Really looking forward to meeting this community!
Shabbat in Rosyln, NY; Hello from Jerusalem;
Invitation to LCM Breakfast; Caribbean Jews and the History of Chocolate; Spanish Disputations and the Pogroms of 1391
Please join me at our First Annual Breakfast!
Jews and Chocolate! Who knew?
Disputations and the Pogroms of 1391
The Jews of Bukhara (Sunday in Denver); the Maimonidean Controversy; Save the Date for Roslyn NY
Really looking forward to speaking to the Or Avner community in Aurora, CO!
The Maimonidean Controversy
Save the Date: Shabbaton in Roslyn NY, December 20-21
-
Study Jewish History in Moscow!
This amazing trip is now open to non-matriculated, visiting students! Join us–it promises to be a fantastic experience. Email me at abramson@touro.edu for more information.
-
Who Was Rabbi Moshe Cordovero?
The sixteenth century witnessed a phenomenal, short-lived explosion of Jewish spiritual creativity, centered in the sleepy Galilean town of Safed (Tsfat). Along with greats such as Rabbi Yosef Karo, Rabbi Moshe Cordovero was one of the founders of that unusual place, attracting still more Rabbis and especially Kabbalists to the mountaintop community, including Rabbi……
-
Who Was Nahmanides?
A brilliant 13th-century scholar of Rabbinic thought, Nahmanides’ defense of Judaism in a forced Church-sponsored debate earned him exile from his native Spain. An elderly sage, he emigrated to the Land of Israel, where he found a tiny Jewish community, desperately hanging onto the traditions of their ancestors. Summoning upon an immense reserve of energy,……
-
The Land of Israel from Bar Kochba to the Muslim Conquest
Brief survey of the major historical developments and themes affecting the land of Israel between the 2nd-century Bar Kochba rebellion and the Muslim conquest in the seventh century. Part of the Israel: The Land and its People series.
-
Who Was Rabbi Akiva?
Certainly one of the greatest Rabbis of the entire Talmud, Akiva son of Joseph did not begin his study of Judaism before adulthood. His trajectory of incredible spiritual growth was punctuated by moments of great personal tragedy, and his martyrdom at the hands of the Romans after the failed second-century Bar-Kochba revolt has an enduring……
-
Who Was King Herod?
One of the greatest builders of ancient Israel, King Herod exploited his power as a Roman-sponsored ruler to develop the Temple, yet earned a reputation as a feared tyrant responsible for horrific massacres. HIs rule set the tone for the political climate in the Land of Israel during the tumultuous decades prior to the growth……
-
Who Was Yohanan Kohen Gadol?
Born in the times of the Hasmonean rebellion celebrated with the holiday of Chanukah, Yohanan Cohen Gadol was one of the most prominent Jewish leaders during the brief period of Jewish freedom in the 2nd century BCE. Caught in the swirling controversy of internal religious debate, in his old age he abandoned his Pharisaic roots……
-
Who Was King David?
“Sweet singer of Israel,” David was the poet-warrior King who led the Jewish people to political and cultural prominence. Denied his most cherished goal of building the Temple, he lived a life of great personal challenge and heroic resurgence from tragedy, and his biography left an indelible mark on the Jewish understanding of leadership.
-
Who Was Joshua?
The Bible describes how the Jewish people, emerging from Egyptian servitude and decades of wandering in the Sinai desert, followed Joshua’s military leadership to conquer the Land of Israel and establish the ancient foundations of their Torah-centered society. This lecture will survey the archeological and historical record to understand the larger context of the Biblical……
-
Webinar on First Century Judaism Monday March 13, 6:00 pm EST
Join me for a live webinar on the complex topic of Judaism in the first century on Monday, March 13 at 6:00 pm EST. We will look at several of the most important themes of this century: the conflict with the Romans that ended in the destruction of the Temple, the sectarian movements including the……
The Jews of Bukhara (Denver, CO); The Jews of the Lesser Antilles; Varieties of Crypto-Jewish Identity; Wait, Alexander Hamilton was Jewish?
Looking forward to a wonderful Shabbat in the Denver Jewish community!
