IKAR Podcasts (IKAR)

The Torah warns us against someone - maybe even someone very close to us - who might come try to entice us to worship other gods! But when we look a little closer at the commentators, we begin to wonder if the real enticement might be coming from… a higher source.

So many LGBTQ+ people have been hurt by religious leadership and institutions. We have the power to offer healing.

(Trigger Warning: Discussion of teenage suicidal ideation. Save and share this number: 988, the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline for when you need it.) Those feelings of aloneness, or differentness, or social irrelevance are as old as time. In Aaron, something beautiful and eternal was born from the heartache. What about in us? The reminder that together we can beat back the darkness... by honoring the light that dwells within each of us.

The mystics believe that every soul corresponds to a letter in the Torah. And, if a letter is missing, erased, or smudged, we can’t continue reading from the scroll until that letter is restored to its vibrancy. Anti-trans bills, including the two signed this past week, represent a conscious and coordinated attempt to erase trans and non-binary people from our communities and collective story. It’s time to move beyond the rhetoric of support and into life-saving action. 

A recording of Rabbi David Kasher's weekly virtual parsha study class from 10.26.2023. Sign up for the class here: https://www.google.com/url?q=https%3A...

We must speak of the darkness that lives in some of our bodies and spirits, a darkness that sometimes manifests as depression, despair, and suicidal ideation, a darkness that may feel inescapable. I offer these words with great love and tenderness toward those who are holding fresh or age-old wounds of worry and grief. Today we’ll meet in the darkness.

Source sheet: https://www.sefaria.org/sheets/551802?lang=bi

Who is Isaac? The man perpetually trapped by his father’s story, still bound to the altar, forever defined by the core trauma of his life. What will it take to break free? For the once bound to become unbound? Source sheet: https://ikar.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Isaac_-Bound-and-Unbound-1.pdf

We aren’t just shaped by the past.  It isn’t a one-way street, dead ending in the present. Our tradition asks us to continue to be in active relationship with our loved ones even after they die. Caring for the deceased means advancing their core values, their life work, and dreams. And it means upholding our responsibilities, both as individuals and a community, in the moments of most profound loss. #hevrakadisha #mourningrituals #yahrtzeit #love&loss

The legends of the magical Clouds of Glory.

The Book of Leviticus spends a lot of time explaining what to do once we have committed sins. But how did we get there in the first place? What drives us to sin? For that, we turn to the great commentary of the Kli Yakar.

Buried in the laws of inheritance is a subtle reference to one of the most tragic stories in the Torah - one that we usually miss.

This is a recording of Rabbi David Kasher's Parsha class from October 20, 2022

A recording of Rabbi David Kasher's weekly virtual parsha study class from 10.19.2023. Sign up for the class here: https://www.google.com/url?q=https%3A%2F%2Fikar-la.zoom.us%2Fmeeting%2Fregister%2FtJwrfuytrz4jGtMKB6cYx0bcGz7JmFw5rgUd&sa=D&ust=1697577720000000&usg=AOvVaw1yOKzqinM2sivSvIl6GPS9

This is a recording of Rabbi David Kasher's Parsha class from November 3, 2022

I spent the summer reading banned books. Here’s what I learned: empathy poses the greatest threat to tyranny. Art is the antidote to numbness. And Torah is the most dangerous book of all.

If Bilaam is really so bad, that brings us back to our original question - what is he doing in the Torah? What are we reading this bizarre story at all???

Every June, we turn our attention and love to the LGBTQ+ community at IKAR. For many years we have taken the opportunity during PRIDE month to stories from LGBTQ+ folks and their family members. We're excited to share a compilation of the past three year's stories.

When women’s voices are ignored, diminished and marginalized, everyone loses. Jacob loved Rachel, but he failed to take seriously her anguished voice. Thousands of years later, Israeli spotters—women in intelligence—were ignored… at the peril of the nation. Why we must center women’s voices in the quest for peace, and in the work for a better, safer world.

Source Sheet: https://www.sefaria.org/sheets/556558?editor=1

Yitro reminds us, in the twisted reality of our time: do not quiet your intuition. Defy the new norms. Live from your deepest moral convictions, not your most callous political calculations. And do not eat the tainted grain— no matter how hungry you are. Keep searching for an alternative food source. There is always another food source.

The rabbis radically reinvent Elijah. From violent zealot to gentle peace builder. The path to the messianic era depends on this transformation.

