Xai, how are you?

Mar 17 2025 235 ep. 28 mins 84
Xai, how are you? Podcast artwork

Queer Jews Michael Sokolovsky and Rabbi Xava De Cordova play with the multi-millennial dialectic that is the Talmud. Join them as they throw drash, seek prophetic insight and uncover the rabbinic smuttiness inherent in the system.

  Religion & Spirituality
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232. Squashing the Opposition

Mar 17 2025 31 mins  
Michael brings us a Purim-relevant sugye on reasoning and rhetoric, full of gourds and goodies! Sign up for Torah from the Inside Out here: http://bit.ly/torahinsideout To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at [email protected]. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Music by Ben Schreiber.

231. Rich Torah, Poor Torah

Feb 25 2025 32 mins  
Xava brings a sugye on the things that can "distract" us from Torah study, which leads to a discussion on how the hell we're supposed to relate to Torah when it's being used for wicked ends. Register for Torah from the Inside Out here: http://bit.ly/torahinsideout To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@

230. Public Affairs

Jan 17 2025 40 mins  
What does Jewish law look like on a group scale? How do we deal with harm to the public? How do you do teshuva for the commons? Find out on this episode! Sign up for Shel Maala in Seattle at http://bit.ly/shelmaalaseattle To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at [email protected]. Support us on patreon at patreon.

229. Can you un-Jew yourself?

Dec 20 2024 35 mins  
Michael brings a bevy of texts to help answer the question: can you ever become un-Jewish? We’re looking at thoughts and answers from throughout history, plus one extra special Jewish monk! Sign up for Sabbatean Heresy here: https://bit.ly/sabbateanheresy Sign up for Shel Maala in Seattle here: https://bit.ly/shelmaalaseattle To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at

228. Intention vs Structure

Nov 26 2024 28 mins  
Xava brings a buffet of texts exploring intention and structure, mitzvahs, prayer, baby birds and being force fed matza. Sign up for In Every Tongue with Ada Morse here: https://bit.ly/ineverytongue To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at [email protected]. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Music

227. Cannibalism, Vegetarianism, and Origin of Morality

Nov 13 2024 32 mins  
Michael brings us texts that connect Yellowjackets, moral norms, aesthetic values, cannibalism and vegetarianism. Check out Shel Maala in New Haven here: https://bit.ly/beyondrepairNH and in Baltimore/DC here: https://bit.ly/ShelMaalaDMV To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at [email protected]. Support us on pat

226. The Secret Jewish History of the Etrog

Oct 27 2024 26 mins  
In today's episode, Xava brings some sugyes and history about the etrog (aka the citron aka the Persian apple aka the thing that Rabbis look at with intense love and delight), and how it made its way into our sukkot ritual! Check out Shel Maala's East Coast Tour here: https://bit.ly/shelmaalaeastcoast To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-

225. Brand Loyalty

Oct 13 2024 28 mins  
This time Michael is bringing us a weird, challenging little sugye about business ethics, land deals gone wrong, breakfast food preferences and going above the letter of the law. Sign up to learn with Shel Maala in Western Mass here: https://bit.ly/shelmaalamass To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at xaihowareyou@gma

224. Get Off My Lawn

Sep 23 2024 27 mins  
Xava's got a sugye about keeping your side of the street clean, zoning ordinance, Rabbinic humility and home improvement. Sign up for Shel Maala in Western Mass at https://bit.ly/shelmaalamass ! To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at [email protected]. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Music by

223. Secret Stones and Magic Dirt

Sep 09 2024 25 mins  
Michael brings us a few sugyes about special stones, both paving and corner, in the Talmud. This leads to magic dirt and Nazis getting their faces melted off, naturally. To ask us questions, text or leaves us a voicemail at the Talmud Hotline at 401-484-1619 or email us at [email protected]. Support us on patreon at patreon.com/xaihowareyou. Music by Ben Schreiber.