To what degree should we assimilate non Jewish thought and culture into our intellectual, emotional, and spiritual lives? And to what degree does that question affect the way that we celebrate Chanukah? Rav Shimshon Raphael Hirsch expressed this tension directly when he wrote the following words: Chanukah represents the clash of two doctrines, two views, two civilizations, capable of molding opinions, training and educating those who until this very day compete for the mastery of the world. Hellenism and Judaism: These are the two forces whose effect upon the nations mark the historical development of mankind, and which surfaced in Judea for the first time in the days of Mattathias. Hellenism and Judaism: when examined in depth they are the two leading forces which today again are struggling for mastery in the Jewish world. Today I'm honored to host two talmidei chachamim who identify as Hirschians: Rabbi Yitzchok Adlerstein and Rabbi Raphael Zarum - and despite their shared reverence for the thought of Rav Hirsch, they approach this question, and their understanding of Chanukah, in very different ways. Rabbi Adlerstein leans into Chanukah as a celebration of Jewish individuality, the need for contrast and clarity. Only when we have a crystal clear awareness of the differences between Torah culture and Hellenic culture can we safely draw from the outside without losing ourselves. Chanukah, he says, is an expression of Jewish difference. Rabbi Zarum, in contrast, sees Chanukah quite differently. He believes that Chanukah highlights overlap as well as contrast. He points to the fact that we light candles at twilight right outside our homes - on the boundary between day and night, between our homes and the outside world - as emblematic of the challenge of going close to another culture without losing our own sense of self. He captures it by saying that we should assimilate it and not be assimilated by it. And then we move this discussion into a direction especially relevant to 2025, because engagement with culture today often refers to something very different from the best of Western thought. It is less Milton and more Netflix, which raises the stakes of this entire debate. So even if we agree that engaging with Western culture is a net positive, how much should we allow ourselves to be enriched by the low culture of movie ns and popula

A tragic drunk driving case in Lakewood has pushed an uncomfortable question to the surface. What happens when "Toameha," kiddush clubs and casual drinking culture quietly normalize alcohol misuse in our homes and shuls, especially for the teenagers who are watching us... and what happens when that same culture is surrounded by designer logos, luxury Shabbat tables and endless talk about hotels and vacations? In this episode, I speak with Rabbi Jonathan Muskat and mental health counselor Rachel Tuchman about the growing Toameha phenomenon, problem drinking that does not always look like classic alcoholism, and conspicuous indulgence in luxury in the Orthodox world. Together we explore what all of this is teaching our children about Torah values, tzniut and success, and how parents, educators and communities can begin to change the conversation without pretending that any of us are immune. Check out Orthodox Conundrum Commentary on Substack and get your free subscription by going to https://scottkahn.substack.com/. We're excited to announce that we at Jewish Coffee House are continuing to expand the conversation by bringing you—our listeners—into the mix. Introducing JCH Q&A, an exciting new podcast where listener-submitted questions are answered in a thoughtful, honest, and engaging way. We plan to dive deep into your pressing hashkafic, political, and philosophical questions. We will address the ideas that matter, the issues that challange us, and the topics that spark real curiosity. To submit a question for our first episode, you must be a member of the JCH Podcast WhatsApp Community. (Join here.) No question is off limits, and all submissions will remain anonymous. We're looking forward to answering your questions on our first episode! Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at

In the past two years many Jews have felt as if the world they thought they knew simply disappeared. Western democracies, universities, and social justice spaces that once seemed welcoming - or at least somewhat neutral - have turned openly hostile toward Israel and the Jewish people. At the center of much of this hatred is a familiar accusation: that Jews think they are chosen, and accordingly, Jews think they are better. While we wholeheartedly reject the antisemitism implicit in this assertion, we need to honestly confront what the idea of a chosen people means, and what it says about our role on the world stage. Equally important is the question of what the concept of chosenness implies about the other nations of the world which, presumably, are somehow not chosen. Does that mean they're rejected? And for that matter, why did God choose a people in the first place, rather than eliminating the concept altogether? In this episode I speak with Tanach scholar Yael Leibowitz about what chosenness actually means in the Bible, and what it does not mean. We look at the earliest stories in Bereishit from Cain and Hevel, to the Tower of Bavel, to Abraham, Sodom and Gemorrah, and Saul and Amalek and ask what they can teach us about Jewish distinctiveness, responsibility, and the rage that difference can provoke. We also talk about how Tanach should and should not be used as a guide to contemporary geopolitics; the danger of turning verses into an inappropriate defense of ultranationalism; and what it means to insist on moral clarity about evil like the atrocities of October 7, while retaining a sense of nuance and avoiding simplistic, reductionist thinking. In particular, I was fascinated by Yael's contention that the stories of Tanach represent repeating motifs that recur throughout human and Jewish history. In this way, Tanach teaches us as much about the present as about what happened millennia ago. At the same time, Yael openly addresses the flip side of that coin by talking about why certain events in Tanach cannot be seen as norms that should be implemented today. If you have ever struggled with the idea of the chosen people, or wondered how to defend it in a world that uses it against us, this conversation is for you. To order Yael's new book Ezra-Nehemiah: Retrograde Revolution,

