Regeneration: A Podcast About Crafting DIY Jewish Ritual

Welcome to Regeneration, a podcast about reimagining Jewish practice in a modern world. In the past five years, we’ve lived through a global pandemic, October 7 and its subsequent shockwaves, and a changing political and technological landscape. We’ve also gone through personal changes – starting families, making big moves, and thinking about our place in that rapidly changing world.  Rituals ground us, connect us, and challenge us to connect both to the world and to our tradition.  Eileen Levinson and Debs Weinberg help friends, families, and chosen families revive customs with authenticity, creativity, and joy. From Shabbat candles to everyday blessings, discover how to weave old and new practices together across generations to bring the people you love closer. Visit our website here to download guidebooks for each episode: recustom.com/regeneration Get ideas and resources for Jewish family connection at jewishgrandparentsnetwork.org. If you’d like to sponsor a future episode or share feedback, you can reach us at [email protected].  Regeneration is hosted by Eileen Levinson and Debra Weinberg and produced by Josh Gilbert and Kate Mishkin.

On today’s episode, a conversation with Rabbi Vanessa Ochs, Professor Emerita of Religious Studies at UVA, and author of Inventing Jewish Ritual, Sarah Laughed, and the Passover Haggadah: A Biography. Through her work and interview, Rabbi Ochs describes the parallels between rituals and choreographed performance – and how both elevate experiences, mark time, and help us understand who we are as people.  Your home has always been a sacred stage. This guidebook — inspired by scholar and author Rabbi Vanessa Ochs — explores how ordinary objects and everyday moments become Jewish ritual. You'll discover how to hang a mezuzah with intention, create a personalized home blessing, bring Shabbat into your week with simple blessings, and mark the first flowers of spring. Along the way: writing prompts, a chevruta reflection on the theater of daily life, and a blessing for imperfect homes. No grand gestures required. Just your home, your people, and a willingness to pay attention. Reach more about Vanessa Ochs here. Check out Moments That Matter: Marking Transitions in Midlife and Beyond Book by Beth Lieberman and Laura Geller.  Visit our website here to download guidebooks for each episode: recustom.com/regeneration Get ideas and resources for Jewish family connection at jewishgrandparentsnetwork.org. If you’d like to sponsor a future episode or share feedback, you can reach us at [email protected].  Regeneration is hosted by Eileen Levinson and Debra Weinberg and produced by ⁠Josh Gilbert ⁠and ⁠Kate Mishkin⁠.

Welcome to Regeneration, a podcast about reimagining Jewish customs in a modern world—making memory, making meaning, and making it your own. Hosts Debra Weinberg and Eileen Levinson explore how families, friends, and the Jew-curious can revive rituals with authenticity, creativity, humor, and joy. From Shabbat candles to everyday blessings, the show is a space for connection, curiosity, and building a Jewish life that feels alive right now. _____________ Recustom.com/Regeneration Regeneration is Produced by Josh Gilbert and Kate Mishkin