Out of an “abundance of caution” (the key phrase of the month), we’re going to move tonight’s lecture to an online platform. Please click on the image or here at for the lecture at 7:30-8:30 pm tonight. The password is YILC. Looking forward to seeing you tonight!

Join me tonight (Sunday 8pm) for a live chat and this lecture, looking at the experience of Jews under Islamic and Christian rule in the early medieval period. Click on the image above or use this link: https://youtu.be/X4JppODXdSY. Looking forward to learning with you!

Thanks to Laura Adkins of JTA for her superb editing, as always.

Origins of the Talmud: Premiere with live chat Monday night at 9PM EST. Join us!

Fellow students of Jewish history!

Here’s an article I just published on JTA. about Nissim Black’s remarkable Mothaland Bounce. The genre is a little outside my comfort zone–I normally only write on Jewish history and thought–but I had a LOT of fun writing it. Thanks to my 18-year old son for explaining hip-hop to me.

Enjoy in good health!

Good morning fans of Jewish History!

We are scheduled to begin Series 2 of the “I Survived Jewish History” lectures, moving from the origins of the Talmud to the Golden Age of Spain. Live on Wednesday night, Members get the unedited video online sometime Thursday, and finally the Premiere of the edited version (cheesy jokes and asides removed) on Monday at 9pm EST. Looking forward to learning with you!

Good morning students of Jewish history! Here’s a planning note for your Presidents’ Day. Join me tonight for a lecture and live chat online at 9:00 pm EST. We will be discussing the Roman-Jewish Wars of the 1st and 2nd centuries: the initial rise of the rebellion against Rome, the intervention of Vespasian and the destruction of the Temple under Titus, the Kitos “war,” and the Bar Kochba Rebellion.

I’ll be online simultaneously to live chat with you (no hard questions, please). Even better: from his college dorm, my son will be acting as moderator to remove any unwanted intellectual vandals from hijacking the conversation with antisemitic or proselytizing viewers (a few dicey moments in the last two premieres, but he managed to keep us on track). With his help, I anticipate a productive conversation.

Here’s the link to the lecture and chat. There’s a little bell where you can set a reminder for yourself. Looking forward to studying this fascinating period of Jewish history with you tonight!

PS: Shout-out to my undergraduates in HISN 256: you are welcome to join us! This lecture isn’t part of your coursework but is absolutely relevant to your overall study of Jewish history. Optional but recommended.

PPS: To my students who attend the lectures in person: remember that we are not meeting this Wednesday (February 19), but will return on February 26.