About miracles: Reflections on the concept of miracles for Hannukah

Once upon a time there was a man – says the Talmud – whose wife died in labor. The man was so poor that he didn’t have the money to hire a wet nurse for the new baby. And then a miracle happened. According to the Talmud, the man grew breasts bursting with milk. Rabbi […]
A Complex Tale: How Agnon Received a Bittersweet Gift in His Final Years

December 10, 1966 – 53 years ago. The clock ticks past 16:00, as the crowd waits in Stockholm’s opulent concert hall for the Nobel Prize winners. The honored guests are waiting anxiously for four stars. Three will herald the end of Shabbat. The fourth is the shining star of Hebrew literature, Shai Agnon. Soon after […]
All in the Family: The Debate that Ripped Apart 18th-Century Polish Jewry

Winter 1759. Some 2000 Jews – men, women, and children – gathered in the central square in front of Lvov, Poland’s cathedral. All but the wailing infants were mum. The frigid bone-penetrating cold was beginning to claim victims. The occasional sound of a body hitting the ground was heard. Elisha Shor – of the famous […]
Museum of the Jewish People at Beit Hatfutsot’s Annual Gala – NYC 2019

“Essen with the Best: A Night to Celebrate All Things Food” – Museum of the Jewish people at Beit Hatfutsot’s Annual Gala took place the evening of December 2 2019 at the Ziegfeld Ballroom and honored our dear friend Joan Nathan. It was an evening to remember featuring the best and the brightest in the […]
La Amante, el Comisario y el Químico: Tres Personajes Judíos del Lado Errado de la Historia

La Amante, el Comisario y el Químico: Tres Personajes Judíos del Lado Errado de la Historia MARGHERITA SARFATTI Amante de Mussolini “Hay dos mujeres que me aman locamente, pero yo no las amo. Una es bastante simple, pero ella tiene un alma noble y generosa. La otra es hermosa, pero tiene una naturaleza astuta y […]
“Essen with the Best: A Night to Celebrate All Things Food”
“Essen with the Best: A Night to Celebrate All Things Food,” which will take place the evening of December 2 at the Ziegfeld Ballroom and honor our dear friend Joan Nathan. It will be an evening to remember featuring the best and the brightest in the world of Jewish food. Joan will curate a delicious […]
Far from the Eye, Close to the Heart: The Fascinating History of the Beta Israel Community in Ethiopia

Historical research indicates that there were Jews in ancient Ethiopia, but their unknown origin and history has inspired many varying theories. The debate among researchers focuses mainly on the quality of the ethnic affiliation between those ancient Jews and the Jews who were first documented in the 9th-Century writings of Eldad HaDani and in Ethiopian […]