled Tu BiShevat)? Well it's the birthday of the trees, also called the New Year of the Trees, so happy new year to you, and happy new year to the trees, and welcome back to Jew-ish! Trees have a very s...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 1
•
54:00
Jew-ish Presents: The Curl Code
Introducing our sister podcast, the Curl Code! Hosted by Wafaya Abdallah, owner of Curly Oasis, a curl salon and education platform in Rockville, MD, the Curl Code explores individual stories of...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 13
•
46:15
Toxic polarization and how not to be part of the problem
There’s polarization, and then there’s toxic polarization. We all know what that feels like, especially at this moment around Israel and Palestine. For many of us, the temperature of the rhetoric is so incendiary that even though we might have ...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 12
•
49:14
A Plea for Peace and Compassion
Many of us are deeply affected, probably more so than we even know, by the suffering in Israel and Gaza. I didn't release the last episode (though I did have one ready) because it felt bizarre not to address or at least acknowledge the situatio...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 11
•
4:06
Leaving the Mormon Church and becoming an “asker”
Erick Cloward was raised in the Mormon Church in Utah, in a not-always-happy home. He talks about it a lot on his podcast, The Stoic Coffee Break (which is an absolute must-subscribe, by the way) and the part...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 10
•
53:04
Happy Jew Year! What does Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur mean, and what to do.
Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year, followed by Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, and together with the 10 days of deep contemplation between them, they are known as the Days of Awe, or the High Holy Days–but apparently only in the U.S. Also–...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 9
•
41:05
What does "culturally Jewish" even mean
Finally, the basic question: What is being “culturally Jewish”? Getting at the difference between a culture and religion, how identity manifests in modernity and how it came to be this way is heady stuff, and of course, in true Jewish fashion, ...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 8
•
45:45
From lawyerin' to clownin', a Jew-ish journey
Robert Markowitz was a nice Jewish boy just trying to do what he thought he was supposed to, building on the legacy of his immigrant grandfather to rise to fulfill his mother’s dream of becoming a lawy...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 7
•
30:32
What an aging Jewish hippie taught her kids about sex
Judaism takes a very different view of sex than much of mainstream culture in the U.S. Mischaracterization or misunderstanding of some of these differences may have evolved into some of the many
•
Season 1
•
Episode 6
•
30:40
To be Young, Black, Gay and Jewish
How does a gay man raised in a Southern Black church end up the Executive Director of Washington DC’s LGBTQA synagogue, Bet Mishpachah? Growing up attending the African Methodist Episcopal Zion C...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 5
•
45:05
New Jew, new you! But same eternal soul
Rabbi Eliana Fischel might not claim the title "The Cool Rabbi" (or think it very likely any rabbi would), but the Washington Hebrew Congregatio...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 4
•
35:53
The Catholic to Jewish pipeline
Who knew there was such a thing? Well, Laurel Lehman discovered it along her conversion journey when, in college, her pastor told her there was a "well-trodden path" through the Episcopal Church to...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 3
•
44:34
A Southern girl walks into a shul...
Nancy grew up in Savannah, Georgia, and like most people, was active in the church. But after having kids, she moved into the Jewish neighborhood of Savannah, wanting what she saw there for her family. That started her down a path of questionin...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 2
•
38:58