In this first installment of a special two-part conversation, Rabbi Yoshi sits down live with Rabbi Ed Feinstein, longtime senior rabbi of Valley Beth Shalom, and Rabbi David Woznica, who has served Stephen Wise Temple for more than two decades.

Recorded on International Holocaust Remembrance Day — just one day after the return of Ran Gvili, the last hostage — this dialogue unfolds at a moment of profound weight for the Jewish community and for American society.

Rather than beginning with politics, the conversation begins with story.

Rabbi Feinstein and Rabbi Woznica reflect on growing up Jewish in Los Angeles, unexpected and sometimes rebellious paths into the rabbinate, and how their understanding of God has evolved over decades of spiritual leadership. They speak candidly about what sustains a life in the rabbinate — and what it costs. About faith and doubt. About calling and responsibility. About the quiet, unseen burdens and the profound privileges of serving a Jewish community.

Honest, searching, and at times unexpectedly tender, this episode invites listeners into a deeply personal exploration of what it means to lead — and to live — with meaning.

Part II of this conversation explores Israel, antisemitism, America, and the future of Jewish leadership.

Stay tuned and be inspired.

In this episode of Search for Meaning, Rabbi Yoshi Zweiback sits down with Cantor Lauren Blasband-Roth for a thoughtful conversation about vocation, music, and Jewish life. Lauren shares her journey to the cantorate, reflecting on her Brooklyn roots, the influence of her family, and the experiences that shaped her love of Judaism and song.

The conversation explores what surprised her most about becoming a cantor, the joys and challenges of clergy life, and the ways music opens hearts and builds connection. Lauren also speaks about her passion for Jewish education, her work teaching learners of all ages, and her special connection with her fifth-grade class and bar and bat mitzvah students.

Along the way, Rabbi Zweiback reflects on what a gift it has been to welcome Lauren as a colleague at Wise, highlighting the beautiful voice, intelligence, and warmth she brings to the community, and the meaningful partnership she shares with Cantor Emma.

A warm and inspiring episode about calling, teaching, and the power of music to shape Jewish spiritual life.

https://www.laurenblasband-roth.com/

In this episode of Search for Meaning, Rabbi Yoshi Zweiback sits down with Professor Michal Bar-Asher Siegal, one of today’s leading scholars of rabbinic Judaism and early Christianity. Their conversation ranges from the ancient world to our own moment, exploring how religious traditions take shape through encounter, disagreement, and relationship.

Rabbi Yoshi first encountered Michal’s work in Israel during the World Zionist Congress, where her lecture left a lasting impression. In this episode, she shares her personal and intellectual journey—from growing up in an ultra-Orthodox Jewish world, at a time when it was still rare for women to pursue advanced Talmudic study, to becoming a major voice in the academic study of Jewish–Christian interactions in Late Antiquity.

Michal discusses her groundbreaking research comparing rabbinic texts and early Christian and monastic literature, including insights from her award-winning books Early Christian Monastic Literature and the Babylonian Talmud and Jewish–Christian Dialogues on Scripture in Late Antiquity. She explains how ancient texts reveal moments of dialogue and shared interpretation where we often assume only separation—and why those discoveries still matter today.

The conversation also turns to the present: living and teaching in Israel during painful and uncertain years, what ancient texts can teach us about resilience and endurance, and how scholarship can help us hold complexity without losing hope.

This episode is an invitation to think more deeply about boundaries and belonging, inter-religious dialogue, and the enduring power of learning to illuminate both the past and the present.

https://in.bgu.ac.il/en/humsos/goldstein-goren/pages/staff/Michal-Bar-Asher-Siegal.aspx