Tablet Studios (Tablet Magazine)

This week, Unorthodox goes back to high school. This episode was recorded live from the American Hebrew Academy in Greensboro, N.C, the world's only International Jewish College Prep boarding school. Our Jewish guest is former North Carolina State Senator Marshall Rauch, who when he was elected in 1967 became the first Jew in the state senate, where he spearheaded legislation making Yom Kippur a state holiday. Our Gentile of the Week is musician Judith Saxton, who is in her tenth year as Trumpet Artist/Faculty and Brass/Percussion Chair at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and is principal cornet of the North Carolina Brass Band.  We love to hear from you! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com. Sign up for our weekly newsletter at http://bit.ly/UnorthodoxPodcast.  This episode of Unorthodox is brought to you by Harry’s. Stop overpaying for a great shave. Go to Harrys.com and enter the code UNORTHODOX at checkout for $5 off your first order.

Today we’re sharing a special weekly edition of Kylie Unell’s new podcast miniseries, 49 Days to Stretch My Soul. Kylie is putting her own spin on the Jewish tradition of counting the Omer—the 49 days between Passover and Shavuot—with a daily practice that includes everything from exploring the lyrics of Steven Sondheim, interviewing a ballet dancer, immersing herself in nature, and more. This first week is all about Chesed, or Lovingkindness.

Hosted by Courtney Hazlett, Rabbi Diana Fersko, and Josh Kross, each episode we'll take a look at a current, cultural topic and talk about what it means for us as Jews, and how we react to it because we are Jews.

Liel takes us on a tour of the horror movies of his childhood and wonders how Jews can participate in Halloween… Jewishly. Plus, what horror movies can teach us about us ourselves and Jewish identity

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.

Proof that Jews don't control the weather? Our live show was cancelled due to snow in the New York area. But thanks to a pre-Passover miracle we were able to record an interview with our gentile of the week, Bart Campolo, in producer Josh Kross' living room. (With everyone's kids, since school was cancelled.) Bart Campolo is evangelical Christian royalty—his father, Tony Campolo, is one of the most well-known leaders of the evangelical left—and became a believer himself as a teenager. He spent the next 30 years as an evangelical preacher, but his faith slowly unraveled until 2011, when he finally came out as secular. Bart now works as a humanist chaplain at the University of Cincinnati. He tells us about his dramatic journey, explains what a campus humanist chaplain does, and describes his coaching practice with people navigating their own faith transitions. Learn more about Bart and his podcast, Humanize Me, at bartcampolo.org. Head over to www.tabletmag.com/unorthodoxhaggadah to get the official Unorthodox Haggadah. We love hearing from our listeners! Email us or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. Want more Unorthodox in your life? Join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, mugs, and baby onesies. Get yours here: bit.ly/Unorthoshirt. This episode is sponsored by Harry’s. Get a free trial shave set when you sign up at Harrys.com/Unorthodox This episode is also sponsored by Hello Fresh. Visit hellofresh.com and use promo code UNORTHODOX for $30 off your first week of deliveries.

This week on Unorthodox, a crossover episode! We're joined by Joshua Malina and Hrishikesh Hirway, hosts of The West Wing Weekly podcast, an episode-by-episode discussion of one of television's most beloved shows. Malina, who played Will Bailey on The West Wing, currently stars in Scandal, which will air its series finale later this month. Hirway, a musician and composer, is the creator and host of the Song Exploder podcast. We talk about revisiting the glory days of early aughts TV programming, being Jewish on Twitter, and, of course, Jewish food. We also talk to Rabbi Rick Eisenberg, who left the pulpit to work as an opioid addiction counselor in the Jewish community. We love hearing from our listeners! Email us or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. Want more Unorthodox in your life? Join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours here: bit.ly/Unorthoshirt. This episode is sponsored by the UJA Federation of New York. Join their “Matzah Challenge” on social media. Snap a picture of your matzah using the hashtag #MatzahChallenge. Every photo posted with the hashtag will result in an $18 donation to help someone in need. This episode is also sponsored by Harry’s. Get a free trial shave set when you sign up at harrys.com/unorthodox.

This week on Re-Form, we’re taking a break from the interviews to look at some of the feedback we’ve been getting from you, our listeners. We find praise, questions, and even a reform rabbi who disagrees with … a lot. If you want to send more feedback reach out at podcasts@tabletmag.com

Our Jewish guest is writer and illustrator Christopher Noxon, author of the novel, Plus One, and the husband of Weeds and Orange is the New Black creator Jenji Kohan. He tells us why he prefers the term ‘domestic first responder’ to ‘house husband,’ and about the ritual bloodletting required to complete his conversion to Judaism. Our Gentile of the Week is rock critic Jim DeRogatis, co-host of the WBEZ talk show “Sound Opinions.” He tells us how meeting Lester Bangs made him want to become a rock critic, and how to discover good new music today.  If you like listening to us each week, consider making a donation to support the show at tabletmag.com/donate.  We love to hear from you! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com. Sign up for our weekly newsletter at http://bit.ly/UnorthodoxPodcast.

We have two upcoming events! A live recording at JCC Manhattan on 1/24 (tickets here), and a intimate, off-the-record schmooze with the hosts at Beloved in Brooklyn on 1/30 (tickets here). Plus, we're looking for a new producer—maybe that person is... you? This week, Mark sits down with Rabbi Joseph Hample of the Tree of Life Congregation in Morgantown, West Virginia. We're also joined by musicians David Chevan and Warren Byrd of the Afro-Semitic Experience, who tell us about fusing Jewish and African American liturgical traditions. Want more Unorthodox in your life? Sign up for our newsletter, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! We love hearing from our listeners. Email us at unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message on our hotline: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. This episode is brought to you by Harry’s. Get a free trial shave set when you sign up at Harrys.com/Unorthodox.

Come see us live at the Manhattan JCC on Wednesday, Jan. 24 at 7:30 p.m., with special guests comedian Judy Gold and Father James Martin! More info and tickets here. And on Tuesday, Jan. 30 at 7 p.m., we’ll be joining Rabbi Sara Luria for an intimate, off-the-record chat at Beloved in Brooklyn. Tickets here. This week on Unorthodox, Mark calls up Roy Moore's 'Jewish lawyer,' and Stephanie sits down with Jeffrey Masters, host of the podcast LGBTQ&A, which documents stories of the LGBTQ community. We're also joined by Anne Edelstein, author of a new memoir about death and grief, Lifesaving for Beginners. Want more Unorthodox in your life? Join our official Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! We love hearing from our listeners. Email us at unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. This week's episode is brought to you by Harry’s. Get a free trial shave set when you sign up at Harrys.com/Unorthodox.

This week, we've got something a little different for you. In honor of International Holocaust Remembrance Day on Jan 27, we sat down with Sandy Myers and Desiree Nazarian of Selfhelp Community Services, an organization that provides assistance to Holocaust survivors in need in the New York area. There are thousands of survivors living in the New York area today, and they have very particular emotional and physical needs as they age. You can read more about the work of the organization—and how to help—in this extended feature on Tablet. Our next full episode will drop on Monday, Jan 29. Some announcements: Come hang with us on Tuesday, Jan. 30 at 7 p.m! We’ll be joining Rabbi Sara Luria for an intimate, off-the-record chat at Beloved in Brooklyn. Tickets here. Want more Unorthodox in your life? Join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! And subscribe to our newsletter here. (Yep, it's different to the main Tablet newsletter!) We love hearing from our listeners. Email us at unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. This episode is sponsored by Hello Fresh. Visit hellofresh.com and use promo code UNORTHODOX for $30 off your first week of deliveries.

Our guest this week is Tova Mirvis, whose memoir, The Book of Separation, tells the story of her decision to leave Modern Orthodox Judaism, a world she recreated vividly for readers in the novels Visible City, The Outside World, and The Ladies Auxiliary. Our next live show is Wednesday, March 21 at the JCC Manhattan. Tickets here. Want more Unorthodox in your life? Join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! We love hearing from our listeners. Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. Sign up for our newsletter here.

Recorded live at at the Limmud Festival, an international celebration of Jewish learning and culture, in Birmingham, U.K. over Christmas. Mark hosted the show with writer and challah maven Sarah Klegman. Our guests are Anthony Mordechai Tzvi Russell, a vocalist, composer, and arranger specializing in Yiddish art and folk song, and Gabby Edlin, the founder of Bloody Good Period, which provides sanitary supplies to asylum seekers, refugees & those who can't afford them. Tablet is conducting a reader survey, and we'd love to hear from Unorthodox listeners (even if you don't read Tablet and only listen to Unorthodox). Plus, you'll be entered to win a $250 Russ & Daughters gift card! Take the survey here. Upcoming events: Stephanie will be moderating a discussion between Simon Doonan and Jonathan Adler about their relationship and how Judaism figures in it on Thursday, February 15th at Congregation Rodeph Sholom in New York City. It's free—RSVP here. Our next live show is Wednesday, March 21 at the JCC Manhattan. Buy tickets here. Want more Unorthodox in your life? Join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. We love hearing from our listeners. Email us or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. This episode is sponsored by Harry’s. Get a free trial shave set when you sign up at Harrys.com/Unorthodox.

This week, we talk to writer Molly Lambert, who shares the story of her grandmother Margaret Bergmann Lambert , a German-Jewish high jumper barred from the 1936 Olympics. We're also joined by Annette Ezekiel Kogan and Jeremy Brown of Golem, the klezmer-rock band behind our theme music. They perform a few favorites for us, including 7:40, a song based on the "Hava Nagilah of Russia." But wait, there's more! We visited the Harlem Hebrew Language Academy Charter School, a diverse dual-language elementary school in New York City, to see if Liel could keep up with the students b'ivrit. Buy an Unorthodox shirt! Click here and use the coupon code UnorthodoxLaunch2018. Our next live show is Wednesday, March 21 at the JCC Manhattan. Buy tickets here. Want more Unorthodox in your life? Join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. We love hearing from our listeners! Email us or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air.

Our Jewish guest is Everybody Loves Raymond creator Phil Rosenthal, whose new Netflix series 'Somebody Feed Phil' chronicles his eating adventures around the word. He tells about the episode filmed in Tel Aviv—with cameos from chefs Michael Solomonov and Uri Buri—and why he thinks food is such a unifying force. Our gentile of the week is June Thomas, managing producer of Slate podcasts and one of the hosts of the Double X Gabfest. She explains why podcast hosts like talking to other podcast hosts, and presents the panel with a great question: Who’s the best Jewish character in U.S. television history? Mark Oppenheimer will be speaking at the Greenwich Reform Synagogue Friday, Feb. 23 at 7 p.m.  More info here. Our next live show is Wednesday, March 21 at the JCC Manhattan. Tickets here.  Want more Unorthodox in your life? Join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. We've got swag! Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours here. We love hearing from our listeners. Email us or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. This episode is sponsored by Harry’s. Get a free trial shave set when you sign up at harrys.com/unorthodox.

This week, we're getting our grogger on for Purim. Returning to the show is film critic Jordan Hoffman, who preps us for the Oscars this weekend and offers his picks for the big winners. We're also joined by former FBI counterintelligence agent Asha Rangappa, now a CNN analyst an senior lecturer at Yale, who tells us how being an FBI agent is not what it looks like on TV. Be part of our next Ask Unorthodox episode, airing during Passover. Send us your burning questions about the holiday, or really anything—Jewish traditions, baby names, etiquette—by March 9. Email them to Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave us a message at 914-570-4869. Our next live show is Wednesday, March 21 at the JCC Manhattan. Tickets here.  We've got swag! Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours here. Want more Unorthodox in your life? Join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. 

Be part of our next Ask Unorthodox episode, airing during Passover. Send us your burning questions about Jewish ritual, culture, or traditions by March 9. Email them to Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave us a message at 914-570-4869. Our first guest is Israeli food writer and tv personality Gil Hovav, whose new memoir, Candies from Heaven, is about growing up in Jerusalem in a close-knit family (and not just any family: Hovav's great grandfather is Eliezer Ben-Yehuda, who revived the modern Hebrew language). Our second guest is Alan Robert Ginsberg, author of The Salome Ensemble: Rose Pastor Stokes, Anzia Yezierska, Sonya Levien, and Jetta Goudal, about the four Jewish women behind the novel and subsequent 1925 film Salome of the Tenements. Our next live show is Wednesday, March 21 at the JCC Manhattan. Tickets here.  Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours here: bit.ly/Unorthoshirt. Want more Unorthodox in your life? Join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. This episode is sponsored by Harry’s. Get a free trial shave set when you sign up at Harrys.com/Unorthodox.

