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This Shabbat, Jews across this world will read the Torah portion describing the requirement to eradicate Amalek. Does this mitzvah have any practical relevance nowadays? What about the moral challenges associated with this divine command? In this episode, Rav David Silverstein is joined by Rabbi Dr. Shlomo Brody to discuss these issues through the lens of Israel's current war against Hamas.
Rabbi Dr. Shlomo Brody is the executive director of Ematai. He previously served as the founding director of the Tikvah Overseas Student Institute and co-dean of the Tikvah Online Academy, a senior instructor at Yeshivat Hakotel, and as a junior research fellow at the Israel Democracy Institute. A summa cum laude graduate of Harvard College, he received rabbinic ordination from the Israeli Chief Rabbinate, an MA in Jewish philosophy at the Hebrew University, and his PhD from Bar Ilan University Law School, where he continues to serve as a post-doctoral fellow. His first book, A Guide to the Complex: Contemporary Halakhic Debates (Maggid), received a National Jewish Book Award. His new book, Ethics of Our Fighters: A Jewish View on War and Morality, is available now in the US and Israel.
Questions? Feedback? Have a topic you'd like to hear discussed?
Email us at oraytapodcast@gmail.com and we look forward to "continuing the conversation."
Music from "Ashreinu" by Omek HaDavar
Recorded in the Old City of Jerusalem at Yeshivat Orayta (orayta.org) | Facebook | Instagram
Rabbi Dr. Shlomo Brody is the executive director of Ematai. He previously served as the founding director of the Tikvah Overseas Student Institute and co-dean of the Tikvah Online Academy, a senior instructor at Yeshivat Hakotel, and as a junior research fellow at the Israel Democracy Institute. A summa cum laude graduate of Harvard College, he received rabbinic ordination from the Israeli Chief Rabbinate, an MA in Jewish philosophy at the Hebrew University, and his PhD from Bar Ilan University Law School, where he continues to serve as a post-doctoral fellow. His first book, A Guide to the Complex: Contemporary Halakhic Debates (Maggid), received a National Jewish Book Award. His new book, Ethics of Our Fighters: A Jewish View on War and Morality, is available now in the US and Israel.
Questions? Feedback? Have a topic you'd like to hear discussed?
Email us at oraytapodcast@gmail.com and we look forward to "continuing the conversation."
Music from "Ashreinu" by Omek HaDavar
Recorded in the Old City of Jerusalem at Yeshivat Orayta (orayta.org) | Facebook | Instagram
Creators and Guests
Host
Rav David Silverstein
Rabbi David Silverstein is the Sgan (Assistant) Rosh Yeshiva at Yeshivat Orayta in Jerusalem, and previously served as the Director of the Overseas Program at Yeshivat Hesder, Petach Tikva. Originally from New Jersey, Rabbi Silverstein lives with his wife and four children in Modiin, Israel.
What is The Curious Jew?
Judaism is a civilization built on big ideas—about God, morality, community, purpose, and what it means to live a meaningful life. But in a rapidly changing world, how do these timeless concepts speak to our modern reality?
The Curious Jew is a forum for thoughtful conversation, spirited debate, and intellectual exploration of Judaism’s most enduring questions and contemporary challenges. Through engaging discussions with leading rabbis, scholars, authors, and communal figures, we go beyond the surface to examine the core ideas shaping the Jewish future.
Hosted by Rabbi David Silverstein and produced by Yeshivat Orayta, our goal is not simply to provide easy answers, but to cultivate curiosity, challenge assumptions, and inspire a more thoughtful, self-aware, and committed Judaism for the twenty-first century.
Whether you're deeply learned in Torah text or just beginning your intellectual journey, The Curious Jew invites you to join the conversation. New episodes drop bi-weekly.
Intro music by Mykola Odnoroh.