The four ways the will interacts in relationship are enhanced by a fifth - how it acts on itself. Tzimtzum, creative contraction, is the context for creation.بقلم Rav Mike

Shimon and Levi went beyond the bounds to rescue their captive sister. It is a heroic sory and a moral dilemma all in one.بقلم Rav Mike

If God is unbounded in creative capacity, why is it part of the Divine will that there be agents in creation?بقلم Rav Mike

Vayetze 5786: The power of sleep by Rav Mikeبقلم Rav Mike

The relative nature of moral good defines the human perspective, but God sees the Essential Good of all creationبقلم Rav Mike

When a door is shut before you, how do you know whether to push harder or to walk away?بقلم Rav Mike

What is the mystery of the Torah's first word?بقلم Rav Mike

JHP - Teshuva - A Hero's Journey - September 2025 by Rav Mikeبقلم Rav Mike

Tears of futility, words of hope and wisdom on the question - what model of heroism could best serve us now?بقلم Rav Mike

A backstory conversation w/David Goodwin. Follow all the way to hear the best anecdotes about my life in the woods!بقلم Rav Mike

A conversation on memory and self actualization. Rav Mike and Eitan dig deep into the struggle to be part of the national experience, and dream bid about the opportunity presented by national independence.بقلم Rav Mike

What is the difference between fantasy, myth and Torah? How does the sacred imagination serve as a vessel for prophecy? What are we meant to be doing on Seder night? Hear about these questions and more as Rav Mike and Eitan engage in a deep conversation about this unique human capacity.بقلم Rav Mike

Here is an introduction to a new way of being. If you are seeking the Torah's guidance on how to become your best self, looking for tools of growth and frames for new consciousnes - tune in and take the Jewish Hero's Journey.Find more information at www.jewishheroism.com and sign up to join a the seven paths workship live or online here - https://f…

Rav Mike's annual Hanukkah shiur given in honor of his father's yartzheit. The commandment to sanctify God's name was foundational to the Hanukkah story, and has taken a central role once again today as the Jewish people are faced with war. What light can it help us shine in the world?بقلم Rav Mike

Join me for a live class at The Torah Cafe. We explore the intersection between the ten days of repentance and October 7th, asking how to take a heroic stance on teshuva.بقلم Rav Mike

Sometimes history and the Hebrew calendar coincide in remarkable ways. Join Rav Mike and guest R' Aaron Leibowitz as they discuss the nature of the the spiritual and material challenges faced by the Jewish people today. The conversation touches on the limits of agency, the nature of responsibility and the question of how we hold the pain of past an…

American Jewry stands at a crossroads, facing great risks and real opportunities. Success in such a moment requires clarity of vision, confidence in identity and readiness for action - all elements of a heroic stance. This first class of Rav Mike's recent US tour is an exploration of what Jewish heroism is, how it can be cultivated in our lives and…

There are many models of Jewish hero, and the healer is among the most important. In a time when Israeli Jews are struggling to be victorious warriors, here is a call for American Jewry to pick up the task of healing. Because if victory means nothing more than smashing your enemies, we are still left with a broken world in the end…

Malchut is good made manifest.This class introduces malchut, the seventh and final step in the Torah’s heroic journey. Malchut is the ability to bring the pieces into right relationship - in the personal dimension as identity, between people as leadership and facing creation as Divine consciousness. On the heroic journey it is a manifestation of th…

Here is a pre-Pesach conversation with R' Yehuda HaKohen of the Vision Movement where we explore the narrative arc of the Passover story and the nature of freedom. Along the way we touch on the State of Israel's struggle to be free of foreign influence, and how every Jew can become more of who they truly are.…

Yosher is integrity, the ability to hold the line.This class introduces yosher as the sixth path of Jewish heroism. The quality of integrity guides us in forming a right relationship with self, other and world – all the facets of truth uncovered on the path of emet. The class begins by touching on how integrity is a quality of heart, and then goes …

It's not every day that you turn fifty. here are some birthday thoughts from Rav Mike - and a blessing to all who tune in!بقلم Rav Mike

Here is a discussion with R' Aaron Leibowitz about some of the emotional and spiritual challenges posed by the uncertainty of our national situation, and what Purim might teach us about finding a way forward.بقلم Rav Mike

Emet is where the light of the Infinite enters our story. It is the engagement of truth without and within which requires a struggle with the shadow and the unknown. This class introduces emet, the struggle to embrace truth, as the fifth path of Jewish heroism. It begins with an exploration of the Torah's approach to truth as a holistic process wit…

Resilience is the ability to bounce back from hardship and endure prolonged pressure - two qualities which are essential to any hero's journey. This episode explores the quality of חוסן/chosen which is the root of how we understand mental as a path in Jewish Heroism.بقلم Rav Mike

Mesirut is the threshold of heroism. It is the power of breaking through which can push a story, a life journey and even history past the bounds of what appears possible.This class introduces mesirah, the power to give more than you have, as the fourth path of Jewish heroism. It begins by introducing the element of heroism which involves breaking b…

R' Yehuda HaKohen gives his perspective on heroism, Jewish and universal. The conversation explores the nature of villains and enemies, the mission of the Jewish people and a vision for their heroic future.بقلم Rav Mike

We have arrived at the generation of victory. The challenge is knowing what that means. Here is a heroic thought on what the "netzach" (eternal) in "nitzachon" (victory) has to teach us about our task today.بقلم Rav Mike

