Explore every episode of the podcast Modern Jewish Girl
| Title | Pub. Date | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What is Chasidic Feminism? with Chava Green | 09 Aug 2024 | 00:56:58 | |
I am very excited to present my conversation with Chava Green, a women's studies scholar and a Chassidic Jew. Chava's dissertation, “the Hasidic face of feminism," explores how the idea of feminism expresses itself in the Chabad community, both through the Rebbe's teachings and in the lives of Chabad women. | |||
| The Hidden Light of the Three Weeks | 23 Jul 2024 | 00:17:17 | |
I was surprised to learn that the Three Weeks, when we mourn the loss of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem, is actually filled with the greatest light. Drawing on teachings from the Nesivos Shalom and Rav Shimshon Pincus, join me as I explore why our Sages tell us that TshB'Av, the darkest day on the Jewish calendar, is actually the "greatest festival" and what this means for us. Rav Shimshon Dovid Pincus, Moadei Hashanah: Exile and Consolation - The Three Weeks and Tishah b'Av Gems from the Nesivos Sholom-Three Weeks and the Holocaust, Hashem’s Love Revealed at the Time of Destruction, p. 59 | |||
| Keeping Our Hands Up In The Battle Against Evil: A Deeper Look Into The Israel-Hamas War | 27 Oct 2023 | 00:59:45 | |
The terror attack in Israel on October 7th, 2023 sent shock waves through the Jewish world and beyond. The immensity of the horror and evil is almost impossible to comprehend. How do we navigate through the most intense tragedy our people have faced since the Holocaust? What is our place in this conflict? What can we do if we are not in the IDF? How do we ensure that never again means NEVER AGAIN?
| |||
| Becoming Your Best Self: A Conversation With Rabbi Moshe Gersht | 20 Jul 2023 | 00:59:56 | |
Join Jenna as she speaks with Rabbi Moshe Gersht, author of the Wall Street Journal & USA Today Bestseller, It's All The Same To Me. | |||
| Be The Light: A Conversation with Chabad Rebbetzin Miriam Lipskier | 22 Jun 2023 | 00:54:30 | |
Jenna speaks with Emory Chabad Rebbetzin Miriam Lipskier in honor of the Lubavitcher Rebbe's 29th yahrtzeit. They speak about the Rebbe's greatness, what it is like to run a Chabad house on a college campus, how we can live out the Rebbe's legacy, and much more. | |||
| Shavuos: Unity is a Vessel for Blessing | 19 May 2023 | 00:11:59 | |
The Modern Jewish Girl Podcast has had a facelift! We hope you like it! Sources:
| |||
| Counting the Omer: Freedom Is a Process | 27 Apr 2023 | 00:11:19 | |
Why do we count the days between Pesach and Shavuos? Jenna explores what this process teaches us about our own growth. | |||
| Pesach & Simple Faith | 31 Mar 2023 | 00:15:34 | |
Join Jenna as she discusses why Pesach is the Rosh Hashanah of Emunah (Faith). | |||
| Purim: The Power of Trust & Joy | 06 Mar 2023 | 00:18:18 | |
Mordechai refused to bow down to Haman, putting the Jews in grave danger. How could he do this? We explore this question and more to make this Purim meaningful and personal! | |||
| Planning For The New Year | 16 Sep 2022 | 00:12:11 | |
Jenna shares a life-changing tool for reflecting on the past year and planning for the next. In doing so, she sheds light on some fundamental ideas going into Rosh Hashanah. | |||
| Elul & My Grandma's Painting | 02 Sep 2022 | 00:11:07 | |
Jenna shares a personal story about a painting she discovered from her grandma, along with some ideas about the Hebrew month of Elul and the process of teshuva (repentance). · The Psychology of Teshuvah by Rabbi Tzvi Rubin and Yosef Venokur | |||
| Shavuos: When We Give, We Receive Much More | 02 Jun 2022 | 00:08:14 | |
On Shavuos, the holiday when we celebrate receiving the Torah, we read Megillas Ruth, the book of Ruth. What is the connection here? Jenna offers an explanation and in doing so, speaks about the role of kindness in Judaism and how we can receive the gift of the Torah in our own lives. | |||
| How We Can Continue to Help Israel with Chamal Har Nof Co-Founder Yael Zdanowitz | 26 Jun 2024 | 00:35:13 | |
