By Rabbi Rachel Esserman
Jewish historical works often make it sound as if rabbinic Judaism rose like a phoenix from the flames of the Second Temple. They rarely discuss the change in leadership – from the priestly family to the proto-rabbis – that occurred during that period. The pries…
By Rabbi Rachel Esserman
When most American Jews think of Yiddish immigrants, the Lower East Side of New York City comes to mind. However, that was not the only city to attract Yiddish masses from Eastern Europe and Germany. As shown in “East End Jews: Sketches from the London Yiddish Pre…
By Rabbi Rachel Esserman
Before the Civil War, what were the varying beliefs held by American Jews concerning slavery? How did the fact that Jews were generally considered white affect those beliefs? Did the American Jewish population support the North or South during the war? As Richard Kr…
By Reporter staff
A variety of Jewish groups are offering educational and recreational online resources. Below is a sampling of those. The Reporter will publish additional listings as they become available.
Roundtable will hold the virtual four-part “Global Jewish Book Club: Four Moder…
By Rabbi Rachel Esserman
I hadn’t thought about the cake for years, but, at least twice in the last month, it came up in a food-related conversation. Until I began the first of my many medically restricted diets, it served as my yearly birthday cake. We always called it strawberry shortc…
