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

In this special episode of Search for Meaning, Rabbi Yoshi Zweiback sits down with Rabbi Steve Leder and Peter Himmelman for a wide-ranging conversation about friendship, faith, creativity, and the moment we are living in.

Together, they reflect on growing up Jewish in the Midwest, the quiet experiences of childhood that shape a life, and the distinct journeys that led one of them to the rabbinate and the other to music. Along the way, Steve and Peter share moments of intimate personal reflection and extraordinary creativity, exploring how Torah and song speak to one another—and how friendship can bridge different forms of spiritual expression.

The conversation also turns toward the challenges of our time: the rise of antisemitism, the pain and complexity surrounding Israel, and how to hold moral clarity, courage, and compassion without losing one’s soul.

In a powerful and unexpected closing, we witness a song come into being—born of the moment, shaped by honesty, hope, and shared humanity.

Learn more about Peter Himmelman and his music, writing, and creative work at
https://peterhimmelman.com

Learn more about Rabbi Steve Leder, his books, and teachings at
https://www.steveleder.com

Watch the conversation here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNMxwC80aG8&t=1357s

In this episode of Search for Meaning, Rabbi Yoshi Zweiback is joined by his teacher, mentor, and friend, Rabbi Steve Leder, for a wide-ranging and deeply personal conversation recorded in January 2021, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Their discussion centers on Rabbi Leder’s book, The Beauty of What Remains, written after the death of his father following a long journey with Alzheimer’s. Drawing on more than three decades of rabbinic experience and his own profound loss, Rabbi Leder reflects on the non-linear nature of grief, the limitations of the “stages” model of mourning, and what he has learned from accompanying thousands of people at the end of life.

Together, they explore how memory can be both painful and sustaining, what it truly means to show up for the dying and the bereaved, and how loss can awaken a deeper appreciation for time, touch, love, and connection. With wisdom, honesty, and moments of humor, this conversation offers guidance and comfort to anyone navigating grief—or seeking a more meaningful way to live in its shadow.

Search for Meaning invites listeners into conversations that challenge, console, and inspire. This episode is a reminder that even in loss, there is beauty in what remains.

https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/623578/the-beauty-of-what-remains-by-steve-leder/