Lex Rofeberg and Liana Wertman (from Judaism Unbound and The Torah Studio, respectively) kick off the 2024-25 edition of ApocryFest: Hanukkah Unbound and Un-Canonized -- a 4-part mini-series of Judaism Unbound. They open up big questions about what “Jewish canon” does and doesn’t mean, why those questions are worth discussing on Hanukkah in particular, and dive together into one of apocrypha’s wild, wonderful texts: The Book of Judith.

You can sign up for ApocryFest 2024-25 by heading to www.JudaismUnbound.com/apocryfest. Do so, and we’ll send you all sorts of cool Apocryphal stuff, during Hanukkah, to help enrich your experience of this holiday! And come hang out with us via Zoom at Apocry-Fest LIVE: A Hanukkah Havdalah Gathering, on Saturday, December 28th. Register here.

For all of our episodes from past years' ApocryFests, click here.

Head to JudaismUnbound.com/classes to check out our up upcoming 3-week mini-courses in the UnYeshiva! Explore Judeo-Futurism, Shabbetai Zvi, and more!

Xava De Cordova is the co-founder of Shel Maala: a digital-first queer Yeshiva, and the co-host of Xai, How are You, one of our favorite fellow-podcasts in the Jewish podcasting universe. She is about to be teaching an amazing 3-week mini-course in the UnYeshiva, entitled Sabbatean Heresy: Shabbetai Tzvi and Permitting the Forbidden. We're thrilled to be offering a sneak-preview of the course by offering up this episode of Judaism Unbound featuring De Cordova, along with Michael Sokolovsky -- her co-host of Xai, How are You.

Sign up for the UnYeshiva mini-course Sabbatean Heresy: Shabbetai Tzvi and Permitting the Forbidden here! 

Financial aid for the mini-course is available via this link, and no one will be turned away for lack of funds.

Leora Fridman is the author of Bound Up: On Kink, Power, and Belonging, and also serves as director of The New Jewish Culture Fellowship. She joins Dan Libenson and Lex Rofeberg for a conversation exploring the intersection of Jewishness and kink — and the immense importance of art, to the future of Judaism.

Head to JudaismUnbound.com/classes to check out our up upcoming 3-week mini-courses in the UnYeshiva! Explore Judeo-Futurism, Shabbetai Zvi, and more!

Purchase Leora Fridman's book, Bound Up: On Kink, Power and Belonging here. Enter the code RBOUND for a discount!

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!

This week, we’re bringing you an episode of our newest podcast, Tales of the Unbound! In its inaugural season Tales of the Unbound follows the Jewish journey of two incarcerated individuals, their chaplain, and the community they co-created in the most unlikely of places.

In Tales of the Unbound Episode 6, Miriam Terlinchamp reflects on her journey into the rabbinate, beginning with childhood memories and learning about holiness in unlikely places. She recalls pivotal moments that challenged her faith and understanding of Judaism's role in life's hardships. Despite initial reluctance, Miriam embraces her calling as a rabbi, drawn back to it even after attempting to avoid it. She finds purpose in connecting with individuals like Ari and Josh from Monroe Correctional, guiding them through conversions and discovering a deeper, more inclusive Judaism beyond traditional boundaries. Miriam's narrative explores themes of belonging, grief, and the evolving nature of spiritual identity.

For information on how to reach out to connect with Jewish agencies who support folks who are incarcerated and their families, connect with a Jewish penpal, donate to help bring kosher meals and access to Jewish supplies, or give straight to Ari and Josh’s Jewish minyan in Monroe, connect with us at: www.judaismunbound.com/tales. You can subscribe to Tales of the Unbound in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or anywhere else podcasts are found!

Rebecca Hornstein serves as executive director of Boston Workers Circle: Center for Jewish Culture & Social Justice, but she is also a talented artist who creates ketubot (Jewish marriage contracts, often crafted to be beautiful art pieces), through a project called Rituals for Revolutionaries. She joins Dan and Lex for a conversation that covers ketubot, the power of Jewish ritual moments, and a magical Yiddish word that may be new to you: “veltlich” (“secular” or “worldly”). This episode is the 6th conversation in an ongoing Judaism Unbound mini-series exploring Jewish weddings.

