The Bruchim Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

Buckle up! Season 2 is about to begin.

In this episode, Eli and Max are joined by Dr. Na’ama Carlin to discuss her book Morality, Violence, and Ritual Circumcision. They talk about Dr. Carlin’s distinction between two types of violence: Manichaen violence, which is done by and to people; and generative violence, which helps to create identities." They discuss the contemporary circumcision debate and how Jewish circumcision resists its logic. Further, they talk about Derrida’s book Circumfession and how Na’ama leans on it for her understanding of Jewish circumcision.

Show Notes

Dr. Carlin’s book  Morality, Violence, and Ritual Circumcision

https://www.routledge.com/Morality-Violence-and-Ritual-Circumcision-Writing-with-Blood/Carlin/p/book/9780367551957

Between Prophylaxis and Child Abuse: The Ethics of Neonatal Male Circumcision by Michael Benatar and David Benatar

https://philpapers.org/rec/BENBPA-2

Rachel Bloom’s Foreskin Angels

https://youtu.be/LyqutExm-jw?si=M7XVraz3Fz3HLXuE

Derrida’s Circumfession

https://a.co/d/e6Isf8P

Welcome to the Bruchim Podcast! For our first episode, host Eli Ungar-Sargon is joined by Max Buckler, Bruchim’s Director of Strategic Initiatives and a bioethics researcher. They discuss: Is it a contradiction for a Jew to be opposed to circumcision? And what's the basis of Jewish identity? They also talk about the need for an organization like Bruchim, why we don’t accept the don’t-ask-don’t-tell status quo about circumcision, and how Max became interested in the subject of circumcision.

Show Notes:

Bruchim’s website:

www.bruchim.online

Harold Kushner “When Bad Things Happen to Good People”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/books/2023/05/09/when-bad-things-happen-good-people-harold-kushner/

Harold Kushner vs. Christopher Hitchens debate from 2009:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xx_ov2NiNo4

Episode Sponsors:

This episode was made possible by a generous donation from Darren Olsen

Welcome to The Bruchim Podcast! The only podcast in the world dedicated to Jews who think differently about circumcision.

In his second appearance on The Bruchim Podcast, Jeff presents his view on the ethics of circumcision, and Max and Eli respond with their own views on the matter. They discuss the right to bodily integrity, the right to self-determination, the differences and similarities between male and female genital cutting practices, and the possibility that circumcision wrongs people without harming them.

Show Notes

Eli’s Text Study Video:

https://youtu.be/w_7xv6V68b8?si=YVdN3Jv53JTuOKv1

Eli’s Essay on the ethics of neonatal circumcision:

https://www.eliungar.com/circumcision/2013/9/8/on-the-impermissibility-of-infant-male-circumcision.html

Eruvin 13b

https://www.sefaria.org/Eruvin.13b.1?lang=en&with=all&lang2=en

In the third part of this  series, Eli and Max are joined by the moral philosopher Jeff Helmreich. After Jeff gets up to speed on the conversation, he complicates matters by introducing a fifth option for the relationship between ethics and Jewish law. The group digs into the "Oven of Akhnai," a famous story from the Babylonian Talmud. Jeff then talks about the process he went through when deciding to circumcise his son and articulates his position, followed by discussion of how his position relates to the other options discussed.

Show Notes:

Eli’s film, Cut:

https://www.cutthefilm.com

Sam Lebens book The Principles of Judaism:

https://a.co/d/7HCrWzx

Jeff’s Review of the Lebens book:

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/religious-studies/article/abs/samuel-lebens-the-principles-of-judaism-oxford-oxford-university-press-2020-pp-xviii-352-750010000-hbk-isbn-9780198843252/80958BDE0851BCC4A63E7EE50E9E3693?utm_campaign=shareaholic&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=bookmark

Rabbi Aharon Lichtenstein’s Essay:

https://www.etzion.org.il/en/philosophy/great-thinkers/harav-aharon-lichtenstein/does-jewish-tradition-recognize-ethic

The Oven of Akhnai Story:

https://www.sefaria.org/Bava_Metzia.59b.1?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=en

In the second part of this series, Eli is joined by Bruchim’s Director of Education, Max DuBoff, to look at an essay by Rabbi Ethan Tucker that is directly relevant to the relationship between Ethics and Jewish law. After a brief introduction to Rabbi Tucker’s place in the Jewish world, they try to understand how Rabbi Tucker's view fits into the categories delineated in the first part of the series. They conclude by discussing Tucker’s comments in this essay on the topic of circumcision.

Show Notes:

Rabbi Ethan Tucker on Parshat Vaetchanan:

https://www.hadar.org/torah-tefillah/resources/ethical-norms-foundation-torah

Are Jewish law and ethics in conflict? Eli is joined by Max DuBoff, Bruchim's Director of Education, to explore this question. They begin by defining their terms and explaining what they mean by ethics and what they mean by halakha, Jewish law. Max then proposes four possible positions that one might take regarding the relationship between the two, based on two questions: 1) Can ethics and Jewish law conflict?; and 2) If they can, what should we do about it? Max and Eli each explain which position appeals most to them, and why. Finally, they talk about whether circumcision can be considered an example of a conflict between Ethics and Jewish law.

Show Notes:

Conservative Halacha and LGBT Issues:

https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/conservative-halakhah-and-homosexuality/

Plato’s Euthyphro Dialogue:

https://classics.mit.edu/Plato/euthyfro.html

Covenant of Blood by Lawrence Hoffman:

https://books.google.com/books/about/Covenant_of_Blood.html?id=YtAwXlnNyMgC

In this episode, Eli is joined by Bruchim’s Executive Director Rebecca Wald. Rebecca talks about the decision not to circumcise her son and the consequences of that decision. Eli and Rebecca then discuss Rebecca's website Beyond the Bris and how it became one of the premier Jewish websites on the subject of circumcision. They also talk about Rebecca’s book Celebrating Brit Shalom and the founding of Bruchim. Here they clarify the unique position that Bruchim occupies in the world and talk about some of the unique challenges that come our way. Plus, Eli shares the dramatic story that led him to thinking critically about circumcision.

Show Notes:

Bruchim’s website:

bruchim.online

Beyond the Bris:

https://www.beyondthebris.com

Celebrating Brit Shalom:

https://a.co/d/3ayHUCd

Eli’s Debate with Rabbi Shmuley Boteach:

https://youtu.be/-R852-AViBY?si=v0p6BW6dz4dqszPY

In this episode, Eli is joined by Bruchim’s Director of Education Max DuBoff and Jewish journalist Mark Oppenheimer. This episode was recorded two days after Hamas’s October 7th attack  against Israel so the conversation starts with reactions to the news. The discussion then moves to the role of antisemitism in Jewish-American identity, the importance or lack thereof of denominations, and the right of a community to set its own identity boundaries. Mark shares his process for deciding to circumcise his son and talks about his impressions of Jews who have chosen to forgo circumcision.

Show Notes:

Mark’s book Squirrel Hill:

https://a.co/d/9mUk3cs

Pew Research Center's 2013 and 2020 reports on Jewish Americans:

https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2013/10/01/jewish-american-beliefs-attitudes-culture-survey/

https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2021/05/11/jewish-americans-in-2020

Medicalization and the Mainstreaming of Circumcision in Mid-twentieth-century
America by Elizabeth Reis

https://muse.jhu.edu/article/840015/pdf