Dr. Rebecca J. Epstein-Levi
@rjelevi.bsky.social
Ethicist, half-assed text nerd. Sexual ethics & Jewish text. Queer. AuDHD. She/her.
Current project: The Neurodivergent Talmud
Book: When We Collide: Sex, Social Risk, and Jewish Ethics (IUP 2023)
RJELevi.com
Current project: The Neurodivergent Talmud
Book: When We Collide: Sex, Social Risk, and Jewish Ethics (IUP 2023)
RJELevi.com
Pinned
When We Collide
When We Collide is a landmark reassessment of the significance of sex in contemporary Jewish ethics. Rebecca Epstein-Levi offers a fresh and vital exploratio...
iupress.org
Hey, new followers! Since I have your attention, I published a book last year!
As we face another Trump administration, it's increasingly important to make a forceful case for the moral worth of sexual divergence, and that's what I do in "When We Collide: Sex, Social Risk, and Jewish Ethics:"
As we face another Trump administration, it's increasingly important to make a forceful case for the moral worth of sexual divergence, and that's what I do in "When We Collide: Sex, Social Risk, and Jewish Ethics:"
Reposted by Dr. Rebecca J. Epstein-Levi
Lord, I see what you’re doing for them over there, and I just want it for us too. Amen.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the brother of the UK’s King Charles, has been arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office. It comes after further details of his relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein emerged, the BBC said.
Get the latest: bloom.bg/4rqF1ah
Get the latest: bloom.bg/4rqF1ah
February 19, 2026 at 2:11 PM
Lord, I see what you’re doing for them over there, and I just want it for us too. Amen.
Reposted by Dr. Rebecca J. Epstein-Levi
Thousands of institutions abandoned programs, ended or rewrote scholarships, closed down clubs and publications, all in pre-emptive compliance.
And you know why?
Mostly because they wanted to do it if they thought they could blame someone else for it.
And you know why?
Mostly because they wanted to do it if they thought they could blame someone else for it.
February 18, 2026 at 11:47 PM
Thousands of institutions abandoned programs, ended or rewrote scholarships, closed down clubs and publications, all in pre-emptive compliance.
And you know why?
Mostly because they wanted to do it if they thought they could blame someone else for it.
And you know why?
Mostly because they wanted to do it if they thought they could blame someone else for it.
I am in fact on record arguing that genetically engineered crops can be Good, Actually. Crops can be engineered for pest and disease resistance, climate resilience, nutritional enhancement, and to require significantly fewer environmentally destructive inputs.
“Is there a technology the left is excited about?”
High-speed rail! MRNA vaccines! New cancer treatments! Solar and wind energy collection! Better and longer-range EVs! That wood that's harder than steel! New apples! Fibermaxxing! Buldak Swicy ramen! Muppets! Muppets are too a technology, shut up!
High-speed rail! MRNA vaccines! New cancer treatments! Solar and wind energy collection! Better and longer-range EVs! That wood that's harder than steel! New apples! Fibermaxxing! Buldak Swicy ramen! Muppets! Muppets are too a technology, shut up!
February 18, 2026 at 7:52 PM
I am in fact on record arguing that genetically engineered crops can be Good, Actually. Crops can be engineered for pest and disease resistance, climate resilience, nutritional enhancement, and to require significantly fewer environmentally destructive inputs.
Anyone who doesn't subscribe to pay Rebecca Epstein-Levi by the word for her book so she can take a second pre-tenure sabbatical will be left behind, says Rebecca Epstein-Levi.
February 18, 2026 at 7:49 PM
Anyone who doesn't subscribe to pay Rebecca Epstein-Levi by the word for her book so she can take a second pre-tenure sabbatical will be left behind, says Rebecca Epstein-Levi.
Reposted by Dr. Rebecca J. Epstein-Levi
Western Civilization Guy: something something Herodotus Athens defeat the Persians
Jewish Western Civilization Guy: something something Herodotus Athens defeat the Persians
actual Jews in the 5th century BCE: go Persia, Cyrus was literally the messiah, naming my kids after Marduk and Ishtar
Jewish Western Civilization Guy: something something Herodotus Athens defeat the Persians
actual Jews in the 5th century BCE: go Persia, Cyrus was literally the messiah, naming my kids after Marduk and Ishtar
February 18, 2026 at 7:36 PM
Western Civilization Guy: something something Herodotus Athens defeat the Persians
Jewish Western Civilization Guy: something something Herodotus Athens defeat the Persians
actual Jews in the 5th century BCE: go Persia, Cyrus was literally the messiah, naming my kids after Marduk and Ishtar
Jewish Western Civilization Guy: something something Herodotus Athens defeat the Persians
actual Jews in the 5th century BCE: go Persia, Cyrus was literally the messiah, naming my kids after Marduk and Ishtar
Countries that do not embrace product will suffer, says guy who DEFINITELY has NO INTEREST WHATSOEVER in product and is just giving vital advice FROM THE GOODNESS OF HIS HEART.