Our Jewish guest this week is Leah Sarna, a student at Yeshivat Maharat, the first yeshiva to ordain women as Orthodox Jewish clergy. She explains the institutional conflict over female ordination in the Orthodox community and tells us what her role will be at an Orthodox congregation in Chicago after graduation —and what title she’ll go by. Our Gentile of the week is writer Lauren Oyler, who tells us why honest cultural criticism is more important than ever, and recommends some books for our listeners to check out.  New York-area listeners, join us for a live Unorthodox taping with guests Senator Joe Lieberman and Bart Campolo, host of the podcast Humanize Me, on Wednesday, March 21 at 7:30 p.m. at the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan. Buy tickets here.  We love hearing from our listeners! Email us or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. Want more Unorthodox in your life? Join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, stickers, and, of course, baby onesies. Get yours here. This episode is sponsored by the Jewish Activism Summer School in Berlin. To learn more about the program, visit www.jassberlin.org.

Download your free copy of the Unorthodox Haggadah! This week on Unorthodox, everything you ever wanted to know about Passover. We answer listener questions, writer Roya Hakakian tells us about Persian Passover traditions, including scallion whipping at the Seder, and producer Josh Kross’s mother-in-law Elsie Apfelbaum shares the magic of Mimouna, the Moroccan festival celebrating the end of Passover (with some help from Josh’s daughter Stella). Jay Miah tells the story of how his father worked at the Streit’s Matzo Factory upon immigrating to America from Bangladesh, and humorist Adam Mansbach talks about comedic haggadot—he cowrote For This We Left Egypt with Dave Barry and Alan Zweibel—and the enduring power of the Passover story. We love hearing from our listeners! Email us or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. Want more Unorthodox in your life? Join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours here. 

This week on Unorthodox, we're celebrating 70 years of Israeli food, music, and culture in honor of Yom Ha'atzmaut, Israel's independence day. First, we're joined by writer and comedian Periel Aschenbrand, who tells us what it's like to be married to an Israeli man. Next, we check out the newest outpost of Israeli chef Eyal Shani's pita empire, Miznon, here in New York, and chat with Shani over his world famous cauliflower pita. We also chat with Israeli singer and activist Yael Deckelbaum, whose song "Prayer of the Mothers" is a call for peace between Israelis and Palestinians. We love hearing from our listeners! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. Want more Unorthodox in your life? Follow us on Twitter and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours here: bit.ly/Unorthoshirt. This episode is sponsored by One Day University, which brings together the greatest professors from the world's top schools to present special versions of their best lectures live. Register for upcoming events at www.onedayu.com using the code UNORTHODOX for 30 percent off.

Natalie Portman won't accept 'Jewish Nobel Prize' in Israel, plus Jewish artichoke drama in Italy. Our Jewish guest is Rachel Simmons, the author of Enough As She Is: How to Help Girls Move Beyond Impossible Standards of Success to Live Healthy, Happy and Fulfilling Lives. Rachel explains the pressures facing young girls in America today, how we can support our daughters and nieces and friends, and whether things are any better at Jewish schools. Our gentile of the week is Linda Curtis, whose memoir Shunned: How I Lost My Religion and Found Myself, chronicles her decision to leave her close-knit Jehovah’s Witness community and ultimately being formally shunned by the religion. Linda tells us about life as a Jehovah's Witness, why she left, and why she has no animosity towards the community—and family—that shunned her. Her question for the panel is whether Jews are ever formally excommunicated like she was. We love hearing from our listeners! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. If you like us, please consider leaving a review in iTunes. Want more Unorthodox in your life? Follow us on Twitter and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/Unorthoshirt. This episode is sponsored by Harry’s. Get a free trial shave set when you sign up at harrys.com/unorthodox. This episode is sponsored by One Day University, which brings together the greatest professors from the world's top schools to present special versions of their best lectures live. Register for upcoming events at www.onedayu.com using code UNORTHODOX for 30 percent off.

 It's Lag Ba'Omer, aka the 33rd day of the Omer, aka the period between Passover and Shavuot! Our Jewish guest is Sen. Joe Lieberman, whose new book, 'With Liberty & Justice: The 50-Day Journey from Egypt to Sinai,' explores the importance of the Omer. He tells us about being one of the most publically observant Jews in politics, why he never wore a yarmulke in the Senate, and whether the Gore White House would have had a kosher kitchen. Our Gentile of the week is Skylar Inman, the host of Intractable, a podcast that explores the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by sharing the narratives and stories of people living on both sides. Skyler, who was raised Evangelical in Houston, Texas, tells us why she decided to move to Israel after college and the unexpected benefits of approaching such a heated topic as a complete outsider.  We also call up Tobias Wilinski, host of the German rap podcast ThemaTakt, to get the full story behind the two German rappers whose album featuring anti-Semitic lyrics won a music award. We love hearing from our listeners! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. If you like us, please consider leaving a review in iTunes. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt. This episode is sponsored by One Day University, which brings together the greatest professors from the world's top schools to present special versions of their best lectures live. Register for upcoming events at www.onedayu.com using the code UNORTHODOX for 30 percent off.

Our Jewish guest this week is Peninah Lamm Kaplansky, who in 2015 wrote a candid and moving account of her miscarriage, at 21 weeks, and the need for more resources and discussion surrounding infertility and miscarriage in Jewish communities. Our Gentile of the Week is Sister Julia Walsh, a Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration and a Catholic youth minister. Sister Julia tells us about the painful decision to give up motherhood, something she had always dreamed of, when she entered the life at 24, and the unexpected freedom she found in her work for the church. We also sit down with filmmaker Rachel Myers and her grandmother Roberta Mahler, the director and star of Wendy’s Shabbat, a documentary about a group of seniors who meet each week for Shabbat dinner at a local Wendy’s fast-food restaurant. Rachel and Roberta tell us what they learned about each other while making a film together, Roberta’s newfound celebrity status, and the ways Jewish community can be forged in the unlikeliest places. We love hearing from our listeners! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. If you like us, please consider leaving a review in iTunes. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt. This episode is sponsored by One Day University, which brings together the greatest professors from the world's top schools to present special versions of their best lectures live. Register for upcoming events at www.onedayu.com using the code UNORTHODOX for 30 percent off. This episode is also sponsored by Harry’s. Get a free trial shave set when you sign up at harrys.com/unorthodox.

On Shavuot we read the Book of Ruth, which tells the story of Ruth, the first convert to Judaism, who ultimately becomes the great-grandmother of King David. In Ruth's honor, this week we're talking about conversion to Judaism, and hearing stories from people around the globe who have chosen to become Jewish—starting with our listeners. Reporter Abby Holtzman travels to Savannah, Georgia, to bring us the story of a 13-year-old girl who has taken the plunge, literally, to convert to Judaism. Rabbi Seth Farber, the director of ITIM, an advocacy organization that helps people convert to Judaism outside the Orthodox Rabbinate, explains the complexities of conversion in Israel, and how he's trying to change that. Nathan Steiger shares his story of losing his Mormon faith and, together with his wife and daughters, embracing Orthodox Judaism and converting as a family. Naomi Telushkin (sister of our producer Shira Telushkin) and her fiancee, Ben Pigett, an Australian submariner converting to Judaism, discuss what Judaism—and Ben's conversion—means to both of them. Listener Yolanda Wu tells us about her decision to finish her conversion 20 years after she started it — and the very jewish life she and her family lived in that time. We love hearing from our listeners! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. If you like us, please consider leaving a review in iTunes. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt. This episode is sponsored by One Day University, which brings together the greatest professors from the world's top schools to present special versions of their best lectures live. Register for upcoming events at www.onedayu.com using the code JEWISH for 30 percent off.

This week on Unorthodox, Liel prepares for his role as honorary grand marshal at New York City's Celebrate Israel Parade on June 3. Our Jewish guest is Yossi Klein Halevi, senior fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem and the author of 'Letters to My Palestinian Neighbor.' He tells us how he, as a religious Jew in Jerusalem, came to understand the Palestinian perspective, why he framed the book as a letter to an imagined interlocutor, and the crucial need to recognize that both sides have their own truths, and that respecting each of those truths is the first step towards any reconciliation. Our gentile of the week is Astead Herndon, who recently joined the New York Times as a national political reporter from the Boston Globe. He tells us about the challenges of covering the Trump administration, growing up as the son of two Pentecostal preachers, and the summer he spent as a JCC camp counselor in Chicago. We love hearing from our listeners! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. If you like us, please consider leaving a review in iTunes. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt. This episode is sponsored by Harry’s. Get a free trial shave set when you sign up at harrys.com/unorthodox.

For our first book club episode, we talk to Israeli-born writer Ruby Namdar about his ambitious second book, The Ruined House, which won Israel's most prestigious literary award and was recently translated into English. The book is set in New York City, where he's lived for the past 18 years, and follows a charming and successful professor named Andrew P. Cohen as he descends into a very peculiar kind of madness. Ruby tells us why he made his protagonist such a specific male archetype, and explains the difference between American and Israeli literary culture (he didn't discover Philip Roth until he moved to the U.S.). He also answers questions from listeners who read the book along with us, such as, "Why does the main character live near Columbia if he teaches downtown at NYU?" Plus, New York Times writer Taffy Brodesser-Akner joins us to talk about her essay about what reading Philip Roth in an observant household taught her about being an American Jew. New York listeners, come see Stephanie moderate the Jewish Book Council's Unpacking the Book event at the Jewish Museum on June 14 at 7 p.m. Info here. Our next full live show is July 18 at the JCC Manhattan, and it's an episode we're calling: "Is it OK to say ‘JAP’?”. Jill Kargman of Odd Mom Out joins us to screen a new short film about the persistence of the Jewish American Princess stereotype. We'll follow with a lively discussion with guests including Judith Rosenbaum of the Jewish Women's Archive and Bat Sheva Marcus from the Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance (who appear in the film) and more. There will be loads of audience participation as well! Get your tickets here. We love hearing from our listeners! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. If you like us, please consider leaving a review in iTunes. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt. This episode is sponsored by Harry’s. Get a free trial shave set when you sign up at harrys.com/unorthodox.

This week on Unorthodox, we talk to Rabbi Mike Moskowitz, the new scholar in residence for trans and queer Jewish studies at CBST, the world's largest LGBTQ synagogue. He's the first Orthodox rabbi at the New York City synagogue, and he explains how Judaism, even at its most observant, can make room for transgender adherents—and how Jews could learn a lot from the trans community.  We're also joined by Gentile of the week Matthew Polly, whose latest book is Bruce Lee: A Life. He tells us about Lee's continued influence in not just martial arts but Hollywood as well, describes his own two-year study of kung fu at the Shaolin Temple in China, and shares a surprising discovery he made while researching the book: Bruce Lee is one-eighth Jewish! Mark sits down with our Jewish guest, Arnold Gorlick, owner of Madison Art Cinemas, one of the country's last great arthouses. He tells Mark about growing up in Brooklyn as the son of an appetizing store owner before moving to Connecticut and devoting himself to indie movies. And in honor of Father's Day, we're airing Liel's moving story about fatherhood, and his own father, which he shared at a Moth storytelling event. Our next live show is July 18 at the JCC Manhattan, and it’s an episode devoted to the question “Is it OK to say ‘JAP’?” Jill Kargman of Odd Mom Out joins us to screen our short film about the persistence of the Jewish American Princess stereotype. We’ll follow with a lively discussion with guests including Judith Rosenbaum of the Jewish Women’s Archive and Bat Sheva Marcus of the Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance, audience questions, and much more. Get your tickets here. We love hearing from our listeners! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. If you like us, please consider leaving a review in iTunes. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt.

This week on Unorthodox, we’re all about food and futbol. Our Jewish guest is writer and food historian Michael Twitty, whose book The Cooking Gene: A Journey Through African American Culinary History in the Old South, won two James Beard Awards this year. He describes being told that a book by a black, Jewish, gay man would never succeed (and how it felt to prove them wrong!), explains how most of the foods we eat today originated in Africa, and tells us why Jewish food is more than just gefilte fish. Our Gentile of the Week is Simon Doonan, creative ambassador-at-large for Barneys New York, whose latest book, Soccer Style: The Magic and Madness, is out in time for World Cup madness. He returns to the show (last time is here) to dish on life with his Jewish husband Jonathan Adler, tell us what to look out for in this summer's World Cup, and explain why, despite being British, he calls it soccer, not football. Finally, fan favorite Molly Yeh calls in to tell us about her new Food Network show, Girl Meets Farm, which premieres June 24. (Here she is telling the Food Network about her "favorite podcast of all time" and making us blush.) Our next live show is July 18 at the JCC Manhattan, and it’s an episode devoted to the question, “Is it OK to say ‘JAP’”? Jill Kargman of Odd Mom Out joins us to screen a short film we made about the persistence of the Jewish American Princess stereotype. We’ll follow with a lively discussion with guests including Judith Rosenbaum of the Jewish Women’s Archive and Bat Sheva Marcus of the Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance, audience questions, and much more. Get your tickets here. We love hearing from our listeners! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. If you like us, please consider leaving a review in iTunes. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt. This episode is sponsored by Harry’s. Get a free trial shave set when you sign up at harrys.com/unorthodox.

