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
-
Jewish History Lectures Resume!
The Jews of the Danube Fall 2018 Lecture Series Lectures in Europe: October 2018 Lectures in Brooklyn: November-December 2018 From its headwaters in Germany’s Black Forest to its final destination in the Black Sea, the Danube River flows through ten countries and over ten centuries of Jewish history. Great cities like Vienna and Budapest punctuate……
-
I want ten students.
Hello friends and colleagues: Thank you for your consistent support and enthusiasm. I am delighted that so many people share my passion for Jewish history and thought, and consider it a rare privilege to share my research with you online and in person. I wish you all a blessed New Year of spiritual and material……
-
Free Online Resources for the Ten Days of Repentance
Hello everyone! Please visit this site for my translation of Rabbi Moshe Cordovero’s classic Tomer Devorah (The Kabbalah of Forgiveness), a text often studied at precisely this time of year as we strive to improve our relationships with each other, with G-d, and with ourselves. The site also features a series of brief videos on each……
-
The Jews of the Danube (Fall 2018 Lecture Series)
The Jews of the Danube Fall 2018 Lecture Series From its headwaters in Germany’s Black Forest to its final destination in the Black Sea, the Danube River flows through ten countries and over ten centuries of Jewish history. Great cities like Vienna and Budapest punctuate its course through East-Central Europe, the cradle of much of……
-
In Search of the Crypto-Jews of Portugal (What I did over my Summer Vacation)
The invisible yet palpable echo of the crypto-Jewish tradition resonates through Portugal like the far side of a conversation faintly overheard in another person’s cell phone. A rush of sibilants or an exclamation of laughter confirms the reality of the distant interlocutor, even though we do not see her before us. The history of Portugal’s…
-
Learn Maimonides on Teshuvah with me this year!
Join me in this global effort to prepare for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur this year!
-
Camp Guard Associated with the Murder of the Piaseczno Rebbe Extradited to Germany
Hasidim of the Aish Kodesh should take note: this is likely the face of one of the murderers of Rabbi Kalonymus Kalmish Shapira hy”d. Jakiw Palij, a longtime resident of Queens, New York, was recently extradited to Germany for filing false information while immigrating to the United States after World War II. Palij served as……
-
Two Public Talks on Tisha B’Av
Hello students, friends and colleagues– We still have a few hours before the onset of Shabbat and the possible arrival of Mashiach, but if we have to make it through another Tisha B’Av– If you are in Fort Lee, NJ Sunday morning or Crown Heights, Brooklyn Sunday afternoon, please join me for presentations on the……
-
Ben Rothke Review in Jewish Link
Thanks to Ben Rothke for this kind review of Torah from the Years of Wrath in this week’s Jewish Link of New Jersey. I am very grateful to be a part of the community that values and spreads the teachings of the Piaseczno Rebbe; nice to see positive reviews! Keeping the Faith By Ben Rothke……
-
What is the Global Study of Maimonides Project?
Hello everyone– My father’s yortsayt is coming up next week, and as in previous years I hope to begin another cycle of study of Maimonides on Teshuvah. Please visit the Maimonides on Teshuvah page page to learn more about how to participate in this free, Global Study of Maimonides program. Posts will also appear……
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 