Terror at the Olympics
On July 27, 1996, the world was startled when a pipe bomb exploded in Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, Georgia. The bomb killed one person directly, another indirectly (heart attack)…
Remembering Bergen-Belsen
The spring brings with it annual anniversaries that mark the liberation of Nazi concentration camps, death camps and a day of renewed life for tens of thousands of survivors of the Shoah.…
Military Trappings
On October 22, 1973, the tenuous ceasefire between the Israelis and the Egyptians attempting to end the Yom Kippur War, was broken. As a result, the Israel paratroopers captured the road…
An Attitude for Living
People who love language, delight in discussing the nuances of word choice. And while it may seem trivial to some, the subtle difference in choosing one particular word over another may…
Jews in Norway
Jewish history books do not contain many references to the Jews of Norway, because until 1851 it was actually illegal for Jews to settle and live there. Actually, from 1687 until 1814,…
A Rabbi in Mexico
Mexico does not have a particularly long Jewish history due to the presence of the Inquisition, and its lingering influence. Today’s Mexican Jews are, in great part, the families of…
The Story of Irena Sendler
Despite the fact that Irena Sendler was recognized in 1967 by the Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum as one of the Righteous Among the Nations, her story was mostly unknown until 1999. That…
Baron Edmond de Rothschild
Although he came from a prominent banking family and was employed in the family bank, Baron Edmond James de Rothschild (19 August 1845 - 2 November 1934) was best known for his love of…
The Passover Story in Brief
On Passover, we commemorate the exodus from Egyptian slavery. The following is a brief summary: Jacob's family came to Egypt to escape a famine in Canaan. Joseph, Jacob's son and the…
Surviving Via Shanghai
In his youth, Rabbi Chaim Shmulevitz probably never imagined that he would visit Shanghai, let alone take care of the finances for several yeshivas in that Chinese city. Thanks to visas…