Contact Chai

Mar 03 2025 278 ep. 28 mins
Contact Chai Podcast artwork

Contact Chai is Mishkan Chicago’s podcast feed, where you can hear our Shabbat sermons, Morning Minyans, interviews with Jewish thought leaders, and more.

  Religion & Spirituality  Society & Culture
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Don't Just Do Something, Sit There

Mar 03 2025 23 mins  
Hello, and welcome to Contact Chai. At our March 1st Saturday morning service, Rabbi Lizzi shared a drash about the dangers of trying to drown out our boredom with distraction and silence our doubts with idolatrous certainty. How can we find God and make meaning when life gets chaotic and scary, or worse — really, really boring? You Are So Not Invited To Mishkan's BMitzvah Mishka

Parshat Terumah: Make Yourself (Into) a Mishkan

Feb 26 2025 36 mins  
Every weekday at 8:00 am, Mishkan Chicago holds a virtual Morning Minyan. You can join in yourself, or listen to all the prayer, music, and inspiration right here on Contact Chai. https://mishkan.shulcloud.com/form/reg-morning-minyan-evergreen Become A Builder! https://www.mishkanchicago.org/support/be-a-builder/ New Builder Orientation — February 27th https://www.mishkanchicago.

Repro Shabbat: Alicia Hurtado of Chicago Abortion Fund

Feb 25 2025 34 mins  
Today’s episode is a Shabbat Replay of our February 21st Friday service. Last week was very difficult, so we have included Rabbi Lizzi’s introductory remarks addressing our grief and pain after this opening segment. Then, you will hear a brief musical interlude curtesy of our Davening Team, followed by drashing on the theme of Repro Shabbat, an initiative of the National Counci

Morning Minyan — Parshat Mishpatim: People of the Book

Feb 19 2025 36 mins  
Every weekday at 8:00 am, Mishkan Chicago holds a virtual Morning Minyan. You can join in yourself, or listen to all the prayer, music, and inspiration right here on Contact Chai. https://mishkan.shulcloud.com/form/reg-morning-minyan-evergreen Become A Builder! https://www.mishkanchicago.org/support/be-a-builder/ New Builder Orientation — February 27th https://www.mishkanchicago.

Forgiving Those We Cannot Forgive

Feb 18 2025 19 mins  
Today’s episode is a Shabbat Replay of our Saturday morning service on February 15th, when Rabbi Steven delivered a personal sermon on the important nuances of teshuvah — repentance. Repentance and repair are core Jewish values, but what do we do when reconciliation is not possible? You Are So Not Invited To Mishkan's BMitzvah Mishkan's Grownup Purim Party is on March 13th at t

The Ten Commandments — Morning Minyan w/ Rabbi Lizzi

Feb 12 2025 39 mins  
Every weekday at 8:00 am, Mishkan Chicago holds a virtual Morning Minyan. You can join in yourself, or listen to all the prayer, music, and inspiration right here on Contact Chai. https://mishkan.shulcloud.com/form/reg-morning-minyan-evergreen **** For upcoming Shabbat services and programs, check our event calendar, and see our Accessibility & Inclusion page for information ab

Creating The Conditions For A Miracle

Feb 10 2025 38 mins  
Today’s episode is a Shabbat Replay of our service on February 7th, when we celebrated Shabbat Shira, the joyful Shabbos when we sing extra songs to recall the Splitting of the Sea. Rabbi Lizzi connected the momentous but rather frightening first step toward freedom across the Red Sea to the courageous steps toward liberation taken by civil rights activists. How can we follow in

Refuse To Be A Bystander

Feb 03 2025 19 mins  
Today’s episode is a Shabbat Replay of our Saturday morning service on February 1st, when Rabbi Steven shared about his recent rabbinic mission trip to Poland where he learned about the long history of Eastern European Jewish culture, a legacy nearly eradicated by the Holocaust. Many survivors owe their lives to non-Jews who refused to be bystanders. As Jews, we are called to do

You Were Once An Immigrant, Too

Jan 27 2025 18 mins  
Today’s episode is a Shabbat Replay of our Friday night service on January 24th when Builder Kalman Resnick, an immigration lawyer and legal expert, gave a detailed breakdown of the impact that Trump’s executive orders will have on millions of our neighbors. As Jews, our scriptures demand that we treat immigrants and foreigners as equal citizens, for we “were once strangers i

When Pharaoh Became A Slave

Jan 22 2025 41 mins  
Every weekday at 8:00 am, Mishkan Chicago holds a virtual Morning Minyan. You can join in yourself, or listen to all the prayer, music, and inspiration right here on Contact Chai. https://mishkan.shulcloud.com/form/reg-morning-minyan-evergreen **** For upcoming Shabbat services and programs, check our event calendar, and see our Accessibility & Inclusion page for information ab