Join me as I speak again with my close friend, teacher, and mentor, Yael (Seruya) Zdanowitz, who co-founded Chamal Har Nof, an emergency relief organization that helps displaced families, army bases, and wives of soldiers in Israel. Yael gives us an update on how Chamal Har Nof has shifted its focus to match the changing needs in Israel. She highlights two crucial initiatives they are working on right now: 1. To raise money for displaced and special needs children to attend camp this summer and 2. To supply the army with much-needed sources of protein. We speak about donor fatigue and how we can continue to help support our brothers and sisters in Israel. | |||
| On Being Enough: A Journey Toward Joyful Living with Sarah Pachter | 27 May 2022 | 00:35:13 | |
This week Jenna features a friend on the Podcast, Sarah Pachter. Sarah is the author of the new book, Is it Ever Enough? A Journey Toward Joyful Living, published by Feldheim. Sarah and Jenna speak about Sarah's unique Jewish background, her career as a speaker and now writer while raising 5 kids (!) and of course, her newest book. In doing so, they uncover some insights into how we can live a bit more joyfully from a Jewish perspective. Click here for all things Modern Jewish Girl References: https://sarahpachterspeaks.com | |||
| Helping Our Souls Shine: A Conversation With Jewish Children's Author Bracha Goetz | 13 May 2022 | 00:31:31 | |
Bracha Goetz is a Harvard-educated author of 40 books that help children's souls shine and the author of a candid memoir about overcoming food addictions joyfully on her journey in Judaism. | |||
| Shifting Into Shalva & Emotional Well-Being with Miriam Gitlin | 05 May 2022 | 00:35:56 | |
Jenna & Miriam discuss the ideas of shalva (serenity), self-wholeness, emotional well-being, and holistic healing from a Jewish perspective. | |||
| True Freedom | 31 Mar 2022 | 00:15:33 | |
There is an incredible amount of light, understanding, and freedom available to us on Pesach, but we must prepare ourselves to be able to receive it. What is the freedom that we can access on Pesach? Based on Rav Moshe Weinberger's new Haggadah, In the Heart of the Fire, Jenna explores this question, focusing on the freedom of emunah (faith) and the freedom to be our true selves. | |||
| The Grateful Jew | 24 Mar 2022 | 00:12:06 | |
Trouble ahead, trouble behind...Jenna further explores what it means to be a "grateful Jew" and how we can get there, not in spite of, but through our challenges. | |||
| Purim & Hashem's Eternal Love for The Jewish People | 10 Mar 2022 | 00:09:47 | |
What was it about the miracle of Purim that led to the Jews' re-acceptance of the Torah? Jenna delves into this question, revealing fundamental insights on the relationship between Hashem and the Jewish people. | |||
| Soulmate Clarity with Aleeza Ben Shalom | 09 Feb 2022 | 00:28:48 | |
Jenna speaks with Aleeza Ben Shalom about achieving soulmate clarity. Aleeza explains the concept of a soulmate from a Jewish perspective and shares guidance on how to actually find your soulmate. A bit more about Aleeza: Aleeza Ben Shalom is a professional dating coach, sought-after speaker, expert, author, and founder of the company Marriage Minded Mentor. Aleeza and her team guide singles through the steps to become engaged—regardless of age, affiliation, or stage in life (they work with everyone- Jewish or not). Aleeza's relationship advice has appeared in many places, from the BBC World News, to NPR to Aish.com. She trains dating coaches and matchmakers and has helped hundreds of singles manifest their soulmate. Aleeza is a dedicated wife and loving mother of 5 children, now living in Israel. | |||
| Jewish Money Matters with Yael Trusch | 03 Feb 2022 | 00:27:17 | |
Jenna and Yael speak about all things money from a Jewish perspective. Specifically, they discuss how to shift our stories around money, increase our trust in Hashem in this area, and move from a scarcity mindset to an abundance mindset. Yael also shares practical tips for managing money based on Jewish wisdom. | |||
| Real Spirituality | 27 Jan 2022 | 00:16:22 | |
Jenna discusses what real spirituality is from a Jewish perspective. She shares a personal example and offers practical tools for infusing more spirituality into our lives.
