The Interfaith Roundtable with Rabbi Mark – Details, episodes & analysis

After a year-and-a-half hiatus, Interfaith Roundtable returns! Rabbi Mark shares why this show matters now more than ever, creating space for curiosity, compassion, and connection across faiths without preaching or trying to convince anyone to believe a certain way.

In this comeback episode, Rabbi Mark welcomes his first guest back: Pastor Anna Ressler of Hebron Mennonite Church (Hagerstown). Together, they explore what drew Anna into ministry, what "discipleship" looks like in real life, and how Mennonite values like peace, simplicity, and community shape her work today. They also talk about navigating the religion/politics line, why interfaith relationships are so important, and how Anna uses theater and storytelling to make scripture more accessible, sometimes even writing short dramatic sketches for worship.

Rabbi Mark also reintroduces core themes of the show, including reflections on creation, free will, Tikkun Olam, and the purpose of prayer, plus a look at Jewish spiritual tradition through the lens of Abraham Joshua Heschel and a wordless nigun melody.

Sponsor: This episode of Interfaith Roundtable is sponsored by Andrew K. Coffman Funeral Home, Inc. Located at 40 East Antietam Street in Hagerstown, Maryland, the Coffman Funeral Home has served the community since 1925 as a full-service establishment committed to quality, dignity, and compassion, offering services including traditional funeral services, cremation, and coordination with other funeral homes for forwarding or receiving remains.

Want to connect with the show? Email Rabbi Mark at mjperman9@gmail.com.

Rabbi Mark speaks with Angela Moore who is a leader at UNHCR, and important U.N. Refugee Agency that is helping persecuted and displaced people find help and support as they struggle to build new lives free of terror, oppression, and, in some cases, exploitation.

Mark also interviews Cantor Barbara Ostfeld, who is the first woman ever to be ordained as a cantor in the Jewish faith. She talks about being a pioneer in a field that was for centuries exclusively male.

For the first half, Rabbi Mark is joined by fellow Hagerstown Area Religious Council members Rev. Jonathan Harris and Ashlee Harris of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They talk names and assumptions about members of their faith as well as their community and charity work. You can find out about volunteer opportunities at https://www.justserve.org/.   The second half features a chat with another HARC member, Father Todd Young of St. John's Episcopal Church. They discuss the openness of the Episcopal Church and how Father Todd navigates their message in the modern world.   You can find out more information about the Hagerstown Area Religious Council at harccoalition.org.

Listen to The Interfaith Roundtable with Rabbi Mark every Saturday morning on 98.9 FM/ AM 1490 WARK, with the podcast version airing at Listen Hagerstown.

First Rabbi Mark is joined by fellow Listen Frederick host Brian Donahue. Brian hosts The Big Sci-Fi Podcast, the Brian Donahue Show Podcast, as well as faith based podcasts. Brian also is a Minister at the Pursuit Friends Church in Northeast Ohio. Rabbi Mark and Brian talk about the intersection of his passions and podcasts. He unpacks his church motto Pray, Love, Live on Mission. The phrase was derived from the great commission where Jesus called his followers to reach out to others that need God. Finally they discuss the importance of faith when it comes to believing in the accuracy and infallibility of Scriptures.   Jane Powell works with the Literacy Council of Washington County. The council offers language classes to a large range of adults who need help with their literacy. She works with adults helping them in reading, writing and math with both native English speakers and with non-native speakers. Jane discusses what lead up to joining the Literary Council. What seemed to be her under qualified, second choice in the Literary Council quickly became her life.   Many students found the Literacy Center through the local community college who recommends their services to students who fail to meet the literacy requirements to under college. Jane covers the possibility of a stigma around illiteracy and why/how these notions should be dispelled. Jane shares that the  literacy program doesn't just stop within the building but Powell reaches out to schools as well as prisons.   You can find out more information about the Hagerstown Area Religious Council at harccoalition.org.

Listen to The Interfaith Roundtable with Rabbi Mark every Saturday morning on 98.9 FM/ AM 1490 WARK, with the podcast version airing at Listen Hagerstown.

Rabbi Mark speaks with Professor Robert H. Mnookin about the modern Jewish identity in America in celebration of the paperback release of his book, The Jewish American Paradox: Embracing Choice in a Changing World. Together they discuss four critical challenges that the modern American Jew comes across when it comes to their community.

Professor Mnookin flips the narrative and asks Rabbi Mark about his history, before the interview continues with anecdotes from Professor Mnookin's experience as a negotiator and his reflections on current events.

Robert H. Mnookin is the Samuel Williston Professor of Law at Harvard Law School, and for twenty-five years served as the Chair of the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School. He directs the Harvard Negotiation Research Project. A leading scholar in the field of conflict resolution, Professor Mnookin has applied his interdisciplinary approach to negotiation and conflict resolution to a remarkable range of problems; both public and private.

Professor Mnookin has written or edited ten books and numerous scholarly articles. His most recent books include Kissinger the Negotiator (with James K. Sebenius and R. Nicholas Burns); and Bargaining with the Devil: When to Negotiate, When to Fight.

Listen to The Interfaith Roundtable with Rabbi Mark every Saturday morning on 98.9 FM/ AM 1490 WARK, with the podcast version airing at Listen Hagerstown.

The Interfaith Roundtable is sponsored by The Andrew K. Coffman Funeral Home and F&M Trust.

