An Interesting Philologist
Language is considered to be one of the unique characteristics of humankind. Lazarus (Eliezer Solomon ) Geiger believed that there was a great deal to learn about humanity from studying…
Rabbi Judah The Pious
Unlike so many stories one hears about famous scholars (which usually reflect on their childhood brilliance), the tales regarding Rabbi Judah Hachasid (the Pious) describe him as a…
Crazy for Coffee
It is a fact fit for any game of trivia that the first coffee house, known as The Angel, in England was opened in Oxford by a man known as Jacob the Jew around 1650. Coffee has its origin…
Young Man…
The Jewish community has an incredible penchant for organizing and for creating organizations. Indeed, American Jewish life is an alphabet soup of acronyms, and one of the best-known is…
Rebecca Gratz
Raise your hand if you attended Hebrew school, whether after school or on Sunday mornings. Did you know that you have a Jewish Pennsylvania native, Rebecca Gratz (1781-1869) to thank for…
The Chassidim of Ger
While the Holocaust destroyed numerous chassidic communities, some of the surviving sects maintained their significance and impact after the war. Such was the case of the Ger Chassidim.…
Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch
In early 19th century Germany, many communities found themselves in conflict between traditional Judaism and the new Reform movement. Finding the balance between living a Torah life and a…
The Baal Shem Tov
Rabbi Israel ben Eliezer, known as the Baal Shem Tov (literally Master of the Good Name, often referred to as the BESHT), was born in 1698, in Okop (Ukraine). While there is little record…
What Is Chabad?
Chabad-Lubavitch is a chassidic movement founded by Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi (1745-1812) in the White Russian town of Lubavitch. Chabad is an acronym for chochma (wisdom), binah…
Happy Bow Tie Day
Bow Tie Day is celebrated annually on August 28th. The bow tie originated in the 17th century with Croatian soldiers who wore them as part of their uniforms in the Thirty Year War. The…