Jewish Treats

Before Michigan

The foundations of Michigan’s Jewish community were laid by the German Jews who came to America in the 1840s and spread out across the continent. Jewish history in Michigan, which became…

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Weekly Message,Devarim,Tisha b'Av

Devarim-Tisha B’Av 5764-2004

"Building a 'New' Sanctuary" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This week's parasha, parashat Devarim, is always read on the week that precedes the Fast of the Ninth of Av (Tisha b'Av), which…

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Jewish Treats

The Harts of Quebec

The first Jewish settlers in the area now known as Quebec (but which was referred to as “Lower Canada” by the British) arrived with the British soldiers during the “French and Indian War”…

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Jewish Treats

Joosiers

Individual Jews first came to what is known today as the State of Indiana in the early years of the 19th century. Jacob Hays, who moved to Cahokia (now situated in Illinois) in 1822 was a…

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Jewish Treats

The Second “Gandhi” Assassination

Rehavam Ze’evi was born on June 20, 1926 in Jerusalem. He joined the Palmach in 1942, and, after the nation’s creation in 1948, served in the Israel Defense Force (IDF) as a platoon…

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Jewish Treats

Jews in Mauritius

In the Indian Ocean, just off the coast of Africa, is the island nation of Mauritius. Despite the general absence of Jews in Mauritius in the past, there is enough of a Jewish community…

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Jewish Treats

Based in Burma

Today’s Jewish Treat presents the unexpected Jewish history of Myanmar (formerly Burma), which gained its independence from the United Kingdom on January 4, 1948.  A synagogue is…

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Jewish Treats

West Point

Last spring, the Jewish news media delightedly reported that Rachelle David was the first female graduate of an Orthodox Jewish High School to be accepted to West Point. It is a…

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Jewish Treats

The First Jew in the Colonies

When does American Jewish history begin? Some would say that it begins in 1492, when Columbus set sail on his historic voyage accompanied by at least one known Jewish crew member (Luis de…

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Jewish Treats

The Bird of Thanks

On Thanksgiving day, it is customary in the United States to eat a turkey dinner. The Hebrew word for turkey is “tar'negol hodu,” literally, an “Indian Rooster.” It came by this…

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