Dash of Drash
118 episodes - English - Latest episode: 10 months ago - ★★★★★ - 16 ratingsWelcome to A Dash of Drash, a weekly podcast reflection on our world through the lens of Torah with Rabbi Marc Soloway and special guests.
Produced by Sari Levy. Open and closing music from "Nishmat" by Joey Weisenberg
Marc Soloway has been the Rabbi of Bonai Shalom Synagogue in Boulder, Colorado since 2004. Marc is a native of London, England where he was an actor and practitioner of complimentary medicine before training as a rabbi in London, Jerusalem and Los Angeles. He loves skiing, mountain biking, sacred music and milking goats.
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Episodes
For Episode 116: For the Living - From Auschwitz To Krakow
July 03, 2023 13:08 - 26 minutes - 17.8 MBLive from Krakow - Rabbi Greg Alexander from Cape Town, SA joins his old friend and study partner Rabbi Marc as they reflect on an extraordinary few days of riding and reconnecting following the 60 mile ride from Auschwitz to Krakow, Shabbat in Krakow, Ruah - the Jewish Cultural Festival and so much more!
Episode 115: The Violin Of Your Songs - A Poem for Jerusalem Day
May 19, 2023 15:43 - 3 minutes - 2.85 MBRecorded on Yom Yerushalayim, Jerusalem Day - a complicated day politically, celebrating the capture of Jerusalem in 1967 from Jordan. Inspired by the chorus of Naomi Shemer's song Yerushalayim shel Zahav (Jerusalem of Gold), I wrote a poem called "I am a Violin for all your Songs," read here. May we see peace in Jerusalem in our lifetime!
Episode 114: Creativity #4 - Animals, especially dogs!
February 22, 2023 20:27 - 26 minutes - 14.6 MBRev Pedro and Rabbi Marc continue their 7 part exploration of creation and creativity in this episode about animals, especially dogs and all that they bring us.
Episode 113: Creativity #3 - Cloak Of Shadows with Rev Pedro and Rabbi Marc
February 16, 2023 16:41 - 20 minutes - 11 MBIn this third episode on creation with Pedro and Marc, we reflect on the theme of darkness and shadow and how it plays into the creative process.
Episode 112: Creativity #2 - Poetry with Rev Pedro and Rabbi Marc
February 10, 2023 04:43 - 28 minutes - 18.2 MBPedro and Marc delve deeper into creativity focusing on the power of poetry. They each share one of their own poems and someone else's and discuss the rich world of words.
Episode 111: Creativity #1 with Rev Pedro and Rabbi Marc
February 05, 2023 03:08 - 22 minutes - 13.2 MBPedro, a Black pastor, and Marc, a white rabbi are embarking on a creative adventure together, based on their friendship and musings on art, religion, justice and love inspired by the relationship between Rev Martin Luther King Junior and Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel. As they work on developing a performance piece together, they reflect on the process in 7 episodes, mirroring the 7 days of creation
Episode 110: Creativity #1 with Rev Pedro and Rabbi Marc
February 05, 2023 03:08 - 22 minutes - 13.2 MBPedro, a Black pastor, and Marc, a white rabbi are embarking on a creative adventure together, based on their friendship and musings on art, religion, justice and love inspired by the relationship between Rev Martin Luther King Junior and Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel. As they work on developing a performance piece together, they reflect on the process in 7 episodes, mirroring the 7 days of creation
Episode 110: The Joy Of Presence, The Presence of Joy
February 03, 2022 22:16 - 18 minutes - 13.3 MBThis is the first Dash of Drash for several months and we hope it brings you joy. As a tribute to the Vietnamese Buddhist teacher of mindfulness and the month of Adar, whose promise is of increased joy and the Chinese New Year, this offering is a reflection of the beauty and complexity of cultivating joy.
Episode 109: Burnham Ballads - 2 poems about a special place
June 16, 2021 22:53 - 3 minutes - 3.71 MBI recently revisited a very special place from my childhood called Burnham on Crouch in the County of Essex on the east coast of England. Some very profound reconnecting with the river, the landscape and dear old friends produced these words. Not the usual fodder of A Dash of Drash.
Burnham Ballads - 2 poems about a special place
June 16, 2021 22:53 - 3 minutes - 3.71 MBI recently revisited a very special place from my childhood called Burnham on Crouch in the County of Essex on the east coast of England. Some very profound reconnecting with the river, the landscape and dear old friends produced these words. Not the usual fodder of A Dash of Drash.
