Welcome to The Oral Talmud, our weekly deep dive chevruta study partnership, discovering how voices of the Talmud from 1500 years ago can help us rethink Judaism today. This week we’re exploring another foundational origin story in Talmud: a re-writing of the already dramatic scene of receiving Torah at the foot of Mount Sinai. The sages say that when scripture says we “under” the mountain, that doesn’t mean the mountain’s shadow; instead, the rabbis say “under” means that G🌄D had literally picked the mountain up and threatened to drop it on us if we didn’t accept Torah! What does it mean to reimagine our covenant as coming out of duress and vast power imbalance? How and where did the Rabbis ratify our obligation if not from Mount Sinai? Why make this radical move at all?This week’s texts: “Beneath” Mount Sinai (Shabbat 88a)The Book of Esther (Chapter 9)Access the full Sefaria Source Sheet with additional show notes via this link. The Oral Talmud is a co-production of Judaism Unbound and SVARA: A Traditionally Radical Yeshiva. If you’re enjoying this podcast, please help us keep both fabulous Jewish organizations going with a one-time or monthly tax-deductible donation at oraltalmud.com. You can find a donate button on the top right corner of the website.
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Episode 1: Rebooting Judaism
Welcome to The Oral Talmud, our weekly deep dive chevruta study, discovering how voices of the Talmud from 1500 years ago can help us rethink Judaism today. Last week we celebrated and reflected on five years of our study partnership with a new “Episode Zero.” This week we bring you the original first episode, discussing a classic origin story within Talmud. What does the way the Talmud tells a story teach us, beyond the actual content of the story? What bold moves do we need at times of crash and upheaval? This week’s texts: Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai Secures Yavne (Gittin 56a-b)Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai’s Deathbed (Berakhot 28b)Access the full Sefaria Source Sheet with additional show notes via this link. The Oral Talmud is a co-production of Judaism Unbound and SVARA: A Traditionally Radical Yeshiva. If you’re enjoying this podcast, please help us keep both fabulous Jewish organizations going with a one-time or monthly tax-deductible donation at oraltalmud.com. You can find a donate button on the top right corner of the website.
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Episode 0: Learning Together
Join study partners (chevrutas) Rabbi Benay Lappe & Dan Libenson as they reflect on five years of The Oral Talmud, and celebrate its transition from a video series to a podcast! What do lasting study partners recognize in each other? How do they decide how and what to learn together? Find out what makes a learning journey exciting, possible, and loving! This week’s texts: The Chevruta of Rabbi Yochanan & Resh Lakish (Bava Metzia 84a)Widening the Doors to the Study Hall (Berakhot 28a)Make for Yourself a Teacher (Pirkei Avot 1:6)Access the full Sefaria Source Sheet with additional show notes via this link. The Oral Talmud is a co-production of Judaism Unbound and SVARA: A Traditionally Radical Yeshiva. If you’re enjoying this podcast, please help us keep both fabulous Jewish organizations going with a one-time or monthly tax-deductible donation at oraltalmud.com. You can find a donate button on the top right corner of the website.
An introduction to the Talmud through the “traditionally radical” lens pioneered by Benay Lappe. She, along with co-host Dan Libenson, will explore key stories and other material from the Talmud that was left there by the early Rabbis as a how-to manual for re-imagining Judaism after the previous version “crashes.” In alternating weeks, we will interview leading scholars of and thinkers on Talmud to understand the Talmud more deeply from the perspective of contemporary academic study and creative re-interpretation.
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