In Episode 2, Elana and Robin invite their friend and colleague, Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer to help them tackle the question of what Jews believe about the afterlife. Unsurprisingly, it resulted in many more questions!

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Show Notes:

  • Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer
  • Vocabulary
    • Here are some words mentioned during this episode and their definitions:
      • Atheist: a person who disbelieves or lacks belief in the existence of God or gods.
      • Dybbuk (Hebrew – “adhere” or “cling”): In Jewish mythology, a malicious possessing spirit believed to be the dislocated soul of a dead person.
      • Gilgul (Hebrew – “cycle” or “wheel”): Gilgul is a concept of reincarnation or “transmigration of souls” in Kabbalistic esoteric mysticism. Souls are seen to cycle through lives or incarnations, being attached to different human bodies over time.
      • Intuitive Perspective: the view that the mind must make an inner journey into the soul, must become vulnerable and open to insights whose conclusions rest on the foundation of an inner sense of trust.
      • Kabbalah: Jewish Kabbalah is a set of esoteric teachings meant to explain the relationship between the unchanging, eternal God and the mortal, finite universe (God’s creation). It forms the foundation of mystical religious interpretations within Judaism.
      • Kabbalist: a follower of the ancient Jewish mystical tradition of Kabbalah.
      • Mitzvah/Mitzvot: a Hebrew word that roughly translates to “commandment.” Commonly interpreted as “a good deed.” The term mitzvah comes from the root word tzavta, which means “connection.” What makes a mitzvah a mitzvah is its emphasis on action.
      • Olam HaBa (Hebrew – “the world to come”): In Jewish theology, either “the world after death” or the new creation or restoration of the world that is to follow the messianic millennium.
      • Rationalist Perspective: the view that regards reason as the chief source and test of knowledge. Holding that reality itself has an inherently logical structure, the rationalist asserts that a class of truths exists that the intellect can grasp directly.
      • Talmud (Hebrew -“Study” or “Learning”): Commonly refers toa record of the rabbinic debates in the 2nd-5th century on the teachings of the Torah, both trying to understand how they apply and seeking answers for the situations they themselves were encountering.
      • Teshuvah: Typically, teshuvah is translated from the Hebrew as “repentance”, but it literally means return, as if turning back to something you’ve strayed or looked away from.
  • Further reading:

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Transcript:

 Elana
Hey Robin.

Robin
Hi! You ready for our next episode? 

Elana
I definitely am. First, let’s remind our listeners what it is we’re doing here and who we are. 

Robin
So, I’m Robin Matthews. I’m Jewish Learning Venture’s graphic designer and the Director of PJ Our Way Engagement and jkidpride. 

Elana
And I’m Jewish Learning Venture’s CEO Elana Rivel. And we are the hosts of More Than 4, a blogcast that answers — or at least opens a discussion about — some of the many questions people have about Judaism. 

Robin
And as a reminder, these questions actually come from our listeners via email or social media. So if anyone listening now has questions about Judaism, Jewish traditions, culture, holidays, words, really anything, you should send them to us and we’ll answer them in an upcoming episode.

Elana
Excellent. Okay, let’s jump right in then. 

Robin
So one of our listeners sent in this question, Do Jews believe in heaven? 

Elana
Another softball.

Robin
No. Yeah, we discussed that none of them are actually softballs. I thought some of them would be, but it turns out they’re all super complex 

Elana
Because…they all have this range of thought behind them and people believe so many different things.

Robin
Yeah, I mean it’s kind of like all things in Judaism, right? Because, like, there’s like the sort of official beliefs like what Torah and Talmud and the rabbis have discussed over the years, but then there’s also, like, just what every individual person believes and think