February 18, 2026 at 6:48 PM
Countries that do not embrace product will suffer, says guy who DEFINITELY has NO INTEREST WHATSOEVER in product and is just giving vital advice FROM THE GOODNESS OF HIS HEART.
e. Through the power of a secret amulet, forged of meteoric iron, tempered in the fires of the heart of the earth, and quenched in the blood of a willing sacrifice, that gives access to all the secrets no person should know, at a terrible and indescribable price.
this set of options in a recommendation form is weird, right?
![How has the student achieved good grades in your class?
[options]
By brilliance of mind
By consistent hard work
By grade consciousness
By virtue of memory
Other](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:6zofo5h2xf64kv2fcx5t2t4i/bafkreifg3mjai4jkj52zexmazfun2pzk3al3ofkfhfapr3h4qoubi4g6um@jpeg)
February 17, 2026 at 9:49 PM
e. Through the power of a secret amulet, forged of meteoric iron, tempered in the fires of the heart of the earth, and quenched in the blood of a willing sacrifice, that gives access to all the secrets no person should know, at a terrible and indescribable price.
Reposted by Dr. Rebecca J. Epstein-Levi
Writing is thinking.
It's not some marginal boring task you can skip. It's the heart of it.
It's not some marginal boring task you can skip. It's the heart of it.
It’s easy to think writing is mainly the transcription of ideas you already have—that is, until you try to write something worthwhile, and you find what you thought were saying transform into something far more interesting in the process. This skips that last step, and that is *not* an improvement.
“We plan to hire an AI rewrite specialist to ingest the reporting by Hannah and others and use AI to convert it into stories.”
The editor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer said it will use AI to ‘write’ its articles.
www.cleveland.com/news/2025/10...
The editor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer said it will use AI to ‘write’ its articles.
www.cleveland.com/news/2025/10...
February 16, 2026 at 2:55 PM
Writing is thinking.
It's not some marginal boring task you can skip. It's the heart of it.
It's not some marginal boring task you can skip. It's the heart of it.
Reposted by Dr. Rebecca J. Epstein-Levi
With cat tax.
February 16, 2026 at 6:15 PM
With cat tax.
With cat tax.
February 16, 2026 at 6:15 PM
With cat tax.
Cat people of bluesky: give me your suggestions for the smelliest, most concentrated pastes and such to mix crushed pills into.
Faintly has a new med that’s too big to be taken any other way. We were doing great with churus for about a week and a half, but now they are apparently suspicious.
Faintly has a new med that’s too big to be taken any other way. We were doing great with churus for about a week and a half, but now they are apparently suspicious.
February 16, 2026 at 6:07 PM
Cat people of bluesky: give me your suggestions for the smelliest, most concentrated pastes and such to mix crushed pills into.
Faintly has a new med that’s too big to be taken any other way. We were doing great with churus for about a week and a half, but now they are apparently suspicious.
Faintly has a new med that’s too big to be taken any other way. We were doing great with churus for about a week and a half, but now they are apparently suspicious.
I have said and will continue to say that MELORA is an *extremely* solid “social model of disability 101.”
can’t think of a clearer sign of a fake fan
STAR TREK has ALWAYS thought (often badly and often thoughtfully) about disability & prosthesis use
Evan Carlos Somers (himself a wheelchair user) penned the DS9 ep MELORA about that exact vexed but rich history
memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Melora_...
STAR TREK has ALWAYS thought (often badly and often thoughtfully) about disability & prosthesis use
Evan Carlos Somers (himself a wheelchair user) penned the DS9 ep MELORA about that exact vexed but rich history
memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Melora_...
February 13, 2026 at 10:05 PM
I have said and will continue to say that MELORA is an *extremely* solid “social model of disability 101.”
Friday afternoon Horf.
February 13, 2026 at 9:48 PM
Friday afternoon Horf.
Reposted by Dr. Rebecca J. Epstein-Levi
I'm stunned and disappointed to see the shuttering of yet another piece of public religious studies scholarship. #acrel #amrel #aarsbl #sblaar
After careful consideration, the American Academy of Religion has decided that Reading Religion will cease operations on May 31, 2026.