This week on Unorthodox, we have three special guests. Jonathan Ornstein is the executive director of the JCC Krakow, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. With more than 10,000 visitors a month, the JCC is at the center of a Jewish revival in Poland, that Ornstein, a New York native, is witnessing—and cultivativating—firsthand. We also talk with Gabi Birkner and Rebecca Soffer of Modern Loss, a website that aims to make conversations about grief less fraught and awkward. Their book, Modern Loss: Candid Conversation About Grief, Beginners Welcome, was published this year. They share their personal stories of loss and explain how Jewish rituals surrounding loss can sometimes fall short. Our donation drive is live! We have fun prizes for all levels of giving, including a special Camp Unorthodox T-shirt, an Unorthodox enamel pin, an 'Unorthodox Approved' laptop sticker, and more. And this year are hosts are upping the stakes with a contest: When you give, include a note with the name of your favorite host. The host who gets the least love will have to face a very creative and amusing penalty on air. Visit tabletmag.com/donate to be part of the fun. Is it OK to say ‘JAP’? That’s the subject of our next live show, July 18 at the JCC Manhattan. Jill Kargman of Odd Mom Out will join us to screen a short film we made about the persistence of the Jewish American Princess stereotype. We’ll follow with a lively discussion with guests including Judith Rosenbaum of the Jewish Women’s Archive and Bat Sheva Marcus of the Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance, audience questions, and much more. Get your tickets here. We love hearing from our listeners! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. If you like us, please consider leaving a review in iTunes. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt.

"Hi, are you Jewish?" It's a question you may have been asked in any number of towns or cities by a smiling bearded man wearing a yarmulke. It's one of the trademarks of Chabad, the Hasidic movement that dispatches its young men around town to help Jewish strangers perform a mitzvah—Jewish women are offered Shabbat candles, and Jewish men are encouraged to put on tefillin. We've always been fascinated with this practice, with some of us finding it charming and others, frankly, terrifying. So we did the only thing we could do: We went to Manhattan's crowded Union Square during lunchtime, accompanied by our very own Chabad sherpas, to see what it was like to talk to absolute strangers about religion. While we're asking questions: Is it OK to say "JAP"? That's what we'll be discussing at our live show Wednesday, June 18, at the JCC Manhattan. Jill Kargman of Odd Mom Out will join us to screen a short film we made about the persistence of the Jewish American Princess stereotype. Broadway legend Tovah Feldshuh and Jill Kargman of Odd Mom Out will join us to screen a short film we made about the persistence of the Jewish American Princess stereotype. There will be a lively discussion, audience questions, and much more. Get your tickets here. Our donation drive is live! We have fun prizes for all levels of giving, including a special Camp Unorthodox T-shirt, an Unorthodox enamel pin, an 'Unorthodox Approved' laptop sticker, and more. And this year are hosts are upping the stakes with a contest: When you give, include a note with the name of your favorite host. The host who gets the least love will have to face a very creative and amusing penalty on air. Visit tabletmag.com/donate to be part of the fun. We love hearing from our listeners! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. If you like us, please consider leaving a review in iTunes. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt. This episode is sponsored by Harry’s. New customers get 5 dollars off a shave set from Harry’s when you sign up at harrys.com/unorthodox.

In honor of July 4th, we're celebrating the diversity of American Jewish life—which, as we've learned, goes well beyond eating bagels on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Up first, we get a crash course in the history of Jews in the South from Stuart Rockoff, who created the Encyclopedia of Southern Jewish Communities, a rich online resource from the Institute of Southern Jewish Life. Next, Sammy Potter tells us about driving an hour to synagogue from his home in Yarmouth, ME, and why he wants to return to Maine after college. Yemile Bucay then describes her Mexican Syrian family's move from Mexico City to San Antonio, TX, and how she ended up raising her family in Great Neck, NY. Rabbi Tirzah Firestone follows to tell us about the Jewish Renewal movement in Boulder, CO. Finally, from Tulsa, OK, a vibrant Jewish community in the American heartland, we speak with Rabbi Marc Fitzerman and his children, Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Nina Fitzerman-Blue, about the unique landscape of Jewish life on the Arkansas River. Plus we hear from a couple listeners! Our donation drive is live! We have fun prizes for all levels of giving, including a special Camp Unorthodox T-shirt, an Unorthodox enamel pin, an 'Unorthodox Approved' laptop sticker, and more. And this year are hosts are upping the stakes with a contest: When you give, include a note with the name of your favorite host. The host who gets the least love will have to face a very creative and amusing penalty on air. Visit tabletmag.com/donate to be part of the fun. Is it OK to say ‘JAP’? That’s the subject of our next live show, June 18 at the JCC Manhattan. Jill Kargman of Odd Mom Out and Broadway legend Tovah Feldshuh will join us to screen a short film we made about the persistence of the Jewish American Princess stereotype. We’ll follow with a lively discussion, audience questions, and much more. Get your tickets now! We love hearing from our listeners! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. If you like us, please consider leaving a review in iTunes. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt.

This week on Unorthodox: Is it OK to say 'JAP'? We were joined by Odd Mom Out's Jill Kargman, Broadway legend Tovah Feldshuh, and Jewish Women's Archive director Judith Rosenbaum at the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan last week for a lively discussion and debate about the Jewish American Princess stereotype–its origins, implications, and cultural staying power. We also screened a short film we made about the JAP stereotype, which you can watch here, and heard from audience members about what the phrase means to them. Let us know what you think about the JAP debate–email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. If you like listening, please consider leaving a review in iTunes. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt. This episode is sponsored by Harry’s. Get $5 off a shave set from Harry’s with code UNORTHODOX at Harrys.com This episode is also sponsored by the 2019 Diller Teen Tikkun Olam Awards. To learn more–and nominate a Jewish teen making a difference–check out dillerteenawards.org.

This week on Unorthodox, we're wining and dining. Our Jewish guest is author Andre Aciman, whose 2007 novel Call Me By Your Name was adapted into the Oscar-nominated film starring Armie Hammer and Timothee Chalamet. He tells us about being forced to leave Egypt with his family as a teenager, getting recognized on the Upper West Side after the film premiered, and his absolute favorite coffeemaker. Our gentile of the week is journalist Kevin Begos, whose new book is Tasting the Past: The Science of Flavor and the Search for the Origins of Wine, a literary undertaking that began when he found an obscure wine from Bethlehem in a hotel room minibar. He tells us how local Israeli grapes got overshadowed when Edmond de Rothschild arrived in the 19th century and started making European wine in the Holy Land, and why we should ditch the Pinot Noirs and Cabernets and drink wine made from local Israeli grapes like jandali, hamdani, and dabouki instead.  This is the last week of our fundraising drive. If you like listening to us, consider making a donation at tabletmag.com/donate. Write the name of your favorite host in your donation notes. We love hearing from you! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. If you like listening, please consider leaving a review in iTunes. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt This episode is sponsored by One Day University. Get 20% off your ticket to see Mark Oppenheimer's Oct. 14 lecture on religion in America by using the code MARK when you register at OneDayU.com. This episode is sponsored by Harry’s. Get $5 off a shave set from Harry’s with code UNORTHODOX at Harrys.com.

This week on Unorthodox, the producers take over while Mark, Liel, and Stephanie are off having summer fun. Shira, Noah, and Josh bring you three stories of people sharing, studying and challenging their faith. First up, Unorthodox couples counseling. Listeners Ken Rosen and Elettra Pauletto came to us to discuss their pre-marriage anxieties about conversion, kids, and Jewish practice. Second, Shira sits down with her favorite gentile, Harvard Divinity School professor Charles Stang, to talk about how he formed his Christian identity, discovering his love of Ashkenazi food, and the challenge of finding good babka in Israel. Finally, we check in with Franciscan Sister Julia Walsh, who was a guest on our Mother’s Day episode. After she mentioned she didn’t think there were any Jews up in the Northern Woods of Wisconsin, our listeners in the area invited her to a Shabbat dinner. We’ve got the tape. We also bring you an update on our fundraising drive. If you like listening to us, consider making a donation at tabletmag.com/donate. Write the name of your favorite host in your donation notes. We love hearing from you! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. If you like listening, please consider leaving a review in iTunes. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt This episode is sponsored by Simple Contacts. Get 20 dollars off your first order of contacts at simplecontacts.com/UNORTHODOX or enter code UNORTHODOX at checkout! This episode is also sponsored by the 2019 Diller Teen Tikkun Olam Awards. To learn more–and nominate a Jewish teen making a difference–check out dillerteenawards.org.

This week on Unorthodox, we're all about Eichmann. We sit down with Operation Finale director Chris Weitz and actor Nick Kroll to discuss the new film, which depicts the 1960 covert mission to capture Adolf Eichmann, the Nazi architect of the Final Solution, who was living under an assumed identity in Argentina. Kroll, who is best known as a comic actor, plays Rafi Eitan, the Shin Bet leader who coordinated the mission, alongside Oscar Isaac as legendary Mossad agent Peter Malkin, Ben Kingsley as Eichmann, and French actress Mélanie Laurent, of Inglourious Basterds fame. They tell us how their respective backgrounds and upbringings, while different, each drew them to this film; what it was like to work with Ben Kingsley; and why telling this story now is more important than ever. Our summer fundraising effort is almost over! Consider making a donation at tabletmag.com/donate. Write the name of your favorite host in the note. We love hearing from you! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. Please also consider leaving a review in iTunes. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up [http://bit.ly/UnorthodoxPodcast] for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt Support for this podcast comes from the MGM film Operation Finale, starring Golden Globe winner Oscar Isaac and Academy Award winner Ben Kingsley, in theaters now. Additional support comes from The Branch, a new podcast from Hadassah. Each episode explores how positive relationships between Israeli Jews and Arabs can bring new hope for a truly shared society. Check it out at Hadassah.org/thebranch. This episode is also brought to you by Harry’s. Get your trial shave set at Harrys.com/UNORTHODOX.

Happy birthday to us! We're celebrating three years of Unorthodox with a very special episode featuring our hosts, producers, and Tablet staffers reflecting on some of our most memorable segments. Tablet editor-in-chief Alana Newhouse revisits our very first episode, and shares her initial doubts about our audio adventure; host Liel Leibovitz reflects on his contentious Ep. 25 interview  with Jewish Voice for Peace's Rebecca Vilkomerson, and what he learned from the interaction; and Tablet executive editor Wayne Hoffman delights in our Ep. 121 live show interview with comedian Judy Gold, where she offered a Field Guide to the Jewish Mother. Producer Noah Levinson teleports a few hundred news cycles back to Ep. 120 , where we called up Roy Moore's Jewish lawyer Martin Wishnatsky, who also happens to be a practicing Christian; and producer Shira Telushkin shares her unexpected takeaway from Ep. 137, where Yossi Klein Halevi discussed his book about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Host Mark Oppenheimer reminisces about his Ep. 119 interview with West Virginia rabbi Joseph Hample, who described his unlikely journey to the rabbinate—and West Virginia; Producer Josh Kross gets taken for a ride in the Mitzvah Tank in Ep. 143, and is surprised to find he doesn't hate it; and host Stephanie Butnick takes a trip to East Grand Forks, Minnesota, to visit one of our favorite guests. We love hearing from you! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com with your favorite interviews over the past three years, or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. Please also consider leaving a review in iTunes. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt This episode is also brought to you by Harry’s. Get your trial shave set at Harrys.com/UNORTHODOX. This episode is also sponsored by the 2019 Diller Teen Tikkun Olam Awards. Do you know a Jewish teen making a difference? Nominate them for the $36,000 award at dillerteenawards.org.