Episode 108: Return to the Land of your Soul
September 15, 2020 04:11 - 21 minutes - 15.8 MBA reflection on entering the Days of Awe and the possibility of returning to the land of our soul. Whatever that means.
Episode 107: Smiling behind a Mask
May 12, 2020 15:13 - 16 minutes - 12.2 MBI have been pondering how you smile from behind a mask on the trail. I wrote a piece about it shared here, recorded on Lag Baomer where there is much reflection about eyes and mouths. What will happen when we come out of the isolation of our caves?
Episode 106: Counting Days, Making Days Count
April 21, 2020 15:59 - 16 minutes - 12 MBToday can so easily feel like yesterday and tomorrow, especially right now. Making each day count, imbuing every day with meaning is hard but important. The annual counting ritual of the 49 days of the Omer between two harvest, between redemption and revelation can help us create a daily and deeply personal map for this strange, uncertain journey we are on.
Episode 105: A Different Passover - Dayenu
April 06, 2020 15:37 - 15 minutes - 11 MBSome reflections as Passover approaches on a very different holiday in the time of COVID19. Can we still have "dayenu" moments?
Episode 104: Keep Breathing
March 24, 2020 17:58 - 18 minutes - 13.6 MBI stumbled upon a profound meditation practice taught by Reb Zalman about connecting to Divine Breath, which is offered here. These are very difficult and frightening days for most of us as our worlds get smaller and we are confined to our homes. We begin the third book of the Torah this week, Vayikra/Leviticus with its details of animal sacrifices. The first word is written in the Torah with a small alef. This is a time when we need prayer and other spiritual practices to keep us balanced...
Episode 103: Distancing and Connecting
March 16, 2020 15:53 - 20 minutes - 15.3 MBIn these frightening, surreal days as our world changes in the face of Covid 19, the language of the moment is social distancing. Of course we have to keep ourselves physical apart to contain this virus, but is that the right language? I offer some reflections on how we might navigate this new moment in our lives and our world.
Episode 102: A Name and a Place - Honoring MLK's Legacy with Special Guest Reverend Pedro Silva
January 15, 2020 20:05 - 16 minutes - 12.5 MBAs we begin the Exodus narratives in the Torah, Reverend Pedro Silva, Minister at the First Congregational Church in Boulder, and a friend and interfaith colleague, in conversation about name, place, freedom and more in honor of the legacy of Rev Martin Luther King, Jr. Here is a link to Pedro's song New Me - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QnqLEGRjQeQ&feature=youtu.be
Episode 101: Ancestral Healing with Rabbi Tirzah Firestone
January 06, 2020 05:03 - 26 minutes - 19 MBAuthor, psychotherapist and spiritual leader Rabbi Tirzah Firestone in discussion with Rabbi Marc about ancestral trauma and healing as we end Bereshit/Genesis, the first book of the Torah with its complicated family dynamics. Reb Tirzah's newest book Wounds into Wisdom, Healing Intergenerational Jewish Trauma, was published last year to great acclaim for its compelling insights into these subjects.
Episode 100: Godwrestling - Halacha and Aggada, Law and Narrative
December 10, 2019 14:01 - 22 minutes - 16.4 MBIn this week's Torah portion, Vayishlach, Jacob wrestles all night long with an angel of God and, in his victory, gets a new name and a new identity - Yisrael - the one who wrestles with God. Wrestling with God can mean so many different things to each of us. In this episode (100!) the focus is on the dynamic tensions that exist in religious and spiritual life.
Episode 99: Angel of Friendship with Rabbi Greg Alexander
December 01, 2019 20:52 - 25 minutes - 17.3 MBGreg and Marc started their rabbinical journey together over 20 years ago in London. Rabbi Greg Alexander is rabbi of Temple Israel in Cape Town, South Africa and has just finished a sabbatical with his family in New York City, where Greg and Marc spent time together. In this episode, they reflect on havruta, spiritual friendship, angels, dreams, light and ladders.
Episode 98 - Beyond Selfie - Kol Nidre 5780
October 17, 2019 06:15 - 21 minutes - 15.2 MBThis Kol Nidre sermon delves into the selfie culture and how to transcend it, Greatly inspired by Will Storr's book Selfie and Michael Pollan's book How to Change your Mind.
Episode 97 - Trees, Animals And The Weather - Rosh HaShanah 5780
October 17, 2019 05:40 - 23 minutes - 16.4 MBThis Rosh HaShanah sermon inspired by Greta Thunberg, Jonathan Safran Foer and others, expresses the urgency of the climate crisis and calls for physical and spiritual action. Since giving the sermon, out community has collectively planted close to 2,000 trees.
