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
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Day 3: When is Atonement Granted?
Day 3 Thursday, August 24, 2017 ב׳ אלול תשע׳׳ז 1.3 בִּזְמָן שְׁאֵין בֵּית הַמִּקְדָּשׁ קַיָּם, וְאֵין לָנוּ מִזְבַּח כַּפָּרָה—אֵין שָׁם אֵלָא תְּשׁוּבָה. הַתְּשׁוּבָה מְכַפֶּרֶת עַל כָּל הָעֲבֵרוֹת: אַפִלּוּ רָשָׁע כָּל יָמָיו, וְעָשָׂה תְּשׁוּבָה בָּאַחֲרוֹנָה—אֵין מַזְכִּירִין לוֹ שֵׁם רִשְׁעוֹ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמָר “וְרִשְׁעַת הָרָשָׁע לֹא–יִכָּשֶׁל בָּהּ, בְּיוֹם שׁוּבוֹ מֵרִשְׁעוֹ” (יחזקאל לג,יב). וְעַצְמוֹ שֶׁלְּיוֹם הַכִּפּוּרִים מְכַפֵּר לַשָּׁבִים, שֶׁנֶּאֱמָר “כִּי–בַיּוֹם…
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Day 2: The Scapegoat
Day 2: The Scapegoat א׳ אלול ראש חודש אלול Wednesday, August 23, 2017 1.2 שָׂעִיר הַמִּשְׁתַּלֵּחַ–לְפִי שְׁהוּא כַּפָּרָה לְכָל יִשְׂרָאֵל, כּוֹהֵן גָּדוֹל מִתְוַדֶּה עָלָיו עַל לְשׁוֹן כָּל יִשְׂרָאֵל: שֶׁנֶּאֱמָר “וְהִתְוַדָּה עָלָיו אֶת-כָּל-עֲוֹנֹת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל” (ויקרא טז,כא). שָׂעִיר הַמִּשְׁתַּלֵּחַ מְכַפֵּר עַל כָּל עֲבֵרוֹת שֶׁבַּתּוֹרָה, הַקַּלּוֹת וְהַחֲמוּרוֹת, בֵּין שֶׁעָבַר בְּזָדוֹן בֵּין שֶׁעָבַר בִּשְׁגָגָה, בֵּין שֶׁהוֹדַע לוֹ בֵּין…
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Day 1: Confession.
Day 1 ל׳ אב ראש חודש אלול Tuesday, August 22, 2017 כָּל הַמִּצְווֹת שֶׁבַּתּוֹרָה, בֵּין עֲשֵׂה בֵּין לֹא תַעֲשֶׂה—אִם עָבַר אָדָם עַל אַחַת מֵהֶן, בֵּין בְּזָדוֹן בֵּין בִּשְׁגָגָה—כְּשֶׁיַּעֲשֶׂה תְּשׁוּבָה וְיָשׁוּב מֵחֶטְאוֹ, חַיָּב לְהִתְוַדּוֹת לִפְנֵי הָא–ל בָּרוּךְ הוּא: שֶׁנֶּאֱמָר “אִישׁ אוֹ–אִשָּׁה כִּי יַעֲשׂוּ מִכָּל–חַטֹּאת הָאָדָם למעול מעל בה‘ ואשמה הנפש ההיא וְהִתְוַדּוּ, אֶת–חַטָּאתָם אֲשֶׁר עָשׂוּ” (במדבר ה,ו–ז), זֶה…
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August 2017 Update
Please click here for the latest news: The Jews of Sepharad lecture series, our new Global Maimonides Project, and other cool things.
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The Liturgy of Anguish
Hopefully this event will be cancelled with the arrival of Moshiach, but just in case, I am really looking forward to hearing Rabbi Goldberg speak about the Kinot.
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New Series! How to Speak Like a Mensch
This is a little different: my Jewish take on SPLN 101: Fundamentals of Speech, our required undergraduate course at the mighty Avenue J campus of Touro College. Let me know what you think!
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Why I Wrote Maimonides on Teshuvah
Dedicated to the memory of my father: A new translation and commentary of Moses Maimonides’ classic work on repentance. Softcover, 253 pages, illustrations. $18 after August 3, pre-order now for special price of $9 plus shipping. 5th edition (2017) Visit bit.ly/ordermot for more details.