The underexplored Jewish number of 42 traces our journey from slavery to freedom and deepens our relationship with God. What can we learn from Moshe’s experiences of that number to help inform our own journeys with God, freedom, and legacy?

Kabbalat Shabbat dinner discussion with sisters Danielle and Galeet Dardashti from The Nightingale of Iran Podcast

This is a recording of Rabbi David Kasher's Parsha class from February 16, 2023

Sermon from 8.3.2024 / Matot-Masei 5784

How can we understand so called religious people aligning with a regressive politics that relishes stripping rights rather than expanding them, that honors guns over humans, fetuses over hungry children, incarceration over restorative justice, environmental devastation over stewardship? Our core theological commitments must manifest in the reality we seek to build, a society of compassion and wakefulness, love and justice. One that honors the divine image in every person.

When we roll open the sacred Torah, what we see is monochrome. Pale parchment, dark ink, black, and white. Which are the only colors the human being can see when we are born. If today's parsha had a color, it would be red. Click here to see the painting Hope, by George Frederick Watts, painted in 1886: https://www.wikiart.org/en/george-frederick-watts/hope-1886

Much of the time it feels like we're on a different path than what we hoped for or asked for or dreamed. What can Joseph and Betzalel teach us about the gifts of two very divergent paths? What do we learn from a path that is both short and long?

We are living in a world that is broken and painful. It is a moment to turn towards the angels within us and around us in order to find our way through.

The Dynamic Way We Dance Ourselves into Being: Creation Revealed. Revelation Created. Led by Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson.

John Destler was born in Berlin on October 13, 1931. One of his earliest memories is watching from the balcony of his family’s apartment as Hitler and Mussoilini drove by in a motorcade. In the week of Yom HaShoah, we welcome John to our community to talk about his unique experiences, trauma, and challenges. Including a life long battle with addiction that he was able, at the age of 72, to face and heal. (From Samara Hutman's Intro) In partnership with Righteous Conversations Project.

At this time of year in our Jewish calendar, we are in a season of second chances. We are reading Moshe's retelling of the people's journey through the desert in Deuteronomy, and we are about to enter into the month of Elul, the month of spiritual preparation for the High Holy Days. It is also the moment when Moshe went back up the mountain to get the second set of tablets - the ultimate story of second chances. We are about to start our own month of reflection and repair - let's see what we can do.

In Pirkei Avot, we read that "A free person is one who studies Torah." How can the study of Torah help us understand and appreciate what it means to be free?

Rabbi Kasher’s farewell sermon, a pre-Passover reflection on the role of mitzvot in Jewish life. 

Sermon from Shemini atzeret

On my final shabbat before sabbatical, we explore the connection between na’aseh v’nishmah—doing and discovering—and shmita, a periodic break in the rhythm of doing to digest lessons learned and deepen our roots as we prepare for the next chapter of our flourishing.

The sense of defeatism, all too present after the events in this country over the last week, is the most dangerous myth threatening our future right now.  To throw up our hands and surrender to the myth of inevitability is to relinquish the most precious gift given to humanity: our capacity to change the world around us.  We can be scared without being resigned.  We can be exhausted without being fatalistic.  We can be discouraged but nonetheless courageous.  

When God threatens to wipe out the Israelites, Moses recognizes, in the subtleties of language, that history is on the verge of dangerously repeating.  Moses must become a new kind of leader, one who does everything in his power to save the people from God’s wrath.  Only then can healing begin. 

Join us for a conversation between Rabbi Sharon Brous and leaders from Breaking the Silence, an NGO providing discharged Israeli personnel and reservists a means to confidentially recount their experiences in the Occupied Territories. This is a Q&A and discussion that surrounded a screening of Mission Hebron, a short documentary by Rona Segal based on the testimony of Israeli soldiers who served in the West Bank. To see the documentary, visit our YouTube channel here.

Guy Branum joins Rabbi David Kasher to discuss Ashera and the presence of a goddess in the Torah.

What is Joseph's legacy? And what can we learn from the character with the most costume changes in all of the Torah?

A special discussion with author Mickey Bergman about his book, In the Shadows: True Stories of High-Stakes Negotiations to Free Americans Captured Abroad.

What happens when one memory is replaced by another, when a moment of discernment is replaced by an act of force? The people are free, but Moses is caught between past and future, and the consequences are tragic.

Reflections after a recent trip to Israel.