Back in August, I released a conversation with Rabbi Yakov Horowitz about Orthodox parents whose children come out as LGBTQ. The feedback to that episode was intense. Some listeners wrote that they finally felt seen. Others said that they were deeply uncomfortable. Quite a few parents asked what they should actually do when their son or daughter comes out to them, and how they can respond with genuine love while remaining faithful to halacha. Those questions are not theoretical. They are deeply personal, and they are coming from people who keep Shabbat, send their kids to day schools, sit in our shuls, and are trying to raise their families as loyal Torah Jews. Ignoring them does not make them go away. Today I am speaking with two people who have decided not to look away. Rabbi Menachem Penner is the former dean of RIETS and currently serves as the executive vice president of the Rabbinical Council of America. Together with his wife Adeena he founded Kesher Families, an organization that supports Orthodox parents of LGBTQ children. Rabbi Yakov Horowitz is the founder of Project YES and a co leader of Kesher Families, and he joined me for that earlier conversation. In this episode we talk about what moved the Penners to start Kesher Families, what it was like for Rabbi Penner to be a very public rabbinic figure when his son came out, and why they chose to share their family story with the broader community. We discuss the first things a parent should and should not say when a child comes out, the confusion that many young people feel as they try to understand their own sexual identity, and how parents can balance acceptance of what a child is telling them with the awareness that some parts of the story may still be unfolding. We also look at how attitudes in the Orthodox world have changed over the past decade, what has improved, what remains painful, and whether it is really possible to increase compassion and understanding without abandoning our mesorah. And finally, I ask both of my guests what single message they most want the Orthodox community to hear about LGBTQ children and their families. To learn more about all that Dreamearly does, go to https://dreamearly.co/. Make sure

Zohran Mamdani - a politician who openly rejects Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state, yet insists that this has nothing to do with antisemitism - is now the mayor-elect of New York City. He points to a small number of Jewish supporters as evidence, while promoting a worldview in which Israel is framed as a genocidal, apartheid project. New York is home to the largest Jewish community in the diaspora. When that city elects a proudly anti-Zionist mayor, it sends a message far beyond one municipality. It raises hard questions: What does it mean for Jewish security, for public discourse about Israel, and for the way younger Jews understand the connection between antisemitism and anti-Zionism? Does this moment push more Jews to consider aliyah, or does it demand that they stay and push back? And what does kiruv look like in an atmosphere saturated with hostility, confusion, and ideological pressure? My guest confronts these questions every day. Rabbi Mark Wildes is the founder of Manhattan Jewish Experience, which has spent decades helping unaffiliated Jews in their 20s and 30s build a deeper relationship with Torah, Shabbat, and the Jewish people. In our conversation, we talk about what he fears will tangibly change on the ground as a result of Mamdani's election, why the supposed split between anti-Zionism and antisemitism is so dangerous, and how Rabbi Wildes speaks to students who are center-left, skeptical about Israel, or openly anti-Zionist. We also discuss his new book, The Jewish Experience: why he chose to organize basic Judaism around the concepts of God, Torah, prayer, Shabbat, chesed, and tikkun olam; why Shabbat and Jewish wisdom are the best first steps for Jews who feel worn down by the headlines; and how to reclaim tikkun olam from its political distortions without abandoning the real Torah value behind it. We also look at "spreadsheet kiruv," which emphasizes metrics in determining how successful an outreach program is; how outreach can avoid treating people as projects, and why one small act — a Shabbat meal, a class, even a moment of being pulled into a dance circle — can change a Jewish life in ways none of us may even recognize. This is a wide-ranging conversation that touches on so many aspects of ki