Episode 96 - Standing Up! Yom Kippur 5780
October 17, 2019 04:54 - 26 minutes - 19.9 MBThis was a Yom Kippur sermon offered as a response to contemporary antisemitism and reflecting on some of my recent journeys.
Episode 95 - Water, Manna, Cloud - from Ramah in the Rockies with Rabbi Noah Farkas
July 10, 2019 20:08 - 30 minutes - 21.7 MBRecorded live at Camp Ramah in the Rockies, Rabbi Marc is joined by Rabbi Noah Farkas of Valley Beth Shalom in Los Angeles. They reflect on identity, leadership, unique personal gifts and so much more; all inspired by Parshat Hukkat (Numbers 19-22) and the experience of being up at camp.
Episode 94: The Space beyond Words with Natalie Goldberg
May 15, 2019 20:52 - 19 minutes - 13.9 MBThe space beyond words is no words. Silence. We so need more of it in this chattering world. Natalie Goldberg, author of Writing down the Bones and many other books, teaches writing as spiritual practice. Natalie has been a Zen practitioner and teacher for many years and in this conversation, she reflects on her search to find silence in her own Jewish lineage and how everything is practice, watching the mind.
Episode 93: Sensuality Of Spring
April 23, 2019 04:40 - 22 minutes - 16.9 MBAs well as the Season of Freedom, Passover is also known as the Festival of Spring, and spring is exploding with sensuality as the birds sing and the blossoms bloom and all of this is reflected in the liturgical themes of Pesach.
Episode 92: Beyond the Blemishes: Seeing Each other in Community
April 09, 2019 15:11 - 13 minutes - 10.2 MBCommunities can be complex because people are complex. It is so easy to judge, to dismiss, even to diagnose others when without the skills, knowledge or right to do so! The Torah readings of Tazria and Metzora (Leviticus chapters 12-15)speak of particular conditions, diseases, symptoms and part of the healing is that the Kohen, the Priest sees the person beyond their affliction. We are all imperfect and need to see each other beyond the blemishes.
Episode 91: "We All Belong" with Special Guest Sabrina Sojourner
April 03, 2019 17:10 - 19 minutes - 13.4 MBHazan Sabrina Sojourner is a spiritual leader, cantor, activist and writer based in Maryland. The Torah in Vayikra (Leviticus) brings the categories of "Tahor" and "Tamei" often translated as "pure" and "impure." They cannot really be translated and refer to states of being inside and outside. As a Jew of Color, Sabrina reflects on how these terms refer to those on the margins and those inside the camp and how, ultimately, we all belong.
Episode 90: A Taste Of Kabbalah with Special Guest Daniel Matt
March 19, 2019 04:09 - 18 minutes - 13.5 MBThe Zohar is the central work of Kabbalah, Jewish Mysticism and Professor Danny Matt spent 18 years translating it into English. He has also written about a dozen books on Kabbalah and taught all over the world as one of the most renowned scholars on the subject. Danny combines academic knowledge with deep and thoughtful spiritual wisdom and opens up this mystical world. He was a scholar in residence in Boulder and I had the privilege of spending some time with him and having this conversa...
Episode 89: Creativity
February 06, 2019 17:01 - 19 minutes - 14.4 MBOn a writing retreat in Santa Fe with Natalie Goldberg and Rob Wilder, I learned a lot about writing as a spiritual practice and the importance of details. This applies to all forms of creativity, including the construction of the Mishkan (Tabernacle/Sanctuary) in the desert, which begins in this week's parsaha, Terumah (Exodus 25:1-27:19). What does it mean to create? With the help of Natalie Goldberg and the German-American architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, we explore that question.
Episode 88 Sinai and the Power of Myth
January 24, 2019 14:23 - 17 minutes - 13.1 MBOn a seven hour road trip from Telluride, Colorado to Taos, New Mexico, listening to The Power of Myth with Joseph Campbell in conversation with Bill Moyers, I downloaded some revelations on Revelation at Sinai. How does the power of that myth impact us past, present and future?
Episode 87: Torah and the Blues with Special Guest Joey Weisenberg!
January 14, 2019 21:20 - 35 minutes - 25.1 MBJoey Weisenberg is one of the most inspiring voices in the contemporary Jewish music world and is the director of Hadar's Rising Song Institute risingsong.org and author of The Torah of Music. In the week of Shabbat Shirah, the Shabbat of Song, recorded live from then Ohalah Conference, join this amazing conversation about the blues, Jewish music and so much more. As the Israelites cross over the sea on their journey to freedom, they joyfully sing the Song of the Sea and the spontaneous ac...
