Join Benay Lappe and Dan Libenson in their chevrutah, their partnered study and exploration of the Talmud through the “traditionally radical” lens pioneered by Benay Lappe. Together, we explore key stories and practices from the Talmud as a how-to manual for re-imagining Judaism after the previous version “crashes.” Whether you are a beginner or a longtime learner of Talmud, this podcast offers a framework to understand the Talmud more deeply from the perspective of contemporary academic study and creative re-interpretation.
Episodes
Click through for full show notes and transcripts for each episode!
Did you know this podcast started as a live web show?
Check out four years of unedited, live discussions in video form here!
SVARA’s mission is to empower queer and trans people to expand Torah and tradition through the spiritual practice of Talmud study.
With support from Lippman Kanfer Foundation for Living Torah
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Benay Lappe
CO-HOST
· Benay (she/her) founded SVARA in 2003. Ordained at the Jewish Theological Seminary in 1997, Benay is an award-winning educator specializing in the application of queer theory to Talmud study, Benay has served on the faculties of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Temple University, The University of Judaism, The Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, The Graduate Theological Union’s Center for Jewish Studies at UC-Berkeley, and The Wexner Institute. She also currently serves as Senior Fellow at the Institute for the Next Jewish Future in Chicago. While learning and teaching Talmud are her greatest passions, Lappe is also a licensed pilot, shoemaker, and patent-holding inventor.
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Dan Libenson
CO-HOST
Dan (he/him) is the Founder of Judaism Unbound and currently serves as President of Lippman Kanfer Foundation for Living Torah. Dan co-hosts the Judaism Unbound Podcast and The Oral Talmud videocast, and he teaches in the UnYeshiva. He served as president of Judaism Unbound from its founding until 2023. Dan previously served as Executive Director of the University of Chicago Hillel and Director of New Initiatives at Harvard Hillel, and he serves on the faculties of the HUC-JIR Zelikow School of Non-Profit Management, the Bronfman Fellowship, the Wexner Heritage Program, and other programs. He is a 2009 AVI CHAI Fellow and received the Richard M. Joel Exemplar of Excellence award, Hillel International's highest professional honor. Dan attended Harvard College and Harvard Law School, where he graduated magna cum laude and was an articles editor of the Harvard Law Review. Dan is the translator of The Orchard by Israeli novelist Yochi Brandes and the translation editor of The Secret Book of Kings by the same author. He lives in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago with his wife, two children, and two dogs.
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Olivia Devorah Tucker
ORAL TALMUD PODCAST COORDINATOR
Olivia Devorah (they/them) is a Jewish Demonologist, Talmud enthusiast, theatre collaborator, and challah sculptor. They have been published in Kenden Alfond’s “Feeding Women of the Talmud, Feeding Ourselves” and performed as dramaturg/meturgemon for Ella-Gabriel Mason’s “Queer Jewish: Dancing In Diaspora.” They serve as Program Coordinator for SVARA: A Traditionally Radical Yeshiva, and co-op member of The Glitterbox Theater in their home of Pittsburgh, PA (Shawnee & Haudenosaunee land). Olivia puts the femme in ephemera & the trans in translation! Learn more at www.TalmudMagic.com
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Joey Taylor
PRODUCER
Joey (he/him) serves as the Executive Director of Bespoken Live, a radical storytelling initiative. He is also the producer of the podcast “Common Good” and teaches world religions in prisons. Joey’s artful story telling is obvious in the way he has curated and threaded this new podcast. Joey lives in Cincinnati, Ohio.