In recent weeks we have watched something many of us hoped we would not see in the United States: openly anti-Zionist and even openly antisemitic voices moving from the margins into the mainstream. Zohran Mamdani's victory in New York raises the chilling possibility that hostility to Israel is now an electoral asset. At the same time, parts of the American right are flirting with figures like Nick Fuentes, a Holocaust denier who says Jews do not belong in Western civilization. To make sense of this moment, I spoke with Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO and National Director of the Anti Defamation League. We discussed why anti-Zionism is, in most cases, antisemitism; what Mamdani's rise should signal to American Jews; why some university leaders defend the indefensible; where the Jewish community itself has made mistakes in fighting antisemitism; how to confront hatred coming from both sides of the political spectrum without turning it into a partisan game; and more. This is a blunt, timely, and deeply important conversation for anyone who cares about Jewish security and moral clarity in public life. Check out Orthodox Conundrum Commentary on Substack and get your free subscription by going to https://scottkahn.substack.com/. We're excited to announce that we at Jewish Coffee House are continuing to expand the conversation by bringing you—our listeners—into the mix. Introducing JCH Q&A, an exciting new podcast where listener-submitted questions are answered in a thoughtful, honest, and engaging way. We plan to dive deep into your pressing hashkafic, political, and philosophical questions. We will address the ideas that matter, the issues that challange us, and the topics that spark real curiosity. To submit a question for our first episode, you must be a member of the JCH Podcast WhatsApp Community. (Join here.) No question is off limits, and all submissions will remain anonymous. We're looking forward to answering your questions on our first episode! Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108

Is Jewish unity even possible? In this urgent episode Rav Yosef Zvi Rimon faces the hardest questions raised by the draft crisis and by the widening gaps between Charedi, Dati Leumi, Modern Orthodox, Traditional, and Secular Jews. He explains why unity is not a slogan but a practical necessity and religious obligation with real consequences for security, community, and our shared future. With clarity and empathy he maps a path for principled disagreement, mutual responsibility, and practical steps that families, shuls, and schools can take right now. If you are tired of talking points and want a serious plan for healing rifts while staying true to conviction, this conversation is for you. Check out Orthodox Conundrum Commentary on Substack and get your free subscription by going to https://scottkahn.substack.com/. We're excited to announce that we at Jewish Coffee House are continuing to expand the conversation by bringing you—our listeners—into the mix. Introducing JCH Q&A, an exciting new podcast where listener-submitted questions are answered in a thoughtful, honest, and engaging way. We plan to dive deep into your pressing hashkafic, political, and philosophical questions. We will address the ideas that matter, the issues that challange us, and the topics that spark real curiosity. To submit a question for our first episode, you must be a member of the JCH Podcast WhatsApp Community. (Join here.) No question is off limits, and all submissions will remain anonymous. We're looking forward to answering your questions on our first episode! Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out

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Charlie Kirk's assassination is a shocking, tragic act of violence. Murder is a desecration of the image of God, full stop. We condemn it unequivocally, and we pray for comfort for his family and for all who were harmed. At the same time, Charlie Kirk ...

Is it possible—maybe even Jewish—to be angry at God? From Abraham's challenge at Sodom to Job's cries of despair, Tanach is filled with voices that confront the Divine. But what does that mean for us today, when we struggle with personal tragedy, globa...

This episode is partially a detective story, partially an analysis of daring ideas, and partially an invitation to discover new methodolgies of confronting challenges to Orthodox Judaism. Rav Kook drafted L'Nevuchei HaDor over a century ago—then the ma...

As one 929 cycle ends and the next begins, Scott talks with Rabbi Benny Lau—founder of 929—about why the project started, what it hopes to change in Jewish life, and what a shared, chapter-a-day cadence can build across communities. They also tackle th...

When a child shares something deeply personal about his or her sexual orientation, Orthodox parents can feel love, concern, and uncertainty all at once. In this conversation, Rabbi Yakov Horowitz reflects on what he's learned working with families and ...

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From biblical lions to the bizarre "Zionist crocodile plot," Israel's wildlife tells a story that shatters modern anti-Israel myths. In his new book Lions of Zion, Rabbi Dr. Natan Slifkin reveals how the animals of the Land of Israel — past and present...

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Obesity is now responsible for more deaths in the United States than smoking—yet the Orthodox Jewish community rarely addresses it as either a public health emergency or a halachic concern. In this eye-opening episode, Scott speaks with Dr. Sharon Gros...

Is the Charedi community prepared to confront the demands of real life—economic, civic, and national—or has it built a worldview that prizes withdrawal over responsibility? In this provocative and thoughtful episode, Dayan Yehoshua Pfeffer joins Scott ...