“Moral Courage” shares Jewish ideas and conversations — inspired by the works of Rabbi Harold M. Schulweis — that make Jewish wisdom more accessible, inclusive and relevant to today’s complicated world. Rabbi Schulweis was a longtime pulpit rabbi at Valley Beth Shalom in Encino, California, from 1970 until his passing in 2014, who made Judaism approachable and accessible. He believed that humanity could do divine work in the world, trying to make it a better place. He was a cofounder of the anti-genocide program Jewish World Watch, and said that Jews have a moral responsibility to help those who are suffering, wherever they are. He was also the founding Chair of the Jewish Foundation for the Righteous, recognizing Christians who saved Jews from the Holocaust. His is a voice that we need now—to give us direction and hope, in an otherwise troubled time. Executive Produced by Sad Clown Productions and Mayim Bialik. Hosted by Rabbi Ari Averbach.
Moral Courage: From the Study of Rabbi Harold M. Schulweis
Claim This Podcastby Harold M. Schulweis Institute
Podcast Overview
“Moral Courage” shares Jewish ideas and conversations — inspired by the works of Rabbi Harold M. Schulweis — that make Jewish wisdom more accessible, inclusive and relevant to today’s complicated world. Rabbi Schulweis was a longtime pulpit rabbi at Valley Beth Shalom in Encino, California, from 1970 until his passing in 2014, who made Judaism approachable and accessible. He believed that humanity could do divine work in the world, trying to make it a better place. He was a cofounder of the anti-genocide program Jewish World Watch, and said that Jews have a moral responsibility to help those who are suffering, wherever they are. He was also the founding Chair of the Jewish Foundation for the Righteous, recognizing Christians who saved Jews from the Holocaust. His is a voice that we need now—to give us direction and hope, in an otherwise troubled time. Executive Produced by Sad Clown Productions and Mayim Bialik. Hosted by Rabbi Ari Averbach.
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Publishing Since
9/18/2024
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Recent Episodes
July 28, 2026
A Conversation with Rabbi Shai Held, American philosopher, theologian, author, and Bible scholar, co-founder, President, and Dean of the Hadar Institute.
<p>Rabbi Ari Averbach hosts Rabbi Shai Held for a candid conversation on God, suffering, prayer, and love in Jewish life. Held shares how theology “chose him” through a childhood of cognitive dissonance (secular home, yeshiva schooling), why he teaches text-first, and how opening honest, adult conversations about faith can revive American Jewish spirituality. He contrasts predicate theology (“God as verb”) with a more traditional theism (“God in our response”) and explores what that means for prayer, action, and pastoral care.</p><p>Diving into Psalms of lament—especially Psalm 77 and Psalm 44—Held shows how remembering the Exodus can both comfort and intensify pain, legitimizing protest as authentic piety. He discusses hospital rooms and funerals where humility matters: sometimes people need presence, sometimes theology. The aim is a richer Jewish vocabulary that invites curiosity across differences, whether between denominations or in interfaith dialogue.</p><p>Major Publications & Media</p><ul><li><strong>Judaism Is About Love: Recovering the Heart of Jewish Life</strong><strong> (2024)</strong>: His widely discussed book exploring the central role of divine and human love within Jewish theology and ethics.</li><li><strong>The Heart of Torah</strong><strong> (2017)</strong>: A two-volume collection of deep, ethically driven essays focused on the weekly Torah portions.</li><li><strong>Abraham Joshua Heschel: The Call of Transcendence</strong><strong> (2013)</strong>: A critical study of the renowned 20th-century theologian's religious philosophy.</li><li><strong>Answers WithHeld</strong>: He hosts a podcast produced by the Hadar Institute, engaging with various theological and text-based topics. </li></ul><p>Accolades</p><ul><li><strong>Covenant Award</strong>: Recipient of the prestigious Covenant Foundation award for excellence in Jewish education.</li><li><strong>National Recognition</strong>: Repeatedly named one of America's 50 most influential rabbis by Newsweek and one of the world's 50 most prominent Jewish figures by the Jewish Daily Forward.</li></ul>
