On the 15th of Av: What Hoshea Did
How can one action be both praiseworthy and unacceptable at the same time? Such was the conundrum of Hoshea ben Elah, the last King of Israel (the Northern Kingdom of Ten Tribes).After…
The Tribe of Menashe
As descendants of the original 12 sons of Israel, the lives and personalities of the descendants of Jacob significantly impacted on the history and behavior of the future tribe members…
The Stolen Child
From the perspective of Jewish history, the story of Edgardo Levi Mortara was a minor event in a long history of Christian persecution. Nevertheless, it had an important impact on world…
The Power of Shabbat
Jewish life ebbs and flows around the celebration of Shabbat. The days of the week are labelled by a count toward Shabbat (Sunday is Yom Rishon, the first day; Monday is Yom Shaynee, the…
The Tribe of Naphtali
As the ancestors of the tribes of Israel, the lives and personalities of each of the twelve sons of Jacob significantly impact on the history and behavior of the tribe members who…
The Power of Shabbat
Jewish life ebbs and flows around the celebration of Shabbat. The days of the week are labelled by a count toward Shabbat (Sunday isYom Rishon, the first day; Monday is Yom Shaynee,…
On the 15th of Av: What Hoshea Did
How can one action be both praiseworthy and unacceptable at the same time? Such was the conundrum of Hoshea ben Elah, the last King of Israel (the Northern Kingdom of Ten Tribes). After…
The Tribe of Ephraim
As descendants of the original 12 sons of Israel, the lives and personalities of the descendants of Jacob significantly impacted on the history and behavior of the future tribe members…
The Soviet Jewry Movement
May is Jewish American Heritage Month. At first glance, a discussion of the Soviet Jewry Movement may seem like an odd choice for Jewish American history, but the movement had a powerful…
What’s In The Book: II Samuel
The Second Book of Samuel chronicles the reign of King David. After the death of King Saul, Ish-boshet, Saul’s only surviving son, declared himself king. The Tribe of Judah seceded from…