| |||
| Growing Through Pain: Torah Lessons of Comfort and Guidance | 20 Jan 2022 | 00:18:16 | |
We all go through challenges. I’ve been going through a several-year challenge and when I came upon a recent Torah teaching, it gave me a lot of comfort. Then it seemed like everywhere I turned, I was learning new insights into how to grow through pain and suffering. I share these lessons on the Podcast today, through the lens of my own challenges, in hopes that it will inspire you to grow through your pain. · Yehudis Golshevsky, Zohar on the Parsha, Shiviti | |||
| On Learning Torah & Tanya with Faigy Blumstein | 03 Jun 2024 | 00:51:25 | |
Join me as I chat with one of my Torah teachers, Faigy Blumstein. We talk about Faigy's Jewish background, how she started teaching Torah, how she began davening at the Ohel- the Lubavitcher Rebbe's resting place, how she began teaching Tanya (Chabad Chassidus), what we can learn from Tanya in our lives, her family's involvement in the Thank You Hashem movement, connecting to Chassidus, and more! This was a fun one filled with nuggets of wisdom, great stories, and lots of laughs. | |||
| Bringing Light to Dark Places: Jewish Inspired Metal Music with Dovi Halpern | 12 Jan 2022 | 00:56:23 | |
Jenna speaks with Dovi Halpern, a Jew on a journey, about what inspired him to create Jewish metal music under the name “Hashem’s Warrior.” As a disconnected child of baalei teshuva (people who chose a more observant lifestyle), Dovi shares how he made Judaism his own. Jenna and Dovi speak about the role of music in Judaism, suffering and the human condition, mental health through spiritual growth, what it means to be a warrior for Hashem, and much more. Hashem’s Warrior on Spotify & YouTube | |||
| Chai on Life with Alex Segal | 30 Dec 2021 | 00:46:01 | |
While working at her dream job at Seventeen Magazine, Alex found herself on a Jewish journey. Join Jenna and Alex as they schmooze about Alex's journey from New York to Israel to Moscow (!) Jenna and Alex discuss all facets of navigating life, both professionally and personally, while growing Jewishly. Alex also tells us about her new, beautiful online magazine for Jewish women, Chai on Life.