June 26, 2026
A Conversation with Rabbi Denise L. Eger, Reform Rabbi, Author, and Executive coach
<p>Rabbi Denise Eger joins Rabbi Ari Averbach to trace her 38‑year rabbinic journey from Memphis to the pulpit, and the hidden struggles of LGBTQ students in seminary. She recounts organizing secret support networks, her ordination in 1988, and serving as rabbi of Beth Chayim Chadashim during the height of the AIDS crisis—pastoring the sick, educating institutions, and building community care when mainstream support was absent.</p><p>The conversation follows Eger’s leadership in changing Reform movement policy and practice around LGBTQ inclusion, including public visibility that helped shift Hebrew Union College and the Central Conference of American Rabbis toward nondiscrimination and support for same‑sex marriage. She reflects on Rabbi Harold Schulweis’s moral courage to learn and change, the importance of in‑reach (kiruv) to welcome Jews who feel excluded, and the long work of expanding Jewish belonging.</p><p>Turning to today, Eger warns about cancel culture, virulent antisemitism, and online radicalization of youth, calling for sustained moral courage from clergy and lay leaders. She closes by honoring LGBTQ ancestors and celebrating Pride, sharing liturgy from her Mishkan Ga’ava collection that remembers those who fought and sacrificed so future generations could live openly and with dignity.</p><p><strong>LINKS:</strong></p><p><b><strong>Morality Legality and Homosexuality — A Rosh Hashanah Sermon by Rabbi Harold M. Schulweis<br>Rosh Hashanah 5753, September 27, 1992</strong></b></p><p><a href="https://hmsi.info/morality-legality-and-homosexuality-a-rosh-hashanah-sermon-by-rabbi-harold-m-schulweis-3/"><strong>TEXT</strong></a><br><a href="https://hmsi.info/morality-legality-and-homosexuality-a-rosh-hashanah-sermon-by-rabbi-harold-m-schulweis-2/"><strong>AUDIO</strong></a></p><p><b><a href="https://www.ccarpress.org/9780881233582/mishkan-gaavah-where-pride-dwells/"><strong>Mishkan Ga'avah: Where Pride Dwells—A Celebration of LGBTQ Jewish Life and Ritual</strong></a><br>Edited by <a href="https://www.ccarpress.org/author/denise-l-eger">Rabbi Denise L. Eger<br></a>Foreword by <a href="https://www.ccarpress.org/author/loren-ostrow">Loren Ostrow<br></a><br></b></p>
June 10, 2026
A Conversation with Rabbi Laura Geller, Rabbi Emeritus, Temple Emanuel of Beverly Hills
<p>Rabbi Laura Geller joins Rabbi Ari Averbach to reflect on a 50‑year rabbinical journey shaped by civil‑rights activism, feminist awakening, and deep engagement with Jewish ritual. Rabbi Geller traces formative moments—from a kibbutz stay and student organizing at Brown to becoming part of the first generation of women rabbis—that led her to insist that “there is no important moment in the lifetime of a Jew for which there is no blessing.” She recounts creating new rituals, reimagining liturgy with gender‑inclusive language, and the classroom experiences that helped forge her approach to tradition and change.</p><p>The conversation explores practical responses to midlife and aging: a synagogue listening campaign that birthed HiVillageLA and the Synagogue Village Network, her books Getting Good at Getting Older and Moments That Matter, and innovative home‑sharing covenants with rabbinical students to combat loneliness and mentor the next generation. Laura also honors Rabbi Harold M. Schulweis’s influence—especially his emphasis on training lay leaders and building empowered communities—and describes how those lessons continue to shape contemporary Jewish life.</p><p>Rabbi Geller closes with spiritual practices that sustain her work, including Jewish meditation through the Institute for Jewish Spirituality and the ongoing study of texts that integrate prayer and social justice. She offers a blessing from Moments That Matter about endings as beginnings and invites listeners to notice, mark, and bless life’s transitions with wisdom, community, and grace.</p><p><strong>Websites referenced in our discussion</strong>:</p><ul><li><a href="http://www.sefaria.org"><strong>www.sefaria.org</strong></a></li><li><a href="http://www.chaivillagela.org"><strong>www.chaivillagela.org</strong></a></li><li><a href="http://synagoguevillagenetwork.org"><strong>synagoguevillagenetwork.org</strong></a></li></ul>
22 total episodes available
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