The Old City
New York may be the city that never sleeps, but Jerusalem is the “City of Gold.” This description usually refers to the city’s physical appearance (casting a golden light at dusk due to…
Thank You Nurses
Today, May 12, is International Nurses Day, and so, today, Jewish Treats honors a woman who made a tremendous impact on the world of public health. Lillian D. Wald (1867 – 1940) was born…
The Beauty of the Book
Illuminated manuscripts inlaid with gold or silver leaf and spectacularly illustrated, are most often associated with the Medieval church (the Gospels, Psalters, etc), where texts were…
Stingy?
Is being frugal a Jewish trait? After all, being “tight-fisted” is one of the most common slurs against Jews. One might think there is some truth to this statement when reading in Sotah…
The Jews of St. Estatius: A Story of the American Revolution
The story of St. Estatius, a small Caribbean Island, brings together a remote location, the American Revolution and Jewish history. It is one of those strange tales Jewish Treats loves to…
The First Jewish Lawyer
The study of law appears to attract a disproportionate number of Jews, perhaps because expounding arguments, pro and con, is one of the great pleasures of Talmudic discourse. In fact, one…
Purim of the Curtains
In just about two months, Purim, the holiday that marks the defeat of Haman, will be celebrated. The name “Purim,” however, has been borrowed throughout Jewish history by smaller Jewish…
The Building of Solomon’s Temple
The 17th of Cheshvan marks the day on which King Solomon declared the work on the Holy Temple (Beit Hamikdash) to be complete. By then, Solomon had been king for eleven years, and the…
Is It Good To Be The King?
Parashat Shoftim addresses many issues, among them the Jewish jurisprudential system, false prophets and the Arei Miklat, cities of refuge. The guidelines for the appointment of a future…
Vayeishev 5765-2004
"A Personality Profile of Joseph" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald In this week's parasha, parashat Vayeishev, we encounter the twelve tribes of Israel in their early stages of development,…