Jewish History Nerds

Before Albert Einstein became the wild-haired icon who changed how we understand the universe, he was a struggling patent clerk with a rejected dissertation, no job prospects, and a messy personal life. But he had time to spare and a mind that wouldn't stop. In this first episode of a two-part series, Jonathan Schwab takes Yael Steiner through the Einstein you don't know: a contrarian Jewish outsider whose ideas would reshape our understanding of time, space, and reality itself.

Next week: The series continues with Part 2 — Einstein's Jewish identity, his complicated relationship with Zionism, and the question the Nazis asked loudly: was his science Jewish?

Sources and Summary: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1glzkac4zuorw5VTvs_ewMnj77A7xayJVZlmf61rEkM0/edit?usp=sharing

Watch Yael and Schwab on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Be in touch. We want to hear from you. Write to us at [email protected]. This podcast was brought to you by Unpacked, a brand of OpenDor Media. Follow @unpackedmedia on Instagram and check out Unpacked on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠youtube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

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Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.

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For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Soulful Jewish Living⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Stars of David with Elon Gold⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Unpacking Israeli History⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Wondering Jews⁠

Ray Frank was a gifted Jewish teacher, journalist, and speaker who became a sensation in the American West in the 1890s. Crowds packed opera houses to hear her preach, newspapers called her the “Girl Rabbi of the Golden West,” and communities begged her to lead them. But Ray Frank refused the title of rabbi. So who was she—and why did she open a door she would not walk through herself?

Here is a photo of Ray Frank from 1890:

https://jwa.org/media/ray-frank

Sources and summary: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1v2WzLQvSagiMdKQMP_mqNoz4HqCDHWktsVD80sDPRQE/edit?usp=sharing

Watch Yael and Schwab on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Be in touch. We want to hear from you. Write to us at [email protected]. This podcast was brought to you by Unpacked, a brand of OpenDor Media. Follow @unpackedmedia on Instagram and check out Unpacked on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠youtube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

-------------------

Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.

------------------

For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Soulful Jewish Living⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Stars of David with Elon Gold⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Unpacking Israeli History⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Wondering Jews⁠

What happens when a rabbi becomes a compulsive gambler?

Yael and Schwab explore the life of Rabbi Leone de Modena, a remarkable Renaissance thinker from the Venetian ghetto. A prodigy, prolific writer, and the author of the first full-length Hebrew autobiography, Modena was also a famous preacher whose sermons drew both Jews and Christians. He defended bringing choral music into synagogue services and is claimed by a broad range of Jewish traditions. His story offers a glimpse into life in early modern Venice, where Jews and non Jews mingled and shared ideas despite the ghetto walls, while revealing the genius and very human struggles of one of the era’s most fascinating rabbis.

Watch Yael and Schwab on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠:

Sources and summary: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1InrXhFPXoVLetO1XWExJhu1h_hkiCZ_EVhHulLvtwXc/edit?usp=sharing

Be in touch. We want to hear from you. Write to us at [email protected]. This podcast was brought to you by Unpacked, a brand of OpenDor Media. Follow @unpackedmedia on Instagram and check out Unpacked on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠youtube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

-------------------

Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.

------------------

For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Soulful Jewish Living⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Stars of David with Elon Gold⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Unpacking Israeli History⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Wondering Jews⁠

What happens when trauma reshapes religious life, and suffering itself becomes sacred?

This week, Jonathan Schwab introduces Yael Steiner to the Hasidei Ashkenaz, a small but intense medieval movement that emerged in 12th–13th century Germany after the Crusades of 1096. Living in the shadow of violence, they turned to radical piety, marathon prayer, frequent fasting, rigorous penance, and even martyrdom (kiddush Hashem), to make sense of trauma. It’s a bizarre chapter in Jewish history, not typically associated with Judaism, and a striking example of how communities search for meaning when the world feels unstable.

Sources and summary: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1eNcEJ28D5CcnwsFWSti-9EIibk2q-lKJ8wsrgTmbPfM/edit?usp=sharing

Watch Yael and Schwab on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠:

Be in touch. We want to hear from you. Write to us at [email protected]. This podcast was brought to you by Unpacked, a brand of OpenDor Media. Follow @unpackedmedia on Instagram and check out Unpacked on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠youtube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

-------------------

Visit jewishlives.org to explore and buy books from the Jewish Lives book series. Use the discount code JLIFE to get a discount.

------------------

For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Soulful Jewish Living⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Stars of David with Elon Gold⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Unpacking Israeli History⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Wondering Jews⁠

In 1953, Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were sent to the electric chair. They were condemned by a Jewish judge, and executed on a Friday night. The charge: espionage. The backdrop: Cold War hysteria. This week, Yael Steiner and Jonathan Schwab reframe the story. Yael explores the Jewish response to the Rosenberg trial and the tensions it revealed within the American Jewish community.

Sources and summary: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ryhznJ81I9DdIzLmqnvE8NzyAGJlsFfPXYfVUVCAoQo/edit?usp=sharing

Watch Yael and Schwab on ⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠:

Be in touch. We want to hear from you. Write to us at [email protected]. This podcast was brought to you by Unpacked, a brand of OpenDor Media. Follow @unpackedmedia on Instagram and check out Unpacked on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠youtube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

-------------------

For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠Soulful Jewish Living⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠Stars of David with Elon Gold⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Unpacking Israeli History⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Wondering Jews