Vivian Silver (founder of Women Wage Peace, lifelong Israeli-Canadian peace activist and beloved friend to many in our community), was murdered by Hamas on October 7th. Since then, her son, Yonatan Zeigen, has dedicated his life to realizing her vision of peace. Arab Aramin is a Palestinian peace activist whose sister was killed by an Israeli soldier in 2007. The two are members of the Parents Circle – Families Forum, a grassroots organization of Palestinian and Israeli families who have lost immediate family members in the conflict, and who believe that only together can they achieve a sustained peace.

Astrologer Chani Nicholas joins Rabbi Kasher to discuss astrology in the Torah and one of the greatest Jewish thinkers who just happened to be an astrologer himself. They discuss Ibn Ezra, the intersection of Judaism and astrology, the implications astrology has for concepts like fate and freewill, and so much more.

Despite the many challenges the Jewish people face today, many believe that our greatest difficulty is our inability to coexist peacefully among ourselves. In our studies, we will focus on the theme of embattled siblings, which pervades the book of Genesis. We will draw a line from these narratives to the Jewish people today, noting, and suggesting possible responses to, the enduring affliction of fractiousness among “siblings.” 

Moses has just come back down from speaking with God. And he's glowing.

How knowing God is a revelation of ourselves.

We must have zero tolerance for violent and racist rhetoric in our Jewish community. We must support the birth of a new mixed multitude: those who reject extremism, who reject the violent, reductive idea that Palestinians and Jews must be eternal enemies. That one’s victory necessitates another’s victimhood, or even worse: elimination. This mixed multitude is made of people who know that we do not undermine our own sorrow or betray our own people when we see one another, those who understand that our fates are all tied up in one another.

After a life of heartache, two estranged brothers affirmed each other’s humanity, and rediscovered their own. We, too, can make that choice. Let us push back on the encroaching darkness as a force for good—a light force—that counters the cruelty, racism, and violence poisoning our culture with compassion, tender presence, and forgiveness. This is what solidarity looks like.

Pastor Eddie Anderson, Reverend Zachary Hoover, and Rabbi Sharon Brous in conversation to discuss the necessity of reparations for building the beloved community.

Find the text study sheet here. 7th Day of Passover 5785 | Parshat Beshallah

There is no justice in answering violence with more violence. It’s not only that the death penalty is ridden with racism and gross inequity, and that every execution potentially risks the life of an innocent. It’s that all people—even those capable of great harm—have infinite worth, and we all—even those most set in their ways—possess the capacity for growth and change. None of us has the right to deny that to another.

A new cycle of reading through the Torah! A new book! And a new season of Best Book Ever!

A whole new spin on Yom Kippur.

Three striking midrashim help us understand how the Hebrew name for this fourth book of the Torah can help frame our journey through it.

A little jar with a remarkable journey tells a story desperately needed in this time of war. Perpetual violence is not inevitable. Never abandon the conviction that peace is our ultimate hope, and it can be found.

Using Jews as a wedge to break apart the world order is not new.  We must be honest about what’s happening here.

Source sheet: https://www.sefaria.org/sheets/554948?editor=1

With Auschwitz Survivor Ella Mandel and Amit, Zeve, and Oren Zilberstein, Jason Neidleman, and Alexia Gyorody, the second, third, and fourth generation of family members who both survived and perished in the Shoah. As living survivor numbers dwindle, we will explore together how we can understand and hold their experiences in ways that co-create a more just, humane and dignified future for one another and our world. Co-produced by Peanut Productions. Videos by The Righteous Conversations Project: - To Life: The Ella Mandel Story created in collaboration with Sinai Akiba - Dreams of Yisrael: The Story of Yisrael Zilberstein created in collaboration with IKAR Limudim

Source sheet: https://www.sefaria.org/sheets/528461?lang=bi

https://www.sefaria.org/sheets/379209?lang=bi

Purim summons us to joy, but how do we access that joy when our hearts hurt from the shameful display of excessive violence this past week in Huwara? Our tradition pleads with us to linger in grief before we get to Purim, to mark a solemn day of fasting and course correction. For, the only road to real joy travels first through grief.    

You know the cycle. Front page headlines retreat to the back pages and eventually disappear from both the paper and our attention. Even the most horrifying headlines, those emerging from the brutal war in Ukraine, risk being ignored in the frenetic pace of our news cycle. We must not turn away. Even in the absence of a clear political path forward, we need to keep our hearts open to the stories, pleas, and suffering of the Ukrainian people, responding with empathy, advocacy, and resources.

