Rabbi 360

As Evolve winds down, Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D. talks with Rabbi Jacob Staub, Ph.D., the project's founding director, who has been part of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College for more than 50 years as a student, professor, vice president for academic affairs, and editor of The Reconstructionist. Together they trace how a surprising path from academia led Staub to a career that combined scholarship, writing and rabbinic work, and how that path eventually led to Evolve. They revisit how Evolve began, with a survey of Reconstructionist rabbis about the issues that mattered most to them, and the essays that followed on technology, race, gender and sexual orientation, antisemitism, social justice and more. Staub and Waxman discuss what it means to build a movement around the idea that everything evolves, and how Evolve became a place where rabbis and community leaders could share what they were learning and theorize about it. They also talk about the craft of editing, Evolve's lasting legacy and what it takes to trust the future in difficult times. Even as we say goodbye for now, every essay remains available on the Evolve site. Essays discussed in this episode: “Harnessing Technology” by Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D. and Rabbi Nathan Kamesar https://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org/harnessing-technology/ “Racism in the Jewish Community” by Rabbi Sandra Lawson and Rabbi Donna Cephas https://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org/racism-in-the-jewish-community/ “Slavery and Its Atonement” by Rabbi Toba Spitzer https://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org/slavery-and-its-atonement/ “Preparing Our Communities for Conversations on Race” by Rabbi Joshua Lesser https://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org/preparing-conversations-race/ “Radical Inclusion” by Aurora Levins Morales https://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org/radical-inclusion/ “Being White is Not the Jewish Norm: How the Mishnah Can Help Us Deconstruct a White-normative Approach to Judaism” by Rabbi Amin Langer https://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org/beingwhiteisnotthejewishnorm/ “Kumi: Addressing Antisemitism and Racism, Both Outside and Within Jewish Spaces” by Rebecca Ezersky https://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org/kumi-addressing-antisemitism-and-racism-both-outside-and-within-jewish-spaces/ “Are Trans Women Obligated in Niddah? (Jewish Menstrual Law): Embracing Halakhah That Was Not Addressed to You” by Rabbi Xavi De Cordova https://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org/are-trans-women-obligated-in-niddah-jewish-menstrual-law-embracing-halakhah-that-was-not-addressed-to-you/ Theme song, “Ilu Finu” by Rabbi Miriam Margles. Her album This is the Day is available for purchase at CDBaby: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/miriammarglesandthehadarensemb Visit our home on the web — Evolve: Groundbreaking Jewish Conversations: http://evolve.reconstructingjudaism.org Subscribe by Email at http://subscribebyemail.com/evolve.fireside.fm/rss Read these show notes on the web at https://evolve.fireside.fm/1 This podcast is produced by Reconstructing Judaism. Visit us at ReconstructingJudaism.org.Special Guest: Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D..Support EvolveLinks:Rooted & Relevant: The Newsletter of Reconstructing Judaism — Rooted & Relevant brings you Jewish ideas, inspiring stories, learning opportunities and resources from across the Reconstructionist movement.