Sign up for Apocry-Fest: Hanukkah Unbound and Un-Canonized by heading to www.JudaismUnbound.com/apocryfest. Do so, and we’ll send you all sorts of cool Apocryphal (ApocryFUN!) stuff, during Hanukkah, to help enrich your experience of this holiday! 

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!

Getzel Davis is the founder and executive director of Unorthodox Celebrations, a project launched to help folks find the right person to officiate at their weddings, bar/bat/b mitzvahs, baby namings, or other Jewish life cycle event. He joins Dan and Lex for the 4th conversation in an ongoing Judaism Unbound mini-series exploring Jewish weddings.

Register for the next gathering of Shabbat Unbound on November 22nd via this link! If you're listening after 11/22, you can register for our December edition of Shabbat Unbound (a 12-month-long Shabbat service), via this link.

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!

Davis recently launched a new project called Zivug Together that he mentions at the end of this podcast. Check it out by visiting ZivugTogether.org! To learn about the couples visioning work that Davis facilitates through Zivug Together, head to this page.

Heshvan is the month that comes after Tishri -- the month containing Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and multiple other Jewish holidays. It (Heshvan) is often framed as "a month with no Jewish holidays." The problem? It is not a month with no Jewish holidays! In this episode, Lex, Miriam, and Rena Yehuda (members of Judaism Unbound's staff team) dive into multiple Jewish holidays that have taken place in the past -- and continue to take place today -- during the month of Heshvan. They also ask some big questions about how we might reconceptualize the role of Heshvan entirely!

Register for the next gathering of Shabbat Unbound on November 22nd via this link! If you're listening after 11/22, you can register for our December edition of Shabbat Unbound (a 12-month-long Shabbat service), via this link.

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!

Charlie Schwartz, co-founder and director of Lehrhaus: A Jewish Tavern & House of Learning, joins Dan and Lex for a conversation about Lehrhaus, Jewish "third spaces," and blurring the boundaries between Jewish learning and Jewish eating.

Register for the next gathering of Shabbat Unbound on November 22nd via this link!

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!

Mazal Tov, Congratulations, Mazaltations, and Congratul Tov to Miriam Terlinchamp!!! Judaism Unbound’s executive director is getting married the weekend of this episode’s release. Tune in to a conversation where Miriam, Dan, and Lex take this joyous occasion as a wonderful opportunity to dive deeper into how we might experiment creatively with Jewish weddings — and how doing so could help us experiment with Jewish ritual more broadly.

Head to JudaismUnbound.com/classes to check out our 8-week courses in the UnYeshiva, which began earlier this week! Explore Jewish communities around the world, gender in Judaism, Maimonides's (Rambam's) theology, fierce women in Torah, and more!

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!

This week, we’re bringing you an episode of our newest podcast, Tales of the Unbound! In its inaugural season Tales of the Unbound follows the Jewish journey of two incarcerated individuals, their chaplain, and the community they co-created in the most unlikely of places.

In Tales of the Unbound Episode 5, we reach the apex of the storyline, talking through all the details of the “big day” of conversion. Miriam recounts the challenges of facilitating a traditional Jewish conversion ritual for Ari and Josh in prison. She navigates assembling a beit din (rabbinic court). The mikvah (ritual bath) posed logistical hurdles, eventually combining some borrowed and collected elements to make it happen. The ritual circumcision (milah) was performed privately by Ari and Josh using diabetic lancets despite our share of reservations. The ceremony concludes with Ari and Josh affirming their Jewish identity before their community, marking a profound moment of spiritual transformation and communal contribution.

For information on how to reach out to connect with Jewish agencies who support folks who are incarcerated and their families, connect with a Jewish penpal, donate to help bring kosher meals and access to Jewish supplies, or give straight to Ari and Josh’s Jewish minyan in Monroe, connect with us at: www.judaismunbound.com/tales. You can subscribe to Tales of the Unbound in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or anywhere else podcasts are found!

Happy Sukkot! Chag Sameach! The 7-day-long festival of Sukkot is here, and Dan and Lex welcome Joseph Altshuler and Ethan Blake — both founders of local Sukkah festivals celebrating creative design and architecture — to explore what this festival can teach us.

Head to JudaismUnbound.com/classes to check out our upcoming 8-week courses in the UnYeshiva! Explore Jewish communities around the world, gender in Judaism, Maimonides's (Rambam's) theology, fierce women in Torah, and more!

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!