Search for Meaning with Rabbi Yoshi

In this episode of Search for Meaning, Rabbi Yoshi Zweiback is joined by his teacher, mentor, and friend, Rabbi Steve Leder, for a wide-ranging and deeply personal conversation recorded in January 2021, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.Their discussion centers on Rabbi Leder’s book, The Beauty of What Remains, written after the death of his father following a long journey with Alzheimer’s. Drawing on more than three decades of rabbinic experience and his own profound loss, Rabbi Leder reflects on the non-linear nature of grief, the limitations of the “stages” model of mourning, and what he has learned from accompanying thousands of people at the end of life.Together, they explore how memory can be both painful and sustaining, what it truly means to show up for the dying and the bereaved, and how loss can awaken a deeper appreciation for time, touch, love, and connection. With wisdom, honesty, and moments of humor, this conversation offers guidance and comfort to anyone navigating grief—or seeking a more meaningful way to live in its shadow.Search for Meaning invites listeners into conversations that challenge, console, and inspire. This episode is a reminder that even in loss, there is beauty in what remains.https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/623578/the-beauty-of-what-remains-by-steve-leder/

In this solo episode of Search for Meaning, Rabbi Yoshi Zweiback reflects on a timely and challenging question facing the Jewish community today: How do we disagree without hating one another?Prompted by recent remarks from Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove at the American Zionist Movement Biennial, Rabbi Yoshi explores the growing tensions within Jewish communal life — particularly around Israel — and the ways our conversations can become polarized, judgmental, and alienating, especially for younger Jews.Turning to Parashat Vayeshev and the story of Joseph and his brothers, the episode uncovers a subtle but powerful distinction in the Torah between sin’ah (hatred) and kin’ah (envy). Drawing on the teachings of Rabbi Eliezer Davidovits, Rabbi Zweiback introduces the rabbinic concept of kin’at sofrim — the “envy of scholars” — a form of admiration that doesn’t fracture relationships but deepens wisdom and understanding.This episode is an invitation to reimagine disagreement not as a threat, but as an opportunity for learning, curiosity, and growth — and to consider how Jewish tradition can guide us toward more loving, respectful, and constructive conversations, even in times of deep division.

Rabbi Yoshi Zweiback sits down with actor Moshe Lobel, star of the groundbreaking new film SHTTL—a Yiddish-language, single-shot masterpiece set in a Ukrainian shtetl on the eve of its destruction in 1941. Filmed in 2021 but only recently released, SHTTL feels uncannily prophetic, speaking directly to the anxieties, divisions, and questions facing the Jewish world today.Moshe brings a deeply personal lens to the film. Raised in an ultra-Orthodox home in Brooklyn, with Yiddish as his first language, he eventually left the community of his childhood to pursue a different path—an experience that echoes through his portrayal of Mendele, a young man who also steps outside his community and becomes a filmmaker in the Soviet Army’s propaganda division. In the conversation, Moshe reflects on how his own journey of identity, faith, and separation helped him understand Mendele’s longing, his conflicts, and his complicated return home.Rabbi Yoshi and Moshe explore the Talmudic nature of Jewish identity—our arguments, our diversity, our longing for unity—and how SHTTL reveals both the beauty and the fragility of a people wrestling with faith, modernity, and danger. They also discuss the film’s most powerful scenes: moments of denial in the face of rising antisemitism, fierce debates about unity and belief, and the urgent relevance of a story rooted in 1941 yet alive with meaning in our own moment.A moving, timely, and deeply reflective conversation that reminds us how fragile—and how enduring—the Jewish story truly is.Learn more about the film at: https://www.menemshafilms.com/shttl

Veteran trial lawyer Marc Kasowitz has taken his courtroom skills to a new front—the battle against antisemitism on America’s college campuses. In this episode, Rabbi Yoshi Zweiback talks with Kasowitz about the lawsuits he’s brought against universities like NYU and Harvard, where Jewish and Israeli students faced harassment and exclusion.Their conversation explores how the legal system can hold powerful institutions accountable, what meaningful change looks like in practice, and where Kasowitz finds hope in an era of rising hate.This thoughtful exchange offers a rare look at the intersection of law, justice, and Jewish identity—and what it takes to stand up for truth and dignity when it matters most.

In this special episode, Rabbi Yoshi shares his 5786 Rosh Hashanah (2025) sermon, Sanctified — For the Whole World.Drawing on the wisdom of his grandfather, Jewish tradition, and the moral challenges of our time, Rabbi Zweiback explores the sacred balance between particularism and universalism — between our deep commitment to the Jewish people and our responsibility to all humanity.Through stories of family, Israel, and acts of compassion near and far, this message invites us to live inside the holy tension that defines Jewish life: to defend our people fiercely, and to love the wider world boldly.May this new year inspire all of us to bring holiness, empathy, and peace into the world we share.