Until 2017, if you were queer and Jewish and looking for someone the same, you had to settle for one of the few Jewish dating apps—or a queer one—and hoped to match with someone that was both. Joanna Halpern Zisman wanted to change that. So the Toronto-based software engineer created Yente over the Rainbow, the world’s first dating site for LGBTQAI+ Jews.

To celebrate the love still lingering in the air after Tu B’Av, Halpern Zisman and her partner, Laine, join to discuss their site, its goals and how it blends modern algorithms with traditional matchmaking.

After that, we’ll hear from Frieda Vizel, a tour guide in New York who, earlier this year, translated and transcribed a recording of a sex talk given to a Hasidic groom just before his wedding. The transcription sheds a fascinating light on a subculture whose notions of sex and relationships differ greatly from mainstream Judaism.

What we talked about

• Learn about Yente Over the Rainbow at yenteovertherainbow.com
• Read the transcript of a lecture received by a Hasidic groom before his wedding

Credits

Bonjour Chai is hosted by Avi Finegold, Ilana Zackon and David Sklar. Zachary Kauffman is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Socalled. The show is a co-production from The Jewish Learning Lab and The CJN, and is distributed by The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.