This week on Unorthodox, we're going down to the station. Our guests are Hal Linden and Ryan Ochoa, who co-star in the new film The Samuel Project. Linden is best known for his portrayal of police precinct captain Barney Miller in the eponymous TV series, which aired from 1975-1982 (millennials, you can binge it on Amazon Prime), but his prolific six-decade career has included perfomances on stage and in film. Ochoa is an actor and musician who has appeared in the Disney series "Pair of Kings" and the Nickelodeon series "iCarly." They tell us about their intergenerational new film, about a Jewish grandfather and grandson who connect over a school project that reveals the grandfather's little-known story of survival. They also tell us about their real-life frienship: Linden, born Harold Lipshitz in the Bronx in 1931, has become something of a mentor to the 22-year-old Ochoa as he works to break out of the Disney-kid mold and take on serious roles. Ochoa is serious in his study: Linden is the only person he actually calls on the phone. We also drop by a Yiddish for Dogs workshop in New York's Central Park hosted by the Workmen's Circle. Have a question for Unorthodox? Send it to Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869. We’re also looking for stories about Jewish superstition for our Halloween episode. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt! This episode is brought to you by Harry’s. Get your trial shave set at Harrys.com/UNORTHODOX

This week on Unorthodox, we're still recovering from all the Jewish holidays. Our Jewish guest is Benyamin Cohen, host of the weekly podcast "Our Friend from Israel." He's also the guy who manages the official social media feeds for Albert Einstein, which might just be the best job ever. He tells us about tweeting for the late genius, plus his journey into megachurches while writing his 2009 book, “My Jesus Year: A Rabbi’s Son Wanders the Bible Belt in Search of His Own Faith." Our gentile of the week is Wall Street Journal sports columnist Jason Gay, who returns to the show to talk unconventional baseball propositions, Yiddish colloquialisms, and the other Ben Cohen. Join us at our next NYC live show on October 24 at 7:30 p.m. at the Marlene Meyerson JCC! Returning to the show will be New York Times writer Taffy Brodesser-Akner, plus some special surprises. You won't want to miss it Have a question for Unorthodox? Send it to Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869. We’re also looking for stories about Jewish superstitions for our Halloween episode. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt! This episode is also sponsored by One Day University. Get 20% off your ticket to see Mark Oppenheimer's Oct. 14 lecture on religion in America by using the code MARK when you register at OneDayU.com. Additional support for this episode comes from The Branch, a new podcast from Hadassah. Each episode explores how positive relationships between Israeli Jews and Arabs can bring new hope for a truly shared society. Check it out at Hadassah.org/thebranch.

This week on Unorthodox, we're on patrol. We talk to Ruchie Freier, the founder of Ezras Nashim, the first all-female volunteer ambulance in New York City, founded and staffed by Hasidic women in Borough Park, Brooklyn. Ruchie and Ezras Nashim are the subject of the documentary '93Queen', made by filmmaker Paula Eiselt, who also joins us. Ruchie Freier is a New York City Criminal Court judge, and the first Hasidic woman to hold elected office in the US. Paula Eiselt is an independent filmmaker. '93Queen' is her feature film directorial debut. Join us at October 24 at 7:30 p.m. at the Marlene Meyerson JCC! Our special guests are New York Times writer Taffy Brodesser-Akner, RISK! podcast host Kevin Allison, and rapper MC Paul Barman. Get your tickets here!. This episode is sponsored by the 2019 Diller Teen Tikkun Olam Awards. Do you know a Jewish teen making a difference? Nominate them for the $36,000 award at dillerteenawards.org. This episode is sponsored to you by Harry’s. Get your trial shave set at Harrys.com/UNORTHODOX. This episode is sponsored by Belvedere Vodka, certified Kosher by the Orthodox Union and produced in accordance with the legal requirements of Polish Vodka. For more, visit belvederevodka.com. Reimagine End of Life is a weeklong festival to spark dialogue, break down taboos, and bring diverse communities together around the universal topics of life and death. Reimagine End of Life is taking place all over New York City from October 28th to November 3rd. For a full list of events, visit jccmanhattan.org/reimagine.

On Saturday morning, 11 Jews were murdered in a synagogue in Pittsburgh. Like Jews and their friends everywhere, we were heartbroken by this heinous anti-Semitic massacre, the first-ever large-scale attack against Jews on American soil. To grieve with our brothers and sisters in Pittsburgh and hear their stories, We traveled to Squirrel Hill, the city's Jewish enclave, along with a team from Tablet. What we found was a unique and committed Jewish community, where congregations are intertwined and neighbors check in on each other and young adults return to raise their families. A close-knit community, within a larger city, now reeling from the weekend's senseless horror. In this special episode, we bring you the voices we captured, from the French family who fled violence in Paris only to meet it again in Pennsylvania, to the rabbis whose congregations were targeted, to the neighbors and community members who now face the daunting task of mourning the dead and rebuilding all that was destroyed. If you want to share thoughts or stories about Pittsburgh's Jewish community, email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869.  Unorthodox is a smart, fresh, fun weekly take on Jewish news and culture hosted by Mark Oppenheimer, Stephanie Butnick, and Liel Leibovitz and brought to you by Tablet Studios.

This week on Unorthodox, boy are we grateful. We're grateful for our gentile of the week, Shay Khatiri, the Iranian-born political refugee who raised more than $1 million for the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh following the Oct. 27 massacre. He set up a GoFundMe page, which quickly went viral, and the campaign has so far raised $1.2 million, which will go directly into the synagogue's bank account. He also tells us about being blacklisted by the Iranian government after signing a 2016 letter urging President Trump to impose sanctions on the country, disappointing his mother by not becoming a doctor, and the asylum trial that awaits him in order for him to stay in the U.S. And we are triply grateful for our Jewish guest, bestselling author A.J. Jacobs, who returns to the show for the third time! (Don't miss his first and second visits.) He tells us about his new book, Thanks a Thousand: a Gratitude Journey, in which he thanked every single person responsible for his morning cup of coffee—from the barista at his local coffee shop to the coffee farmers in South America. He tells us why gratitude is a deeply Jewish value, and offers advice on how we can all embrace our Mr. Rogers side instead of our Larry David side. We love to hear from you: Send comments and questions for Unorthodox to Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt. This episode is sponsored by: Little Passports, the perfect holiday gift for the curious kid in your life. Each month they’ll get a fun-filled package with hands-on activities and interactive projects designed to spark their curiosity about geography, world cultures or science. Order today at Littlepassports.com/unorthodox. Belvedere Vodka, certified Kosher by the Orthodox Union and produced in accordance with the legal requirements of Polish Vodka. Jewish National Fund, As you plan your year-end giving, go to JNF.org/tablet to take part in fulfilling that vision. Rabbi Eitan Tours, a unique way to experience Israel. Go to rabbieitan.com/unorthodox for a free consultation and itinerary planning. Unorthodox listeners also get $50 off a tour of at least one day with Rabbi Eitan.

This week on Unorthodox, we’ve got a bit of a mish-mash (mish-mosh?) for you. First, a taste of our visit to Cleveland, where we recorded a live episode at the Mandel JCC (and ate a lot of deli). Then, Stephanie sits down with Jewish author Gary Shteyngart, whose new novel Lake Success is about a Manhattan hedge fund manager named Barry Cohen who abandons his wife and son for a Greyhound road trip across America with the backdrop of the 2016 election. In the wake of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, Gary talks about his personal connection to Squirrel Hill, and how HIAS, the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, resettled him and his family when they fled the Soviet Union for America. Plus, he explains why dachshunds are the ultimate Jewish dog. Our gentile of the week is comedian and Risk! podcast host Kevin Allison, recorded live at the Manhattan JCC earlier this month. A member of the 90s sketch comedy troupe The State, Kevin told us about working as a bartender at the Grammys while having a show on MTV (Sarah McLachlan recognized him), plus how he started his storytelling podcast, where notable figures share true stories they never thought they’d dare to share. His question for the panel: Why are so many American Buddhists Jews? We love to hear from you! Send comments and questions for Unorthodox to Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt! Shalom, friends. Sponsors: Little Passports. A subscription to Little Passports is the perfect holiday gift for the curious kid in your life. Each month they’ll get a fun-filled package with hands-on activities and interactive projects designed to spark their curiosity about geography, world cultures or science. Order today at Little Passports. Rabbi Eitan Tours, a unique way to experience Israel. Go to rabbieitan.com/unorthodox for a free consultation and itinerary planning. Unorthodox listeners also get $50 off a tour of at least one day with Rabbi Eitan. The Branch, a new podcast from Hadassah. Each episode explores how positive relationships between Israeli Jews and Arabs can bring new hope for a truly shared society. Check it out at Hadassah.org/thebranch. Harry’s, a great shave at a great price. Get your trial shave set at Harrys.com/UNORTHODOX.

From warding off the evil eye to rules about whistling, Jews are serious about their superstitions. This week on Unorthodox, we hear from listeners about their family customs, talk to Tablet's editor-in-chief Alana Newhouse about the enduring nature of shtetl superstitions, and take a visit to a very lucky spot in Northern Israel. Ptui ptui! We love to hear from you: Send comments and questions for Unorthodox to Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. This episode is sponsored by: Belvedere Vodka, certified kosher by the Orthodox Union, and produced in accordance with the legal requirements of Polish Vodka. Learn more here. Jewish National Fund, making an impact on Israel with a vision that encompasses planting trees, building water reservoirs, helping those with special needs, preserving heritage sites, and transforming the North and South with new housing, job creation, and infrastructure development. As you plan your year-end giving, go to JNF.org/tablet to take part in fulfilling that vision. JChef, the new kosher meal kit. Go to Jchef.com/unorthodox and use coupon code Unorthodox30 to get 30 percent off your first order. Harry's Razors, for a great shave at a great price. Get $5 dollars off a shave set, including the limited-edition holiday sets, when you go to Harrys.com/UNORTHODOX.

This week on Unorthodox, we're getting over our latke hangovers. Our first Jewish guest is New York Times writer Taffy Brodesser-Akner, who has written profiles of celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow, Bradley Cooper, and Melissa McCarthy. She joined us at our recent live show at the Manhattan JCC to talk about how she tries to be a journalist and a mensch, which biblical figure she'd love to profile, and why she enjoys being on Twitter. We also sit down with Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, the former Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth. He tells us about getting to know the royal family (and giving the Queen a menorah), speaking out against British anti-Semitism, and the time he had to meet with Prince Harry after the 20-year-old wore a Nazi uniform on Halloween. But before all that, Liel talks to his friend Scott Harris about the amazing Be A Jewish Star music competition for Jewish youth! shabbat shalom and thanks again. scott S C O T T   H A R R I S We love to hear from you: Send comments and questions for Unorthodox to Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt. This episode is sponsored by JChef, the new kosher meal kit. Go to Jchef.com/unorthodox and use coupon code Unorthodox30 to get 30 percent off your first order. Hear from fascinating people doing interesting work in Israel and Israelis making their mark across the globe–like spice master Lior Sercarz of La Boite NYC, Ambassador Ido Aharoni, and former Miss Israel and Ethiopian Jew Titi Aynaw–on Jewish National Fund’s podcast IsraelCast. Find IsraelCast on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts, or learn more at JNF.org/israelcastpodcast.

Tis the season—for Chinese food and a movie! Our first Jewish guest is Bill Adler, the Def Jam alum who helped Run DMC create their iconic 1987 song "Christmas in Hollis". He tells us how he went from being a music journalist to the second full-time employee at Def Jam in the 1980s; how "Christmas in Hollis," ended up on the soundtrack of films like Die Hard, and how his distaste for cliche holiday music led him to make an annual Christmas playlist for friends and family, and now, you! Listen to Adler's 2018 Christmas Jollies mix here. We also talk to Steven de Souza, the Hollywood screenwriter responsible for films like Commando, Judge Dredd, and, of course, Die Hard. He tells us how Bruce Willis's character was actually originated by Frank Sinatra, the origin of the movie's epic "yippee ki yay" catchphrase, and why Die Hard is even more of a Christmas movie than White Christmas. We're hitting the road in 2019! Come see us January 15 at Washington Hebrew Congregation in Washington, D.C. It's free—register here. We'll be at the Stroum JCC in the Seattle area February 2 for a special live show with Dan Savage, of the Savage Lovecast. Get your tickets here. We love to hear from you: Send comments and questions for Unorthodox to Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt. This episode is sponsored by Harry's. Get $5 off any shave set–including the limited-edition holiday sets–when you go to Harrys.com/UNORTHODOX. This episode is sponsored by JChef, the new kosher meal kit. Go to Jchef.com/unorthodox and use coupon code Unorthodox30 to get 30 percent off your first order.

On the brink of the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, Yohanan ben Zakkai made an astonishing decision.  When faced with an opportunity to ask for anything from the new Roman emperor, Vespasian, rather than choosing to ask him to spare the Temple, Yochanan asked only for permission to start a school and preserve Jewish teachings in Yavneh, south of modern day Tel Aviv.  Rabbi Marc Katz argues that this decision underscores how the Rabbis were the ultimate pragmatists in his new book Yochanan’s Gam­ble: Judais­m’s Prag­mat­ic Approach to Life. Is Katz right, and how should we consider pragmatism through a modern perspective?

