B’shalach 5769-2009

"Pharaoh Sends the People of Israel out of Egypt" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald Parashat B'shalach opens with a well-known verse describing Israel's dramatic exodus from Egypt. The Bible,…

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The Story of the Exodus

The Story of the Exodus Table of Contents Going Down to Egypt Slavery Redemption From Slavery What exactly were the ten…

Courland Jews, an Interesting History

There is no country by the name of Courland, but there is a historical subset of Latvian Jews known as Courland Jews. Their distinction comes from the connection in the 19th century of…

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Courland Jews, an Interesting History

There is no country by the name of Courland, but there is a historical subset of Latvian Jews known as Courland Jews. Their distinction comes from the connection in the 19th century of…

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Vayechi 5765-2004

"The Sealed Torah Portion" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald This coming week's parasha, parashat Vayechi, is unique among all the parashiot of the Torah in that parashat Vayechi is literally…

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The Cochin Jews of India

The Malabar Jews of Cochin*, India, claim to have existed as a community since the times of King Solomon’s trade missions for ivory and silver. It is most likely, however, that their…

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The Cochin Jews of India

The Malabar Jews of Cochin*, India, claim to have existed as a community since the times of King Solomon’s trade missions for ivory and silver. It is most likely, however, that their…

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Passover 5773-2013

“Remembering the Exodus From Egypt” by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald Because next Monday night, March 25th, is the first night of Passover, this week’s message will focus on the festival of…

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Albania and the Jews

Albania, which today marks its Independence Day, is a small Balkan country with an almost minute Jewish population. While it was never a country with a large Jewish population, there have…

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Swiss Jews

A Jewish presence in Switzerland can be traced back to the Middle Ages. Until the 19th century, Jews in Switzerland were restricted in their residence and employment. While there were…

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