Good Faith Effort

Every story has a beginning... Join us for this podcast series as we explore the twelve sections of Genesis, as divided in Jewish tradition. Christian actor and social media influencer Nathaniel Bouzlic discusses each part with Rabbi Dr. Ari Lamm. 

• Rabbi Dr. Ari Lamm is the Chief Executive of BZ Media and President of SoulShop. A leading religious public intellectual, Rabbi Lamm hosts the top-ranked podcast on the Bible and socie...

About "Gen 12"

"Every story has a beginning..." and so does our exploration into the foundational texts of the Bible. "Gen 12" aims to delve into the rich narratives and teachings of Genesis, bringing them to life through spirited discussions between Nathaniel Buzolic and Rabbi Dr. Ari Lamm. Each episode will focus on one of the twelve sections, uncovering the timeless wisdom and relevance these scriptures hold in modern society.

Mee...

On today’s episode, Ari spoke with Brooke Ashley Hall - one of the biggest creators on social media, across TikTok, Instagram and YouTube - about the opportunities and responsibilities of creating content for tens of millions of people on a daily basis.

Along the way they talked about Brooke’s journey towards becoming an influencer; what an influencer’s day-to-day looks like; portraying motherhood from the Bible to TikTok; authenti...

On today’s episode, Ari spoke with the best-selling author and historian of English and American history Nick Bunker about the Mayflower Pilgrims and how the Hebrew intellectual and religious tradition shaped their world, and ultimately birthed the United States of America.

Along the way they talked about how Nick, a Roman Catholic from London, spent his most formative years immersed in the Jewish community of the Upper West Side o...

On today’s episode, Ari spoke with the greatest character actor in the history of Hollywood, the legendary Stephen Tobolowsky, about his lifelong journey to understand the Hebrew Bible.

Along the way they talked about growing up around members of the Nazi Party; Stephen’s love of Shakespeare; being comfortable with weirdness; Stephen getting held at gunpoint during a hostage situation; Deuteronomy and the Shema prayer; thinking abou...

On today’s episode, Ari spoke with Joshua Berman, Professor of Bible at Bar Ilan University and author of “Created Equal: How the Bible Broke With Ancient Political Thought”, about the revolution that the Bible introduced into human affairs. In a world dominated by some of the most renowned civilizations in history — from Mesopotamia to Egypt — how did the Bible re-envision the idea of the good society?

Along the way they talked abo...

On today’s episode, Ari spoke with the extraordinary classical educator and University of Virginia professor Angel Adams Parham about the Black intellectual tradition and how it has been shaped by—and in turn can shape our contemporary understanding of—the classics.

Along the way they talked about why Phillis Wheatley was fascinated by death; the importance of poetry in classical education; Frederick Douglass’s oratory; classical ed...

On today’s episode, Ari sits down with Seth Rogovoy, writer, producer, cultural journalist, and author of Bob Dylan: Prophet, Mystic, Poet.

On this episode, Ari and Seth dive into the life and history of Bob Dylan through the lens of Jewish spirituality. What are his songs really about? How does the Bible show up in the different eras of his song writing? How do protest and folk songs relate to the Jewish tradition? Dubbed as the nu...

On today’s episode, Ari spoke with Rainn Wilson, who’s not only the actor behind Dwight Schrute, one of the most iconic characters in TV history, but also the author of the magnificent new book on faith and culture, “SoulBoom: Why We Need a Spiritual Revolution” (Hachette Books).

On today’s episode Ari and Rainn talked about some of life’s biggest questions. Why believe in a religion you got from your parents? How should you go abou...

Attention, Good Faith Fam! We've been on a brief hiatus, but the podcast is making a triumphant return!

We’ll resume our deep dives into the amazing world of the Bible, from the profound to the perplexing. We're talking politics, pop culture, and everything in between. 

And... because you’ve all been so patient… just a cool little spoiler for you: our triumphant comeback will be with none other than Rainn Wilson - a.k.a. Dwight from ...

Attention, Good Faith Fam! We've been on a brief hiatus, but the podcast is making a triumphant return!

We’ll resume our deep dives into the amazing world of the Bible, from the profound to the perplexing. We're talking politics, pop culture, and everything in between. 

And... because you’ve all been so patient… just a cool little spoiler for you: our triumphant comeback will be with none other than Rainn Wilson - a.k.a. Dwight from ...

On today’s episode, Ari spoke with renowned Bible teacher and scholar Rabbi Yitzchak Etshalom about one of the most common question asked by Good Faith Effort listeners (or Why Read The Bible In Hebrew readers on Twitter!): what is the “Jewish” way of reading Scripture?

Along the way they talked about developing a methodology for Scripture study; the difference between reading a text critically and “text criticism”; why it matters t...

On today’s episode, Ari spoke with the University of Utah’s Dean of Humanities, and renowned historian of 19th century literature and society, Hollis Robbins to talk about the state of the humanities in American education. As Hollis explains, reports of the humanities demise are greatly exaggerated. But just as important as understanding why the humanities are, in fact, flourishing, is understanding where and under what conditions ...

On today’s episode, Ari spoke with American Jewish University resident scholar Rick Richman about the land, people and polity of Israel in Hollywood’s imagination. What does Hollywood storytelling about Israel—from Exodus in 1960, to Top Gun: Maverick in 2022—tell us about America’s perspective on the Holy Land, and perhaps more strikingly, America’s perspective on itself. In a wide-ranging discussion, Ari and Rick talked about Exo...

On this week’s episode, Ari speaks with New York Times columnist and media personality David French about the future of American political and cultural virtue. What does it look like to stick to your principles in 2023, even if they’re unpopular? How do we escape the ideological traps of contemporary American political life?

Along the way, they discussed the idea of an “exhausted majority”; the relationship between sports and politi...

On today’s episode, Ari spoke with political philosopher Yechiel Leiter about John Locke—the thinker whose work undergirds all of American political philosophy. If you were to read Locke, one of the first things you’ll notice is that he quotes and relies upon texts from the Hebrew Bible far more than (almost to the exclusion of) any other. And yet, for centuries, Locke scholars have almost entirely ignored his Hebraic influences. T...

Every minority—every ethnic or religious subgroup—has its own internal conversations. Often, in the modern age, that’s resulted in specialized journalistic outlets. Jewish newspapers; Christian TV stations; Muslims journals.

But just as fascinating are journalists who take their particular identity, and use it as a lens through which to help general audiences view the world. What, indeed, does it mean for a reporter who is Jewish—or...

From ancient times until today, plagues and pandemics have played a transformational role in human history. And of all the intellectual and theological traditions that have reflected upon the significance of these devastating natural phenomena, perhaps the most famous and profound is the Bible. Just think, for example, of the narrative of the Ten Plagues in the Book of Exodus.

So how have commentators on the Bible understood these r...

How should you read the Bible? Is the Bible just a collection of nice stories mixed in with a bunch of motivational poster one-liners? What’s the best way to plumb the artistic depths of this unparalleled literary and spiritual masterpiece?

On this episode, Ari unpacked all of this with renowned podcaster and Biblical scholar Alastair Roberts. Over the course of this exciting, frenetic conversation, they talked about the Bible in th...