In this final episode of season, Rabbi Joe and Pastor Glenn sit down in person to conclude our reflections on Psalm 13. How does praise coexist with pain? How can God’s goodness be resting on us even while we feel the silence, distance, and even the absence of God? We explore the disintegration of grief and the unlikely journey toward wholeness.

In this episode, Rabbi Joe and Pastor Glenn discuss the first few lines of Psalm 13, examining the meaning of the phrase that is repeated four times: "How long...?" Rabbi Joe reflects on the uniqueness of this phrase in the Hebrew Bible and the reason for the repetition, while Glenn offers connections with the theme of uncertain waiting and longing in Israel's history from the exodus to the exile. Toward the end, both meditate on the three connection points of this phrase: to the divine, to...

Rabbi Joe and Pastor Glenn Packiam continue the conversation on lament by exploring the theme of covenant. Rabbi Joe expounds on covenant as "with-ness", and the two discuss the many implications of that from seeing grief as a breach to recognizing covenant as both the basis for lament and the response to it. Then, they begin a slow study of Psalm 13 with a look at the inscription, "To the choirmaster", exploring the many ways of understanding that phrase. Through the conversation, we see how...

Why do we struggle with expressing grief and sorrow? Pastor Glenn Packiam dialogues with Rabbi Joe Charnes about the place of grief in the Jewish tradition. Rabbi Joe talked about being present to ourselves in our sorrow, being present before God, and being present to others. Prayer can be a way to lay our hearts bare before God, or it can be a way to hide from God. He describes the Jewish practices of sitting with the bereaved for seven days and covering mirrors, and finding a way forward...

Pastor Glenn Packiam sits down with Rabbi Joe Charnes for regular conversations on the wisdom of the Jewish tradition for the world today.