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Machshavah Lab
Episodes
635 episodes
Chukas: Three Radical Takes on the Sin of Moshe and Aharon
Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 4-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 6/25/26 titled:
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Balak: The Appeal of Baal Peor (and Darwin)
Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 4-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 6/24/26 (originally on 7/7/17) titled:
Korach: How Did Korach and His Followers Think They Could Get Away With It?
Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 2-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 6/19/26 titled:
Q&A #48 - Bribery Parameters, Bad/Good Influence on/from Friends, Torah on Inner Work, What is YBT
Length:49 minutesSynopsis: This morning (6/18/26), in lieu of morning Mishlei, we had the last Q&A - and last shiur! - of the 2025-2026 season. We took up four questions: (1) What are the parameters of philosophical/ethical bribery? (2)...
My Graduation Charge to the NEJA Class of 2026
Synopsis: Here's the audio recording of the graduation charge I delivered to the NEJA Graduating Class of 2026 on June 14th, 2026. Transcript is available here
Shelach: The Sin of the Spies and the Root of Idolatry
Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 2-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 6/11/26 titled:
Behaalosecha: Don’t Cry Over Lost Fish / Forbidden Relations (FULL Article)
Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 3-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 6/9/26 titled:
Rambam on Divine Knowledge and Hashgachah (Part 2: True Views) Moreh 3:17b-18
Length: 1 hour 20 minutesSynopsis: This morning (6/5/26), in our last Friday morning Sefer Iyov series for women of the season, we concluded the Rambam's INITIAL presentation of the true view of hashgachah, as understood from the Torah by t...
Four Entered the Pardes: An Exploration With An Agenda
Length: 1 hour 35 minutesSynopsis: Tonight (6/4/26), in our Thursday night Machshavah Lab series for women, was not a shiur but an exploration with an agenda (which I explain toward the beginning and won't divulge here). We read the famous ...
Naso: Three Explanations of the Chatas ha’Nazir (Nazrite’s Sin-Offering)
Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 5-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 5/29/26 titled:
Can God Do the Impossible? Teaching High Schoolers the "Limits" of Divine Omnipotence in Iyov
Length: 2 hours 19 minutesSynopsis: This morning (5/17/26), in my last YBT Sunday Shiur of the season, I gave an updated version of my Judaism Demystified episode titled "Can God Do Anything/Everything? Can God Do the Impossible?" The shiur...
Rambam on Divine Knowledge and Hashgachah (Part 1: False Views) Moreh 3:16-17a
Length: 1 hour 28 minutesSynopsis: This morning (5/15/26), in our Friday morning Sefer Iyov series for women, we moved on to the next - and last! - subseries within our overarching series on Iyov. Over the course of the next eight chapters,...
Bamidbar / Korach: What We Guard in the Mikdash
Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 2-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 5/14/26 titled:
Rambam on the Satan and Ra (Part 6: Three Types of Ra)
Length: 1 hour 25 minutesSynopsis: This morning (5/8/26), in our Friday morning Sefer Iyov series for women, we review what we covered last time, then learned and discussed the rest of the Rambam's Moreh ha'Nevuchim 3:12, in which he outlin...
Behar: The Torah’s Double Standard for Slave Labor
Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 7-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 5/7/26 titled:
Rambam on the Satan and Ra (Part 5: Intro to the Types of Ra)
Length: 53 minutesSynopsis: This morning (5/1/26), in our shorter-than-usual Friday morning Sefer Iyov series for women, we began with an efficient review of the Rambam's theory of ra which we covered last time in 3:10. We then read and dis...
Rambam: On the Purpose of the Universe (Moreh 3:13)
Length: 1 hour 43 minutesSynopsis: This evening (4/30/25), in our Thursday night women’s shiur, we learned through the entire chapter in the Moreh ha'Nevuchim in which the Rambam discusses the purpose of the universe. Technically speaking, ...
Rambam on the Satan and Ra (Part 4: Theory of Ra)
Length: 1 hour 22 minutesSynopsis: This morning (4/24/26), in our Friday morning Sefer Iyov series for women, we began with a review of 3:8 and the satan, then quickly learned through 3:9 while avoiding epistemological potholes, and finally...
Rambam on the Satan and Ra (Part 3: Matter as the Cause of Ra)
Length: 1 hour 22 minutesSynopsis: This morning (4/17/26), in our Friday morning Sefer Iyov series for women, we finally began the "Moreh ha'Nevuchim" portion of our Iyov journey. After a very brief review of matter and form, we read, analy...
Shemini / Tazria / Metzora: What a REAL Rationalist Would Say About Tumah
Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 3-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 4/16/26 title:
Q&A #47 - Hashgachah Diagnosis, Rambam on Lashon ha'Ra, Dividing Learning Into Thirds
Length: 28 minutesSynopsis: This morning (4/16/26), in lieu of our usual morning Mishlei, we had a short Q&A session! We discussed three questions: (1) To what degree can we "diagnose" whether something in our life was hashgachah pratis...
Rambam on the Satan and Ra (Part 2: The Form of Man)
Length: 1 hour 7 minutesSynopsis: This Friday morning (3/20/26), in our Friday morning Sefer Iyov series for women, we were GOING to begin the section of the Rambam's Moreh ha'Nevuchim that will be our focus for the next couple of months, b...
Rambam on the Satan and Ra (Part 1: Aristotelian Primer on Form and Matter)
Length: 1 hour 47 minutesSynopsis: Turns out, I accidentally forgot to upload last Friday's Iyov shiur! This past Friday morning (3/13/26), in our Friday morning Sefer Iyov series for women, I gave a shiur with the aim of introducing the ba...
Vayikra: Toward a Theory of Jewish Guilt
Synopsis: This is the audio version of the 1-page article I wrote and published on rabbischneeweiss.substack.com/ on 3/20/26 title:
How to Relate to Arbitrary Halachic Details (Part 2 - Rambam and Rav Kook)
Length: 1 hour 50 minutesSynopsis: This week (3/19/26), in our Thursday night Machshavah Lab series for women, we continued the topic we embarked on the week before. First, we revised our understanding of the Rambam's approach and my "Pillo...