Presidentially Approved
As the only territory completely under the control of the Federal Government, it is not surprising that Washington, D.C. is home to the only synagogue whose existence was enacted by an…
The Jewish Prime Minister?
Benjamin Disraeli has been called the first (and only) Jewish Prime Minister of England. The truth of this claim is...complicated. According to Jewish law, he was Jewish. His political…
Philanthropy from a Catalogue
Much has been made of those successful businessmen who have put their talents to work for philanthropy. Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, Oprah Winfrey, and Michael Dell are just a handful of…
Henry Ford’s Anti-Semitism
In 1919, Henry Ford, already a famous industrialist, purchased the Dearborn Independent (The Ford International Weekly) newspaper and used the paper as a vehicle to spread his…
Shakespeare’s Jew
From 1290 until the 1650s, Jews were not permitted to settle in England. However, marranos/anusim--Jews from Spain and Portugal who had converted to Christianity in name only in order to…
On Account of the President’s Feet
How did President Abraham Lincoln’s foot problems affect both the Civil War and the Jewish population of the United States? In honor of Jewish American Heritage Month, Jewish Treats…
The Ghetto Of Venice
The Jewish ghetto of Venice, made famous in William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice ( “Shylock” ), was actually the very first “ghetto.” That does not mean that when the Venetian…
Thou Shalt Take A Surname
Goldberg, Rosenstein, Feldman...typical Jewish Ashkenazi names. Historically, however, until the early Industrial era, Jews were generally known by a patronymical : Rabbi Shimon ben (son…
Moonbeam
December 21, 1968/30 Kislev 5729 was the day on which the world held its breath as American astronauts set out for the moon. On this day, Apollo 8, with its three member crew, was…
Jews and the American Revolution
In 1776, there were approximately 2,000 Jews in America. This rather small part of the population took an active role in the American Revolution. One company of soldiers in South…