Our Itinerary of Discovery in the Western Caribbean
Channel Members
Premiering at 10am ET
-
History and Practice of Eating Donuts on Chanukah: A Book Review
Review of Reuven Melekh ben Binyamin Yitzhak Schwartz, Emek Ha-Sufganim: Iyunim u-beiurim be-inyan minhag akhilat sufganim be-yemei hanukah Israel: Sh. Vaynraikh, Hanukah 5780 (2019), 431 pages. For a copy, please contact your local Jewish bookseller or the phone numbers listed on the copyright page: (718) 253-2804; (516) 581-3597; (718) 501-3165. Interested in studying more deeply?……
-
Elazar Maccabee and the Battle of Bet Zekharya; The Shtadlan in Jewish History
The Misnagdim Strike Back! Part II of the series on Hasidim, Mitnagdim and Maskilim: The Formation of Jewish Identity. Open to the Community at Beit Midrash of Teaneck, 70 Sterling Place, Teaneck NJ. Tuesday, November 30 at 11:45 am. Please write BMTeaneck@gmail.com for Zoom links. Take your learning to the next level: try a course!
-
The Origins of American Jewry
We begin with 23 bedraggled refugees from the Inquisition, sailing into the harbor of what would become New York.
-
Hasidim, Mitnagdim and Maskilim: The Shaping of Modern Jewish Identity
Three live lectures at Beit Medrash of Teaneck, 70 Sterling Avenue, Teaneck NJ 07666. Tuesdays November 23, November 30, and December 7. 11:45 AM ET. Please write BMTeaneck@gmail.com for Zoom information.
-
Shabbetai Tsvi, False Messiah (Jewish History Lab)
A brief look at the life and times of one of the most notorious false messiahs of Jewish history.
-
Artificial Intelligence and Artificial Wisdom (Torah and Science Conference Dec 8-11)
The Torah and Science Conference will be virtual this year, please visit http://www.torahscienceconference.org for details. I’m looking forward to speaking on “Artificial Intelligence and Artificial Wisdom: Postmodernism and the Digital Age,” Thursday December 9 at 1:45 pm ET. Join our class! Click here for course information and registration.
-
What did the Menorah Actually Look Like?
On the one hand, Maimonides and later Chabad traditions. On the other hand, some archaeological examples. Here’s a brief look at what we know. Now online! A new course in Biblical Jewish History. Check it out here, and join us!
-
Biblical Jewish History from Abraham to Bar Kochba
Really thrilled to have so many people sign up for this new online course! If it interests you, please click here to check out the syllabus, and join us!
-
The Whole History of Antisemitism in 15 Minutes
If only it were over so quickly. My part of a Kristallnacht commemoration at YILC. Warning: some graphic images.
-
New Online Course: Biblical Jewish History!
Ancient Jewish History from Abraham to Bar Kochba. Really excited to announce this new online course! Please click here for course information and registration.
-
Judah Maccabee and the Battle at Emmaus
A brief overview of one of the major early battles in the Chanukah revolt in 166 BCE.
-
A Thousand Years of Ashkenaz
Really looking forward to meeting students of the Ashkenazium in Budapest in January! Here’s the online course I set up to prepare them for the lectures. It’s open to the public as well. Enjoy in good health!
Visits to Synagogues in Bordeaux and Libourne (France); Another Open Letter to Jewish Participants in anti-Israel Protests re: Amsterdam; Conference Presentation on Sheptytsky and WW II
Fantastic Voyage of Discovery with Kosher River Cruises
A Difficult Conversation
Recent Conference Presentation in Toronto
Wait, Christopher Columbus was Jewish? Documentary on Roman-Jewish War now Online
Surprised how much attention this got.
Herod’s Tragic Reign
The Fatal Conflict
How Jewish Culture will Thrive after October 7; The Jews of Al-Andalus Part II
Remarks at Lander College for Men
Maimonides and the Controversy over His Work
Jewish Resilience After October 7; American Jews, Post-Honeymoon; The Jews of Al-Andalus
Three Strategies
Jews under the Visigoths II; The Spanish Golden Age
Public at 10am ET (44 minutes)
Online Courses in Jewish History
Jewish Life in Visigothic Spain; Commemorating October 7
This is one of the most bizarre periods of Jewish history, and that’s saying a lot.
Henry Abramson 