Something Deeper: Eyes Wide Open

Covered in this episode: top ten (ok twelve) terms used in shul. What is the difference between a rabbi and a gabbai? How did we come to have three daily prayers? What does the word sidduer actually mean? And SO much more.

After the hectic holiday season, we now go back to work and back to school, a return to the routine. It is a good time to ponder the nature of work and ask: In a world of abundance, what happens to the career ladder and the pursuit of financial success?More importantly, is there a way for us to shift our thinking about money now?Content prepared by thealef.co and used with permission.

Every year on the high holidays, I watch my people in shul.Some are very comfortable, they know what to do, and they are at ease in shul. Others are there because they know they ought to be, and I can tell they have the capacity for a better experience, but nobody ever taught them how. Every sport has a preseason. Even pro athletes don't just show up to opening day directly off the couch. Consider this your invitation to synagogue training camp :).(Unfortunately, the audio quality was compromised from around the 8 minute to the 11 minute mark; but it is improved from then and on.)

A recording of a class given to a group of Jewish teens at Chabad in Waterloo. Per their request, the class featured advice from the Torah on making decisions.

Mia is a student at Wilfrid Laurier University and as part of a recent course, she asked to interview me. The conversation that was had flowed so smoothly that I thought it would make an interesting, albeit unusual, podcast episode. I hope you enjoy and please let me know what you think of this format.

What does Yom Kippur offer besides for guilt trips and impossible commitments to change? Discover how the holiest day of the year can be so much more. We discuss the basis of psychotherapy, the limits of subjectivity and a healthy attitude toward the truth. Wishing you a gmar chatima tova and an easy fast.

Go beyond apples in honey to discover layers of depth and inner peace in Rosh Hashanah. Recorded live at Friday Tefillin brunch with AEPi Kappa Omega in Waterloo.

A Tisha b'Av lesson

A first for the podcast - a live recording of an #AMA session with Rabbi Moishy and the participants of the Sunday afternoon class. Topics covered include euthanasia, koshering a kitchen, Orthodox Jews in pop culture, mourner's Kaddish, Biblical prohibitions, fighting antisemitism, and more!

We continue discussing "kelipah," touching on the difference between connecting to G-d with the closed eyes approach vs. the eyes wide open approach.