How do I take a stand, and what does it mean when I do?This class opens with Avraham as the Ivri, the Hebrew. That name marks him as a descendant of Ever, immigrant from the other side (ever) of the river, and visionary who took a stand opposite the whole world over the Oneness of God. The first section ties these aspects of the Ivri together into …

Here is a conversation with Gil Troy - historian, Zionist thinker and senior fellow at the Jewish People Policy Institute (https://jppi.org.il/en/). He shares his insights on Zionism and American Jewish identity in light of our current war, as well as offering thoughts on what heroism looks like for the Jewish people today. Check our www.jewishhero…

The second core episode of the Jewish Heroism Project! Check out www.jewishheroism.com for source sheets and supplementary videos.Life is work. What are we laboring for and whom do we serve? This class introduces avodah, work, as the ability to actualize creation’s potential and the first path ofheroism past the gate of good. It explores humanity’s…

A brief thought on the message of the 10th of Tevet. We are a people under siege, and when facing such a situation a hero has to learn to read the writing on the wall.بقلم Rav Mike

The first core episode of the Jewish Heroism Project! Check out www.jewishheroism.com for source sheets and supplementary videos.There are good things worth fighting for. But what is good? The first class of the Jewish Heroism Project introduces the Torah’s definitionof heroism as mesirut nefesh l’man tov, going beyond limited self for the sake of …

Rav Mike's annual Hanukkah class in honor of the yarzheit of his father Charles M. Feuer, Betzalel ben Avraham. Also the official launch party of the Jewish Heroism Project - www.jewishheroism.com. The class unpacks the meaning of gevurah, what it can teach us about the Maccabean war and our present national struggle.…

The questions our nation faces today are painful and even frightening. Here is a conversation for those seeking to raise their morale and their morals.بقلم Rav Mike

Israel is at war, and there are many battlefield on which the conflict is playing out. In this interview Rav Mike engages International Spokeman and media warrior Yishai Fleisher in an analysis of the important question - what is narrative war?بقلم Rav Mike

A conversation with R' Johnny Solomon about the Torah of healing, vision and action in the face of national tragedy.بقلم Rav Mike

A brief conversation between Rav Mike and Eitan Ben Avraham about our present situationبقلم Rav Mike

Here is a conversation with Rav Aaron and I engaging some of the questions raised by the war we are now waging - how we got here, how to handled it and how to think about where we are headed. God bless and stay strong!بقلم Rav Mike

Here is a taste of what is to come - both this week and this year! Because of its roll on Yom Kippur the book of Jonah is one of the most read books of the prophets, yet it remains one of the least. Here are some insights on how Jonah's story connects to Jewish Heroism that offer a "prequel" for the Jewish Heroism Project as well as some insights f…

Introducing the Jewish Heroism Project! Thanks so much to Israel365 for inviting me to speak about the importance of Heroism, and how it has the potential to change the Jewish people and the world.بقلم Rav Mike

Sign up for this coming year's class through TJS live - https://www.patreon.com/TJSLivesubscription?fan_landing=true&view_as=publicDo it now and get access to a FREE Elul webinarبقلم Rav Mike

The Israeli Judicial Reform protests come the same week 18 years after the Gush Katif protests and 2,000 years after the destruction of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. What can we learn from Tisha B'Av and the Nine Days about modern Jewish and Israeli unity? Sometimes the echoes of history are so loud that they seem to drown out the present. This con…

There is no way to give closure to six seasons of a story, but you have to try! Here is an interview with R' Mike that looks back on the lessons of history and reflects on the challenges of today. It also announces tomorrow's new project - so stay tuned for more amazing stories!بقلم Rav Mike

Was Ariel Sharon's visit to the Temple Mount in 2000 the trigger for what the Arab community calls the Al Aqsa Intifada? Or was this a pre-planned assault orchestrated by the likes of Marwan Barghouti, Raed Salah of the Northern Branch of the Islamic Movement in Israel and even the Palestinian Authority?In this final installment of the Temple Mount…

Why is the Temple Mount, the holiest site in Judaism a lighting rod for terrorist attacks and central to Israeli-Arab peace negotiations? Learn about how the Har HaBayit shifted from being acknowledged by Muslim leaders in the 1920s as a Jewish site to a complete denial by Yasir Arafat by the 1990s. The Oslo Accords, the Camp David Summit and react…

Another show live and on the road! Here is a talk on behalf of the Valley Beit Midrash entitled "Is There a Future for American Zionism? American Zionism in the Era of the Ethnic State."Image: Public Domain Dedication. Public Use Notice of Limitations: https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyrightبقلم Rav Mike

I am on the road! Here is an interview with educator and activist R' Shmuly Yanklowitz where we discuss what it means to be both progressive and orthodox, as well as his vision of the Jewish story present and future.بقلم Rav Mike

Should Jews be allowed to pray on the Temple Mount? Or will it inflame Muslim sensitivities? Learn the history of this debate from the Six Day War in 1967 when General Moshe Dayan argued with Rabbi Shlomo Goren on the issue, to the fire started by Australian tourist Denis Michael Rohan, the shooting by Allan Goodman, through the 1980s up until the …

Every tale has a point around which it revolves, and for the Jewish Story that is the Temple Mount. Here is the opening round in a new series tracing the way in which the sacred mountain in the middle of Jerusalem is still at the center of our story.بقلم Rav Mike