This week Rabbi Mark sits down with Paula Myers to discuss Baháʼí Faith. Baháʼí is the unity of God, religion, and of all humanity. Ms. Myers explains that Baháʼí focuses on family in the home and being generous to all individuals. Paula even opens up her home (brownies included) to share the teachings. Even among interfaith discussing Baháʼí are taught not to ceaselessly argue with others.

The second guest is Rachel Bright, a Naturopathic Doctor as well as a holistic tradition practitioner. Naturopaths not only seek to help patients get through their symptoms but also seek to find the source of the ailment and treat it from there. She explains how a naturopathic practitioner isn't shackled by an insurance company like traditional doctors are. She finds that the modern medical field breaks up the body into small parts (otolaryngologists, dermatologists, oncologists) whereas naturopathic medicine looks at the body as a whole. She relates the body to a symphony saying every part of the body has a role to play and if their role is off the body will falter.

You can find out more information about the Hagerstown Area Religious Council at harccoalition.org.

Listen to The Interfaith Roundtable with Rabbi Mark every Saturday morning on 98.9 FM/ AM 1490 WARK, with the podcast version airing at Listen Hagerstown.

The Interfaith Roundtable is sponsored by The Andrew K. Coffman Funeral Home and F&M Trust.   Raed Haq met Rabbi Mark at a Quiznos. A bit of a surprising place to find a guest for a show exploring interfaith stories, right? However, it did lead to a wonderful discussion on Islam and the skewed perception many have on the religion. A member of The Islamic Society of Western Maryland, Raed re-discovered Islam in college and has since found a home in the religion. He and Rabbi Mark dive into the differences of Shia and Sunni, break down the context of some passages typically used against Muslims, and find a common goal in wanting others to understand their faith.   In the second half, Rabbi Mark is joined by Reverend Les McIntosh, Sr. of Impact Ministries in Hagerstown. They discuss his philosophy on spreading the gospel, as well as Impact's contributions to the local community.   You can find out more information about the Hagerstown Area Religious Council at harccoalition.org.

Listen to The Interfaith Roundtable with Rabbi Mark every Saturday morning on 98.9 FM/ AM 1490 WARK, with the podcast version airing at Listen Hagerstown.

The Interfaith Roundtable is sponsored by The Andrew K. Coffman Funeral Home and F&M Trust.   Dr. Kerry Olitzky joins Rabbi Mark and Elizabeth to discuss how he is helping recovering addicts and how fundamental Jewish principle's can help and transform recovering addicts. Dr. Olitzky is the former executive director of Big Tent Judiasm  and also happened to be Rabbi Mark's professor back at Hebrew Union College. Dr Olitzky is a prolific author penning over 75 books on Judiasm as well as children's books. The principles discussed in this episode are all outlined in his book Twelve Jewish Steps to Recovery.
The second guest on today's show is Belladonna Laveau who is a practicing Wiccan and is Matriarch and Archpriestess of the Aquarian Tabernacle Church International. She is also the Dean of an online Wiccan College Woolston-Steen Theological Seminary which is the first and only Wiccan sponsored College. Laveau unpacks her journey to Wicca and hardships she's faced because of her religion. She dispels popular misinformation on the belief and shares how there is common ground in Wicca with many other popular religions.   Send your thoughts on the show or suggestions on topics you would like to hear discussed to MJPerman9@gmail.com!

Listen to The Interfaith Roundtable with Rabbi Mark every Saturday morning on 98.9 FM/ AM 1490 WARK, with the podcast version airing at Listen Hagerstown.

The Interfaith Roundtable is sponsored by The Andrew K. Coffman Funeral Home and F&M Trust.

In the first half of this week's show Rabbi Mark muses on why he started the show and explains how we can use our gifts for not only our benefit but ultimately God's purpose. He then goes into the Jewish teaching of Kabbalah and how many misunderstand the mystic Jewish discipline. Rabbi Mark then takes us through a meditative exercise to practice mindfulness to show us an example of Kabbalist meditation. 

In the second half Rabbi Mark is joined by Pastor Steve Humphrey. Pastor Humphrey is head Pastor Otterbein United Methodist Church. John Wesley and the origins of the Methodist Movement are discussed. He explains how the Methodist movement not only seeks personal transformation but also transformation on a societal level. One of the final topics they cover is what Pastor Humphrey describes as the decline of mainstream religion and  the rise of religious extremist as well as how politics are intercepting and co-oping religious teachings.

Rabbi Mark is joined by Ukrainian Christian Volodymyr Grinchenko. He talks about how he grew up in a secular Jewish family in Southern Ukraine but was converted by missionaries which led him on a path to come to America and obtain a a master's degree in practical theology and a doctorate in pastoral psychotherapy.   Together they wrestle with the idea of the concept of evil and why a creator would allow murder and atrocities in the world. On that note, Volodymyr speaks on his family's current struggles living in Ukraine during wartime and how spiritual people should react to war. He covers a number of topics relating to Ukrainian society and religious matters like the topic of religious freedoms in Ukraine and anti-semitism in Ukraine.   They end their discussion on Christmas and what is the spirit of Christmas and how to keep it alive.   You can find out more information about the Hagerstown Area Religious Council at harccoalition.org.

Listen to The Interfaith Roundtable with Rabbi Mark every Saturday morning on 98.9 FM/ AM 1490 WARK, with the podcast version airing at Listen Hagerstown.