This week on Unorthodox, we're really, really sorry. We're marking the Days of Awe between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur with our annual apology show. We're joined again this year by Tablet contributor Marjorie Ingall, who runs the website SorryWatch, which analyzes apologies in the news. She goes over the best and worst public apologies of 5778, and offers tips for how to make a meaningful apology. Storyteller Hal Karp tells of how, during a particularly dark period of his life, he goaded his brother into a fight that got him arrested—and how he ultimately repaired that relationship years later. Plus, our producer Noah Levinson catches up with Yonkers resident Quai Stewart, who gained Internet notoriety after his video mocking a young Hasidic boy’s haircut went viral—and whose subsequent apology video won him fans in the Jewish community. And finally, Sarah Lefton from BimBam.com joins us with a little lesson about Tzom Gedaliah. Want more Yom Kippur inspiration? You can listen to our previous apology episodes. In honor of the Jewish new year, we're giving away 10 beautiful mezuzahs from Apeloig Collection, a line of sleek and modern Judaica founded by sisters Daniela and Gabriela Apeloig. Join our Facebook group and look out for a prompt to enter. We love hearing from you! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com with memories from your favorite episodes or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air. Want more Unorthodox in your life? Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, and our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind the scenes! Show your love for Unorthodox with our T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours here. This episode is brought to you by Harry’s. Get your trial shave set at Harrys.com/UNORTHODOX. Additional support comes from The Branch, a new podcast from Hadassah. Each episode explores how positive relationships between Israeli Jews and Arabs can bring new hope for a truly shared society. Check it out at Hadassah.org/thebranch.

This week on Unorthodox, we're celebrating the Jewish harvest festival of Sukkot! Farmers and Etrogs and more! Who says Jews don't farm? Stephanie Butnick reports from Petaluma, CA, where activist Jews fleeing Eastern Europe in the early 1900s settled and became chicken ranchers. The politically-minded chicken-farming Jews of Petaluma even got a visit from Golda Meir! What's Sukkot all about anyway? And what's with the lulav and etrog? Liel Leibovitz and producer Josh Kross head to West Side Judaica to check out their etrog selection and chat with customers looking to stock up before Sukkot. Where exactly do those etrogs come from? We sent our assistant editor Sophie Steinert-Evoy to Lindcove Ranch in Exeter, CA, to visit the country's only commercial etrog farm. It's run by two generations of the Kirkpatrick family, who aren't Jewish but know way more about etrogs than most Jews. And finally, we have a visit with our favorite Minnesotan sugar beet farmer, Nick Hagen, and we find out how his produce winds up our tables and at Russ and Daughters. And Have a question for Unorthodox? Send it to Unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869. We’re also looking for stories about Jewish superstition for our Halloween episode. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Show your love for Unorthodox with our new T-shirts, sweatshirts, and baby onesies. Get yours at bit.ly/unorthoshirt! This episode is sponsored by One Day University. Get 20% off your ticket to see Mark Oppenheimer's Oct. 14 lecture on religion in America by using the code MARK when you register at OneDayU.com. Additional support comes from The Branch, a new podcast from Hadassah. Each episode explores how positive relationships between Israeli Jews and Arabs can bring new hope for a truly shared society. Check it out at Hadassah.org/thebranch.

Heya, J-Crew! It's us, your favorite chatty Jews. We know, it's not Thursday, and the next episode of Unorthodox doesn't drop for a bit (although, let us tell you, it's going to be a beauty). But we're here today to break a very special bit of news: We've got a brand new podcast! It's called Hebrew School, and it's the perfect game show for kids who want to learn a bit about Judaism and have some fun doing it. Adults will love it too, we promise.  Hosted by Stephanie and Liel, and featuring real kids as contestants, the show is a weekly, 20-minute session of the best—and wildest—Hebrew school you have ever attended. Want to hop in a time machine and eavesdrop on key moments in Jewish history? Wonder how to say "app" or "chat" in Hebrew? Think you can tell which quote comes from the Bible and which is a Taylor Swift lyric? This, friends, is the perfect game for you. Think you can beat the experts? Then listen and play along at home. Want to be on the show, and are between the ages of 7 and 12? Email us at hebrewschool@tabletmag.com.  And, as ever, please please please subscribe and rate us on iTunes.

This week on the show, we’re reporting from Columbia University, where in recent days anti-Israel protesters have set up an encampment and occupied an administrative building. You can read Tablet’s long-running coverage of the escalating situation on American college campuses here, and Liel’s 2019 article “Get Out” here. Liel and Tablet editor-in-chief Alana Newhouse speak with New York City Mayor Eric Adams about the protests, the NYPD response, and more. Stephanie heads to Columbia to see what’s happening on campus and talk to students. Plus, we’re sharing a recent Tablet conversation, moderated by Liel, between professors Shai Davidai of Columbia and Ron Hassner of Berkeley about their efforts to combat antisemitism on their campuses.  Learn more about becoming a Tablet Member at tabletm.ag/uomember.  Write to us at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave a voicemail on our listener line: (914) 570-4869.  Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Check out all of our podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts.

Today we’re sharing a special weekly edition of Kylie Unell’s podcast miniseries, 49 Days to Stretch My Soul. Kylie is putting her own spin on the Jewish tradition of counting the Omer—the 49 days between Passover and Shavuot—with a daily practice that includes everything from exploring the lyrics of Steven Sondheim, interviewing a ballet dancer, immersing herself in nature, and more. This second week is all about Gevurah, or discipline and restraint.

Today we are sharing a special weekly edition of Kylie Unell’s podcast miniseries, 49 Days to Stretch My Soul. Kylie is putting her own spin on the Jewish tradition of counting the Omer—the 49 days between Passover and Shavuot—with a daily practice that includes everything from exploring the lyrics of Steven Sondheim, interviewing a ballet dancer, immersing herself in nature, and more. This sixth week is all about connection and foundation. 

This week, a mini-holiday mashup. First, associate producer Robert Scaramuccia brings us the story of Aaron Hartman, a Jewish man from Atlanta, GA with Williams Syndrome, and his very unique pandemic birthday present. We also bring you a Hanukkah gift guide that includes products our listeners make themselves! Find these suggestions and more by joining our Facebook group. Join the hosts Wednesday, Dec. 2 at 7 p.m. E.S.T. for the Museum of Jewish Heritage’s Generation to Generation event, which is honoring the Butnick family. Stephanie will be interviewing Michael Zegen from The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and the band Golem will be performing. Register at bit.ly/butnickfam. Celebrate the first night of Hanukkah with Stephanie, Mayim Bialik, and G.L.O.W. star Jackie Tohn at NuRoots’ “First Night” event, Thursday, Dec. 10 at 7 p.m. P.S.T. Register at  nuroots.org/firstnight. Let us know what you think of the show! Send us comments and questions at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave us a voicemail at (914) 570-4869. You can also record a voice memo on your smartphone and email it to us. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Get a behind-the-scenes look at our recording sessions on our YouTube channel! Follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram. Get your Unorthodox T-shirts, mugs, and baby onesies at bit.ly/unorthoshirt. Shalom, friends

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.

Unorthodox is off this week, so instead we're introducing you to Take One, the new Daf Yomi podcast from Tablet Magazine hosted by our own Liel Leibovitz. As Jews around the world begin a new seven-and-a-half year cycle of Daf Yomi, reading the entire Talmud one page per day, Tablet Magazine's new podcast, Take One, will offer a brief and evocative daily read of the daf. We launch the cycle with a brief introduction to the Talmud at large before diving into the text with Tractate Berakhot, page 2, and a meditation on the meaning of time, why you might want to think twice before you Netflix and chill, and how all these rabbinic strictures can help us make sense of our modern, messy lives.

Stacy Keach joins Liel to discuss his upcoming presentation of the play "Vienna," created by Stacy Keach Zoom Theater (SKZ). The show begins airing on YouTube on Sunday, November 28, and will be available through Wednesday, December 1. Admission is free. Donations are welcome to benefit The Actors Fund of America. To access the production, visit stacykeachzoomtheater.com.

Lisa Edelstein has always been a woman of many hats, from 80’s “It” girl, to acting in shows like House, and painting.  She joins us to talk about her latest exhibition, “Dance Me to the End of the World,” and how the paintings are so …. Jewish. We also talk about how her Judaism has affected the rest of her career, and how 10/7 impacted her work and relationships.  Hosted by Courtney Hazlett, Rabbi Diana Fersko, and Josh Kross, each episode of How to Be a Jew takes a look at a current, cultural topic and what it means for us as Jews, and how we react to it because we are Jews. Want to send us an email? Send it off to podcasts@tabletmag.com For more podcasts, visit tabletmag.com/podcasts

This week on Unorthodox: Broad City skewers Birthright. Our Jewish guest is literary agent and author Betsy Lerner, whose latest book, The Bridge Ladies, tells the story of the women in her mother’s bridge group, which has been meeting weekly for 50 years. Our Gentile of the Week is CNN political reporter Nia-Malika Henderson, who covers the 2016 election with a special focus on identity politics, exploring the dynamics of demographics, race and religion.  We love to hear from you! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com. Sign up for our weekly newsletter at http://bit.ly/UnorthodoxPodcast. Come see us live at the American Hebrew Academy in Greensboro, North Carolina, on May 16. This episode of Unorthodox is brought to you by Harry’s. Stop overpaying for a great shave. Go to Harrys.com and enter the code UNORTHODOX at checkout for $5 off your first order.

Today on Jewish Studies Unscrolled, we explore the history and evolution of “Rozhinkes mit Mandlen” (Raisins and Almonds), the iconic Yiddish lullaby written by Avrom Goldfaden for his 1880 operetta Shulamis. Our guest, Pulitzer Prize finalist Alex Weiser, Director of Public Programs at the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, joins us to discuss the song’s transformation from its original folk origins in the rendition, “Unter dem Kinds Vigele” (Under the Child’s Cradle), to a theatrical centerpiece, as well as its lasting influence on Jewish music. Beginning with a field recording by the folklorist Ruth Rubin, we discuss how this simple lullaby inspired classical compositions by Lazare Saminsky, Joseph Achron, Stefan Wolpe, and Judith Shatin.

It’s been a week of fast-paced breaking news, from a bit of Hamas propaganda winning the Academy Award for best documentary to President Trump and Vice President Vance presiding over a heated meeting with Ukrainian President Zelensky in the White House. Journalist and podcaster Eli Lake joins Liel to discuss what Trump gets wrong about Ukraine, what he gets right about Israel, and what Israel’s options may be as its ceasefire with Hamas draws to an end. 

This week on Unorthodox: Tel Aviv, so hot right now. Our Jewish guest is writer Jillian Keenan, whose first book, Sex with Shakespeare, explores her dual passions for the Bard and BDSM. She tells us why she identifies with Caliban from The Tempest, and who she thinks is the most underrated Shakespeare character. Our Gentile of the Week is Jeff Yang, editor and publisher of aMagazine, an Asian American periodical, whose son, Hudson Yang, stars on ABC’sFresh Off the Boat. He tells us about his enduring love for comic books, and what it’s like having his 12-year-old son star on a sitcom. This episode of Unorthodox is brought to you by Harry’s. Stop overpaying for a great shave. Go to Harrys.com and enter the code UNORTHODOX at checkout for $5 off your first order. We love to hear from you! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com. Sign up for our weekly newsletter at http://bit.ly/UnorthodoxPodcast.

Last Saturday, ICE agents detained Mahmoud Khalil, a Syrian-born Palestinian who was one of the leaders behind the year-long Tentifadah in Columbia University. Khalil and his group have repeatedly expressed their support for Hamas and other terrorist organizations, a violation of U.S. immigration law. Ilya Shapiro, senior fellow and director of constitutional studies at the Manhattan Institute, joins Liel to explain why the act is completely legal, and why we shouldn’t fall for the bad faith argument that Khalil’s arrest is a free speech issue. 

Jennifer Sey was a national gymnastics champion who then won awards for exposing the abuse many female gymnasts suffered at the hands of their male coaches. She was also a celebrated executive with fashion giant Levi Strauss before being canceled for speaking her mind. Now, she’s the founder and CEO of XX-XY Athletics, a new brand committed to protecting women in sports from males unduly entering their spaces. She joins Liel to share how she ended up behind the president’s desk at the signing of a recent executive order, what it was like to have J.K. Rowling endorse her ad, and why Nike and every other big brand in sports is now copying her message. 

Host Mark Oppenheimer and Tablet staffers Stephanie Butnick and Liel Leibovitz discuss this year’s European Maccabiah Games—a Jewish Olympics of sorts—which are being held this week in Berlin at the stadium Hitler built for the 1936 Olympics. They also sound off on Mike Huckabee’s ill-advised Holocaust analogy, and an investigation into academic rigor at New York City’s Orthodox yeshivas.  Celebrity ghostwriter Hilary Liftin discusses her new novel, Movie Star By Lizzie Pepper, a tell-all written by a fictional Hollywood starlet swept away by an older Hollywood heartthrob involved in a strange cult. She doesn’t name names. Unorthodox’s gentile of the week is Simon Doonan--Barneys’ creative ambassador, writer, and man-about-town. He describes his lifelong affinity for the Jewish people, his Jewish wedding to celebrity ceramicist Jonathan Adler, and schools the hosts with his Yiddishisms. For more about Simon Doonan, check out his website http://www.simondoonan.com/. Hilary Liftin’s novel Movie Star By Lizzie Pepper is available here http://hilaryliftin.com/. Learn more about Unorthodox at www.tabletmag.com/tag/unorthodox, and sign up for our weekly newsletter at http://eepurl.com/bsZlGr. Let us know what you think of the podcast by emailing Unorthodox@tabletmag.com.