After the tragic shooting in Buffalo rooted in White Supremacy and hate, we look to the Omer, a time on the Jewish calendar associated with mourning. The themes of Lag b’Omer offer some guidance on what our society needs.

Source sheet: https://www.sefaria.org/sheets/558262?lang=bi

This is a recording of Rabbi David Kasher's Parsha class from February 23, 2023

What’s the first step of a spiritual journey? According to the Me’or Einyaim (18th century Hasidic Master), it’s not a grand gesture or a dramatic departure. Instead, it’s the recognition that we’re disconnected, spiritually dehydrated and yearning for something more. Once that realization is acknowledged and felt, the journey has already begun. We’ll find the water we need.

As we close out the Book of Exodus, a 13th century Spanish preacher helps us, finally, make sense of all the details.

Rabbi Kasher shares a surprising teaching from his new book on Torah commentary.

We are all struggling in this moment of deep darkness - either riding the constant emotional rollercoaster or already feeling numb. The thing is that both of these will destroy us. Instead, we need to stay connected to our humanity and each other to get us through. That is the only way we will find ourselves back in the light. 

Every ounce of our energy must advance a vision of peace.  There is no other way to rebuild a society in ruins.  Our God, and God of our ancestors. Our God, and God of our descendants.  Grant us peace.  

Source sheet: https://www.sefaria.org/sheets/566742?lang=bi Watch the Full Class: https://youtu.be/FRhY5TSlsqo

Ours is a tradition of stories. We see this from the flawed humanity of Adam and Eve through the tangle of relationships in Genesis and the struggle and redemption of Exodus, to the creative rabbinic interpretations of Midrash and Talmud, to the spiritually rooted Chasidic tales. Stories are essential to understanding one another and informing how we make sense of and choose to live in the world.   Right now, we need to be telling and hearing our abortion stories.  

Thoughts on the dangers and the blessings of flag-waving

The book of B'midbar is a book full of conflict. And so that was the book that Ezra Furman suggested we talk about. It's appropriate - she's a punk musician and B'midbar is kind of the punk book of the Torah. I think you'll find it interesting to hear a a side of Ezra that you won't always see on stage, a soft, reflective side. She will scream at you from the stage, but one on one, when she's working through ideas, she's very quiet and deliberate. You can tell that she believes everything she says and and believes that how you say it and when you say it are extremely important, too. Buy Rabbi David Kasher's book, ParshaNut. Best Book Ever is a co-presentation of IKAR and the Hadar Institute. Find us on socials @WeAreIKAR and @HadarInstitute. You can follow my Facebook page at Rabbi David Kasher or find me on instagram @DavidKasher to keep up with the show and everything else we’re getting up to.

Even as the fires burn, let us hold on another, give voice to what we have lost, and turn toward what remains.

Who knows how to take the prophet's heavenly vision and bring it down to the ground? The Shadow knows!

Loving your neighbor, who is like you, whose identity you share, is not enough. You must stretch the boundaries of love to wrap into its embrace the stranger, the people in our society who are furthest away from power. To counter the frenzy of rhetoric and the aspirations of policy that demonize these human beings, we need to love them fiercely. We need to love them fully. 

Lunch and Learn with author, Adam Mansbach who joins us to discuss their book The Golem of Brooklyn with Hillel Tigay. Due to technical difficulties, the beginning of this program was not recorded.

Culture change always starts with stories.    And we aren’t the only living beings with stories to tell.  The Earth’s chorus of voices demands moral engagement, a new approach to our planet in peril.

This week, the Angel of Death showed up twice.

When your most precious resource faces grave risk, you create a sanctuary to protect and nurture it. You hold close the seeds, so that when the conditions are right, you can replant and rebuild.

The word for brain isn't even in the Torah. But a lot of what is in the Torah presumes a functioning brain and even asks us to use it in certain specific ways. In particular, the brain is directly implicated by the whole realm that we call belief or faith. Judaism, like many religions, asks us to believe in certain things. Actually, in Judaism case, it doesn't just ask. It commands. We're commanded to believe in God, to believe there is only one God and to believe that that God is the one who delivered us from Egypt and then gave us the Torah at Mount Sinai. So how are we supposed to force ourselves to force our brains to believe in that stuff? Or you could ask a different question What is going on in our brains when and if we do believe in that stuff? That's what I wanted to know. Today, Rabbi David Kasher talks to neuroscientist and devout Jew, Mayim Bialik about the science of belief and holding both science and belief at once.