Chutzpod!

Even if you can’t make it to Aspen you can hear Rabbi Shira’s sermon for Yom Kippur this year. Drawing on her own experience visiting the Langa Township in Cape Town, South Africa, the Yom Kippur Haftarah reading and some Ursula LeGuin, Shira urges us all to “shrink the frame” to a human-sized small town of responsibility, practice Teshuvah and reject willful blindness. Watch this sermon Read The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas Read the Yom Kippur Haftarah reading Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Chutzpod on YouTube Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Chutzpod is back to usher everyone into the New Year! And as we approach 5787, a listener wonders how to show up authentically, even if that means bringing the mood down. Rabbi Shira and Hanna wonder why we feel pressure to have a “happy” new year and encourage everyone not to bring the Jewish equivalent of a sanitized Christmas letter to their high holiday celebrations. Read This Is Real and You Are Completely Unprepared Read about the Unetanah Tokef Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Chutzpod on YouTube Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Listen to this special bonus episode recorded live at Aspen Jewish Congregation on August 12, 2026. As America approaches 250 years, this conversation looks at the enduring relationship between Jewish life and the American experiment. Through historical reflection and contemporary insight, speakers will explore how Jewish tradition and democratic ideals have shaped one another—and what that long story asks of us now. This conversation features Rabbi Sharon Brous , Founder and Senior Rabbi of IKAR, Eric Cohen , President and CEO of Tikvah, and moderator Jeffrey Goldberg , Editor-in-Chief, The Atlantic. Chutzpod will be back with new episodes September 9th! Need advice from Hanna and Shira? Submit your questions to chutzpod@gmail.com. And make sure you're subscribed. Listen to Rabbi Brous on Chutzpod! More AJC conversations Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Chutzpod is coming back with new episodes and new real-life questions September 9th! Rabbi Shira and Hanna will talk about when to see a rabbi over a therapist, how to navigate a mixed-observance marriage and is believing in aliens Jewish?? Subscribe to automatically get all new episodes. And submit your own questions to be featured on an episode! Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

In our Season 7 finale, Hanna again poses as a yeshiva bocher. Shira takes her through a very special double Torah portion: Achrei Mot-Kedoshim Leviticus 16:1–20:27. She talks about why Leviticus is such a grab bag of rules and laws with seemingly no real narrative order, some of the more controversial laws on sex, homosexuality and female impurity and how to view this part of the Torah as a guide to holiness in daily life, especially in a contemporary world that is often too cruel. Read Achrei Mot-Kedoshim Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

What does Judaism say about accepting “dirty” money? A listener has been watching the online debate about how her alma mater should handle money from a prominent donor associated with Jeffery Epstein. She asks how does Jewish tradition handle this moral predicament? And at what point are institutions complicit spiritually and ethically when they accept tainted funds? Rabbi Shira and Hanna talk about when tzedakah becomes murky and how to be accountable morally and practically. Listen to Responsa Radio’s “Can Nonprofits Accept Money from Crooks?” Read about accepting and using stolen money Read about using a stolen lulav Read Rabbi Sharon Brous’ sermon on the stolen beam Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Is covering your mirrors during shiva a superstition or Jewish law? What about breaking the glass at a wedding? Tashlich? Rabbi Shira and Hanna discuss the ideas of Jewish luck and bad luck and where they fit into law and tradition. And they welcome a VERY special guest – Hanna’s mother Miriam. Her sister has had a string of bad accidents and she wants to know if changing her mezuzah will ward off future health scares. Read more on Jewish superstitions Mezuzah 101 Check your mezuzah Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Is it Kosher to question Kashrut? A listener writes, “Why do Jews have Kosher rules? And how would you suggest a previously unobservant Jew approach Kashrut, if at all?” Rabbi Shira admits that teaching the laws of kashrut is one of the hardest things she has to do as a rabbi. She does her best to make sense of it all and gives her best pitch for a mindfulness-based Jewish eating practice. FAQ about Kosher laws Read more about keeping Kosher in a non-Kosher world Read Maimonides' commentary on the laws of Kashrut Grow and Behold Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Wine is central to Jewish ritual, but what if drinking isn’t safe for you? A listener in recovery dreads what used to be his favorite holiday, Passover. He writes that he dreads all the wine talk and dreads having to explain why he's opting out. He asks, "Can I skip the Seder this year?" Rabbi Shira and Hanna are joined by Rabbi Sue Reinhold of the Torah of Recovery to explore why wine matters, how Judaism understands both joy and danger in drinking, the stigma around addiction in Jewish communities and practical ways to participate, or not. Contact Rabbi Sue Reinhold Study Torah of Recovery Find a Seder Read about addiction in the Torah Read about free will in the Torah, Free Will, by Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

With the world feeling particularly heavy, Rabbi Shira and Hanna wonder if, in addition to moments of anger and resistance, they can find a way to bring joy into this year’s Passover Seder. They’re joined by Rav Jericho Vincent , the founding rabbi of Temple of the Stranger , a growing mystical Jewish community in Brooklyn, NY. Listen to Jericho’s podcast Survival Guide for a Spiritual Wilderness Read Jericho’s substack Read Jericho’s scholarship on the Torah of Miriam Watch Debbie Friedman's "Miriam's Song" arranged/produced by Daniel Raijman Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

