For the Love of Judaism
Rabbi Michael Pont, Senior Rabbi at Marlboro Jewish Center, shares his weekly message of love, inspiration and Torah.
Episodes
89 episodes
How Saba Kept Singing
This is a Holocaust survivor story you haven't heard. It is the story of Cantor David Wisnia, a man whose vocal talent saved him from certain death at Auschwitz. Featured in the new award-winning documentary, How Saba Kept Singing, David's stor...
•
Season 4
•
Episode 4
•
43:43
Rock and Wrap It Up
During a first of its kind meeting of Holocaust survivors in Israel Syd Mandelbaum realized that he had to change the world. What followed is a lifetime dedicated to ridding the world of hunger. Enter Rock and Wrap it Up, an organization that t...
•
Season 4
•
Episode 3
•
41:04
Remembering September 11th
The fourth season of For the Love of Judaism kicks off with a special episode in honor of the 23rd anniversary of September 11th, 2001. In this episode, Rabbi Pont interviews retired New York City firefighter Dave Smentkowski whose experiences ...
•
Season 4
•
Episode 1
•
28:38
Season Finale
It has been an amazing third season of For the Love of Judaism. To send us off into the summer Rabbi Pont shares two recent sermons, one about his trip to the Nova Festival Exhibit in New York and the other about Father's Day and the many ways ...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 20
•
23:11
A View from the Press Box
Lots of kids are into sports but few get to live out their dreams as an NFL beat reporter for ESPN. This week's guest, New York Giants beat reporter Jordan Raanan, is one of those lucky few. Don't miss this far reaching conversation about what ...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 19
•
43:00
Commencement at the University of Michigan
Last month Rabbi Pont's daughter Emma graduated from the University of Michigan School of Nursing. As was reported across many news outlets, U of M's graduation ceremony was one of many that was disrupted by protestors. A replay o...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 18
•
19:38
Remembering My Friend Greta Grunberg
On this Yom HaShoah, the Day of Remembrance, we recall the six million who died at the hands of the Nazis. Among them was Greta Grunberg, a mother of two young boys who befriended a young German girl named Elizabeth. Elizabeth and Greta l...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 17
•
35:39
The Garden of My Life
What happens when a working single mom from D.C. has the opportunity to live out her dream in the midst of a pandemic? She buys a farm in rural North Carolina!That's the story of Wendy Rhein, owner of Chutzpah Hollow, a self-made homest...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 16
•
42:17
A Sermon from Before
On Yom Kippur 2023 Rabbi Pont delivered a sermon commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Yom Kippur War. In late September, it was widely viewed as one of the worst wars that Israel has had to fight in its 75 year history. We had no idea that...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 15
•
15:37
Making the Laws of Conservative Judaism
Ever wonder how the Conservative movement came to allow driving to Synagogue on Shabbat? Or whether it feels differently about driving electric cars on Shabbat? Or how it was decided that a livestreamed minyan was OK during the COVID-19 pandemi...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 14
•
44:08
Adi's Story
In the early morning hours of October 7th, Hamas stormed Kibbutz Holit, a small kibbutz in southern Israel. As the terrorists went house to house, Adi Kaploun Vital hid with her two small children while her father hid two houses away. Adi’s act...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 13
•
49:31
Chesed and Chaverim
Part of becoming a Bar or Bat Mitzvah at Marlboro Jewish Center is doing an act of chesed, or kindness, for those less fortunate than you are. Every year, our 7th graders find new and exciting projects that are special to them and use those pro...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 12
•
19:43
The Black Hole Pastrami
What is the best way to leave a legacy? Inspired by wanting to make sure that his daughter always knew the family from which she came, Jeff started writing down the memories of his childhood and the family myths that had been passed down ...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 11
•
35:16
Rabbi Round Up
In the Conservative Jewish world, few Rabbis have their fingers on pulse like Rabbi Jacob Blumenthal. Rabbi Blumenthal serves concurrently as the CEO of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism and the Rabbinical Assembly through a strategi...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 10
•
42:21
The Spirit of the IDF
For more than three months, the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) has been engaged in a war with Hamas that feels like a defining moment for the present and future of the state of Israel. Few can offer the perspective of today's guest Aaron Cooper, a...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 9
•
39:46
Wheel of Fortune!
By day, Sam Levine is a music teacher at Lloyd Road School in Matawan, New Jersey. At Marlboro Jewish Center, Sam Levine is a talented musician who leads Tot Shabbat and plays in the Shabbat Unplugged Band. On October 2023 he added another titl...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 8
•
35:53
Giving the Gift of Life
What is the best gift you've ever given? It probably doesn't top what Chrissy Esptein, a young mother of two beautiful daughters, gave to her friend Kieran this past September when she donated her left kidney to save his life.Shaped by ...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 7
•
32:09
Sci-fi and Judaism
This week Rabbi Pont is joined by Rabbis Lindsey Healey-Pollack and Andrew Pepperstone, hosts of the podcast Sacred Realms. ...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 6
•
37:03
Friendships Forged: The Importance of Jewish Sleepaway Camp
Few movements in the Jewish religion have been as successful as that of Jewish camping. Each year thousands of Jewish children participate in an immersive Jewish experience that brings them closer to their religion and builds a lasting Jewish i...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 5
•
31:07
A Meaningful Journey
On this week's episode, Rabbi Pont welcomes Dr. Stacy Gallin back to the podcast. Dr. Gallin is the founder of The Ferencz Institute for Human Rights, Ethics and the Holocaust, a non-profit organization doing the important work of using the les...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 4
•
29:27
Lessons from the Yom Kippur War
Six days ago our world was shattered. For nearly a week we have all tried to make sense of the horror that Hamas brought upon Israel last Shabbat.In the wake of the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust, this week's ep...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 3
•
34:47
Seeking Allies on College Campuses
Antisemitism is on the rise. There may be no more alarming statistic for American Jews than the reality than six in ten religious hate crimes happen to Jewish people and/or organizations. A shocking statistic for a people that make up less than...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 2
•
21:47
New Season. New Year.
Shana tova! What better way to usher in the new year than with a new season of For the Love of Judaism. On this episode you will hear two recent sermons given by Rabbi Pont, both of which are must listens to get you in the mood for the high hol...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 1
•
8:31
Sleeping As Fast As I Can
Richard Michelson is an award-winning author, poet and artist who is well known for his contributions to the cannon of Jewish writing. His newest collection,
•
Season 2
•
Episode 31
•
33:40
The Incident at San Miguel
Throughout history Jews have been the victims of persecution and discrimination that has forced them from the places they've called home. While the stories associated with the Holocaust are often-told, the stories of the Jewish people in Cuba d...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 30
•
31:38