Faith in Uniform | Interview with Rav Joey Friedman

Rabbi Joey Friedman is also Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Friedman, a chaplain in the Air National Guard. His remarkable journey has taken him from the congregational rabbinate and Jewish outreach to military bases across the United States and Japan.

In this deeply personal conversation, Joey explains the chaplain’s responsibility to protect the religious liberty of every service member—regardless of faith. He shares the extraordinary accommodation the military made when he refused to compromise Shabbos, his experiences counseling people of many different religions, and the painful lessons about vulnerability and leadership that transformed him as a rabbi, father and human being.

Joey also reflects on his family connection to the Chasam Sofer, and the guidance he received from Rabbi Yaakov Weinberg ZTL. The episode concludes with a beautiful story about a Jewish serviceman who rediscovered his connection to Judaism thousands of miles from home.