A Day for Publishers
The American world of books and letters owes a great deal to the date of September 12th, for on this date, in 1891 and 1892, two giants of the American publishing industry were born:…
The Jews of Ecuador
While Ecuador does not have a large Jewish population, (there are fewer than 400 active members of the community), its history mirrors that of many South American and Central American…
A Civil Rights Leader
Rabbi Arthur Joseph Lelyveld was a man of incredible activity. While he made his mark on history with his activism, the number of Jewish organizations with which he associated is…
Jews in the Philippines
When they think about the Philippines, most people do not think of Jews. However, a Jewish presence has been documented in the Philippines from as far back as the 1500s. The 16th century…
A Constitutional Congregation
What does the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania have to do with the oldest synagogue in that state? Congregation Mikveh Israel (Originally Kaal Kadosh Mickve Israel) was founded in the 1740s…
Honoring King
“The Hebrew prophets belong to all people because their concepts of justice and equality have become ideals for all races and civilizations. Today we particularly need the Hebrew prophets…
For The Medal of Honor: The Story of Leonard Kravitz
On March 6, 1951, a platoon of American soldiers serving in the Korean War came under heavy fire by the Chinese Army near Yangpyong, Korea. When the platoon’s Machine Gunner was wounded,…
The First Rabbi In America
The first ordained rabbi to serve in an American congregation was Rabbi Abraham Joseph Rice (originally Reiss, 1802-1862). After studying in Germany, in Wurtzburg and then Fuerth, Rice…
For National Novel Writing Month: Laura Z.
Although three of her published novels were structured around a Jewish storyline, Laura Zametkin Hobson did not wish to be perceived as a Jewish American novelist. She saw being a writer…
Presidents’ Day: The Jews and Martin Van Buren
In 1840, the news of the terrible fate of the Jewish community of Damascus (Syria) reached the shores of America and brought the disparate Jewish communities of the young American nation…