Show Notes
Hi everyone, welcome back to The Chai on Life Podcast! I’m so happy to be back after a postpartum hiatus. Baruch Hashem I am so grateful for the little miracle baby that I now have in my life and so grateful to have had the quality time with him and now so grateful to be able to focus back on the podcast a bit more. Gd willing, I will be doing a full episode on the birth story and some reflections from that, so if that’s interesting to you stay tuned. But now, I’ve been busy working on some interviews with really incredible people and I am so excited to share them.
Today’s episode is with Shoshana Judelman. I got connected to Shoshana through Midreshet Rachel — she is a teacher there now and has always been passionate about teaching Torah and Jewish History. She holds a Bachelor’s in History and a Master’s in Jewish History. She made aliyah with her husband and six children to Efrat in 2013. In addition to teaching at MRC, Shoshana teaches Chassidus for the Shirat David Community in Efrat as well as for BeOr Panecha in Elazar. She is a guide in Poland with JRoots and co-leads inspirational trips to Ukraine and around Eretz Yisroel. Shoshana has also been a guide at Yad Vashem since 2014.
In this episode, she is sharing so much about her connection to the world of Chassidus, what we can learn from it and how we can connect to Chanukah more deeply through its teachings. She speaks about: -How she got into Chassidus and became a baal teshuva -What the difference is between Chassidus and other perspectives on Torah -How we can interpret the world through the lens of our human soul and Gdly soul which was a really interesting and helpful teaching -What it really means that just a little bit of light can dispel a lot of darkness (with a really great mashal included in that) -How to cope when it feels like the darkness is getting darker, whether in your own personal world or in the world at large -How you can personally connect through the lighting of the Chanukah candles and practically a great tip if you have a busy household and it’s hard to focus when your family is lighting together -Her own personal struggle at the moment and how she’s dealing with it and becoming closer with Hashem in the process. This was so beautiful I was really getting emotional
…and so so much more!
To daven for Shoshana, her full name is Shoshana Yonah bat Aidel Learn more from Shoshana here.
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This episode originally aired on 9/16/24 but is just as relevant today. Enjoy this replay as we get ready for Yom Kippur. -- Today, I am speaking with Yaffa Moskowitz, the Director of Education at Midreshet Rachel V’Chaya, a seminary in Jerusalem. Here’s a little more about Yaffa: She is a native member the Far Rockaway community and was active in that community and the Five Towns for many years. Yaffa, her husband Danny, and seven children made aliya in the summer of 2013 and now live in Mitzpe Yericho. Yaffa served as teacher and Director of Ateres Seminary for women on the Queens College Campus for 13 years and she was also involved in the Neshei Shor Yoshuv community where she gave chaburas for married women. I met Yaffa when I was a student exactly seven years ago at Midreshet Rachel and have continued to learn from her and with her since. She has such a wealth of knowledge and this conversation really turned into the perfect thing to listen to right in the middle of Elul preparing for the chagim. During this time at Midreshet Rachel, the students learn from the sefer, Tomer Devorah, which teaches us about Hashem’s 13 Attributes of Mercy. As we learn about Hashem and understand who He is more, so to speak, we learn how we can emulate Him more in our own lives, and we used that text as the jumping off point for our conversation. As we spoke, we explored: -What a “sin” actually is in Judaism (it may not be what you think) and how we can always get back on track -How to separate ourselves from the sin and retain our confidence and closeness to G-d through the process -How we can get to the core of what emunah really is on the most basic level and use these foundational concepts to connect to Hashem more deeply -The restraint Hashem has with us every day and how we can apply that concept to our own lives and actions -How to work on letting go of control -Why we should speak to ourselves with more compassion from a Torah perspective -When fear is appropriate in Judaism and what kind of fear that actually is talking about -How we can continue to grow and elevate ourselves year after year …and SO MUCH MORE!
Today, I’m speaking with Hadassah Eventsur. Hadassah is an occupational therapist, educator, transformational coach, Mishpacha Magazine contributor, speaker, and the founder and CEO of MindfullyYou, an educational and support platform dedicated to helping neurodivergent individuals better understand their brains and build lives that work with—not against—them. In her program, she helps women who feel overwhelmed by daily chores and responsibilities, those who are struggling time management and organization and others who simply want more peace, structure and confidence in their daily lives.
Today, I’m speaking with Torah educator, Goldie Sion. Goldie was born in Caracas, Venezuela, and raised in Hollywood, Florida. She has worked with organizations in the past that include Olami Manhattan, Aish Aspire, Jam Israel and now works for Olami Souled. She is passionate about teaching Torah, giving shiurim, and inspiring others through creativity and connection with her Instagram: @goldiesjournal.