Episode 101. This is the second part of my discussion with Judith Pajo and Zeyneb Sayilgan about living our faiths in America and Germany. While we have all lived in both countries, we practice different faiths, representing the three Abrahamic religions––Judaism, Christianity, and Islam respectively. In the first part released on 12 June, we discussed our backgrounds, immigration patterns, religious identity and the dynamic of universalism and particularism. In this part, ...

Episode 100. For this episode, I’ve invited two women, Judith Pajo and Zeyneb Sayilgan, for a group discussion about living our faiths in America and Germany. We each have unique patterns of immigration in addition to different religious identities and practice. Judith grew up in both countries as a Catholic, Zeyneb likewise grew up in Germany and is a lifelong Muslim, while I grew up in the US and lived in Germany for nearly nine years, having become a practicing Jew as an adult...

Episode 99. Bonus For this Bonus episode, I’ve invited two British women, Lindsay Simmonds and Julie Siddiqi, both PhDs, to talk about their interfaith friendship and the public facing work they’ve done since Hamas’ attack on Israel on 7 Oct. 2023. Lindsay is an Orthodox Jew and Julie is Muslim. The fact of their religious identities and deep practice is noteworthy and relevant, as the attack and subsequent war, have proven polarizing, straining the already challenging work of bridging...

Episode 98. (replay of Episode 78) Over the last two episodes with Judith Pajo and Zeyneb Sayilgan, we’ve talked quite a bit about faith challenges and dealing with changes in life that impact religious practice. Those changes have included moving country. With that in mind, I wanted to replay an episode from 2024 that addresses these themes among others. Aaron Solberg was raised in an Orthodox Jewish home in New York. As a young adult, he traversed several spiritual thresholds, eventua...

Episode 97. Burying a child is an unimaginable trauma that no parent should have to face. My guest today, Zeyneb Sayilgan, has sadly needed to endure that pain and grief twice. Through it all, her Muslim faith has sustained her and provided a path for healing. She has joined me to talk about her experience of loss and subsequent growth, as well as the related Islamic beliefs about death and the afterlife. We also touch on where the beliefs are similar to those in Judaism. Zeyneb brings...

Episode 96. Have you lived in more than one country? Do you participate in interreligious dialogue or are you interested in it? Have you studied religion or theology? Not very many people can say yes to all of these questions. But my guest, Judith Pajo can. Born in Germany, she has nevertheless lived many years both there and in the U.S., shuttling back and forth since childhood. Raised Catholic, she has also studied theology and cultural anthropology in both countries. Judith no...

Episode 95. What comes to mind when you hear the term mysticism? Perhaps you imagine a yogi sitting cross legged in meditation, or people sitting in a circle chanting. Several religions have mystical practices, Sufism in Islam, and Zen Buddhism, for instance. Whatever the particulars, they generally share a desire to become one with the Divine and valueing of spiritual rather than intellectual understanding. Today, my guest, Lex Rofeberg, has joined me to talk about Jewish mysticism, i...

Episode 94. Are you a Jew, Christian, or Muslim? Do you wonder about how your holiday this spring intersects with other holidays occurring at or near the same time? What do you make of that? And what does your holiday mean to you? How do you celebrate it? In this month's reflection, I address how Ramadan, Lent, and Passover connect thematically, and in the calendar. In these tense times when so many of us are feeling anxious and distressed, we can either give into that or strive...

Episode 93. Did you grow up in a highly observant home and religious community where surety of belief was the norm? Aubrey Chaves did, and much as she felt embraced by the family’s deep engagement within their Mormon congregation, or ward, when she encountered differing lifestyles that were loving and not harmful to anyone, the rightness she had always believed about the church fathers and doctrine shifted from a solid foundation to something brittle. In short, it prompted a cris...

Episode 92. Jews had lived in Libya since the third century BCE, but 1967 marked their final expulsion from the majority Muslim country. Raphael Luzon was a child at the time and fled with his family. Like many, they went to Italy. Overnight, his environment changed. Gone were his Jewish, Muslim and Catholic classmates. Gone was the exchange of holiday greetings with Muslim neighbors. But all was not lost. Those relationships had planted a seed, and that seed grew. Over the decades sin...