Episode 86: Pharaoh's Heart, Our Hearts - A Conversation with Special Guest Rabbi Elyse Frishman
January 10, 2019 13:00 - 23 minutes - 17.2 MBThis conversation was recorded at a very special gathering of rabbis in Vail, Colorado called the Oneg Conference. I am joined by Rabbi Elyse Frishman, editor of Mishkan T'Filah, the Reform Movement's prayer book published in 2007. Reflecting on this week's Parsha, Bo (Exodus 10:1–13:16)we talk about hard and soft hearts, vulnerability and much more.
Episode 85: Singing Through Chaos - live from New York with Special Guest Rabbi Aviva Richman
December 26, 2018 21:16 - 15 minutes - 10.9 MBThis week I have been a participant in Hadar Institute's "Singing Communities Intensive." 100s of people gathered together at B'nai Jeshurun in Manhattan to sing, teach, learn and listen led by Joey Weisenberg and other amazing teachers. Rabbi Aviva Richman, a teacher of Talmud at Hadar, integrates heart and song into her teaching and, as we begin The Book of Exodus, we discuss the role of music and song through chaos and into redemption.
Episode 84: Life in Death
December 20, 2018 01:27 - 20 minutes - 15.6 MBThe Book of Genesis ends again with Parshat Vayechi, which means "and he lived," but is actually talking about Jacob's death. It is the second parsha in Bereshit whose title refers to life, but tells of death, which invites us to see the life that comes out of death through legacy and memory. This also marks the second anniversary of Dash of Drash! Mazaltov
Episode 83: Encounter
December 13, 2018 14:42 - 15 minutes - 12.1 MBAnd Judah approached Joseph - vayifgash alav. These are the opening words of Parshat Vayigash (Genesis 44:18-47:27) and describe a profound moment of encounter that is not just about the intensity of this moment that leads to a breaking of a mask and a reconciliation, but any deep encounter that we have in our lives.
Episode 82: Spoken Words
November 28, 2018 18:22 - 18 minutes - 13.4 MBA selection of some spoken word poetry written over the last month in Alabama, Warsaw, Auschwitz, Krakow, Berlin and Prague. Even though the words reflect some darkness, they come with a blessing and hope of Hanukkah light as that festival approaches!
Episode 81: Jews, Czechs, Poles, Jacob and Esau - Live from Prague!
November 21, 2018 14:47 - 15 minutes - 11.1 MBI have had the amazing gift of time in Warsaw, Krakow, Auschwitz, Berlin, Prague and Thereseinstadt in the last couple of weeks. Of course, I have seen absolute horror that defy the imagination, but I have also seen hope and renewal. In Vayishlach (Genesis 32:4-36:43), the Torah describes a reconciliation of Jacob and Esau, but the rabbis are not sure if it is really that.
Episode 80: Angels And Auschwitz
November 14, 2018 16:54 - 22 minutes - 16.1 MBI visited Auschwitz for the first time last week and am still processing that whole experience, which has left a lasting imprint on me. In Parshat Vayetze (Genesis 28:10 - 32:3), there are several references to HaMakom - the place, which can be any place where we are conscious. Jacob happens upon a "random place" and lays down his head and dreams of a ladder with angels ascending and descending. He awakes and says "manorah hamakom hazeh - how awesome is this place." After many years, wives...
Episode 79: Alabama And Akeida - Sacrificing our Children
October 23, 2018 13:34 - 23 minutes - 17.5 MBI had a very powerful week in Montgomery and Birmingham, Alabama. I was part of a delegation of 35 rabbis and other Jewish leaders with T'ruah - A Rabbinic Call for Human Rights, visiting the Legacy Museum and The National Memorial for Peace and Justice, both created by the Equal Justice Initiative. In Parshat Vayera in the Torah, we read the painful story of Akedat Yitzhak, the binding of Isaac. This episode reflects on how this morally problematic story mirrors contemporary issues of raci...
Episode 78: Towers in the Sky with Special Guest Dr. Michael Kagan
October 11, 2018 22:31 - 38 minutes - 35.7 MBThe stories in Genesis are full of depth, mystery and profound lessons for each generation. Parshat Noah begins with the story of the catastrophic flood and ends with tale of The Tower of Babel. Michael Kagan, a friend and teacher in Jerusalem, shares some deep insights on this Babel story its comment on human civilization in a conversation with Rabbi Marc. Apologies if the sound quality is not as good as usual.