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Maimonides on Teshuvah
Dedicated to the memory of my father: A new translation and commentary of Moses Maimonides’ classic work on repentance. Softcover, 253 pages, illustrations. $18. Click here to order.
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The Jews of Sepharad: Fall 2017 Lectures
All lectures will be held in the Main Auditorium of the mighty Avenue J Campus 7:00 PM Free and Open to the Community Touro College 1602 Avenue J Brooklyn, NY 11230 September 11 September 18 September 25 October 2 No Class October 9 October 16 October 23 October 30 November 6 November 13…
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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.
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
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Please Support Alexander’s Marathon Bid for Friendship Circle
Hello everyone: my son Alexander is once again training to run the ING Miami Marathon to raise funds for Friendship Circle, a non-profit organization that helps children, teens and adults with special needs. Alexander is an avid runner with a long history of running for charitable causes: in 2010 he ran his first half-marathon (at…
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Rabbi Isaac Luria (The Arizal) Jewish Biographies Lecture
Emerging from the sixteenth-century Safed Circle of Jewish mystics, Rabbi Isaac Luria (the Arizal) was a pivotal figure in the history of Kabbalah. His influence on later Jewish movements, in particular Hasidism, is still felt to this day. Part of the Jewish Biography as History lecture series by Dr. Henry Abramson.
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David Reubeni: Politics and the Messiah
David Reubeni was one of the most colorful messianic figures of Jewish history. A little person with a shady background, he was received with dignity by Popes and Kings in the fifteenth century, regaling them with tales of the Jews of the east and promising them great military victories should they enlist his service. He…
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Nahmanides: Rabbi Moshe ben Nahman
Nahmanides (Rabbi Moshe ben Nahman, or Ramban) was one of the most important thinkers of Jewish history. Brilliantly creative and intellectually courageous, his commentary on the Torah is widely studied eight centuries after his passing. Part of the Jewish Biography as History series by Dr. Henry Abramson.
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Henrietta Szold: Founder of Hadassah
American-born Henrietta Szold was an extremely influential Zionist leader and organizer, founder of Hadassah, the Women’s Zionist Organization of America. To view the Prezi associated with this video, click here.
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Nicholas Donin: The Dimensions of Medieval Jewish Self-Hatred
Nicholas Donin was an erstwhile Talmudic scholar who converted to Christianity and made a career of denouncing the Talmud. His charges, brought before the Pope, resulted in a massive destruction of priceless Jewish manuscripts in Paris, 1242. Part of the Jewish Biography as History lecture series by Dr. Henry Abramson.
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Rabenu Gershom: Me’or Ha-Golah Jewish Biography as History
Rabenu Gershom, Me’or Ha-Golah (Our Teacher Gershom, Light of the Exile) was one of the most influential Jewish legislators of the High Middle Ages, affecting a wide variety of Jewish practices including monogamy, divorce law, and the right to privacy. Part of the Jewish Biography as History lecture series by Dr. Henry Abramson.
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Yocheved bat Rashi (Jewish Biography as History)
Yocheved was the daughter of one of Judaism’s greatest scholars: Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaki, better known as Rashi. A fascinating woman in her own right, this lecture will survey some of the references to Yocheved (and her illustrious sisters) and what light this sheds on the history of medieval Jewish women.
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The Golden Age of Spanish Jewry (History of the Jewish People I)
To view the Prezi associated with this lecture, please click here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OnArXdHQdc
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L.L. Zamenhof and Esperanto (This Week in Jewish History)
L.L. Zamenhof (1859-1917) was a Polish Jew who invented the world’s most successful artificial language, Esperanto. Conceived as a vehicle for world peace, Esperanto is even regarded by the Oomoto religion of Japan as the “language of heaven.”
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Origins of Polish Jewry (This Week in Jewish History)
This week marks the death anniversary of King Boleslaw V (The Chaste) in 1279. Boleslaw followed the tradition of his predecessors in Poland by creating incentives for Jewish settlement in Poland, including the establishment of Magdeburg Recht. Ultimately, these policies proved extremely attractive to Ashkenazi Jews from the Rhineland, making Poland a great center of…
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.
