The Vibe of the Tribe

The Vibe of the Tribe recently asked you, our listeners and members of the community, what questions you’ve always had about Judaism. Turns out, you had a lot of questions, like: Where do Jewish prayers come from? What really makes food kosher? What’s the difference between Jewish denominations? Why do many Jews cover their heads, and why such a sartorial variety of hats, scarves, snoods and wigs? What do acronyms like Z”L and B”H stand for? And, really, what’s up with the celebrity...

When she was a child, human rights activist and educator Dr. Shula Mola and her family fled Ethiopia for Israel. As they and other members of the Beta Israel Ethiopian Jewish community embarked on this harrowing journey through Sudan, Dr. Mola dreamed of their goal—a return to Jerusalem, and reuniting in community with other Jews at the Beit HaMikdash (holy temple) in Jerusalem. The gap between the dream and the reality of coming to the State of Israel as refugees was massive and often...

Spooky season is upon us, and that means it’s time for The Vibe of the Tribe’s annual Halloween episode with author and occult and sci-fi expert Peter Bebergal! This year, we’ve left our usual haunted graveyards and golem attics to explore the horror themes, Jewish parallels and otherworldly allure of science fiction for Jewish writers and creators. Tune in to this discussion of how the sci-fi genre has been influenced by Jewish hopes and fears by writers and artists like Isaac Asimov and...

How much do we really know about the lives of our parents and the secrets they’ve kept in their past? How do we delineate fiction from fact in our family histories? What parts are real and what parts have we needed to be real? Many people may wonder, but few actually embark on a quest to uncover the truth. Judy Bolton-Fasman, one among the rare few who have done it, was brave enough to recount in a gripping memoir her search for the familial mysteries that have haunted her life. The beloved...

In “a long-expected” episode, The Vibe of the Tribe celebrates the 20th anniversary of the cinematic release of the iconic fantasy film “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.” Join Miriam and guest Jesse Ulrich of Pod4Good as they harness the power of their mutual nerd interests (Judaism and fantasy literature) to set forth on a quest to understand the world of author J.R.R. Tolkien through a Jewish lens. They explore Tolkien’s own words on how Jewish history, culture and...

We exist in an era when the Jewish rituals around mourning—such as sitting shiva and saying kaddish—make frequent appearances in popular culture, from Marvel TV shows to films to Broadway plays. There is, however, significantly less attention paid to the other rituals around death, ones that are fundamental to understanding how Judaism sees the role of the living in caring for the dead. The Hevra Kadisha, or holy society, comprises highly-trained volunteers who take care of the deceased with...

Antisemitism: What’s new with the oldest hatred? It’s a difficult question to ask, but we did it anyway. Dr. Rachel Fish (https://rachelfish.com), a nationally recognized expert on how to confront Jew hate, joins us on The Vibe of the Tribe as Greater Boston and the rest of the country have experienced a surge in anti-Israel actions and hate crimes against Jews. Dr. Fish discusses tips for students of all ages returning to school amid the ongoing rise in anti-Jewish and anti-Zionist...

As a Jewish podcast, it’s only natural we want to be BFFs with other Jewish podcasts. After all, we’re a small corner of the podcast universe, and us Jewish podcasters need to stick together! On this episode, we welcome local rabbis Jen Gubitz and Jodie Gordon, co-hosts of the new podcast “OMfG: Jewish Wisdom for Unprecedented Times,” a project that came into being from text message exchanges of ideas, fears and humor during the darkest moments of the pandemic. Their new podcast—whose title...

To say that we all collectively could use a laugh is a vast understatement. Luckily, rabbi, humorist, author, interfaith leader, academic, community activist and “disciple of joy” Reb Moshe Waldoks joins us to lift our spirits. The author of the classic and comprehensive “The Big Book of Jewish Humor,” Reb Moshe takes The Vibe of the Tribe mic (and doesn’t let go) to share his story and philosophy. Tune in and laugh along as he describes building a vibrant community at Temple Beth Zion in...

From the time she wrote her 2015 essay that went viral, “A Letter to My Son Jacob on His 5th Birthday,” Mimi Lemay became more than the mother of a young trans boy—she became an activist, fighting for his rights and thousands of others facing misunderstanding at best and outright harassment and discrimination at worst. Her son Jacob, born “Em” (a pseudonym), knew before he was 3 that his birth gender didn’t match who he was. Through his transformation to his true self, he took a journey that...