| |||
| A Conversation with Rebbetzin Yehudis Golshevsky of SHIVITI | 20 Dec 2021 | 01:08:03 | |
Jenna speaks with her Torah teacher in Israel, Rebbetzin Yehudis Golshevsky. Rebbetzin Yehudis is now the director of SHIVITI, a Torah school for women, which offers a variety of Torah classes in person and on zoom. In this episode, Rebbetzin Yehudis and Jenna talk about the evolution of SHIVITI and why it adds something special to the Jewish world. Along the way, Rebbetzin Yehudis shares pearls of wisdom about what it means to live and learn as a Jewish woman. | |||
| The Eternal Light of the Chanukah Candles | 24 Nov 2021 | 00:13:32 | |
Based on the Torah of the Nesivos Sholom, Jenna discusses the miracle of the Menorah lights that we celebrate on Chanukah and their deeper, eternal meaning. | |||
| How To Glow: Tips For Marriage and Beyond with Kayla Levin | 17 Nov 2021 | 00:56:31 | |
Kayla tells the story behind her popular podcast, How To Glow (formerly First Year Married) and how she became a life and marriage coach. Kayla and Jenna chat about how Kayla helps anxious and insecure newly married (and not so newly married) women become confident and connected through her coaching work. In doing so, they uncover some universal truths about living a happy and fulfilling married life. @firstyearmarried | |||
| Matchmaker, Matchmaker: Dating For Marriage | 03 Nov 2021 | 00:29:21 | |
Jenna discusses "shidduch dating," which is the process of dating for marriage in the observant Jewish world. She gives insights into dating for marriage as well as building a lasting marriage based on Jewish wisdom and her own experience. | |||
| The Journey Of Our Life | 22 Oct 2021 | 00:12:51 | |
Jenna looks at the test of "lech lecha" that Avraham went through, where Hashem told him to "Go from your land, from your birthplace and from your father’s house, to the land which I will show you.” She explains how this test applies to us today in the journey of our own lives. | |||
| Manifesting Our Best Life with Ayelet Polonsky | 13 Oct 2021 | 00:53:44 | |
Jenna and "The Manifestation Mentor" Ayelet Polonsky unpack the powerful idea of manifestation from a Jewish perspective. Join them for a deep and engaging conversation filled with incredible personal stories. Click here for all things Modern Jewish Girl | |||
| Behind The Scenes: American Birthright with Becky Tahel | 06 Oct 2021 | 00:56:01 | |
This week Jenna speaks with her friend and filmmaker, Becky Tahel. Becky is the creator of the new and internationally acclaimed documentary, American Birthright. | |||
| The Mitzvah of Joy | 20 Sep 2021 | 00:12:53 | |
Jenna explores the special mitzvah of joy, which we have every day and especially on Sukkot, the "time of our rejoicing." She explains why happiness is an obligation we owe to ourselves, others, and G-d. Jenna shares the "happiness formula" given by our Torah sages and applies it to everyday life. | |||
| Pesach & The Power of The Mind | 17 Apr 2024 | 00:15:21 | |
In this Pesach minisode, I speak about the process of liberation we can experience on Pesach. Based on the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, I discuss our obligation to feel as if we were freed from Egypt every day and how to view the marror, or bitterness, in our lives. | |||
| Yom Kippur: Turning It All Around | 13 Sep 2021 | 00:12:39 | |
Jenna gives a brief overview of the purpose of Yom Kippur in relation to Rosh Hashanah. She delves into some foundational ideas of "teshuva" or returning to our best selves, through the prism of her own recent revelations. | |||
| Rosh Hashana: Returning to Ourselves | 02 Sep 2021 | 00:11:02 | |
We all want to live lives of vitality and meaning. Rosh Hashanah and the holidays that follow carve out time at the beginning of the year so we can reset our goals and re-route to get there. | |||
| Living As A Jew In The Age of Amazon | 29 Jul 2021 | 00:15:16 | |
Jenna discusses the Jewish perspective on physicality and materialism. She shares ideals to strive for and pitfalls to watch out for. In doing so, she unpacks the idea of the "yetzer hara," the evil inclination, within all of us. Jenna also tells stories from her own life and from Rebbe Nachman to illustrate her points. | |||
| Reflections On A Real Orthodox Life | 23 Jul 2021 | 00:12:23 | |
In this casual episode, Jenna discusses her reflections after Tisha B'Av (the Jewish day of mourning), the potential of the current period on the Jewish calendar, and the Netflix show My Unorthodox Life. | |||
| The Power of Stories | 15 Jul 2021 | 00:13:32 | |
Jenna shares personal stories of Divine Providence. In doing so, she shows how stories can strengthen our roots of emunah (faith) and bring light into this dark world. | |||
| The Pursuit of Peace: Why We Live in a Broken World and What We Can Do About It | 01 Jul 2021 | 00:11:17 | |
Inspired by the "covenant of peace," awarded to Pinchas in this week's parashah, Jenna discusses why we cannot experience true peace and serenity, personally or collectively, at this point in history. Drawing on the Jewish calendar and the wisdom of our Sages, she delves deeper into what we can do to bring about a time of true peace. Root Connections in the Torah by Rabbi Tzvi Matisyahu Abrahams Hold On! Surviving the Days Before Moshiach by Roy S. Neuberger
| |||
| A Jewish Woman Makes or Breaks Her Home | 10 Jun 2021 | 00:13:06 | |
Jenna discusses two wives in the Torah: Korach's wife and the wife of "On ben Pelet." The former caused her husband's death, while the latter saved her husband's life. What can we learn from these two very different women? Jenna explores this question, sharing her own insights from her participation in the Kesher Wife Club with Sara Yoheved Rigler.