Episode 91. In this episode, I delve into the complex intersection of personal faith and public roles. I reflect on my recent conversation with Chris Stevenson, founder of the National Museum of American Religion, who chooses to leave his Mormon faith outside the museum to maintain an inclusive environment. I also explore the balance between personal religious identity, intention, and situational appropriateness, sharing my experience of being Jewish in Germany and interact...

Episode 90. Are you a museum goer? Are you interested in the history of religion in America? Is religious freedom in America important to you? If you answered yes to any of those questions, today’s episode will speak to you. Chris Stevenson has been developing the National Museum of American Religion for 15 years. Currently a digital-first project, Chris and his team began the Religion in the American Experience podcast as a stepping-stone to exhibits. They are also talking...

Episode 89. Every culture has its food, and in America, each immigrant group has contributed to the bounty of culinary options––from Italian pizza to Jewish delis and much more. Muslims are no different. What this group has brought, however, is a wide array of foods, since Muslims hail from many countries. My guest today, Shahed Amanullah, a renowned entrepreneur, created a short list of restaurants that offered halal food in 1998. What began as a simple list for himself and his Muslim...

Episode 88. This episode is in memory of the passengers and crew of the DC and Philadelphia plane crashes and my friend Karen Hirschfeld. May their memories be for a blessing. This is the first of a new Reflection series. They will be short monthly episodes, opportunities to share my thoughts about recent episodes, things I’ve written or read and whatever else seems relevant. Highlights: · Explanation of the new reflection series format. · ...

Episode 87. The timing of this Bonus episode is auspicious given the recent debate regarding learning about the history of race in America, the book bans, and the current administration’s aim to eliminate the federal department of education. While each of these issues are complex and engage different issues, they share the matter of understanding our history – all of it. And our history leads into what we do today. As part of my ongoing encouragement to know each other’s faith and reli...

Episode 86. Several big international changes have occurred since the last episode was released on the 9th of January. America witnessed another peaceful transfer of power, though it was immediately followed by some executive orders that are anything but peaceful, and Israeli hostages were exchanged for Palestinian prisoners as part of a ceasefire. These small steps are part of much longer national journeys that will affect many people for years to come. Today’s guest, Dan...

Episode 85. As the new secular year begins, along with the incoming presidential administration, it’s a good time to hear a shortened version of my conversation with the esteemed journalist and speaker Wajahat Ali. Given the dominance of White Christian Nationalism and the debate about immigration, Wajahat’s Sunni Muslim American identity and his family’s Pakistani immigrant history, make him an ideal partner to talk about religious pluralism in America today. In this conversation we e...

Episode 84. This week is the Jewish holiday of Chanukah which celebrates light in the dark days of winter. It is a time of contrasts and turning. Our candles add light in the darkness as we appreciate the slow turning towards longer days. In that spirit, this conversation explores another kind of opposites and turning – immersing in the mikveh as a way for a Jew to mark a transition. Haviva Ner-David, an American Jew who has lived in Israel more than half her life. She is the fou...

Episode 83. Is someone in your family an immigrant? Or are you yourself an immigrant? Are you visibly a member of a race or religion? And how do these markers of identity affect your work life and general sense of belonging? In this conversation we explore the complexities of her life experience – being part of an extended family of mixed cultures and religions, being visibly Muslim at work, the 9/11 terrorist attack, and a bit about Christmas, perfect in the run up to that holiday. ...

Episode 82. 'Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name'. These opening words of the Lord’s Prayer from the Christian tradition, provide a salve for Will Berry when times are hard, and he doesn’t have words. As a paramedic for 14 years, these moments are not infrequent. Today’s episode is the second half of our conversation, where we talk about God, prayer, and the power of using ancient words. Highlights: 00:00 God's vastness complements intimate personal ...