On today’s Unorthodox dispatch, Liel prepares for a much-needed Shabbat with a joke by Columbia University professor Jeremy Dauber, an expert on Jewish humor, as well as a couple songs by Avi Wisnia, and a few timely words of wisdom from this week's parsha. Avi Wisnia is an award-winning singer, songwriter, storyteller and educator based in Philadelphia. For more information visit www.aviwisnia.com or find him on social media @aviwisnia You can also stream and download all music at aviwisnia.bandcamp.com If you want to keep these minisodes going, we’d love for you to rate Unorthodox on iTunes and set up a recurring donation—we suggest $5/month, which is to say one fancy coffee a month—at tabletmag.com/donate And, as always, if you want to keep up with all things Unorthodox, join our Facebook group here! Shalom, friends. Stay well.

Producer Josh Kross goes deep into the Facebook group to make another Havdalah service to bring a little light into your Saturday night social distancing. If you want to keep these minisodes going, we’d love for you to rate Unorthodox on iTunes and set up a recurring donation—we suggest $5/month, which is to say one fancy coffee a month—at tabletmag.com/donate And, as always, if you want to keep up with all things Unorthodox, join our Facebook group here! Shalom, friends. Stay well.

This week on Unorthodox, we’re sharing stories from Israel. We’ll hear firsthand from those who have faced unspeakable tragedy, and acted with incredible bravery since the terror attack on Oct. 7. You’ll hear from someone who escaped the NOVA music festival, friends donating supplies in Tel Aviv, and a report from the missing persons center near Ben Gurion Airport, where Israelis are coming in droves to look for information about their loved ones.  This episode features a rendition of “Avinu Malkeinu” performed by Regina Spektor, and “Eli, Eli” sung by from Jenny Penkin and J.Lamotta. Listen to the Testimonies Archive for more eyewitness audio accounts from the Hamas massacre in Israel, and read Tablet’s coverage of the war here. Reach us at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave a voicemail at our listener line: (914) 570-4869.  Check out our Unorthodox tees, mugs, and hoodies at tabletstudios.com.  Find out about our upcoming events at tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive. To book us for a live show or event, email Tanya Singer at tsinger@tabletmag.com. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram.  Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Check out all of our podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts.

In this bonus episode, Mark chats with his only Facebook friend supporting Donald Trump: Bob Barnes, a Yale classmate he hasn't seen in 22 years. Barnes, a lawyer and self-described populist who hasn't voted in a presidential election since 1992, put $125,000 on a Trump win at 4 to 1 odds in London. Now a half million dollars richer, he talks to Mark about why he supports the President-Elect, how he saw this result coming, and what the left needs to do to win back the middle. Like listening to Unorthodox? Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes and more. Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com with comments, questions, and kvetches. We may share your letter on air. Shalom, friends. 

On this week's episode: America’s most badass Supreme Court Justice and TV’s most visible rabbi. Our Jewish guest is MSNBC reporter Irin Carmon, whose new book, Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, is a smart, entertaining biography of the Supreme Court justice. She tells us about RBG’s recent turn as a feminist pop culture icon, her important role on the Supreme Court today, and the octogenarian’s impressive workout routine. Our non-Jewish guest is actress Kathryn Hahn, who tells us what it’s like to regularly play Jewish characters (see: Transparent, Afternoon Delight, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days). She explains how she prepared for her latest role as Rabbi Raquel Fein on Jill Soloway’s Amazon hit Transparent, which returns Friday for Season 2. She asks the panel about Judaism’s earliest female rabbis. Our next episode will be a live taping on Dec. 15 at 7 p.m. at the Washington DC JCC, in Washington, D.C. You can buy tickets at http://thejdc.convio.net/site/Calendar?id=151257&view=Detail. To buy Notorious RBG, go to http://notoriousrbg.tumblr.com/book. For more Transparent, check out amazon.com/transparent. We love to hear from you! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com. Sign up for our weekly newsletter at http://bit.ly/UnorthodoxPodcast. 

This week on Unorthodox, we’re continuing our journey through the Hebrew month of Elul up to the High Holidays by focusing on music. Rabbi Josh Warshawsky returns to the show to walk us through the melodies of the High Holidays, plus he shares his new version of Hineni.  Then, we’re re-airing a segment with Ladino singer Sarah Aroeste, who shares her musical tribute to the lost Sephardic community of Monastir.  We’re also bringing you our latest installment of The Archive, our series exploring the collections of the National Library of Israel. This week, we dive into the library’s music collection and sound archive.  We love to hear from you! Send us emails at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave a voicemail at our listener line: (914) 570-4869.  Check out our Unorthodox tees, mugs, and hoodies at tabletstudios.com.  Find out about our upcoming events at tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive. To book us for a live show or event, email Tanya Singer at tsinger@tabletmag.com. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram.  Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Check out all of our podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts. SPONSORS:  Hadassah is hosting “Inspire Zionism: Tech, Trailblazers and Tattoos,” a two-day online event featuring panels with inspiring Zionist women, hosted by our own Stephanie Butnick. To join the conversation October 25 and 26, register at go.hadassah.org/inspire.  Cutting Edge Foods is a family business that has been producing premium kosher meats for over four decades. Get 10% off your order at cuttingedgefoods.com with the code UNORTHODOX.  NLI, the National Library of Israel, proudly supports our series The Archive. Discover the treasures, collections, and stories of the National Library of Israel here.

This week on Unorthodox, we’re chowing down.  Cookbook author and chef Jake Cohen returns to the show to tell us about his new cookbook, I Could Nosh: Classic Jew-ish Recipes Revamped for Every Day. He also shares some recipes for your Rosh Hashanah table.  Producer Quinn Waller brings us along to Lee Lee’s Baked Goods in Harlem to talk to Alvin Lee Smalls, the man behind some of the best rugelach in New York City.  Tablet writer Maggie Phillips returns to the show to visit PLNT Burger and chat with co-founders Seth Goldman and Julie Farkas about the surprising Jewish ethos behind the business and their work to make burgers available to people of all faiths.  We’re also taking a trip Across the JEW.S.A to the thriving Orthodox community in the Catskills. Across the JEW.S.A. is created with the support of the Jewish Federations of North America. You can catch up on the rest of our travels across the JEW.S.A. at tabletmag.com/jewsa. We love to hear from you! Send us emails at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave a voicemail at our listener line: (914) 570-4869.  Check out our Unorthodox tees, mugs, and hoodies at tabletstudios.com.  Find out about our upcoming events at tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive. To book us for a live show or event, email Tanya Singer at tsinger@tabletmag.com. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram.  Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Check out all of our podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts. SPONSORS:  Hadassah is hosting “Inspire Zionism: Tech, Trailblazers and Tattoos,” a two-day online event featuring panels with inspiring Zionist women, hosted by our own Stephanie Butnick. To join the conversation October 25 and 26, register at go.hadassah.org/inspire.  MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger is fighting hunger among people of all faiths and backgrounds in the United States and Israel. Visit mazon.org/unorthodox to join their fight to end hunger: Right now your donation will be doubled, up to $100,000!

This week on Unorthodox: Kappa connections, ruff times for dogs in Iran, and a new original song from our in-house Jewbadour Jim Knable. Our Jewish guest is Rebecca Schiff, whose debut short story collection, The Bed Moved, was published in April .  She reads us one of the stories, and tells us what her mom thinks of the sex and pot references in the book, and why she’s attracted to Jewish guys. Our Gentile of the Week is Mo Rocca, NPR ‘Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me’ regular. The former Daily Show fixture and VH1 commentator (he Loves the 80s) tells us about the time he judged a Trump-owned Miss U.S.A. pageant, his hamantaschen-baking habit, and what gentiles say when the Jews leave the room. If you like listening to us each week, consider making a contribution to keep Unorthodox going until 120. All sorts of on-air goodies await those who donate at tabletmag.com/donate.  We love to hear from you! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com. Sign up for our weekly newsletter at http://bit.ly/UnorthodoxPodcast.

This week's episode was recorded at the Manhattan JCC. Our Jewish guest is comedian and actor Judy Gold, host of the podcast Kill Me Now. Our gentile of the week is Father James Martin, Jesuit priest and editor at large of America magazine. Missed the live show? Join us Tuesday, Jan. 30 at 7 p.m. for an intimate, off-the-record chat with Rabbi Sara Luria at Beloved in Brooklyn. Tickets here. Want more Unorthodox in your life? Join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Follow us on Twitter: @tabletmag, @liel, and @stuffism. You can also hear Stephanie discussing immigration and the American Dream under Trump on the Jan 29 episode of WNYC Midday, with two-time Unorthodox guest Negin Farsad. We love hearing from our listeners. Email us at unorthodox@tabletmag.com or leave a message at our new listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air.

Ben M. Freeman’s previous two books, 2021’s Jewish Pride: Rebuilding a People and 2022’s Reclaiming Our Story: The Pursuit of Jewish Pride were powerful arguments for rejecting Jew-hate, both internal and external. His latest book, The Jews: An Indigenous People, coming out Feb. 27, is the first scholarly book to tackle the topic of the Jewish people’s indigenous ties to the land of Israel. We discuss the defining characteristics of what it means to BE a Jew, and how that relates to us in the modern, post-October 7th world.  Hosted by Courtney Hazlett, Rabbi Diana Fersko, and Josh Kross, each episode of How to Be a Jew takes a look at a current, cultural topic and what it means for us as Jews, and how we react to it because we are Jews. Want to send us an email? Send it off to podcasts@tabletmag.com For more podcasts, visit tabletmag.com/podcasts

Hey JCrew, we've got something extra we want to share with you. The Franchise is a new, eight-part series exploring how contemporary American Jewish culture imprinted itself onto sports and how sports imprinted itself onto Jewish traditions. Hosted by Meredith Shiner and produced by the team behind Unorthodox, the No. 1 Jewish podcast, The Franchise highlights the moments and the people—athletes, fans, stat geeks, journalists, and team owners—who are writing this uniquely, American Jewish story. The series begins in 1965 with Sandy Koufax, and traces the arc of American Jews and sports since then: from probing the so-called Koufax curse that befalls Jewish athletes who play on Yom Kippur to reevaluating the "Jewish Jordan" phenomenon and wondering why Jews love teams that always seem to lose, and much more. The Franchise premiers on Wednesday, Oct. 12. Subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

On this episode of Re-Form: Examining the Challenges and Choices of America’s Largest Jewish Movement, we look at the Reform movement’s focus on Social Justice, and how the emphasis on it can impact Jewish practice. We spoke with Rabbi Sari Laufer, Chief Engagement Officer at Stephen Wise Temple in Los Angeles and a veteran of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism. 

This week on Unorthodox: Name-calling at a basketball game between a Catholic high school and a heavily Jewish public school in a Boston suburb takes a weirdly dark turn. Our Jewish guest is Jessamyn Hope, whose debut novel, Safekeeping, tells the intertwined stories of several strangers who find their way to a kibbutz in the summer of 1994, and was partly inspired by her own brief stay on a kibbutz. Our other Jewish guest (we are short a Gentile of the Week–forgive us!) is legal scholar Lawrence Douglas, whose latest book, The Right Wrong Man: John Demjanjuk and the Last Great Nazi War Crimes Trial, chronicles the dramatic effort to try the former Nazi known as Ivan the Terrible. We love to hear from you! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com. Sign up for our weekly newsletter at http://bit.ly/UnorthodoxPodcast.

This week on Unorthodox: Bar Refaeli baby watch begins, and Mel Gibson returns (shudder). Our Jewish guest is painter Archie Rand, whose new book, The 613, is the culmination of his most ambitious project yet: painting visual representations of each of Judaism’s 613 mitzvot, or commandments. Our Gentile of the Week is Catherine Burns, the longtime artistic director of the hit storytelling series The Moth. Her question to the panel is about Jewish burial traditions, and, characteristically, takes the form of a story. We love to hear from you! Email us at Unorthodox@tabletmag.com. Sign up for our weekly newsletter at http://bit.ly/UnorthodoxPodcast.

