History

A compelling argument for the case that Jewish education must portray our ancestors not as individuals who once lived, but as people who are alive today.

Dr Nathan Katz introduces a panel discussing recent biographies of the Lubavitcher rebbe, and explores the nature of biography in general.

If we map time, can we tell where it is taking us? The results are just too uncanny to be written off as coincidence.

A musical historian provides a "show-and-tell" of various types of musical instruments mentioned in the Bible.

The Holocaust and the establishment of the State of Israel are the two events that define Jewish history in the 20th century. While neither took place on American soil, their impact on American Jewry was seismic. In this final installment of our series, w...

As liberal Judaism flourished under American Democracy, Eastern Europe was undergoing seismic political shifts of its own. Under the threat of pogroms, Kantonist conscription, and social revolution, growing numbers of European Jews fled to the West. With ...

With new rights, come new rules. In this second lesson we’ll explore the rise of liberal Jewish movements in the United States. From the early pioneers of the movement to pivotal moments like the infamous traif (non-Kosher) banquet and the Pittsburgh Decl...

What does it mean to be a Jew in a Democratic country? The story of Judaism in America is a long one, full of twists and turns. In this first lesson, we’ll set our sights on the first Jews to set foot in the United States. Together we’ll explore how Jewis...

Further developing and sharpening our Chassidic approach to history, we look at the great moment of “introversion.” How did the “interface” of Judge become the Talmud? How was the spiritual function of the Kohen absorbed in the history of Kabbalah? How wa...