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Religion & Spirituality

Ta Shma

Hadar Institute

Bringing you recent lectures, classes, and programs from the Hadar Institute, Ta Shma is where you get to listen in on the beit midrash. Come and listen on the go, at home, or wherever you are. Hosted by Rabbi Avi Killip of the Hadar Institute.

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  • 780 episodes
  • Updated Monday

Episodes780

Newest first
  • Mar 27, 2023 · 7 min

    On Being Essential: The Tisch with Dena Weiss #4

    Every single Jewish soul is as integral to the Jewish people as every letter in the Torah scroll. No person is dispensable. "Mitteler Rebbe's Kapelya" and "Nigun Hisva'adus" from RAZA Kapelya (2023) by Chana Raskin. Produced by Joey Weisenberg and Chana Raskin for Hadar's Rising Song Records.

  • Mar 23, 2023 · 17 min

    With All of Your Might: The Tisch with Dena Weiss #3

    It can feel impossible to approach an infinite and all-powerful God. But God desires closeness with us, with the limited power that we do have, in all of our imperfections and humanity. "Mitteler Rebbe's Kapelya" and "Nigun Hisva'adus" from RAZA Kapelya (2023) by Chana Raskin. Produced by Joey Weisenberg and Chana Raskin for Hadar's Rising Song Records.

  • Mar 20, 2023 · 11 min

    Be Careful What You Wish For: The Tisch with Dena Weiss #2

    On Shabbat, the liturgy is missing a central element: petitioning for our needs. What is the purpose of prayer on Shabbat and what can it teach us about having a relationship with God? "Mitteler Rebbe's Kapelya" and "Nigun Hisva'adus" from RAZA Kapelya (2023) by Chana Raskin. Produced by Joey Weisenberg and Chana Raskin for Hadar's Rising Song Records.

  • Mar 16, 2023 · 12 min

    Broken Tablets, Broken Hearts: The Tisch with Dena Weiss #1

    The revelation at Mt Sinai transformed the relationship between God and Jewish people. After the sin of the Golden Calf, both had to find a way to move forward - not in spite of their broken-heartedness, but because of it. "Mitteler Rebbe's Kapelya" and "Nigun Hisva'adus" from RAZA Kapelya (2023) by Chana Raskin. Produced by Joey Weisenberg and Chana Raskin for Hadar's Rising Song Records.

  • Mar 13, 2023 · 15 min

    The Tisch with Dena Weiss: A Taste of Hasidut

    Welcome to a new mini-series for Ta Shma, the Tisch with Dena Weiss: A Taste of Hasidut. Each episode will feature bite-sized insights from Hasidic thought on spirituality, ethics, and character development. These episodes are short – but they are packed with big ideas. But first: what is Hasidut? How is it like or unlike other kinds of Jewish learning, and why should more people try it? To set the table, R. Avi Killip sat down for a discussion with the Tisch's host, Dena Weiss. "Mitteler Rebbe's Kapelya" and "Nigun Hisva'adus" from RAZA Kapelya (2023) by Chana Raskin. Produced by Joey Weisenberg and Chana Raskin for Hadar's Rising Song Records.

  • Mar 8, 2023 · 9 min

    R. Elie Kaunfer on Parashat Ki Tissa: Praying for Knowledge of God’s Essence

    Moshe asks to know God’s ways. But this is not a philosophical exploration about the nature of God. It is a question with a purpose. What is the knowledge we need in order to pray and to connect to God? How might this knowledge help us approach God, even if we might feel distant from God’s presence?

  • Mar 6, 2023 · 8 min

    R. Avi Killip: Love and Hiddenness

    The revelation at Sinai is a high point in the Jewish story. It is the moment when God gives us the mitzvot—and we accept them. But, the Talmud tells us that the commandments were actually accepted twice: once at Sinai, and again in Persia, during the time of Ahashverosh. Exploring these two moments in tandem allows us to see how personal empowerment can lead us to approach God with love.

  • Feb 27, 2023 · 1 hr 20 min

    R. Shai Held: (Where) is God in the Book of Esther?

    One of the classic questions about the book of Esther is: why isn’t God mentioned? What does this mean for the book and for us? R. Shai Held explored some of the most vexing theological questions in this recording from summer 2017.

  • Feb 20, 2023 · 47 min

    R. Nadav Berger: The Possibility of Intimacy with God and the Commandments

    The midrashic composition, Shir HaShirim Rabbah, develops the allegorical reading of Song of Songs as a love story between Israel and God. The verse "Let God kiss me with the kisses of God's mouth," for example, is read as reflecting a close, even radically close, intimacy between Israel and God. According to the midrash, the verse implies an instance of direct and close-up interaction with God and the Torah. R. Berger explores this midrashic idea and discussed the implications of such a relationship with God and the commandments. This lecture was originally delivered as part of Hadar's Summer Learning Retreat in June 2022.

  • Feb 13, 2023 · 40 min

    R. Avi Killip: Praying When the World is At Stake

    As we watch storms surge and fires burn, the changing climate has moved from an abstract fear to an ever-present reality. The enormity of this crisis demands a complex type of faith, a different kind of prayer, and a theological reckoning. How can we bring our fears and hopes to God? What might it look like to pray about climate change? In the Dr. Eddie Scharfman Memorial Lecture from January 2023, Rabbi Avi Killip explored the wisdom that Jewish tradition has to offer for this time of global crisis.

  • Feb 8, 2023 · 9 min

    R. Elie Kaunfer on Parashat Yitro: Struggling to Pray with Intention

    Ideally, prayer is a pouring out of the soul. But in Jewish practice today, people don’t only pray when they feel moved to pray. We are mandated to say the Amidah multiple times a day, and we can’t guarantee that each of those moments will be characterized by intention, or kavanah. Should I pray even if I don’t know if my heart will be in it?

  • Feb 6, 2023 · 9 min

    R. Avi Killip: The Gestation of a Tree

    Growth is gradual, so slow in fact that it cannot be tracked in real time. We need an annual date as a marker of a specific moment, before and after seasons of change. Like all birthdays, Tu Bishvat invites us to celebrate, to notice the beauty in slow growth, and to appreciate the potential of what is yet to be born.

  • Feb 1, 2023 · 8 min

    R. Elie Kaunfer on Parashat Beshallach: Praying for Your Sake

    What does it mean to pray to God when we are experiencing pain? One approach understands God as intricately tied to our suffering, and indeed, in need of redemption as well. How might we understand that position, and where is it found in the liturgy?

  • Jan 30, 2023 · 29 min

    R. Tali Adler and Joey Weisenberg: Elevating God and Us

    Rabbi Tali Adler teaches a beautiful combination of midrashim about the lulav and etrog—which completely rethinks our relationship with God and God’s relationship with us. Before and after, Joey Weisenberg plays one of his original compositions. Recorded in Summer 2020 as part of a course "Melody and Midrash."