Did you know that much of Judaism’s calendar cycle, rituals and practices grew from ancient Israel’s agricultural rhythms? As Jews in New England, we can sometimes feel disconnected from those seasonal patterns (lookin’ at you, Tu BiShvat in January!). Luckily, Leora Mallach, co-founder and executive director of Beantown Jewish Gardens, is here to give us all the dirt on Judaism’s ecological backstory. Beantown Jewish Gardens builds Jewish community through experiential education rooted in...

Jake Cohen loves food. We love food. And we love Jake Cohen. Hailed as “the creative, youthful future of Jewish food” by icon Joan Nathan, Cohen is known for, among many other things, his zesty Instagram presence and blending his Ashkenazi food heritage with his husband’s Persian Iraqi Jewish traditions. The nice Jewish boy, culinary creative genius and New York Times bestselling author behind the new “Jew-ish: A Cookbook: Reinvented Recipes from a Modern Mensch” joins us to discuss the...

It has taken the Jewish communal world a long time to reckon with intermarriage. And the evolution of attitude—from gloom and doom to gradual, partial acceptance—has been decades in the making and is ongoing. For generations, the health of the Jewish population in America was measured largely by one statistic—the percentage of Jews intermarrying. And it’s a number that has steadily increased since 1970. Yet one historian noted, “Statistical data inform us of structure, not content.” The...

If you have yet to pick your jaw up from the floor after watching “Shtisel” Season 3, you’re not alone. Join a completely verklempt Miriam and Dan for a spoiler-filled recap with special guest Dr. Shayna Weiss, associate director of the Shusterman Center for Israel Studies at Brandeis University, and an expert in Israeli culture and entertainment (and definitive “Shtisel” authority!). We deconstruct the entire season, from the shocking premiere plot twist a la “The Sixth Sense” to the...

The list of great Jewish-themed horror films is woefully short. But there’s a new front-runner in this niche category—a legit horror film that is religiously accurate, sprinkled with Yiddish and leave-the-lights-on-don’t-watch-alone scary. Meet “The Vigil.” Steeped in ancient Jewish lore and demonology, writer and director Keith Thomas’s debut feature film tells the story of a young man named Yakov (Dave Davis of “The Walking Dead” and “Logan”) who is persuaded to watch over the body of a...

The JewishBoston crew observes a sacred Jewish tradition as old as, well, as old as 1998. To get in the Passover spirit, Miriam, Dan and Ashley, joined by former colleague and The Vibe of the Tribe founder Jesse Ulrich, rewatched the animated musical film “The Prince of Egypt.” We discuss some very notable differences between the Torah text and the cinematic story, ask if everything really needs to be a musical montage and admit that the golden calf we worship is, in fact, Jeff Goldblum....

If there was ever a time when comfort food was important, it’s right now, in the interminable miserable pandemic year. Luckily, chef Paula Shoyer, also known as “The Kosher Baker,” joins Ashley and Miriam on this episode to teach us how to “eat our feelings” in a nourishing way that connects us to each other and our culinary traditions—despite the distance. Shoyer also shares what people have been craving most during the pandemic (hello, babka!), practical advice for both new and seasoned...

February is Jewish Disability Awareness, Acceptance and Inclusion Month, a unified effort among Jewish organizations worldwide to raise awareness and foster acceptance and inclusion of people with disabilities and mental health conditions and those who love them. To mark the month, The Vibe of the Tribe spoke with one of the most prominent leaders of the disability rights movement—Judy Heumann. If you’ve benefited from building ramps, extended time on tests or even standing desks, Heumann...

In our recent episode “Heaven and Hell in Judaism” (jewishboston.com/the-vibe-of-the-tribe-podcast-heaven-and-hell-in-judaism), co-hosts Miriam and Dan dove into Jewish teachings about the afterlife with guest Rabbi Baruch HaLevi. That conversation led us to another question: If the soul endures, can we make contact with departed loved ones? And how might that fit into Jewish ideas about the journey of our souls through this world and “the world to come”? So, we are happy to welcome Rabbi...

On Jan. 5, 2020, Miriam and Dan embarked on a seven-and-a-half-year journey simultaneously with tens of thousands of people across the world. Their collective quest? To participate in Daf Yomi (literally “daily page”), the ongoing daily sequential study of the Babylonian Talmud. Does studying one page of Talmud each day seem easy to you? Pardon Miriam and Dan while they laugh and cry hysterically. The Talmud is a multi-generational codification of Judaism’s oral Torah, with crammed analysis,...