Reviews will continue through May, after which the site will become a public archive.
With gratitude.
Official Statement: buff.ly/DYwZsam
Reviews will continue through May, after which the site will become a public archive.
With gratitude.
Official Statement: buff.ly/DYwZsam
buff.ly
February 12, 2026 at 9:34 PM
I do not WANT to pivot to paper, dammit. There are accessibility issues for students AND for me. What I WANT is for the internet to be treated and regulated like the public good it is, and for us to quit systematically devaluing learning, writing, and thinking for their own sakes.
February 12, 2026 at 10:41 PM
I do not WANT to pivot to paper, dammit. There are accessibility issues for students AND for me. What I WANT is for the internet to be treated and regulated like the public good it is, and for us to quit systematically devaluing learning, writing, and thinking for their own sakes.
I have now started making a playlist, but the first one I thought of was "Choke" by Antigone Rising.
February 10, 2026 at 6:25 AM
I have now started making a playlist, but the first one I thought of was "Choke" by Antigone Rising.
OH HELL NO WE ARE NOT GOING TO ERASE SURYA BONALY.
February 8, 2026 at 7:24 PM
OH HELL NO WE ARE NOT GOING TO ERASE SURYA BONALY.
You absolutely must read this piece by Sarah Zager, whose point about the breadth and depth of neighbor-love in its myriad forms--that don't necessarily depend on physical proximity and are not occasioned by one discrete moment of encounter--is critical.
Protecting Our Neighbors: Ethics Beyond Encounter In Minnesota
Minnesotans’ “neighbor” language reveals the limits of grounding social responsibility in physical proximity and personal encounter.
martycenter.org
February 5, 2026 at 5:55 PM
You absolutely must read this piece by Sarah Zager, whose point about the breadth and depth of neighbor-love in its myriad forms--that don't necessarily depend on physical proximity and are not occasioned by one discrete moment of encounter--is critical.
I feel like I have sustained my tea interest long enough that I should consider joining a tea club. Verdant Tea and White2Tea both have very tempting options. Advice?
February 5, 2026 at 4:38 AM
I feel like I have sustained my tea interest long enough that I should consider joining a tea club. Verdant Tea and White2Tea both have very tempting options. Advice?
I would also accept a mug.
Something that I increasingly need in my life is a t-shirt that says “Shulamith Firestone was right.”
February 5, 2026 at 4:16 AM
I would also accept a mug.
Good to see data on this (and also SHOCKED, I tell you, SHOCKED).
Autism can be seen as a compelling example for examining how scientific objectivity is constructed, especially in a context where nearly all gender stereotypes—such as bad mothers, empathic women versus logical men, and hormonal differences—have been used to explain its supposed gender differences.
Females as likely to be autistic as males but boys more likely to be diagnosed, study says
By age 20 diagnosis rates almost equal, research finds, challenging assumptions of gender discrepancy
www.theguardian.com
February 4, 2026 at 11:48 PM
Good to see data on this (and also SHOCKED, I tell you, SHOCKED).
Reposted by Dr. Rebecca J. Epstein-Levi
This goes to my longstanding soapbox: everything is a disability policy from housing to health care to urban planning to mass transit.
Snowstorms are more than just an inconvenience for wheelchair users. Inadequate snow clean-ups means a loss of autonomy for many. New for me at @motherjones.com www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
Snowstorms are hell for wheelchair users—but they don't have to be
"You can't physically move. You can't do anything."
www.motherjones.com
February 4, 2026 at 1:57 AM
This goes to my longstanding soapbox: everything is a disability policy from housing to health care to urban planning to mass transit.
Reposted by Dr. Rebecca J. Epstein-Levi
"actually his stuff was very Derivative and not Original" like, you don't have to do this. it is good for us all to sit with the cognitive dissonance that a very bad person can make very good art. it is good for us to work through the moral ramifications of that.
February 2, 2026 at 9:50 PM
"actually his stuff was very Derivative and not Original" like, you don't have to do this. it is good for us all to sit with the cognitive dissonance that a very bad person can make very good art. it is good for us to work through the moral ramifications of that.
Something that I increasingly need in my life is a t-shirt that says “Shulamith Firestone was right.”
February 3, 2026 at 5:44 AM
Something that I increasingly need in my life is a t-shirt that says “Shulamith Firestone was right.”
...aaaand I have just sent the first "Under no circumstances should you attend class, let alone an ethics class, with an active flu infection" email of the semester.
February 2, 2026 at 7:52 PM
...aaaand I have just sent the first "Under no circumstances should you attend class, let alone an ethics class, with an active flu infection" email of the semester.