After a listener misgenders someone at synagogue, a torrent of feelings, recriminations and emails ensue, leading one congregant to email another with the subject “Hey Asshole.” Rabbi Shira and Hanna welcome Rabbi Lily Solochek of The Liberal Jewish Synagogue in London, whose work focuses on creating inclusive Jewish communities, especially for queer and trans people and families. Visit The Liberal Jewish Synagogue in London Learn more about Rabbi Lily Solochek Read about Joseph's ornamented coat Read about Sarah as a tumtum Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Is Botox kosher? What about filler, extensions or hair dye? Can a good Jew be too vain? And does Judaism value beauty? A listener reaches out for help when her two daughters are horrified to discover their feminist mom has a secret desire for luxurious lashes. Rabbi Shira and Hanna help her navigate personal vanity, Jewish values and 21st century parenting. And they reveal their own insecurities and zoom primping rituals. Read more about Joseph & beauty in the Torah Read more about hospitality, vanity and beauty Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

We’re back for Season 7! Purim is a time to reveal the hidden, unmask your shadow self and, perhaps, get super sloshed. But a listener wonders about having a psychedelic experience on Purim. Rabbi Shira and Hanna get advice from Rabbi Zac Kamenetz, the founder of Shefa , an organization working to integrate safe and supported psychedelic use into the Jewish spiritual tradition. Learn more about Shefa Read about the shadow self Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Chutzpod is coming back with new episodes and new real-life questions February 25th! Rabbi Shira and Hanna will talk about using psychedelics on Purim, whether it’s ok to be vain and how synagogues can be more inclusive to trans members. Subscribe to automatically get all new episodes. And submit your own questions to be featured on an episode! Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Did you know that 29% of American Jews struggle to make ends meet? What you are about to hear is a session from the 2025 Jewish Federation of North America General Assembly, the JFNA GA, entitled Redefining Jewish Life Through the Lens of Economic Reality. In this session, we examined 2025 data on Jewish poverty in America, and discussed how our communal narratives about money and class obscure the real experiences of Jews across the economic spectrum. The first speaker you’ll hear is Rachel Sumekh, Entrepreneur and CEO of Together Ending Need. You’ll also hear from Jon Hornstein, Program Director at The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, and our own Rabbi Shira. To see some of the data referenced in this episode, go to togetherendingneed.org/ga New episodes of Chutzpod will be back February 25th! Send your questions and comments to chutzpod@gmail.com. Make sure you're subscribed, spread the word, and we’ll talk to you then! Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Rabbi Shira and Hanna end the season with a torah study jam packed with family dynamics, sibling rivalry, maternal manipulations, nation-building and birthright. Read Parashat Toldot Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Rabbi Shira and Hanna help a listener who was invited to a family wedding in Israel, but doesn’t want to go. How important are weddings? And what if your conflicting feelings and grief are just too painful? This is a must-listen for anyone experiencing a shift in Jewish identity when it comes to a relationship with Israel. Rabbi Shira and Hanna help a listener navigate his changing feelings and conflicted opinions about Israel. Text on importance of going to Jewish weddings Read more about Hachnasat kallah: the importance of preparing a bride for her wedding Read more about the mitzvah of bringing joy to people getting married Suggestions for traveling to Israel right now: MEJDI Tours Green Olive Tours Follow our Instagram to join the conversation this week: How do you feel about traveling to Israel right now? Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

As many of you are traveling for Thanksgiving this week, we’re revisiting one of our favorite episodes. Dogs on a plane are kosher, but are they annoying? Rabbi Shira and Hanna discuss the Jewish ethics around animals. And, is the Torah ableist? If you have any interesting Jewish travel moments, let us know! Read more about Jewish pet names Read more about Rosh Hahanah LaBehemah Learn about ableism in the Torah Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Our Chutzsquad sends in so many great questions about death and dying. Today, Hanna and Rabbi Shira attempt to answer as many as possible. Why, how and when do we say Mourner’s Kaddish, and for whom? What happens when you don’t have access to your loved one’s body and what’s the Jewish approach to a eulogy? Listen to Death With Dignity episode Read more about the Mi Sheiberach Read more about the Jewish afterlife Read more about Tahara Read more about the Jewish approach to giving a eulogy Read more about what to do when you can’t or don’t want to grieve through prayer Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Ever wish you could listen in as a group of rabbis kibbitz about their jobs–the good, the bad and the ugly? Rabbi Shira hosts a roundtable for her rabbinic friends where they can laugh, commiserate and get some things off their chests. We’re joined by Rabbi Lauren Holtzblatt of Adas Israel in Washington D.C . and Rabbi Seth Goldstein of Temple Beth Hatfiloh in Olympia, Washington. Support Chutzpod! Submit a question Contact Chutzpod! Subscribe to Chutzstack Follow Hanna on Instagram Follow Shira on Instagram Follow Shira on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Facebook Follow Chutzpod on Instagram Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices