Answers WithHeld

Faith and Doubt in Our Final Hours: A Conversation Between Dr. Lydia Dugdale and R. Shai Held

For many of us, confronting death raises urgent questions of faith, doubt, and the meaning and purpose of our lives. Yet we live in a culture that avoids talking about de

Faith WithHeld: A Conversation Between Sarah Wildman and R. Shai Held

When the unthinkable happens, what remains of faith? Journalist Sarah Wildman, who lost her young daughter, joins Rabbi Shai Held in a searching conversation about grief,

Dreaming of the Messiah: What Can We Learn from Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook?

Was Rabbi Kook a mystic, a radical, or a realist? And what did he really believe about redemption? In this season finale, Rabbi Shai Held is joined by Professor Yehudah M

Is Torah Study the Highest Value?

Is studying Torah really the most important thing a Jew can do? Or is that just something rabbis say—because they're the ones doing the studying? In this episode, Ra

Judaism and the Heart

Is lighting candles, giving tzedakah, or saying a prayer enough if your heart’s not in it? Rabbis Shai Held and Josh Feigelson sit down to explore what it means to live a

Where is God? Lessons from the Book of Ruth

What does it mean to embody God’s love in a world where God sometimes feels absent? In this episode, Rabbi Shai Held is joined by Christian biblical scholars Dr. Judy Fen

Questions That Can't be Answered: The Theology of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik

What do we do with the questions that have no answers? How does Jewish faith confront suffering, loneliness, and finitude? And how did Soloveitchik's own life—marked

God in Search of Man: The Theology of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel

What if God isn't just the one we seek—but the one who seeks us? In this episode, Rabbi Shai Held is joined by Rabbi Dr. Michael Marmur for a profound and passionate

I and Thou: The Theology of Martin Buber

Warning: This episode includes discussion of suicide. What does it mean to truly meet another person—or even God—as a “Thou” and not an “It”? In this episode, Rabbi Shai

God Has No Attributes: The Theology of Maimonides

Can we really describe God—or does every word fall short? In this episode, Rabbis Shai Held and Jason Rubenstein explore the bold theology of Maimonides, who argued that

What is Obligation?

Rabbis Shai Held and Tali Adler explore one of the most provocative images in rabbinic tradition: that at Sinai, God held a mountain over the Israelites’ heads and threat

Can We Judge Everyone Favorably?

Can we really judge everyone favorably? Rabbis Shai Held and Steve Greenberg dive into this Jewish idea, exploring how a generous outlook can transform relationships, per

Welcome Back for Season 2 of Answers WithHeld!

Rabbi Shai Held returns with a new cast of guest for another season of Answers WithHeld, the podcast where we confront big questions with bold thinking and honest searchi

Why Do You Believe in God?

In this special season finale, R. Shai Held welcomes his two oldest children to model a genuine conversation about God, experiences, belief, and doubt. Lev and Maya share

What Happens After I Die?

Questions surrounding our own mortality are some of the hardest to ask, and certainly some of the hardest to answer. What happens when we die? What does it mean to have a

Why Do Bad Things Happen?

R. Aviva Richman joins R. Shai Held to discuss one of the most difficult moral and religious questions - why do bad things happen? Where is God when they do? Personal chi

What If I'm Not Sure I Believe in God?

What if I don't believe in God? What if I'm not sure? Rabbi Dr. Leon Wiener Dow joins Rabbi Shai Held to reflect on the importance of doubt and continuing to qu

Am I My Brother's Keeper?

Universalism or particularism? It's often cited as a debate of one versus the other, but R. Shai Held and R. Jill Jacobs reflect on how both these priorities can act

Why Did God Create the World?

Why did God create the world - and why did God create me within it? R. Yitz Greenberg joins R. Shai Held to ponder these theological questions and consider what it means

Why Does the Torah Allow Slavery?

What do we do when we encounter morally troubling parts of Torah? Dr. Arna Poupko Fisher joins R. Shai Held to try and understand slavery in the Torah's historical c