Intimate Judaism: A Jewish Approach to Intimacy, Sexuality, and Relationships

Do you have unanswered questions about Judaism, sexuality and intimacy?

Do you want your children to get a better sex education than you received, but lack the language or tools to provide it?

Do you want to improve and enhance intimacy in your marriage, but aren’t sure how to go about it?

Do you wonder about how Judaism views various aspects of sexuality?

Do you have questions or issues that you would like to address – either in Jewish law or regarding sexuality – but there is no one you feel comfortable asking?

Our monthly podcast, INTIMATE JUDAISM, addresses intimacy and healthy sexuality in the context of Jewish family life. We raise conflicts and challenges and offer candid solutions while remaining firmly within the bounds of Torah and Halacha.

You will:

Learn how to provide your children with healthy perspectives that acknowledge both Halacha and their natural sexual development
Discover how Judaism encourages sexual expression between you and your spouse
Find out how to create and enhance emotional and physical intimacy in your marriage
Explore how the laws of Taharat Hamishpacha – family purity – can impact intimacy and sexuality, and how to address this in your marriage
Understand how lifecycle events such as pregnancy, postpartum, menopause or chronic illness can affect marital intimacy and sex
Learn how to deal with difficult situations in marriage such as pornography and infidelity

(32) Lubricants, Vibrators, and Sex Toys for Marital Enhancement

Apr 20, 2021

Modesty, lack of information, and embarrassment are just some factors that inhibit observant couples from using products designed to enhance sexual intimacy. In this episode, Rabbi Scott Kahn and Talli Rosenbaum host Beverly Damelin, who shares her expertise in the field of sexual enhancement products and explains how...

(31) Consent and Coercion: What Does Forced Marriage and Obligatory Sex Look Like in the Jewish Community?

Mar 22, 2021

“Forced marriage" and coercive sex are terms that most believe have no relevance to Judaism. Nevertheless, in communities where marriages are typically arranged by parents and matchmakers, does the couple truly have the freedom to reject the match? And even in modern Orthodox circles, do young men and women sometimes...

(30) Fantasy, Premarital Sex, Kink and More: An Intimate Judaism Q and A

Feb 16, 2021

In Episode #30 of Intimate Judaism, Talli Rosenbaum and Rabbi Scott Kahn answer practical sex questions from listeners. Among the subjects covered are:

Can a couple experience sexual pleasure when intercourse is medically inadvisable?
Why must couples get the first time "over with" on the wedding night? (Or must...

(29) Intimacy After Sexual Abuse

Jan 12, 2021

Sexual intimacy provides the opportunity to express love with connection, pleasure, and satisfaction. Yet, for people who have experienced sexual assault, sexual violence, and abuse, intimacy can feel very unsafe. Being on guard, and sometimes checking out and dissociating, is what has allowed abuse victims to survive,...

(28) Tzniut: Modesty, Female Masturbation and the Media

Dec 14, 2020

Orthodox girls and women are traditionally taught to dress modestly in order to avoid attracting the male gaze and to keep men from sinful thoughts or behaviors. These messages, according to Rabbanit Oriya Mevorach, an educator and doctoral student of Gender and Philosophy, objectify and sexualize women and girls, and...