Not in Heaven – Details, episodes & analysis

It's time to head back to school—but this year, for some Jewish students in North America, school is going to look a little different. Some will be receiving what's known as a "classical" education: a curriculum based on a return to fundamentals, a focus on time-tested great books and a rejection of mandates that emphasize diversity and inclusion.

There are plenty of classical schools popping up, including Jewish ones. The Emet Classical Academy in Manhattan is welcoming its first-ever cohort of students this fall, with its founders kickstarting their work earlier than expected due to parents and students feeling unsafe in the public system. Rabbi Mark Gottlieb, the chief education officer of the Tikvah Fund, which operates the school, joins to explain why his team felt compelled to create a new space for Jewish students of all backgrounds.

And before that, Rabbi Eric Grossman, head of school at the Akiva School in Montreal, sits down with Avi and Phoebe to talk more broadly about this trend toward classical education in Jewish circles and beyond. To wit: if most of Jewish education is based on the Torah and Mishnah, how much more classical can you get?

Credits

• Hosts: Avi Finegold and Phoebe Maltz Bovy (@BovyMaltz)
• Production team: Michael Fraiman (producer), Zachary Kauffman (editor)
• Music: Socalled

Support The CJN

• Subscribe to the Bonjour Chai Substack
• Subscribe to The CJN newsletter
• Donate to The CJN (+ get a charitable tax receipt)
• Subscribe to Bonjour Chai (Not sure how? Click here)

Canadian Jews may have noticed a trend in their communities this summer: Conservative politicians making the rounds. Leader Pierre Poilievre, Deputy Leader Melissa Lantsman and even former prime minister Stephen Harper have all made numerous appearances at synagogues, pro-Israel rallies and fundraising galas. It's nothing new to see the country's political right wing court Jewish voters—such a swing was cemented under Harper's government—but it feels especially pronounced this summer, coming up on the one-year anniversary of Oct. 7 and an approaching election.

But Jewish institutions have historically been apolitical, and the broad rightward shift almost certainly makes members of the community feel excluded. What are the ramifications of this tight-knit union? Here to dissect the issue is The CJN's political columnist Josh Lieblein. He joins Bonjour Chai co-hosts Avi and Phoebe, who return from their summer vacations—Phoebe's having been blissfully apolitical in Europe, while Avi's culminated in a drive back to Chicago during the Democratic National Convention.

And after that, Phoebe explains the bigger picture behind the abrupt cancellation of a book event in Brooklyn—not even because the author was Zionist, but because the interviewer was.

Credits

• Hosts: Avi Finegold and Phoebe Maltz Bovy (@BovyMaltz)
• Production team: Michael Fraiman (producer), Zachary Kauffman (editor)
• Music: Socalled

Support The CJN

• Subscribe to the Bonjour Chai Substack
• Subscribe to The CJN newsletter
• Donate to The CJN (+ get a charitable tax receipt)
• Subscribe to Bonjour Chai (Not sure how? Click here)

Israel had some strange bedfellows in the news this week. The New York Times unveiled that country's Ministry of Diaspora Affairs created social media bots that posted AI-generated comments to influence American lawmakers and the general public; meanwhile, a rally against antisemitism in Manhattan drew headlines when it was revealed that the organization behind the rally was a Messianic Jewish group that aims to convert Jews to believe in Jesus.

While the stories are different, the underlying theme is the same: Israel is increasingly isolated around the world, with ever-sinking public opinion and international allies growing distant. When good PR is hard to come by, you end up with AI-created bots and Jews for Jesus as suddenly noteworthy friends.

Avi and Phoebe discuss these topics on this week's episode of Bonjour Chai, with special guest Rabbi Michael Skobac of Jews for Judaism, an organization created in direct response to Jews for Jesus.

Credits

Bonjour Chai is hosted by Avi Finegold and Phoebe Maltz Bovy. Zachary Kauffman is the producer and editor. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Socalled. The show is a co-production from The Jewish Learning Lab and The CJN, and is distributed by The CJN Podcast Network. Support the show by subscribing to this podcast, donating to The CJN and subscribing to the podcast's Substack.

It's a trend extending beyond Jewry, beyond Canada, but persists in our nation nonetheless: younger people are donating less than their parents' generation, and when they do get involved in philanthropy, they're doing it differently. Several Jewish organizations have taken up the mantle to try and engage younger donors, and this week, an episode of The CJN Daily spotlit the recent Canadian expansion of the Jewish Future Pledge, which aims to get Jews to promise a certain percentage of charitable donations in their wills to Jewish causes.