| |||
| Choosing Faith Over Fear | 03 Jun 2021 | 00:11:46 | |
Hashem tells the Jewish people they can enter the land of Israel....and then everything goes haywire. What happened? Jenna explains how the sin of the spies is a paradigm for our own lives, namely, a choice between fear and faith. She discusses her own fears in coming to Israel. | |||
| The Rise In Anti-Semitism: Our Role To Play | 27 May 2021 | 00:15:21 | |
In response to the increased anti-semitism around the world, Jenna shares a piece of Torah that was written in the early 1900's, but speaks exactly to what is going on today. In doing so, she explains the spiritual reality behind anti-semitism and something positive we can do about it right now. | |||
| Shavous: Spiritual Free Falling | 14 May 2021 | 00:15:37 | |
In light of the upcoming holiday of Shavuos, Jenna shares a bit about the story of Ruth, which we read on Shavuos, as well as the way in which the Jews accepted the Torah upon themselves at Mt. Sinai. Through these two experiences, as well as her own, she discusses what we can learn about our own emunah (faith), especially in times of uncertainty. | |||
| Adulting the Jewish Way with Erika Needleman | 22 Mar 2024 | 00:33:56 | |
Join me as I speak with life coach Erika Needleman. Erika shares her beautiful Jewish journey and talks about her coaching practice- Adulting with Erika. Why is adulting so hard for our generation? What can we do to make it easier? Erika is filled with Torah-based wisdom, which infuses her coaching practice and gives women the tools they need to stop resisting, reacting, and distracting, and start loving their (imperfect) lives. She is a mother of four, a doula, an amateur potter, and a Torah educator for Jewish Women's Connection of Atlanta. | |||
| Meron: Responding to Tragedy | 06 May 2021 | 00:12:39 | |
Jenna discusses how we can respond to the tragedy that took place in Meron on Lag B'Omer. She shares her connection to the widespread mourning in Israel, and what we can learn going forward. | |||
| Lag B'Omer: The Light of Torah Survives | 29 Apr 2021 | 00:12:57 | |
On Lag B'Omer, over half a million people travel to Meron in northern Israel to celebrate by the gravesite of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, the "father of Kabbalah." What are they celebrating? And how does it relate to us? Jenna explores these questions and more, touching on topics of Jewish history, unity, and resilience. | |||
| What Does It Mean To Be Holy? | 23 Apr 2021 | 00:07:58 | |
What does it mean to be holy, from a Jewish point of view? And how does it apply to us? Jenna explores the idea of kedusha, or holiness, why it is important, and what it means for us. | |||
| Chessed & Gevurah: Finding the Balance Between Giving and Holding Back | 15 Apr 2021 | 00:14:22 | |
Jenna discusses the period of the Omer, when we count each day between Pesach and Shavuos. She gives a brief explanation of the Sefirot, a Kabbalistic concept that goes in tandem with this time period. Then she focuses on the two sefirot Chessed and Gevruah, loosely translated as giving and restraint, respectively. She explores these two opposing forces and how we can balance them in our lives and our relationships. | |||