Episode 41: Dr. Brian Keating "God and the Astrophysicists"

Episode 41: Dr. Brian Keating "God and the Astrophysicists"

Author: Ben Koren and Benzi Siouni | A Geonic-Maimonidean Approach to Torah Through the Ages and Today January 30, 2023 Duration: 49:27
Dr. Brian Keating's book 'Losing the Nobel Prize' is a memoir about his scientific and personal journey. In one of his talks, he said, "searching for God was in a way searching for my father." He explains how being estranged from his father impacted his relationship with God. Raised Catholic by his stepfather, he spent a year as an altar boy, but his spiritual search eventually led him to becoming a Baal Teshuva. We discuss how Judaism requires one to ACT, not necessarily to BELIEVE. Discover how this particular fact about Judaism shaped who he is, why he returned to his roots after becoming an atheist, and how he reconciles the seeming tension between religion and science. Also, it seems that scientists are reverting to the Eternal Universe Model to avoid the implications of the Big Bang (via the Multiverse theory). Many scientists insist that if God were to exist, something MUST have created Him, yet they don't apply the same logic to the universe. In this sense, is science any different than dogmatic religion? On another note, he explains how space and time are related and why this is so fundamental. We also touch on the big question about mathematics: Is it hardwired into the fabric of the universe, or are we creating it to understand and navigate our world? Lastly, we ask the professor if he thinks aliens exist, which is always a fun topic. (His talks with Ben Shapiro, Lex Fridman, Avi Loeb, Dennis Prager, Eric Weinstein, and Neil Degrasse Tyson are available on all major platforms.) • Thank you to friend of the podcast Zev Gotkin of Zev Media for guest co-hosting this episode!

In a world of soundbites, JUDAISM DEMYSTIFIED | A Guide for Today's Perplexed: Torah Foundations, Reason, and Tradition offers a different space: long, thoughtful conversations that delve into the questions and concepts often passed over. Lifelong friends Ben Koren and Benzi Siouni host this series, bringing together voices from across disciplines-religious thinkers, scientists, historians-to examine Jewish wisdom through a specific lens. Their approach is rooted in the Geonic-Maimonidean tradition, a classical stream of Jewish thought that champions reason alongside deep faith, and they thoughtfully engage with the modern intellectual legacy of Rabbi Jonathan Sacks. This isn't about simple answers, but about rediscovering the robust, foundational frameworks of Torah that can speak to contemporary complexity. Each episode aims to build a bridge between ancient text and modern perplexity, reigniting a genuine passion for tradition by taking it seriously as a living, intellectual pursuit. The resulting discussions in this podcast are nuanced, patient, and designed for anyone who feels that standard explanations have left gaps in their understanding. You'll hear explorations where tradition meets rigorous inquiry, where historical context illuminates enduring principles, and where the goal is a more coherent, personally owned Jewish life. It’s a guide for the curious, the skeptical, and the devoted, all seeking a deeper anchor in timeless wisdom.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 139

JUDAISM DEMYSTIFIED | A Guide for Today's Perplexed: Torah Foundations, Reason, and Tradition
Podcast Episodes
Episode 26: Rabbi Marc D. Angel "The Judaism of Tomorrow" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:03:06
Rabbi Angel carefully presents the traditional Sepharadi approach to law and life. Do we take a more stringent or lenient approach than Ashkenazim? We live in an age where Judaism is highly fractured with sectarianism, i…
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Duration: 1:29:13
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Episode 24: Rabbi Jeremy Wieder "The Nuances Within the Sources" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:13:32
Rabbi Wieder explains the concept of Q're (what is read) and Ketib (what is written) and how our Sages approached textual variants in all ancient Torah scrolls (Masoretic, Dead Sea, etc.). In doing so, he clarifies and c…
Episode 23: Dr. Jeremy England "Torah & Quantum Mechanics" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:33:35
Dr. England shares origin story, how he connected to his Jewish roots, his famous moniker as "the next Darwin", and what it's like to have a character in Dan Brown's book based off of him. He addressed the following topi…
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Duration: 1:00:43
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Episode 21: Rabbi David Bashevkin "For the Sake of Heaven" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 47:05
Rabbi Bashevkin explains why stories of tzaddikim are inspiring and beneficial, especially for children. But is this ideal considering that the Torah seems to not hide or sugarcoat the mistakes of our ancestors, while ac…
Episode 19: Shannon Nuszen "Striving for Truth" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:25:38
Shannon tells the story of her life growing up as the daughter of a pastor (now a Noahide). She was raised as a missionary, part of a community that mimicked Jewish traditions and symbols in order to blur the lines in or…
Episode 18: Rabbi Alex Israel "Kings & Prophets" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:23:40
Rabbi Israel discusses the distinctions between the Book of Kings and the Book of Chronicles, and what our approach should be towards understanding these seemingly contradictory accounts. Find out how these factors into…
Episode 17: Dr. Jonathan Sarna "The American Jewish Experience" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 58:44
Dr. Sarna discusses the American Jewish Experience, the impact the Torah had on the Founding Fathers of America, the sanitization of slavery, Ulysses S. Grant's complicated relationship with the Jews, the remarkable conn…