To better understand the realities of giving Jewishly, we're joined by two organizers in the space: Mark Silberman is the chair of the Jewish Future Pledge in Atlanta, and Danielle Segal is the program director for Honeycomb, a resource for Jewish youth philanthropy.

Plus, recurring guest David Koffman speaks about the life and impact of the late Irving Abella, who passed away this week, and our weekly nachas segment gives a shout-out the Jewish connections to the new Minions movie.

What we talked about

• Listen to The CJN Daily episode about the Jewish Future Pledge's expansion in Canada
• Learn about Honeycomb at jfunders.org/honeycomb

Credits

Bonjour Chai is hosted by Avi Finegold, Ilana Zackon and David Sklar. Michael Fraiman is the producer. Andre Goulet is the technical producer. Our theme music is by Socalled. The show is a co-production from The Jewish Learning Lab and The CJN, and is distributed by The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.

To celebrate Canada Day, we have a special audio feast of Canadiana lined up.

First up, we chat with a recent immigrant from Israel to Montreal, Shauli, who moved here with his partner and their toddler in November to find work and a better life as a gay couple; then we're joined by Yoni Goldstein, editor and publisher of The CJN, to discuss the state of Canadian Jewry and how one of the biggest Canadian Jewish stories—the death of Julia Koschitzky—reveals a lot about who we are as a community.

Lastly, we've got a jumbo-sized nachas segment of our favourite books, songs and movies from the last few years in Canadian Jewish life. Happy Canada Day!

Credits

Bonjour Chai is hosted by Avi Finegold, Ilana Zackon and David Sklar. Michael Fraiman is the producer. Andre Goulet is the technical producer. Our theme music is by Socalled. The show is a co-production from The Jewish Learning Lab and The CJN, and is distributed by The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.

Last week's episode about the state and ethics of kosher food drummed up a lot of responses from our listeners—so many, in fact, we decided to run a spiritual sequel of sorts this week.

Montreal's Vaad Ha'ir, the organization responsible for MK kosher supervision, launched a new initiative justifying the high cost of kosher meat in the city. But Avi wasn't impressed by what he saw as propaganda, as he noticed inconsistencies and assumptions in their argument's details. To better understand the whole story, he decided to bring in Steven Lapidus, a professor at Concordia University and expert in Montreal's kosher scene.

Plus, in response to a reader's question about Jewish hot spots to visit in Montreal, we're launching a summer travel series. This week, all three hosts share their insider tips as to the best places to eat and explore in the city.

What we talked about

• Read the Vaad Ha'ir's kosher explainer at priceofkoshermeatmtl.com

Credits

Bonjour Chai is hosted by Avi Finegold, Ilana Zackon and David Sklar. Michael Fraiman is the producer. Andre Goulet is the technical producer. Our theme music is by Socalled. The show is a co-production from The Jewish Learning Lab and The CJN, and is distributed by The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.

Kosher has been in the news a lot lately. A restaurant in Hamilton came under strutiny because the rabbi that certified its kosher status wasn't Orthodox; in Toronto, the popular Slice N Bites restaurant was asked to stop seating customers on Saturday nights because too many teens were using it as a hangout spot; and in the U.S., a restaurant had its certification pulled after its owner, Shalom Yehudiel, was charged with sexually abusing a minor.

With these stories fresh in our minds, we're dedicating the whole episode to kosher conundrums: the politics, ethics and decision-making that goes into keeping, certifying and even justifying the current state of kosher. Our three hosts come from very different stances on these issues, and invite Richard Rabkin, the managing director of the Kashruth Council of Canada (COR), to help navigate the waters.

Plus, chef and entrepreneur Zane Caplansky pops in to explain his own frustrating kosher odyssey, while our weekly Word of Wisdom comes from Rabbah Aliza Libman Baronofsky and Rabbah Amy Newman, who both graduated from Yeshivat Maharat this week.

Credits

Bonjour Chai is hosted by Avi Finegold, Ilana Zackon and David Sklar. Michael Fraiman is the producer. Andre Goulet is the technical producer. Our theme music is by Socalled. The show is a co-production from The Jewish Learning Lab and The CJN, and is distributed by The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.