When people concerned with the future of the Palestinian people talk about the future, they often say, hopefully, that change will come only once we can replace Hamas and other terror groups with entrepreneurial technocrats more interested in building projects than in starting wars. They’re talking, in short, about men like Bashar Masri, a Palestinian-American mogul who developed some of the best known and most lucrative real estate projects in Gaza, including luxury hotels and thriving industrial zones. But as a new bombshell lawsuit argues, Masri’s properties were all used as launching pads for Hamas attacks, including on October 7, 2023, and Masri himself knowingly collaborated with individuals closely tied to the terror group. Gary Osen, one of the attorneys representing October 7 victims in the lawsuit, joins Liel to talk about how Hamas’s terror infrastructure dominates everything in Gaza, and about how the UN and other international aid groups gave millions to support projects that did little more than give terrorists better cover.

Jewish Studies Unscrolled features host Alyssa Quint in conversation with expert guests and historians. Each episode focuses on  a single classic Jewish text and covers topics ranging from a 17th-century hostage crisis, to modern classical interpretations of a  Yiddish lullaby.  

This week on Unorthodox, you’re totally invited to our bat mitzvah.  First we talk to Amanda Stern—aka Fiona Rosenbloom—the author of the young adult novel You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah, which the new Netflix film is based on. She shares (pre-strike!) what it was like to have her novel adapted into an Adam Sandler movie and gives us an update on what she’s working on now.  Then director Guy Nattiv joins us to discuss Golda, his new film about former Israeli prime minister Golda Meir. He tells us about the experience of making a film about one of Israel’s most iconic figures, working with Helen Mirren, and more. We love to hear from you! Send us emails at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave a voicemail at our listener line: (914) 570-4869.  Check out our Unorthodox tees, mugs, and hoodies at tabletstudios.com.  Find out about our upcoming events at tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive. To book us for a live show or event, email Tanya Singer at tsinger@tabletmag.com. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram.  Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Check out all of our podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts. SPONSORS: Hadassah is hosting “Inspire Zionism: Tech, Trailblazers and Tattoos,” a two-day online event featuring panels with inspiring Zionist women, hosted by our own Stephanie Butnick. To join the conversation October 25 and 26, register at go.hadassah.org/inspire.  This High Holiday season, help HIAS provide vital services to refugees in more than 20 countries around the world. All donations through September 22 will be matched, doubling your impact. You can learn more at hias.org/unorthodox. American Jewish University (AJU) invites you to join them for their Fall semester of online learning. To learn more and register, visit aju.edu/open and use code unorthodox for a 10% discount.

This week on Unorthodox, we’re going down the rabbit hole.  Our Jew of the Week is Hen Mazzig, who joined us to talk about fighting antisemitism online, as well as his new book, The Wrong Kind of Jew: a Mizrahi Manifesto. Our Gentile of the Week is Gabriel Said Reynolds, who teaches theology at Notre Dame and runs a popular YouTube channel called Exploring the Quran and the Bible.  We love to hear from you! Send us emails and voice memos at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave a voicemail at our listener line: (914) 570-4869. Remember to tell us who you are and where you’re calling from.  Merch alert! Check out our new Unorthodox tees, mugs, and hoodies at tabletstudios.com.  We’re back on the road! Find out about our upcoming events at tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive. To book us for a live show or event, email Tanya Singer at tsinger@tabletmag.com. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram. Get a behind-the-scenes look at our recording sessions on our YouTube channel. Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Check out all of our podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts. SPONSOR: The Sassoons, now on view at the Jewish Museum, reveals the fascinating story of a remarkable Jewish family. Explore a rich selection of artwork collected by family members over time, including portraits by John Singer Sargent, illuminated manuscripts, and rare Judaica. Learn more at thejewishmuseum.org.  storymark is a podcast about leaders and the moments that make them. Each guest is leaving a unique mark on their industry and the world - and all are anchored by a connection to Israel. Learn more at storymarkpodcast.org.

This week on Unorthodox, are the Muppets Jewish?  Our Jew of the Week is Ruth Markel, whose son, Dan Markel, was murdered in 2014 (the case is featured on the first season of the podcast Over My Dead Body). She joined us to discuss the book she’s written about dealing with the trauma of losing a son to murder, as well as becoming an activist against grandparent alienation.  Our Gentile of the Week is comedian Zarna Garg, who tells us how her experience as an Indian immigrant influences her comedy, as well as the role of funny Jewish moms in her comedy journey.  Her question for the hosts is a spicy one: how do Jewish parents feel about their kids dating outside the religion?  We love to hear from you! Send us emails and voice memos at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave a voicemail at our listener line: (914) 570-4869. Remember to tell us who you are and where you’re calling from.  Merch alert! Check out our new Unorthodox tees, mugs, and hoodies at tabletstudios.com.  We’re back on the road! Find out about our upcoming events at tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive. To book us for a live show or event, email Tanya Singer at tsinger@tabletmag.com. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram. Get a behind-the-scenes look at our recording sessions on our YouTube channel. Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Check out all of our podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts. SPONSOR: The Sassoons, now on view at the Jewish Museum, reveals the fascinating story of a remarkable Jewish family. Explore a rich selection of artwork collected by family members over time, including portraits by John Singer Sargent, illuminated manuscripts, and rare Judaica. Learn more at thejewishmuseum.org. 

This week on Unorthodox, we’re investigating Faux-hanim. Our first guest is Chanie Apfelbaum, creator of the popular kosher food blog Busy in Brooklyn. She joined us to talk about her new cookbook, Totally Kosher, and share fun ways to incorporate all sorts of cuisines into your kosher cooking.  Next we celebrate Opening Day with a chat with Zack Hample, a baseball fanatic who has caught more than 12,000 baseballs at Major League stadiums.  Plus, some big news from the Corduroy Rav. (You can subscribe to Mark’s newsletter here.)  We love to hear from you! Send us emails and voice memos at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave a voicemail at our listener line: (914) 570-4869. Remember to tell us who you are and where you’re calling from.  Merch alert! Check out our new Unorthodox tees, mugs, and hoodies at tabletstudios.com.  We’re back on the road! Find out about our upcoming events at tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive. To book us for a live show or event, email Tanya Singer at tsinger@tabletmag.com. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram. Get a behind-the-scenes look at our recording sessions on our YouTube channel. Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Check out all of our podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts. SPONSOR: storymark is a podcast about leaders and the moments that make them. Each guest is leaving a unique mark on their industry and the world—and all are anchored by a connection to Israel. Learn more at storymarkpodcast.org.

This week on Unorthodox, we’re revisiting our 2020 Passover episode, in which we served up everything you need to know to pull off a meaningful and memorable Seder. The episode was created to address the fact that many people were suddenly hosting a Passover Seder for the very first time, under challenging and confounding circumstances, but we think there’s still a lot to be gained from going back to the basics. We walk you through the steps of the Seder, with special guests, perfect-for-Passover music, 10 Plagues cocktails, and more. Our guide is Tablet’s own “Passover Haggadah: An Ancient Story for Modern Times.”  We love to hear from you! Send us emails and voice memos at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave a voicemail at our listener line: (914) 570-4869. Remember to tell us who you are and where you’re calling from.  Merch alert! Check out our new Unorthodox tees, mugs, and hoodies at tabletstudios.com.  We’re back on the road! Find out about our upcoming events at tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive. To book us for a live show or event, email Tanya Singer at tsinger@tabletmag.com. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram. Get a behind-the-scenes look at our recording sessions on our YouTube channel. Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Check out all of our podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts. SPONSOR:  Join Hadassah for "Israel at 75: Successes and Challenges," a free Zoom event on May 18 featuring Yossi Klein Halevi, Isabel Kershner, and Hen Mazzig. Register at events.hadassah.org/75.

This week on Unorthodox, are green eggs and ham kosher?  Our Jew of the Week is audio producer and podcast guru Arielle Nissenblatt, who joins us to talk about all things audio and gives us some podcast recommendations.  Our Gentile of the Week is Andrea Wakefield, co-owner of the Italian restaurant Mrs. Robino’s in Wilmington, Delaware (and Liel’s favorite restaurant on the planet). She joined us at our live show in Wilmington and tells us all about the restaurant and her family’s story. We’re also bringing you the first installment in a new series called The Archive, in which we explore the collection of the National Library of Israel. We kick things off with a look at Sir Isaac Newton’s Hebrew-inflected writings on … the end of days.  We love to hear from you! Send us emails and voice memos at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave a voicemail at our listener line: (914) 570-4869. Remember to tell us who you are and where you’re calling from.  Merch alert! Check out our new Unorthodox tees, mugs, and hoodies at tabletstudios.com.  We’re back on the road! Find out about our upcoming events at tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive. To book us for a live show or event, email Tanya Singer at tsinger@tabletmag.com. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram. Get a behind-the-scenes look at our recording sessions on our YouTube channel. Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Check out all of our podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts. SPONSORS:  Join The 92nd Street Y, New York for a series of conversations and celebrations with some of today’s leading Israeli thinkers and artists as part of their 150th anniversary series, “Israel at 75,” starting April 16. Tickets at 92ny.org. Join Hadassah for “Israel at 75: Successes and Challenges,” a free Zoom event on May 18 featuring Yossi Klein Halevi, Isabel Kershner, and Hen Mazzig. Register at events.hadassah.org/75. storymark is a podcast about leaders and the moments that make them. Each guest is leaving a unique mark on their industry and the world—and all are anchored by a connection to Israel. Learn more at storymarkpodcast.org.

This week on Unorthodox, we're discussing the protests in Israel and the larger context in which they are occuring.  Our Jewish guest this week is the writer Jonathan Rosen. He joined us to talk about his new book, The Best Minds: A Story of Friendship, Madness, and the Tragedy of Good Intentions.  We’re also bringing you a dispatch from Armenia. Liel traveled to Yerevan to learn about Birthright Armenia, and how it could teach Israelis and American Jews a lesson or two.  Check out Zionism: The Tablet Guide, a new book edited by Liel Leibovitz and Tablet Magazine. Unorthodox listeners are invited to an exclusive Zoom webinar with Liel where he will discuss the history of Zionism and answer your questions, free with purchase of a copy of the book. Register at tabletm.ag/listenerzoom.  We love to hear from you! Send us emails and voice memos at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave a voicemail at our listener line: (914) 570-4869. Remember to tell us who you are and where you’re calling from.  Merch alert! Check out our new Unorthodox tees, mugs, and hoodies at tabletstudios.com.  We’re back on the road! Find out about our upcoming events at tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive. To book us for a live show or event, email Tanya Singer at tsinger@tabletmag.com. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram. Get a behind-the-scenes look at our recording sessions on our YouTube channel. Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Check out all of our podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts. SPONSORS:  Join The 92nd Street Y, New York for a series of conversations and celebrations with some of today’s leading Israeli thinkers and artists as part of their 150th anniversary series, “Israel at 75,” starting April 16. Tickets at 92ny.org. Join Hadassah for “Israel at 75: Successes and Challenges,” a free Zoom event on May 18 featuring Yossi Klein Halevi, Isabel Kershner, and Hen Mazzig. Register at events.hadassah.org/75.

After 360 episodes, we’re bidding adieu to our founding host, Mark Oppenheimer. We have good wishes from a famous friend, memories from listeners and Tablet staff, poignant interviews, and a final trip to Friendly’s.  To keep up with Oppenheimer happenings, you can subscribe to Mark’s newsletter at markoppenhiemer.substack.com.  We love to hear from you! Send us emails and voice memos at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave a voicemail at our listener line: (914) 570-4869. Remember to tell us who you are and where you’re calling from.  Merch alert! Check out our new Unorthodox tees, mugs, and hoodies at tabletstudios.com.  We’re back on the road! Find out about our upcoming events at tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive. To book us for a live show or event, email Tanya Singer at tsinger@tabletmag.com. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram.  Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Check out all of our podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts. SPONSORS:  Join Hadassah for “Israel at 75: Successes and Challenges,” a free Zoom event on May 18 featuring Yossi Klein Halevi, Isabel Kershner, and Hen Mazzig. Register at events.hadassah.org/75. storymark is a podcast about leaders and the moments that make them. Each guest is leaving a unique mark on their industry and the world—and all are anchored by a connection to Israel. Learn more at storymarkpodcast.org. The Inaugural Global Jewish Fertility Support Summit is taking place Sunday, May 7 via Zoom, and features prominent voices from major fertility organizations worldwide. Learn more and register for FREE at iwassupposedtohaveababy.org. 

