Contact Chai is Mishkan Chicago’s podcast feed, where you can hear our Shabbat sermons, Morning Minyans, interviews with Jewish thought leaders, and more.
At our Saturday morning service on April 15th, Rabbi Deena argued that the Torah's food laws are more than just an all-or-nothing, take-it-or-leave-it obligation — kashrut is also an ancient mindful …
At our final Shabbat service before Passover, Rabbi Steven left us with some words of wisdom on the spiritual and practical dimensions of kashering your kitchen for Passover. Does your soul need a li…
On March 24th, 2023, Mishkan participated in the Lakeview-wide Mental Health Shabbat. Rabbi Steven delivered a drash on breaking the silence around suicide in the Jewish community. Please be advised …
How do Sephardi families' Seder plates differ from their Ashkenazi cousins? How do different Sephardi communities' observances differ from one another? And how has American Ashkenormativity erased th…
Rabbi Lizzi explores the spiritual technology of the Passover Seder, which, every year, forces us to reckon with our past to understand our present and imagine a radically different future.
Mishkan Ch…
"God's plan all along is to get God's people together. When you get God's people together, there should be an expectation that something is going to change...Can you still be faithful even if the onl…
What did the ancient rabbis have to say about abortion? And how are Jewish organizers today drawing inspiration from the tradition they handed down? On Friday, February 17th, we celebrated Repro Shab…
At our February 10th Friday Night Shabbat service, we celebrated Jewish Disability, Awareness, and Inclusion Month. After a message on the timeless wisdom embedded in the Ten Commandments, Rabbi Lizz…
Even with a charismatic, visionary leader like Moshe, big changes are impossible without ordinary people choosing to bravely place their faith in a better future.
Today’s Shabbat Replay is from our Fe…
In anticipation of Tu B’Shevat, the Jewish New Year of the Trees, Rabbi Steven spoke with Hans Detweiler, a member of the Mishkan Sustainability Team with an impressive environmental activism resume,…
At our Friday Night service on January 27th, Rabbi Lizzi offered a welcoming message of decompression from this painful week of mass shootings. Then, Rabbi Deena delivered a drash on this week’s pars…
At our Saturday Morning Shabbat service on January 21st, we welcomed Jenny Schaffer, a Mishkanite running for Police District Council, a new position for civilian oversight of the police created by t…
At our Virtual Friday Night service on January 20th, Rabbi Lizzi spoke on this week’s parsha from Exodus, and explored the idea of plagues as a wakeup call. She also gave mini-drash on angels who per…
In honor of MLK Day weekend, Rabbi Lizzi welcomed beloved former Mishkan Davening Team member Rachel Goldberg, who is back from rabbinical school in Israel, to deliver a sermon connecting the ongoing…
Today’s episode of Shabbat Replay is a new recording of Rabbi Lizzi’s drash from our Saturday Morning Shabbat service on January 7th. Her sermon addresses the themes of suffering and redemption in Pa…
On Friday, December 23rd, we had a lovely night of Chinese food and latkes planned for Erev Erev Christmas. But the blizzard blowing through Chicago crashed our party, so over a hundred Mishkanites g…
At our December 16th service, Rabbi Lizzi delivered a drash on the endless debate over the true meaning of Hanukkah, the Jewish story’s cycle of violence and victimhood, and the coming AI apocalypse.
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Today’s episode of Shabbat Replay is an inspiring sermon on the inclusive universality of the hanukkiah delivered by Rabbi Steven at our December 17th Saturday Morning Shabbat.
Have you been inspired…
At our December 9th Friday Night Shabbat service, we welcomed back Rabbi Micah Shapiro, Mishkan's Musician-in-Residence. This episode is a lightly abbreviated version of the whole service. Check out…
At our December 3rd Saturday Morning Shabbat service, Rabbi Deena looked to "OG Torah Interpreter" Rashi for inspiration in doing the hard work of interpreting even hurtful actions in good faith.
Look…