Episode 77: Creation Of Adam - Good or Bad?
October 03, 2018 20:56 - 17 minutes - 13.7 MBThis week we begin the Torah over again with Bereshit, Genesis. Adam, the first human, was created on the sixth day, seemingly as the pinnacle of creation before the first Shabbat. The eternal question is whether the creation of humanity was a good thing or not.
Episode 76: The Shofar's Voice
August 28, 2018 14:28 - 14 minutes - 10.5 MBEvery morning for the month of Elul, leading us into the New Year, it is traditional to blow and hear the shofar whose voice is supposed to wake us up. There is so much meaning and mystery in those sounds. This episode shares a few of them.
Episode 75: Are you Satisfied?
August 01, 2018 22:23 - 19 minutes - 14.9 MBIt can be hard to feel satisfied in this world that screams at us that we always need more! There is an important relationship between satisfaction and gratitude and the power of blessings. The rabbis of the Talmud invite us to say 100 blessings a day and one of the sources is from this week's Torah portion, Ekev, which says "you will eat, you will feel satisfied and you will bless God for the good land that has been given to you" (Deuteronomy 8:10). We explore the connection between suste...
Episode 74: Ayn Od - Nothing Else
July 26, 2018 04:31 - 18 minutes - 14 MBIn Parshat Etchanan, the second portion from Devarim, the Book of Deuteronomy, along with the Shema and second version of the Ten Commandments, we are introduced to the concepts of devekut, cleaving to Godliness, and ayn od milvado; there is nothing other than God. Does this mean that if we are spiritual, we transcend all the grossness of our physical world? It means so much more than that.
Episode 73: Antisemitism, Tisha b'Av and Statistics with Jonathan Boyd ED of JPR
July 17, 2018 16:25 - 31 minutes - 23.5 MBThe third Jonathan from London is Jonathan Boyd who is the Executive Director of the Institute for Jewish Policy Research (http://www.jpr.org.uk) in London. Jon, a good friend, uses statistics wisely and carefully to define trends in the Jewish community. As Tisha b'Av, when we commemorate destruction and loss, approaches, this discussion reflects primarily on what the research shows about antisemitism today.
Episode 72: Refugee Journeys Past and Present - with Rabbi Jonathan Wittenberg
July 09, 2018 09:18 - 22 minutes - 16.3 MBTowards the end of The Book of Numbers, there is a list of 42 places on the Israelite's journey as they approach their new home. It is reminiscent of the wanderings of refugees, migrants and asylum seekers of which there are some 65 million in our world today. Marc's mentor, teacher and friend Rabbi Jonathan Wittenberg of New North London Synagogue, has been an important activist and together they reflect on a Jewish approach to the desperate situations facing immigrants and refugees in our...
Episode 71: The Film Maker and the Rabbi: Jonathan Glazer, Screen Writer/Director, in Conversation
July 04, 2018 21:10 - 31 minutes - 22.7 MBThe film maker Jonathan Glazer is Rabbi Marc's oldest friend and for years, they have enjoyed conversations on where art, religion, spirituality and culture meet and diverge. They met at JW3, London's Jewish Community Center, and talked for hours. On the Jewish calendar, we find ourselves in a period of three weeks of mourning as we approach Tisha b'Av, commemorating the destruction of two Temples in Jerusalem and other catastrophes. Among their discussions, Jonathan and Marc talk about dest...
Episode 70: Leadership and Transition with Rabbis Gavriel Goldfeder and Salomon Gruenwald
June 19, 2018 20:09 - 26 minutes - 18.7 MBIn Parshat Hukkat (Numbers 19:1-22:1), Miriam and Aaron die and Moses is told that he will not lead the people into the Promised Land. Recorded live at Ramah in the Rockies, Rabbis Gavriel Goldfeder and Salomon Gruenwald join Rabbi Marc for a lively conversation about the transitions in leadership. Rabbi Gavriel Goldfeder works at MIT Hillel and has a website and publishing house called "Alternodox." Rabbi Salomon Gruenwald is Associate Rabbi at the Hebrew Educational Alliance in Denver.
Episode 69: Truth Or Power?
June 13, 2018 12:37 - 17 minutes - 12.5 MBIn Parshat Korach (Numbers 16:1-18:32), the leadership of Moses and Aaron is challenged and the source of that challenge is Korach. He seems to have some sound arguments, but does he really? We learn most not from the challenge, but from the response of Moses. Is this incident about truth or power?