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The College Commons Podcast

HUC-JIR

The College Commons Podcast, passionate perspectives from Judaism's leading thinkers, is produced by Hebrew Union College, America's first Jewish institution of higher learning.

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  • 21 episodes
  • fortnightly
  • Avg 28 min
  • English

Episodes 21

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  • September 1 · 27 min

    Tomer Persico: “In God’s Image”

    Israeli public intellectual Tomer Persico explains how “God created humanity in God’s image” changed civilization itself.Tomer Persico is a Research Fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute, and a Senior Research Scholar at the UC Berkeley Center for...

    • Transcript
  • August 18 · 35 min

    Rabbi Charles Savenor: “Religious duties consist in doing justice”

    Rabbi Charles Savenor leads Civic Spirit, promoting civics education in fulfillment of Thomas Paine’s declaration.Rabbi Charles E. Savenor is the Executive Director of Civic Spirit. The mission of Civic Spirit is to educate, inspire, and empower sc...

    • Transcript
  • July 7 · 26 min

    Georgette Bennett: The Voluntary Jew

    Description: Though contemporary individualism means all Jews are, in some measure, Jews by choice, Gary “Pips” Phillips made that choice during the Holocaust.Biography: Dr. Georgette Bennett is at TED Speaker and an award-winning sociologist, auth...

    • Transcript
  • June 23 · 26 min

    Rabbi Jeffrey Marx: Stereotypes and kernels of truth

    Description: Jeffrey Marx wrestles with both the truth and the antisemitic fantasy of Jewish Arson in the early 20th century.Biography: Ordained in 1983, Rabbi Marx served as the spiritual leader of The Santa Monica Synagogue from 1985- 2021.  As a...

    • Transcript
  • June 9 · 48 min

    Michael Meyer: Hebrew Union College at 100 Years – 50 years ago!

    Description: The historian behind the history of HUC: Michael Meyer takes us on a sesquicentennial journey of American Judaism.Biography: Michael A. Meyer received his B.A. from UCLA and his doctorate from Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati. From 1...

    • Transcript
  • May 28 · 29 min

    David Mendelsson: Looking at 56 Years of HUC in Israel

    Description: Professor Emeritus David Mendelsson looks back at a half-century of momentous change for HUC in Israel.Biography: David Mendelsson recently stepped down as Director of the Year-in-Israel program at Hebrew Union College/Jerusalem where ...

  • May 14 · 25 min

    Judah Cohen: Soundscape of the Soul

    Soundscape of the SoulJewish Music transplanted from Europe to American, via Hebrew Union College.Judah M. Cohen, Ph.D. is the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Provost at Hebrew Union College. Cohen previously served as the Lou & Sybil Professor of J...

    • Transcript
  • April 15 · 20 min

    Charlie Scheidt - Hidden in the Armoire: Living History of the Shoah

    Charlie Scheidt follows the forgotten trail of his family from Europe to the United States.Charlie Scheidt is the chairman emeritus of Roland Foods, the company founded by his parents in 1939. Among his leadership roles, he is active with the Leo B...

    • Transcript
  • March 30 · 23 min

    David B. Oppenheimer: Great Minds, It Turns Out, Think Differently

    David Oppenheimer traces the diversity principle back two centuries.Biography: David B. Oppenheimer is a Clinical Professor of Law, Co-Director of the Pro Bono Program, and the Director of the Berkeley Center on Comparative Equality & Anti-discrimi...

  • March 3 · 18 min

    Rabbi Michael Zedek: Sit by the Fire and Tell a Story

    Sit by the Fire and Tell a StoryDescription: Rabbi Michael Zedek shares his stories and the values the drive them.Biography: Michael Zedek is rabbi emeritus of two wonderful synagogues: Emanuel Congregation in Chicago and Temple B’nai Yehudah in Ka...

    • Transcript
  • February 3 · 36 min

    Adam Ferziger: A Patchwork of Jews

    Advancing Ellenson's Legacy SeriesAdam Ferziger: A Patchwork of JewsOpinions and approaches inhabit the entire spectrum of Jewish thought and practice, but how do they speak to each other?Biography: Adam S. Ferziger is an historian of religion, and...

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  • January 20 · 32 min

    Arnold Eisen: Dimensional and Complex Judaism

    Advancing Ellenson's Legacy SeriesArnold Eisen: Dimensional and Complex JudaismMore than a religion, resisting extremes, but also hard to pin down, Judaism and Judaism’s God inspire Arnold Eisen’s spiritual search.Biography: Arnold M. Eisen, a fore...

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  • January 6 · 27 min

    Rabbi Dalia Marx: The Prayerbook as a Living Text

    Advancing Ellenson's Legacy SeriesRabbi Dalia Marx: The Prayerbook As a Living TextRabbi Dalia Marx editor of the new Israeli Reform prayerbook muses on the siddur as both reflection and shaper of community.Biography: Rabbi Professor Dalia Marx is ...

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  • Dec 9, 2025 · 29 min

    Rabbi Ed Feinstein: Every Sermon Tells a Story

    For Rabbi Ed Feinstein meaning-making is story-telling, and the rabbi’s business.Biography: Rabbi Ed Feinstein came to Valley Beth Shalom in 1993 at the invitation of the renowned Rabbi Harold Schulweis z"l, and succeeded Rabbi Schulweis as the con...

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Showing 1–20 of 21 episodes