Join us Wednesday Night (7:30 pm) at Young Israel of Lawrence-Cedarhust

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Interview with Dr. Daniel Fainstein of the Universidad Ebraíca, Mexico City

I recently spent several days in Mexico City getting to know this fascinating community (more video forthcoming!). Here’s a conversation I had with my colleague Daniel Fainstein, Dean of Jewish Studies at Universidad Ebraíca, explaining what makes the Jewish community of this city so unique.

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Maimonides on Teshuvah Quoted in The New Yorker!

Very pleased to read that Jill Lapore quoted Maimonides on Teshuvah: The Way of Repentance in a recent piece in The New Yorker (The Case Against the Twitter Apology, online November 7, published in the print edition of the November 14, 2022, issue, with the headline “Sorry Spectacle.”). Here’s the relevant passage:

Favorite response from my family: son-in-law Chaim writes, “The New Yorker is no Der Veker, but still cool.”

Explora tu Judaísmo at Limmud Mexico this Shabbat!

Very honored to share the stage with James Carroll, author of the National Book Award-winning Constantine’s Sword this coming Shabbat at Limmud Mexico. Our joint keynote address will focus on the topic of “Jews in the Christian Mind; Christians in the Jewish Mind.” I’ll be speaking on Shabbat day on the Spanish translation of The Kabbalah of Forgiveness and on Sunday looking at the history of the Jews of Ukraine. Kosher, Shabbat-observant friendly environment, of course! Click here for more information: https://limudmexico.org.

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Powerful New Video from the Team at Unpacked

Brilliant, evocative script by Ali Elbaz and powerfully narrated by Becky Tahel. My small role was as educational consultant for the background research. This film is a great example of the great work done by the team at Unpacked, very proud to work with them.

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The Jews of Padua, Ferrara, and the Old Lido Cemetery of Venice

Fascinating Jewish History in Venice!

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Yahrzeit of the Piaseczno Rebbe (Aish Kodesh)

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Meaningful People Podcast Interview

Thanks to all who have sent kind words about the podcast version of this interview. I thought it went well, here’s the YouTube version.

Had a great time speaking with Nachi and Momo of Meaningful People podcast. The conversation was a little personal, a little irreverent, but even a little deep. Hope I didn’t overshare!

Here’s the link: https://www.meaningfulpeoplepodcast.com/podcast/episode/3a28c3d3/dr-henry-abramson-or-uncovering-the-gems-of-our-past

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Nicolo Matas grave marker confirmed

Last week I discussed the remarkable story of the Jewish architect Nicolo Matas (video below), who somehow got this Star of David prominently displayed on the Santa Croce church in Florence, Italy. Lots of important people are buried in the church (Michelangelo, Machiavelli, etc.) but given that Matas was unbaptized, he could only be laid to rest in a sarcophagus outside the church, immediately outside the front steps.

In a deeply ironic way, he is now buried in front of what appears to be the world’s largest Jewish tombstone.

Amazing but true: Niccolò Matas and the Santa Croce Basilica

Read and Comment on this Draft Chapter of Volume One of The Jewish People: A History

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Jews and the Risorgimento

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New Piece in Aish.com

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Wishing all fellow students of Jewish History a G’mar ve-Hatimah Tovah; a successful completion to the end of the penitential season! May you and all your loved ones be blessed with health, and spiritual as well as material bounty in the year 5783 and beyond.

HMA

A tolerant admissions policy led to an explosion of Jewish students at this prestigious 13th century school.

Premieres at 12 Noon ET with Live Chat

Wishing all students of Jewish history and their loved ones a sweet new year!

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Members-only Videos Now Available in Online Course

The following three videos tend to attract a lot of unwanted attention on YouTube, so they are currently sheltered behind a low paywall to discourage intellectual vandals. They are available to Channel Members (information on membership available here: https://youtu.be/CnJrOwzNrRw), but YouTube does not offer that option in all countries. The videos have also been uploaded to students registered for my online course in Biblical Jewish History (click here for registration information).

This topic, so important for the experience of Jews in European history, tends to attract a lot of unwanted attention. For now I prefer to offer them to Channel Members only, part of The Jewish Encounter with Rome series. I hope you find them useful.

Sadducees, Pharisees, and more.

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What Happened to the Sephardic Tombstones of Ferrara, Italy?

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Recommended Reading for Rosh Hashanah

King Herod Comes to Power

Part One of The Jewish Encounter with Rome series

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Chapter 9: The Birth of Christianity

Students registered for the Biblical Jewish history course: please note that the draft text of Chapter 8 (Judea under Rome) is now complete and ready for your comments. The introduction to Chapter 9: The Birth of Christianity is now uploaded and the rest of the chapter will be forthcoming over the next few weeks.

Online Courses

Free Registration for Educators

Are you a teacher? Please click here if you would like to request complimentary registration to any of my online courses.

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Recommended Reading for Elul