This week on Unorthodox, Grover goes to Israel, and we go to Portland, Maine!  Our Jewish guest this week is Natasha Feldman, aka Nosh With Tash. She tells us about her new cookbook, “The Dinner Party Project,” and gives us some fool-proof tips on throwing a successful, low-stress dinner party.  We’re also sharing the latest installment of our Across the Jew.S.A. series, created with support of the Jewish Federations of North America. Producers Robert Scaramuccia and Quinn Waller traveled to Portland, ME, to learn how Jewish immigrants made a home there, and how today’s Jewish community is helping new immigrants feel at home, too.  We love to hear from you! Send us emails and voice memos at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave a voicemail at our listener line: (914) 570-4869. Remember to tell us who you are and where you’re calling from.  Merch alert! Check out our new Unorthodox tees, mugs, and hoodies at tabletstudios.com.  We’re back on the road! Find out about our upcoming events at tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive. To book us for a live show or event, email Tanya Singer at tsinger@tabletmag.com. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram.  Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Check out all of our podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts. SPONSORS:  Join Hadassah for “Israel at 75: Successes and Challenges,” a free Zoom event on May 18 featuring Yossi Klein Halevi, Isabel Kershner, and Hen Mazzig. Register at events.hadassah.org/75. The Inaugural Global Jewish Fertility Support Summit is taking place Sunday, May 7 via Zoom, and features prominent voices from major fertility organizations worldwide. Learn more and register for FREE at iwassupposedtohaveababy.org.   Tivnu is a gap year program that brings high school grads to Portland, Oregon for social justice internships, adventures in the Pacific Northwest, and Jewish inspiration. Attend a Tivnu info session on May 18 at 8 p.m. EST, and find out more at tivnu.org.

This week on Unorthodox, we’re smuggling fruit roll-ups into Israel.  First, we chat with Rabbi Ari Lamm about the surprising spirituality of this year’s NBA Playoffs.  Journalist Gabby Deutch joins us to talk about her 5-part investigative series about the 1984 murder of Rabbi Philip Rabinowitz of Kesher Israel Congregation in Washington, DC, a crime which remains unsolved nearly 40 years later.  We’re also bringing you the second installment of The Archive, our series exploring the collection of the National Library of Israel. Liel takes a look at Maimonides’ 12th-century manuscripts and learns about the Jewish thinker’s nomadic adventures. We love to hear from you! Send us emails and voice memos at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave a voicemail at our listener line: (914) 570-4869. Remember to tell us who you are and where you’re calling from.  Merch alert! Check out our new Unorthodox tees, mugs, and hoodies at tabletstudios.com.  We’re back on the road! Find out about our upcoming events at tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive. To book us for a live show or event, email Tanya Singer at tsinger@tabletmag.com. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram.  Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Check out all of our podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts. SPONSORS:  Join Hadassah for “Israel at 75: Successes and Challenges,” a free Zoom event on May 18 featuring Yossi Klein Halevi, Isabel Kershner, and Hen Mazzig. Register at events.hadassah.org/75. Tivnu is a gap year program that brings high school grads to Portland, Oregon for social justice internships, adventures in the Pacific Northwest, and Jewish inspiration. Attend a Tivnu info session on May 18 at 8 p.m. EST, and find out more at tivnu.org.

Each year for Shavuot, we air our annual Conversion Episode, in which we share stories of people finding their way to Judaism. This year, inspired by our showrunner Courtney Hazlett’s Tablet article, “Don’t Call Me a Convert,” we’re focusing on the Jewish journeys we’re all on. Plus, at the end of the episode, we reveal our new co-host!  But first: We’re talking about interfaith relationships, and what we can learn from them, with Dr. Keren McGinity, interfaith specialist at the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism and a research associate at the Hadassah-Brandeis Institute. She consults with Jewish clergy and congregations and has written two books about intermarriage: Still Jewish: A History of Women & Intermarriage in America and Marrying Out: Jewish Men, Intermarriage, and Fatherhood.  Next we talk with Vicki Messler, who works at a Jewish day school, helps with programming at her local JCC, and is raising a Jewish family, all while not being halachically Jewish herself. She tells us why she’s committed to creating Jewish community, and about her own faith journey.  Then we hear a candid conversation between our own Liel Leibovitz and his wife Lisa Ann Sandell, which was excerpted from their appearance on Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin’s 18Forty podcast. Liel and Lisa, who are both Jewish, discuss what happened when Liel started living a more observant life about a decade ago, keeping kosher and praying regularly, and taking on a host of other practices that Lisa hadn’t necessarily signed on for as his spouse. Their honest and intimate discussion reveals how we’re all evolving in our Jewish practice, and how those changes play out within ourselves, our families, and our communities.  Finally, we call up the listener who wrote to us asking, as an “aspiring Jew” going through the conversion process, whether she would ever feel Jewish enough. Spoiler alert: We’re all Jewish enough.  We want to hear from you! Send us emails and voice memos at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave a voicemail at our listener line: (914) 570-4869. Remember to tell us who you are and where you’re calling from.  Check out our new Unorthodox tees, mugs, and hoodies at tabletstudios.com.  We’re back on the road! Find out about our upcoming events at tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive. To book us for a live show or event, email Tanya Singer at tsinger@tabletmag.com. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram.  Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Check out all of our podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts.

This week on Unorthodox, we’re officially welcoming our new co-host, Joshua Malina! To celebrate Joshua’s arrival and his role as Hermann Merz in the Tony-nominated play Leopoldstadt, join us June 22 for a special Unorthodox night on Broadway. After the show, Stephanie and Liel will do a Q&A on-stage with Joshua. Get your tickets at bit.ly/uobroadway. Our Jew of the Week is Aaron Saidman, executive producer of Netflix’s Jewish Matchmaking, as well as its predecessor, Indian Matchmaking. We chat with him about the pressure of representing Judaism on TV, and what his mom thinks of the hit show.  Our Gentile of the Week is actor Aaron Neil, who plays Ernst in Leopoldstadt on Broadway and shares a dressing room with our own Joshua Malina. He tells us about originating the role of Ernst in London before the show came to Broadway, shares his experience being part of the beloved film ‘Paddington 2,’ and discusses his own faith journey.  We love to hear from you! Send us emails and voice memos at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave a voicemail at our listener line: (914) 570-4869. Remember to tell us who you are and where you’re calling from.  Check out our Unorthodox tees, mugs, and hoodies at tabletstudios.com.  Find out about our upcoming events at tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive. To book us for a live show or event, email Tanya Singer at tsinger@tabletmag.com. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram.  Unorthodox is produced by Tablet Studios. Check out all of our podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts. SPONSORS:  PJ Library sends thousands of children free Jewish storybooks and activities every month. Sign up Jewish kids from age zero to twelve to start reading this summer at pjlibrary.org/unorthodox. 

This special Yom Kippur episode of Unorthodox features stories about apologies from host Mark Oppenheimer, writer and Harvard Divinity student Shira Telushkin, and Tablet's Esther Werdiger. What happens when an apology goes wrong? What happens when we’ve done something so awful we can’t face the other person? What happens when somebody apologizes to us—and we can’t forgive? Special guest Marjorie Ingall, who blogs at sorrywatch.com, offers her five rules for what makes a good apology. For more Unorthodox, visit tabletmag.com/unorthodox. Email us at unorthodox@tabletmag.com. 

On this episode of Re-Form: Examining the Challenges and Choices of America’s Largest Jewish Movement, we look at the Reform movement’s decision about patrilineal descent, and how it re-defined who is a Jew. Rabbi Mark Washofsky joins us to discuss a pivotal 1983 responsa. 

This week on Unorthodox: Hallmark Hanukkah movies, puppies for Hanukkah, and so much more. First we talk with linguist Sarah Bunin Benor, who made her first Unorthodox appearance all the way back on Ep. 102. She returns to the show to explain why some people say “lat-key” instead of “latke,” and settle other holiday pronunciation debates. Then it’s time for some music to get us in the holiday spirit! Jazz guitarist Peter Curtis tells us about being so inspired by the fact that Jewish songwriters created some of the most famous Christmas songs that he recorded his own album of covers, called “Christmas With Your Jewish Boyfriend.” Shira Kobren is the band leader of Shira & Friends, a New York City-based “kindie” rock band, whose new album, “B’yachad,” features a special Hanukkah song for kids. Jewish rapper Kosha Dillz shares his new Hanukkah song, Schmoozin’, on which he raps about “farbrengen the party,” much to Liel’s delight. He also gives us Jewish rap names and helps kickstart our freestyle careers. We’ve got virtual events! See our full schedule at tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive. Thursday, Dec. 10: Celebrate the first night of Hanukkah with Stephanie, Mayim Bialik, and G.L.O.W. star Jackie Tohn at NuRoots’ “First Night” event, at 7 p.m. P.S.T. Register here. Saturday, Dec. 12: All three hosts will be speaking at the JCC Ann Arbor Jewish Book Festival. 8 p.m. EST; Register here. Monday, Dec. 14: Stephanie joins Liberation75, 3GNY, and Shai DeLuca for a Hanukkah fireside chat. 12 p.m. EST; Register here. Tuesday, Dec. 15: Liel and Stephanie will be speaking at Sarasota, FL’s ‘People of the Book’ author series. 7 p.m. EST; Register here. Wednesday, Dec. 16: All three hosts will be at Richmond VA’s Weinstein JCC Front Row at the J: Sip and Learn Series. 7:30 p.m. EST; Register here. Let us know what you think of the show! Send us comments and questions at unorthodox@tabletmag.com, or leave us a voicemail at (914) 570-4869. You can also record a voice memo on your smartphone and email it to us. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Get a behind-the-scenes look at our recording sessions on our YouTube channel! Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram. Get your Unorthodox T-shirts, mugs, and baby onesies at bit.ly/unorthoshirt. Sponsors: Soom Foods’ tahini, chocolate sweet tahini, and silan date syrup are the perfect gift to give this holiday season. Head to soomfoods.com and use code UNORTHODOX to get 15% off your first order. American Jewish World Service is fighting poverty and pursuing justice in the developing world. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, AJWS is currently twice-matching all donations; find out more about the organization and make your donation at AJWS.org/unorthodox. Institute for Jewish Spirituality offers Jewish tools to help respond to the anxiety and stress of our times. Join them for ‘Rededication, Resilience and Renewal,’ a half-day online retreat Sunday, December 13. Learn more and register at  jewishspirituality.org.

We're bringing you a special treat in our feed, a taste of our sister podcast, Israel Story.  First, we talk to the creator of Israel Story, and then we share one of our favorite episodes, King of the Hill. From the top of Tell El-Ful, an abandoned hilltop in East Jerusalem, you can see all the way from Amman to Tel Aviv, from Jerusalem to Ramallah. And you can also travel back and forth in time, moving between the biblical King Saul and the bearded King Hussein. Along the way, we'll hear tales of brutalized concubines, murderous tribesmen, biblical archeology, royal families and devastating wars. We're pretty sure that once you're done, you'll want to subscribe to their show as well.  Buy an Unorthodox shirt! Click here and use the coupon code UnorthodoxLaunch2018. Our next live show is Wednesday, March 21 at the JCC Manhattan. Buy tickets here. Want more Unorthodox in your life? Join our Facebook group to chat with the hosts and see what happens behind-the-scenes! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. We love hearing from our listeners! Email us or leave a message at our listener line: 914-570-4869. We may share your note on the air.

Hosted by Courtney Hazlett, Rabbi Diana Fersko, and Josh Kross, each episode takes a look at a current, cultural topic and what it means for us as Jews, and how we react to it because we are Jews. This year, the first night of Hannukah falls on Christmas, so we are talking about how each of us, and Jews in general, relate to the most famous Christian holiday, and how some customs might find their way into our own lives. We are joined by musician Peter Himmelman to discuss his view on the relationship between music, holidays, and spiritual practice. Want to send us an email? Send it off to podcasts@tabletmag.com For more podcasts, visit tabletmag.com/podcasts

With just a few days to go before the 2024 presidential elections, we hear a lot of chatter about American democracy, usually from partisan hacks who are more interested in touting self-serving lies than honing up to inconvenient truths. But the actual hurdles we face as we try to heal our ailing system are much more complicated, and overcoming them is going to take much more than lofty slogans. Liel is joined by writer Will Tanner, who delivers a cautionary tale from the late Roman Republic contemporary Americans should heed, and explains why the policies too many of our lawmakers are pursuing have led another nation grappling with racial justice, South Africa, to the brink of collapse. 

This show takes no weeks off for holidays, whether they are on the Jewish or Gregorian calendars. What are the differences and similarities between Rosh Hashanah and the “secular” new year’s and more importantly how are we marking them? Tablet’s executive editor Wayne Hoffman joins us to discuss the true meaning of starting a new year. Hosted by Courtney Hazlett, Rabbi Diana Fersko, and Josh Kross, each episode of How to Be a Jew takes a look at a current, cultural topic and what it means for us as Jews, and how we react to it because we are Jews. Want to send us an email? Send it off to podcasts@tabletmag.com For more podcasts, visit tabletmag.com/podcasts