Rabbi Yonatan Halevy | Crimes of Kiruv: Advocating for the Healthier, Traditional Approach to Torah

• Episode 57: Rabbi Yonatan Halevy "Bridging the Religious Divide"
• Rabbi Yonatan Halevy shares his personal journey to becoming the rabbi of his community and sheds light on the differences between Sephardic and Ashkenazi communities with regards to halacha and hashkafa. He offers insightful solutions to bridge the cultural and religious divide, emphasizing the importance of education in secular matters alongside Torah, as mandated by our tradition. One of the highlights of the conversation is our discussion about Rabbi Halevy's video series, "Crimes of Kiruv," in which he identifies and addresses certain concerns and flaws in the Outreach movement. He elaborates on how a dogmatic approach, religious fanaticism, the argument from authority, and the current phenomenon of fire-and-brimstone bully tactics can be detrimental in the long run for the Baal Teshuva, from a psychological and social standpoint. The Rabbi advocates for a return to fundamentals, tradition, and a healthy approach to Torah, and calls out the troubling trend of religious “cancel culture” mafia. Finally, the episode concludes with a fun and enlightening conversation about Rabbi Halevy's unique religious garb and why he chooses to dress in the manner of old-school Sepharadi Hakhamim. This podcast episode is a must-listen for anyone interested in understanding the nuances of Jewish culture and tradition, and for those seeking to explore the challenges faced by modern-day religious communities.
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• Bio: Rabbi Yonatan studied at the Ner Israel Rabbinical College in Baltimore, Maryland, for five years, before pursuing his Rabbinical Ordination at the Sheheber Sephardic Center in Jerusalem. Rabbi Yonatan received his rabbinical ordination from Rabbi Yaakov Peretz and Rabbi Shlomo Kassin, in Jerusalem, specializing in the laws of Kashrut, Marriage, Family Purity, and Giyur. After founding the Jerusalem Rabbinical Academy in 2010, served as its Mashgiach Ruchani - Dean of Students, until its closing in 2012, with a graduating class of eleven, young, American Kashrut supervisors. Rabbi Yonatan was also a rabbi and teacher at Yeshivat Orayta, as well as Isralight’s Coordinator of Alumni Affairs and Rabbinic Education. Each week, you could find Rabbi Yonatan teaching a unique class on Sepharadic Jewish history at Midreshet Eshel, a Sepharadic girls’ seminary in the Old City of Jerusalem. Four years after living in the Old City of Jerusalem, just up the stairs from the Western Wall, Rabbi Yonatan relocated to San Diego, California, where he entered the world of practical rabbinics and communal work, founding the Shiviti movement in 2015. Rabbi Yonatan is married to Rabbanit Devorah, his partner and supporter in all things good, as well as co-Spiritual Leader of Shiviti and Kehillat Shaar HaShamayim. Rabbi Yonatan is most actively involved in teaching Torah through the various branches of the Shiviti movement, namely: Kehillat Shaar HaShamayim, the Shiviti Bet Midrash of San Diego, the Shiviti Bet Midrash of Los Angeles, and the Shiviti Bet Midrash of the United Kingdom. Rabbi Yonatan teaches classes on various topics in Judaism such as Tanach, Mishnah, Talmud, Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, as well as many other lectures dealing with a wide range of contemporary issues in Judaism. Rabbi Yonatan also serves on the Shiviti Bet Din - an arms of Shiviti’s rabbinic division - currently specializing in conversion to Judaism.
• Visit his website here: shiviti.org/
• Visit his KZbin Channel here: / @shiviti
• Welcome to JUDAISM DEMYSTIFIED: A PODCAST FOR THE PERPLEXED | Co-hosted by Benjy & Benzi | Conversations with renowned figures (of various academic disciplines) about topics that aren't part of mainstream Orthodox curriculum. We don't claim to know all the answers, but we aim to ask all the big questions! We welcome your topic and guest suggestions so please follow us on Instagram / judaism.demystified (DM for inquiries) and share our content with those you feel would be interested or benefit from our podcast. Please SUBSCRIBE to this KZbin Channel and hit the BELL so you can get alerted whenever new clips get posted, thank you for your support. We welcome your contributions to the show, which helps us grow and improve: www.patreon.com/judaism