Over recent years, the Jewish community has grown from merely being aware of queer Jews to standing where we are today: leaders and activists in almost every denomination are working to actively include queer Jews in Jewish law and practice. Queer and nonbinary Jews no longer settle for pointing out their existence and right to be included; they're crafting narratives that explain how deeply and intricarely their queerness and Judaism are intertwined.

To dissect these issues and share their personal stories, we're joined by two inaugural members of the Queer Jewish Incubator, a new project run by the Miles Nadal JCC in downtown Toronto. Sadie Epstein-Fine is working on a play about one of Tevye's daughters being queer, and Toby King is gathering and archiving information about queer-Jewish wedding ceremonies to examine the various ways in which those couples celebrate their love.

After that, you'll hear an excerpt from The CJN's podcast Rivkush, in which host Rivka Campbell interviews Michael Twitty, the award-winning cookbook author, chef and voice for social justice, who describes life at the intersection of being Black, Jewish and gay.

What we talked about

• Learn about the Miles Nadal JCC's Queer Jewish Incubator
• Visit Sadie Epstein-Fine's website at sadieepsteinfine.com
• Contribute to Queering the Jewish Wedding
• Listen to the full interview with Michael Twitty on _Rivkush_

Credits

Bonjour Chai is hosted by Avi Finegold, Ilana Zackon and David Sklar. Michael Fraiman is the producer. Andre Goulet is the technical producer. Our theme music is by Socalled. The show is a co-production from The Jewish Learning Lab and The CJN, and is distributed by The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.

It was almost 50 years ago today, on June 3, 1972, that Sally Priesand broke ground as the first-ever female rabbi ordained in North America. But still, even half a century later, rabbis who happen to be women face different expectations, treatment and discrimination than their male counterparts.

To talk about what's changed, what hasn't and what life is like as a female rabbi, we've assembled a panel for a special hour-long discussion the subject. What's changed in the last 50 years? What hasn't? How do congregations of different denominations react? What work still needs to be done?

To examine these issues, we have three experts from across the country: Rabbi Elyse Goldstein, Canada's first and longest-serving female Rabbi in Canada, who was ordained in 1983; Rabba Rachel Kohl Finegold, the first Orthodox Jewish woman to serve as synagogue clergy in Canada; and Rabbi Ilana Krygier Lapides, an independent, non-denominational rabbi in Calgary.

What we talked about

• Rabbi Goldstein is the founding rabbi of City Shul in Toronto
• Rabba Kohl Finegold is a clergy member at Congregation Shaar Hashomayim in Montreal
• Learn about Rabbi Krygier Lapides's services at rockymountainrabbi.com

Credits

Bonjour Chai is hosted by Avi Finegold, Ilana Zackon and David Sklar. Michael Fraiman is the producer. Andre Goulet is the technical producer. Our theme music is by Socalled. The show is a co-production from The Jewish Learning Lab and The CJN, and is distributed by The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.

It's a little-known fact that the first Jews in Canada were actually Sephardim, founders of the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue in Montreal in 1768. Over subsequent years, Ashkenazi Jews would follow from Europe, becoming the dominant Jewish culture; it wasn't until the mid-20th century that Middle Eastern Jews arrived to add their own contributions to the Canadian Jewish mosaic.

The often quiet history of Sephardic contributions to Jewish culture—not just in Canada, but in Israel, the United States and elsewhere as well—is the focus of a new book and digital-preservation project called Sephardi Voices, spearheaded by Henry Green, a professor of Judaic and religious studies at the University of Miami and the founding director of the Jewish Museum of Florida. In partnership with the Canadian Race Relations Foundation, we invited Green to share stories and insight into the Sephardi world in Canada and beyond for the first-ever live virtual taping of Bonjour Chai.

Plus, we get to know Mohammed Hashim, the executive director of the CRRF, who outlines his organization's work, paths toward a more comfortable dialogue between pro-Israel and pro-Palestine Canadians, and what his favourite kosher restaurant is. Later, David and Ilana actor-splain why Jewish representation matters in film and television, and what it was like working on Jewish theatre shows this year.

Credits

Bonjour Chai is hosted by Avi Finegold, Ilana Zackon and David Sklar. Michael Fraiman is the producer. Andre Goulet is the technical producer. Our theme music is by Socalled. The show is a co-production from The Jewish Learning Lab and The CJN, and is distributed by The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.