The Two Codes

The Two Codes

Author: DZ Kalman August 20, 2025 Duration: 33:01
BIG NEWS: Belief in the Future now has a YouTube channel: Sabbath Mode. Go check it out before listening to the episode Coding is one part skill, one part magic, and one part tradition. But when AI use takes out the conversation of code -- the necessary language of the code itself -- can the tradition be kept alive? How do we keep something living and growing without passing along its stories, its trials and errors, and its complexities? On this episode, host David Zvi Kalman speaks with scientist Samuel Arbesman about his new book, The Magic of Code, and the ways that religion and coding reflect one another.  Resources:  The Magic of Code by Samuel Arbesman  The poetic web Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In a world often framed by conflict, Belief in the Future explores the surprising and fertile intersections where our oldest spiritual questions meet our newest technological realities. Host David Zvi Kalman guides conversations that move beyond simple debate, delving into how faith traditions adapt to artificial intelligence, how ritual lives alongside digital life, and what ancient wisdom might offer to our most modern dilemmas. This isn't about proving one side right, but about listening deeply to the nuanced ways people are actually navigating these realms. Each episode offers a thoughtful space to consider how the tools we build and the beliefs we hold shape our humanity, for better or worse. Released every other week, this podcast from Sinai and Synapses, with support from Templeton World Charity Foundation, invites you into a long-running conversation that feels more urgent than ever. You'll hear from theologians, engineers, artists, and philosophers, all contributing to a richer understanding of our collective path forward. Tune in for a series that finds connection in the places we least expect it.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 19

Belief in the Future
Podcast Episodes
The Cantor in the Brothel [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 15:32
What happens when you take synagogue music out of the synagogue? Works mentioned Jeremiah Lockwood, Golden Ages: Hasidic Singers and Cantorial Revival in the Digital Era Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.…
What Silicon Valley Means by "God" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 38:02
Why do tech CEOs and visionaries use religious language—and what, if anything, does it have to do with organized religion? We talk Mary-Jane Rubenstein, Professor of Religion and Science in Society at Wesleyan, about uni…
Does AI Need History? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 45:07
The Greeks dreamed of automata, the Jews of golems, and now we've coded bots into powerful servants. Can our ancient quest for artificial life reveal our ethical obligations to today’s creations? Guest Speaker: Elly Trui…
Should I Use the Plagiarism Machine? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 54:45
In this crossover episode of Belief in the Future with Responsa Radio, host David Zvi Kalman dives into whether using generative AI systems like ChatGPT and DALL-E is a form of theft, drawing comparisons to the Jewish tr…
AI and the Baptists [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:31
What does evangelical Christianity have to say about AI? Quite a lot, according to Jason Thacker. As Director of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), he oversaw the creation o…
Ghost in the Machine [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:09
Death isn't always an elegant ending. When Muhammad Ahmad, a research scientist with a doctorate in machine learning, learned his father’s diagnosis was terminal, he began to create a text-based AI simulation. Host David…
The Two Lamp Mystery [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:40
Two religious communities invented the same lamp. Why? In our first episode David Zvi is joined by Lindsay Ems, an expert in the sociological impacts of technology on religious communities. Through the lens of Amish tech…
Belief in the Future - Trailer [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 4:27
What we're about. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices