November 11
518 BCE: A delegation of Babylonian Jews arrived in Jerusalem to inquire from the prophet Zechariah whether the fast of Av should be discontinued (Zech 7:1)
1050: Birthdate of Henry IV, who as Holy Roman Emperor took steps to protect his Jewish subjects. For example, Henry granted the request of Moses ben Guthiel, leader of the Jewish community of Speyer that Jews who had been forcibly converted by marauding Crusaders be allowed to renounce the vow and return to Judaism without penalty. This and other such protective measures set him at odds with various leaders of the Church.
1155: Birthdate of King Alfonso VIII of Castile who employed a number of Jews in position of importance including Joseph ben Solomon Ibn-Shoshan and Abraham Ibn-Alfachar who served as his ambassador to Morocco which was governed by the intolerant Almohades.
1215: The meeting of the Fourth Lateran Council during the the papacy of Pope Innocent
III
(1161-1215) marked the zenith of Papal power. Old anti-Jewish decrees were expanded and Jews were compelled to wear the Yellow Patch, the "Badge of Shame", to distinguish them from Christians. It was enforced in France, England, Germany and later in Hungary. The Pope also originated the Doctrine of Transubstantiation, in which the wafer (Host) and wine in the Eucharist are believed to become the blood and flesh of Jesus. This led to the infamous Host Desecration libels of the next few centuries.
1500: Louis XII of France and Ferdinand II of Aragon sign The Treaty of Granada in which they agree to divide the Kingdom of Naples between them. The treaty did not hold and Ferdinand would not gain control of Naples until 1510 at which time he would expel the Jews, following the same pattern he adopted in 1492.
1651: The Cossacks are forced to accept a peace treaty dictated by John Caimir, the Polish King. One of the terms of the treaty, was a guarantee that Jews could settle anywhere in the Ukraine and could hold property on lease. Chmeilnicki, the leader of the Cossack uprising would soon break the treaty and the violence would resume again.
1711(29th of Cheshvan: Rabbi Moses Hefez (Gentili) author of Melekhet Mahashevet, passed away
1819(23rd of Cheshvan): Rabbi Joseph Raphael Hazzan (Yerach) author of Hikrei Lev, passed away
1821: Birthdate of Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Dostoyevsky”s anti-Semitic views were revealed in The Diary of a Writer.
1830 (26th of Cheshvan): Rabbi Raphael Yekutiel Zalman author of Torat Yekutiel passed away
1839: At, Lexington, founding of Virginia Military Institute (VMI), “the oldest state supported military college” in the United States. Moses Jacob Exekiel, who joined his fellow cadets at the Battle of New Market in 1864, was the first Jew to attend the academy.
1851: Reverend Henry Giles delivered at lecture at the Mercantile Library Association entitled “The Hebrew Man, or the Man of Faith." Giles "gave a clear analysis of Hebrew laws, showing that the thought they seemed extremely sever, yet provisions was always made to mitigate or avert them. He contended that "The Hebrew man stands out among ancient men as the special recipient of religion -- among modern men as its special witness, and often as its special martyr. As the man of Faith, the, he may be considered, first, as the man of theocracy; second as the man of tradition....His mere existence is evidence of vitality, and strength and honor."
1852: Tonight a number of citizens of the Jewish persuasion, met at Constitution Hall, to celebrate the Fiftieth Anniversary of the "HEBRA HASED V. AMET," a society originally established, and still sustained, by Benevolent Israelites, for the purpose of aiding the sick of their faith who need aid, and to bury the dead according to the rites and ceremonies of the Jewish persuasion. George Henriques chaired the event. He was assisted by Isaac Philliips, the President of the Association.
1860: First Jewish wedding takes place in Buenos Aires Argentina.
1863: Mrs. Sarah Brydges Willyams passed away today. She left her considerable estate to Benjamin Disraeli “in testimony of her affection for him and in approval and admiration of his efforts vindicate the race of Israel…”
1864: Birthdate of Alfred Hermann Fried, Austrian born pacifist and winner of the 1911 Nobel Peace Prize.
1874: The Times of London reported approvingly on the judicial performance of Sir George Jessel who disdained the “proverbial slowness” of others serving in the judiciary. Jessel cleared cases quicker and with more accuracy than his colleagues.
1874: An article published today entitled “A Rabbi’s Scientific Expedition, traces the life of Mardochée abi Serour the son of a poor Moroccan Jewish family whose travels took him to Palestine where his studies earned him the title of Rabbi. He traveled to Timbuktu where he established the first Jewish counting-house which he ran successfully for ten years until his caravans were attacked leaving him penniless. Mardochée eventually made his way to Paris where he convinced the French government to provide financial support for an expedition to Timbuktu that will combine commerce with scientific inquiry.
1878: It was reported today that Dr. E. M. Snow’s Annual Vital Statistics Report shows that only two Jews were married in Providence, Rhode Island. This ranks them at the bottom of the list along with the Mormons.
1882: It was reported today that following riots in the suburbs of Vienna, the police tore down posters from the lampposts reading “Down with the Jews.”
1883: It was reported today that the district attorney in Troy, NY, will prosecute an unnamed Jewish merchant for bigamy if he goes ahead with his planned marriage. The Polish Jewish merchant said he plans on marrying a Jewess from New York City because he has received a bill of divorce from a religious tribunal. The DA does not recognize their authority in this matter.
1883: “By Direction of the Grand Lodge No. 1, of the Independent Order of the Free Sons of Israel, Julius Harburger, the District Grand Master, will send Sir Moses Montefiore a letter congratulating on him on the celebration of his 99th birthday.”
1884: It was reported today that Mt. Sinai Hospital in NYC is planning a reception to introduce its recently completed wards.
1884: “Mr. Irving” published today highlights the month-long appearance of Henry Irving and Ellen Terry who bring an added dimension to their respective portrayals of Shylock and his daughter Portia in “The Merchant of Venice.” Irving, a noted English actor portrays Shylock in a manner that is “delightful” for its “completeness, beauty” and “scholarship.”
1884: Counselor John H. Bird is scheduled to play the role of Shylock, the Jew in the Mimosa Dramatic Society’s performance of “The Merchant of Venice.”
1885: The funeral of Albert Cardozo, attorney, jurist, leader of the Sephardic Jewish community and father of future Supreme Court Justice, was scheduled to take place at 10:30 this morning in NYC.
1885: Birthdate of General George Patton, Jr. Regardless of how you may about the career of Old Blood and Guts” and allegations that he was an anti-Semite, many Jews will always remember Patton as the leader of the troops that liberated Ohrdruf, a sub-camp of Buchenwald, the first concentration camp liberated by American troops. (There is a note of irony that the Warrior General was born on the date that would become synonymous with “Peace In Europe.”
1885: It was reported today that the Referee hearing the suit for divorce filed by Mrs. Clara Bronner Waterman against her husband B. Frank Waterman was looking with favor on her claim. The Watermans were married in a synagogue in Syracuse but she moved back to New York City after he suffered financials reversals and stopped supporting her and their children.
1886: It was reported today that all of the students escaped unharmed when a night school for Jewish children caught fire in New York City. It was determined that the fire was started by a kerosene stove in the basement of the building occupied by Joseph Bluestone, his wife and child all of whom escaped from the flames.
1888: Birthdate of Stefan Lux the Jewish Czech journalist, who committed suicide in the general assembly room of the League of Nations during its session to alert the world on the perils of German anti-Semitism.
1888: It was reported today that Acting Grand Master Julius Harburger addressed the 400 people who attended the 20th anniversary celebration of the Free Sons of Israel.
1888: It was reported today that the benefit council held for the Hebrew Sheltering and Guardian Society was well-attended and raised “a neat sum.”
1889: It was reported that new wards have been added to the Home For Aged and Infirm Hebrews to meet the needs for the “exceedingly old and infirm patients.” This latest addition to the building and improvement to the grounds cost $24,000 and was brought to fruiting under the leadership of Simon Borg and the Building Committee.
1889 The Young Men’s Hebrew Association is scheduled to host its “first informal entertainment of the season” tonight at the Vienna Hall in New York City.
1889: Washington joins the Union as the 41st state. Isadore Friedlander, a trader in Washington during its territorial days, gained fame and notoriety when he married an Indian princess named Sken-What-Ux who was also known as Elizabeth. According to one source, “in her later days she became affectionately known as ‘Grandmother Elizabeth’ Friedlander.” Edward S. Salomon, a decorated hero of the Civil War and one of the famed Salomon cousins all of whom became generals in the Union Army, served as governor of Washington territory for two years. Bailey Gatzert served as mayor of Seattle during the 1870’s. Gatzert had married Babette Schawbacher. Her three brothers had settled in Walla Walla, Washington where they prospered as merchants becoming leaders of the communities in Walla Walla and Seattle. Babette is described as the first woman (not just the first Jewish woman) to establish a home on the northwestern frontier. The ups and downs of the Schawbacher clan, which played an active role in Washington’s secular and Jewish communities until the 1970’s, is a saga worthy of a made for television movie or HBO special.
1891: Birthdate of Lilya Yuryevna Brik, the Moscow born Jewess who was married to Osip Brik, the Jewish-Russian author.
1893: Birthdate of Clarence D. Chamberlain who flew Charles Albert Levine to Europe in what would make the Jewish businessman, the first “passenger” to fly the Atlantic.
1894: Birthdate of Aaron Avshalomov a Russian born who fled pogroms and revolutions in Russia in the beginning of the 20th century, went to China where he entered the world of Shanghai's academia and trained a number of young Chinese musicians in classical music, who in turn became leading musicians in contemporary China. He moved to Portland Oregon and was the father of composer Jacob Avshalomov, conductor of the Portland Junior Symphony (now called the Portland Youth Philharmonic Orchestra) from 1953-1994.
1897(15th of Cheshvan, 5658: Rabbi Sabato Morais passed away. Rabbi Sabato Morais was the spiritual leader of Philadelphia's Spanish and Portuguese Congregation Mikveh Israel from 1851 until his death in 1897. To many in his community, the Italian-born Morais epitomized the idealized traits of a sage: piety, humility, and wisdom.
1901: Birthdate of Helen Faith Kahn, the daughter of Jewish immigrants from Poland, who would gain famed as Helen Reichert, the graduate of Cornell University who founded The Round Table of Fashion Executives.
1901: Birthdate of Bensison Gotlob, the native of Pologne, France who was on board Convoy 25 that left Drancy for Auschwitz in August of 1942.
1903: Birthdate of Sam Spiegel. Born in Galicia, Spiegel enjoyed a successful career in Europe until the rise of the Nazis. He left Germany and came to the United States. He is remembered as the producer of several cinematic hits including “On the Waterfront” and “Bridge Over The River Kwai.”
1903: Herzl writes the "Letter to the Jewish People".
1906: Official formation of the American Jewish Committee p42
1910: Birthdate of Israel Scheib who gained fame as Israel Elad, leader of Lehi. He described his activities from 1938 in The First Tithe which was finally published in English by the Jabotinsky Institute in 2008. He passed away at his home in Jerusalem in January of 1996.
1910: A Jew, Zeki Effendi Hayon, was appointed Inspector of Finance for the Ottoman Empire.
1911: Jewish colony of Petach-Tikvah in Palestine passes a resolution to contribute 1,000 Francs to the Ottoman military towards defense of the [Turkish] country.
1914: Birthdate of controversial author Howard Fast.
1914: Birthdate of Jacob C. Hurewitz, “Columbia University professor whose voluminous research, belief in the importance of local histories and evenhanded scholarship contributed depth and complexity to the emerging field of Middle Eastern studies starting in 1950.” (As reported by Douglas Martin)
1915: In the Bronx, ”Hillel Jacobson and the former Pauline Shainmark, Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe” gave birth to Anna Jacobson who would gain fame as “Anna J. Schwartz, a research economist who wrote monumental works on American financial history in collaboration with the Nobel laureate Milton Friedman..” (As reported by Robert D. Hershey, Jr)
1917: Birthdate of Eliezer Henkin the son of a a rabbi and Talmudic scholar who gained fame as “Louis Henkin, a legal scholar often credited with creating the field of human rights law and the author of classic works on constitutional law and the legal aspects of foreign policy…”
1918: The Western Allies and the Germans signed an Armistice that signified the official end of World War I with an Allied victory. Out of the estimated 1,506,000 Jewish soldiers in all the armies approximately 170,000 were killed and over 100,000 cited for valor. In Germany alone over 100,000 Jews fought for the Fatherland with 12,000 killed. According to Winston Churchill some 60,000 Jews had fought in the Armed Forces of the British Empire. Of these 2,324 gave their lives for the cause and 6,350 were wounded. Five Jewish soldiers won the Victoria Cross, Britain’s highest decoration and another 1,533 won other awards for bravery. Considering the small size of the Jewish population, Churchill described the Jewish participation as disproportionately high for such a small number of people.
1918: Birthdate of Stubby Kaye. The chubby, cherubic Kaye played in a wide variety of hits including “Guys & Dolls,” “Lil' Abner” and “Cat Ballou.”
1918: Józef Piłsudski comes to Warsaw and assumes supreme military power in Poland. Poland regains its independence. “As one of his first acts as chief of state, he assured a delegation of Jewish leaders of his full-heated commitment to their people’s security.” But the Poles did not share Pilsudski’s enlightened views. As a wave of xenophobia in general, and anti-Semitism in particular, swept the re-born nation of Poland, Pilsudski gave into to pressure to diminish the role of the Jewish people. Pilsudski would become disgusted with Polish political life and return to serving as chief of the Army. In the mid-twenties he was brought back to political power in a bid to bring peace to the nation. At the time of his return, conditions improved for the Jews. However, with the advent of the Great Depression, anti-Semitism returned in full force.
1918: In Cedar Rapids, Iowa, William L. Shirer, who was in an officer training unit watched the Armistice celebrations with a sense of disappointment because he would not be able to respond to Wilson’s call to fight in the “War to end all Wars.” Shirer would see the face of war as covered the rise of Adolph Hitler and the opening years of WW II for CBS News and write two classics on the subject - Berlin Diary and The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich.
1918: As WW I comes to an end, “at least thirty nine Utah Jews” had joined the armed forces.
1920: Birthdate of Chaike Belchatowska Spiegel, the Warsaw native who would become a fighter during the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. Spiegel was one of the few who survived the fighting and settled in Montreal after the war.
1921: Vladimir Jabotinsky, organizer of the Jewish Legion, which served under General Allenby in Palestine, arrives in New York on the SS Olympic with a delegation of European Zionists headed by Nahum Sokolow.
1922 (20th of Cheshvan): Composer Abraham Baer Birnbaum passed away
1924: The Martin Beck Theatre which will be renamed the Al Hirschfeld Theatre in 2003 opened in New York City.
1926: Birthdate of Yitzhak Arad “a Lithuanian-born Israeli historian and retired IDF brigadier general. A veteran of the Nazi-era Jewish resistance movement in ghetto; partisan, he has researched, lectured, and published extensively on the Holocaust.”
1930: Patent number US1781541 was awarded to Albert Einstein and Leó Szilárd for their invention, the Einstein refrigerator.
1936: The Maccabee champion soccer team which had been playing exhibition matches in the United States since September 14th, departed for home on the French liner Normandie.
1936: The Peel Commission was sent to Eretz-Israel to investigate the Arab riots. Though Peel judged Arab claims to be baseless, he encouraged partition into three separate Arab and Jewish states. This, he claimed, would silence Arab objections to a Jewish state.
1936: The members of the Peel Commission arrived in Jerusalem. Since this was Armistice Day, they attended the memorial services at the British Military Cemetery on Mt. Scopus.
1937: Birthdate of sportscaster Warner Wolf. Yes, Jewish boys can grow up to be something besides lawyers, accountants, doctor or dentists.
1938: Jews are killed and injured during an anti-Semitic pogrom at Bratislava, Slovakia
1938(17th of Cheshvan, 5699):Fifty-year old Jesse Sampter an influential Zionist educator, a poet, and a Zionist pioneer passed away at Kibbutz Givat Brenner. Born into a highly assimilated home in New York City, Sampter was influenced by Henrietta Szold, Josephine Lazarus, Mary Antin, Mordecai Kaplan and others to become an ardent advocate of Judaism and Zionism. Assuming the role of Hadassah's leading educator, she produced manuals and textbooks and organized lectures and classes. She led Hadassah's School of Zionism, training speakers and leaders for both Hadassah and other Zionist organizations. She also wrote poems and short stories throughout her life that emphasized her primary concerns: pacifism, Zionism, and social justice. Having contracted polio at age thirteen she remained in poor health throughout her life. This did not prevent her from settling in Palestine in 1919 where she helped organize the country's first Jewish Scout camp. Sampter developed a strong commitment to assisting Yemenite Jews, founding classes and clubs especially for Yemenite girls and women who often received no education. At the time of her death, she had established a vegetarian convalescent home at Kibbutz Givat Brenner. Henrietta Szold presided at her funeral.
1938: Following Kristallnacht Heydrich reported to Goering that 815 shops, 29 department stores, and 171 dwellings of Jews had been burned or otherwise destroyed, and that 267 synagogues had been set ablaze or completely demolished (in fact, this was only a fraction of the synagogues destroyed). The selfsame report refers to 36 Jews killed and the same number severely injured, but it was later officially stated that the number killed was 91. In addition, hundreds perished in the concentration camps.
1939: Six hundred Jews are murdered by German troops at Ostrow Mazowiecki, Poland.
1939: Two Jews are among six men and three boys taken from Zielonka, Poland, to be shot in nearby woods
1939: Under threat of military action from the Nazis, António de Oliveira Salazar issued orders today that consuls were not to issue Portuguese visas to "foreigners of indefinite or contested nationality; the stateless; or Jews expelled from their countries of origin". This order was followed only six months later by one stating that "under no circumstances" were visas to be issued without prior case-by-case approval from Lisbon.
1940: Fifty-five non-Jewish Polish intellectuals are murdered at Dachau, Germany.
1940: German authorities in Poland officially declare the existence of the Warsaw (Poland) Ghetto.
1940: Birthdate of Barbara Boxer, U.S. Senator from California since 1993. Born Barbara Levy, Boxer worked her way through the system like any other politician serving a stint in the Marin County Government and the House of Representative before being elected to the Senate.
1942: Norwegian Protestant bishops in Oslo publicly protest deportations of Norwegian Jews. They state in a letter to Norwegian Prime Minister Vidkun Quisling: "God does not differentiate between people."
1942: Seven hundred forty-five French Jews were shipped to Auschwitz.
1942: Jews living the Free Zone of France were ordered to start wearing the Yellow Star.
1943: Following in the centuries old custom of an individual community creating its own special Purim when it is delivered from great calamity, the Jews of Casablanca celebrated Hitler Purim (1 Kislev) when the city was saved from falling into German hands. “A Hitler Scroll was written, paraphrasing the traditional Megillah, including the words ‘cursed be Hitler, cursed be Mussolini,’ and naming many of the other Nazi and Fascist leaders.”
1943: On the 25th anniversary of the signing of the Armistice in the forest of Compiegne, German officials take revenge by assembling all 47,000 Jews not yet deported from Theresienstadt ghetto to Birkenau in a large square for an ill-organized “census.” At 4:00 AM the torture began by rousing them all and making them stand in the cold in the city square. As night fell, the Jews stood in a drizzle made more miserable by falling temperatures. The Germans held them until 10 pm at which time the survivors were allowed to seek shelter inside. Drizzle came, the dark of night, and the temperatures lowered.
1944: The leadership of Histadrut condemned the killing of Lord Moyne and condemned the Stern Gang and Irgun as fascist.
1945: Senator Ralph O. Brewster (Maine) says British-Russian disputes in Middle East may presage another war and urges creation of a Jewish commonwealth in Palestine.
1945(6th of Kislev, 5706): Broadway and cinematic composer, Jerome David Kern passed away. Kern was born in 1885 to a first generation Jewish family from Germany. Kern wanted to follow a career in music. His father wanted him to enter the family business. In one of his first deals, Kern was sent to buy two pianos. However, he mistakenly signed an order for two hundred pianos. When the pianos were delivered, Kern’s father gave in. Young Jerome pursued his musical education and then followed with a successful career as composer for Broadway and the movies.
1945(6th of Kislev, 5706):Yehoushua Hankin passed away. Born in the Ukraine in 1864, Hankin made Aliyah in 1882 when he moved with his family to Rish Litzion. He was active in making purchasing land on behalf of the World Zionist Organization. Among his first purchases was the land that would be occupied by Rehovoth.
1946: Nikolai V. Novikov, Soviet ambassador to Washington, suggests that Palestine be given independence from Britain and the area be placed under UN trusteeship.
1947: Vaad Leumi (Jewish National Council) votes to raise money for defense fund against Arab and Jewish terrorists.
1947: Release date for “Gentlemen's Agreement,” the cinema version of Laura Hobson’s novel that dealt with the issue of anti-Semitism. Moss Hart wrote the screenplay. Daryl Zanuck, who was mistakenly thought to be Jewish produced the movie despite objections from Jewish movie moguls who were afraid of how audiences would react to a movie on this topic.
1948:”Recently ousted Haganah Chief of Staff Yisrael Galili briefed members of the Mapam Political Committee” about reports concerning “the killing of civilians during Operations Yoav and Hiram.”
1953(4th of Kislev, 5714): Rabbi Louis Ginzberg, a prominent Talmudist and leading figure in the Conservative Movement of Judaism passed away in New York City.
http://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/docs/Louis_Ginzberg.html1954: Shearith Israel, the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue, the oldest Jewish congregation In New York City celebrated its 300thanniversary today.
http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9E07E1D71138E033A2575AC0A9679D94649FD7CF
1955(26th of Cheshvan, 5716): Jerry Ross an American lyricist and composer whose works with Richard Adler for the musical theater include The Pajama Game and Damn Yankees, winners of Tony Awards in 1955 and 1956 respectively in both the "Best Musical" and "Best Composer and Lyricist" passed away.
http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F00717F6385C177B93C0A8178AD95F418585F9
1957: The New York Times reported from Jerusalem that “digging in Israel supports the Bible’s accuracy as a historical document.” The contention is based on the recent discovery of a “massive gate” that was “unearthed in Hazor” which “appears to have been built by Solomon.” Further evidence of the Bible's accuracy as a historical document has been uncovered by Israeli archaeologists in their diggings at the site of ancient Hazor
1963: Brian Epstein and Ed Sullivan sign a 3 show contract for the Beatles
1964: Murray Schisgal's "Luv," premieres in New York City
1969(1st of Kislev, 5730): Rosh Chodesh Kislev
1971: Neil Simon’s “Prisoner of Second Avenue” premiered in New York City.
1973: The Egyptians and Israelis began negations for the disengagement of forces along the Suez Canal. When the fighting had stopped, Israeli forces were on the West Bank of the Suez Canal. They had reached kilometer 101 on the Suez-Cairo Road. The Israelis offered to cross the Canal and to a position 10 kilometers to the east. Egypt wanted a much deeper withdrawal with Israeli forces taking up positions on a line east of the passes in the Sinai that were key to controlling the entire Peninsula.
1979(21st of Cheshvan, 5740): Ukrainian born American composer Dimitri Tiomkin passed away. Tiomkin wrote the scores for countless film classics including Lost Horizon, It’s A Wonderful Life, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and High Noon. He also wrote themes for popular television westerns including Rawhide and Wild Wild West.
1982: A gas explosion at an Israeli army headquarters results in 60 deaths.
1998: Israel's Cabinet narrowly ratified a land-for-peace agreement with the Palestinians. Six years later, the world is waiting for the Peace.
1999(2nd of Kislev, 5760): Rosh Chodesh Kislev
1999(2nd of Kislev, 5760): Jacobo Timmerman passed away. Born in 1923, Timmerman published a newspaper in Argentina that publicized human rights violations by the Argentinean government, in particular calling attention to the disappearances of people during that government's "Dirty War". As a result, he was arrested, and during interrogations he was subjected to electric shock treatments, beatings, and solitary confinement. He chronicled his experiences in his 1981 book, Prisoner Without a Name, Cell Without a Number. After his release, he immigrated to Israel.
2003: The helipad at the Ted Arison Medical Center in Tel Aviv is used by the Israeli Air Force for the first time.
2003: Museum of Jewish Museum in New York presents an exhibition styled “Ours to Fight For: American Jews During the Second World War” The inaugural exhibition for the Robert M. Morgenthau wing, “Ours To Fight For: American Jews in the Second World War” was named the grand-prize winner of the Excellence in Exhibition Competition at the American Association of Museums Annual Meeting in New Orleans. Citing the exhibition's use of the first-person narrative, the judges felt this approach engaged museum visitors and allowed them to make connections with the experiences of soldiers 60 years ago and troops serving today. The exhibition companion volume, Ours To Fight For: American Jewish Voices from the Second World War, chronicles the experience of American Jewish men and women who came together with other Americans to heed their nation's call to arms.
2004: Theatre Or presents Voices from the Holy Land-A Festival of Staged Readings of Cutting Edge Plays at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, N.C. Local co-sponsors North Carolina Hillel, the Freeman Center for Jewish Life, Judea Reform Congregation, and Beth Meyer Synagogue. The purpose of the festival is to present the community with unique artistic works from a foreign culture that pose questions of universal urgency, help us reflect about our values in new ways and promote cross-cultural dialogue. All plays are by Israeli artists. The dramatic presentations include:
Hard Love by Motti Lerner:Two young ultra-orthodox newlyweds are forced to divorce when the husband turns his back on religion. Twenty years later, their children fall in love, and the two meet to discuss their children's budding relationship. Can they also rekindle their own? (Director - Joseph Megel)
Women's Minyan by Naomi Ragen: Chana flees her orthodox home in Mea Shearim, Jerusalem, leaving behind her 12 children, and carrying with her a terrible secret. Two years later, armed with a secular order, she returns to see her children who have now been hidden. She convenes a secular minyan, a trial of 10 women, to judge her fitness to see them. (Director - Joseph Megel)
The Fist by Misha Shulman: Shauli, a highly-decorated officer, refuses to serve his military duty in the occupied territories, spurring a three generational family debate about what it means to serve and protect. Is conscientious objection justifiable? (Director - Jerome Davis)
The Demonstration by Elisheva Greenbaum: Ambulance sirens interrupt two Israeli sisters, who are arguing the merits of attending a peace rally. When the radio announces that the terrorists have struck a bus, the sisters wait anxiously to learn the fate of one of their daughters.
Masked Faces by Ilan Hatzor: The play describes the dilemma of three Arab brothers during the Intifada as they wrestle with conflicts between duty, family, survival and principles. The play is a brave attempt by an Israeli playwright to depict the point of view of the "other" side. (Director - John Feltch)
2005: The topsy-turvy world of Israeli politics becomes even more confused. Shimon Peres has been defeated by Amir Peretz in the race to head the Labor Party. This could bring down the government led by Likud’s Ariel Sharon forcing new national elections. Since Sharon well might lose the chair of the Likud Party, the elections might include a coaltion party led by Peres and Sharon, two national leaders who cannot control their own political parties.
2005: Right-wing British historian David Irving, who claimed that Adolf Hitler knew nothing about the systematic slaughter of six million Jews, has been arrested in Austria on a warrant accusing him of denying the Holocaust. Under an Austrian law Holocaust denial is a crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
2005: The Princeton University Board of Trustees approved the endowment for S. Daniel Abraham Visiting Professor in Middle East Policy Studies in the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. Daniel C. Kurtzer, former U.S. ambassador to Israel and Egypt was the first one appointed to fill this endowed chair
2006: Members of Congregation Beth-El, gathered, in St. Johnsbury, Vermont, to celebrate their heritage and the many people who have enriched and defended it
2006: Initial screening of Yoav Segal’s “Battle of Cable Street” in selected London cinema houses.
2006: As America honors its veterans on Armistice Day, the Jewish community of Cedar Rapids takes special note of the following who served in uniform: Harold Becker, Arnold Bucksbaum, Maurice Estes, Bill Gasway, Herman Ginsberg, Bert Katz, Sol Maikon, Oscar Siegel and Ed Spector
2006: The United States vetoed a U.N. Security Council draft resolution today that sought to condemn an Israeli military offensive in the Gaza Strip and demand Israeli troops pull out the territory. U.S. Ambassador John Bolton said the Arab-backed draft resolution was "biased against Israel and politically motivated."
2006(19th of Cheshvan, 5767): Esther Lederberg, pioneering microbial geneticist and wife of Nobel Prize winner Joshua Lederberg passed away at the age of 83.
2007: In Tampa, FL, as part of Jewish Book Day, the
JCC
, features an afternoon with nationally acclaimed writer Gloria Goldreich, author of Leah's Journey, Dinner with Anna Karenina and other award-winning books for adults and children.
2007: At the Jewish Community Center of Greater Washington 38th annual Book Festival, Brad Meltzer discusses his latest novel, The Book of Fate.
2007: The Sunday New York Times and the Washington Post book sections each feature a review of Otto Preminger: The Man Who Would Be King by Foster Hirsch.
2007: On Veteran’s Day, The Cedar Rapids Gazette features an article about the World War II military exploits of Bert Katz the 85 year old businessman, philanthropist and pillar of the Jewish Community.
2007(1st of Kislev, 5768): Rosh Chodesh Kislev – It’s beginning to look a lot like Latke Time.
2008: 90th anniversary of the Armistice that needed the War to End All Wars. The impact of that war is with us to this day in places like Jerusalem, Baghdad and any home in the United States where families mourn the loss of a loved one in Iraq or Afghanistan.
2008: Wagner College and the Center for Jewish History present “The Pulpit and the "Bully Pulpit":Religion in the 2008 Presidential Campaign in which a panel including Rev. James M. Dunn, PhD, Divinity School, Wake Forest University, Rabbi James Rudin, Senior Advisor on Inter-religious Affairs of the American Jewish Committee, Peter Steinfels, PhD, New York Times columnist, Co-Director, Fordham Center on Religion & Culture, Seymour P. Lachman, PhD, Hugh L. Carey Center for Government Reform, Wagner College, co-author One Nation Under God: Religion in Contemporary American Science, Moderator discussed “How religion affected the 2008 presidential election and voting patterns.”
2008:U.S. Jewish organizational leaders are meeting today with Bahraini King Hamad ibn Issa al-Khalifa, who has introduced democratic reforms in his Persian Gulf island nations; he recently named Houda Nonoo, a Jewish woman, as ambassador to Washington. The meeting is taking place in New York week during an interfaith dialogue held under the auspices of the United Nations and Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah, who has pressed in recent years for greater interreligious understanding despite resistance from his kingdom’s Islamist clerics.
2008: Lyricsby Paul Simon appears on bookstore shelves. “Lyrics spans his entire career from Simon & Garfunkel’s 1964 debut album through this year’s unrealeased songs ‘Rewrite’ and ‘Hard Times.’”
2008:Over 35 percent of eligible voters cast their ballot in the Jerusalem mayoral race by 9:00 p.m. on Tuesday, an indication that opposition leader Nir Barkat and MK Meir Porush of the United Torah Judaism Party will be in for close finish. Incumbent mayors of Afula and Beit Shean had reportedly won re-election as Israelis went to the polls to vote in mayoral elections across the country.
2009:Stephen P. Cohen, the president of the Institute for Middle East Peace and Development, discusses and signs his new book, "Beyond America's Grasp: A Century of Failed Diplomacy in the Middle East," at Politics and Prose Bookstore in Washington, D.C.
2009:David Makovsky, author of Myths, Illusions, & Peace: Finding a New Direction for America in the Middle East “offers a groundbreaking explanation of how we have repeatedly fallen prey to dangerous myths about the Middle East highlighting those with roots that reach back decades and still persist today” during a session of the 40th Annual Book Festival sponsored by the JCCGW.
2010: Americans observed Veterans Day. This holiday was originally known as Armistice Day. It was celebrated on November 11th because on the 11thday of the 11th month at the 11th hour the guns fell silent on the Western Front marking the end of what was then called the Great War. One person who opposed the Armistice was General John J. Pershing, the commander of the American Expeditionary Force. He wanted the Allies to push forward with great assault on the German Army. He said that if the war end now, the German Army would march back into Germany as an intact force and the people would never accept the fact that they had been defeated; a fact that was fraught with all sorts of unforeseen consequences. Apparently Pershing knew what he was talking about, because no sooner had the war ended then the myth that the German Army had not been defeated but had been stabbed in the back began to gain wide currency. This myth, which features the Jews as prominent backstabbers, would become a staple of right wing politicians including Hitler and his supporters.
2010:In New York City, The National Yiddish Theatre – Folksbiene is scheduled to present the noted Israeli actor Rafael Goldwaser in “New Worlds: A Celebration of I.L. Peretz,” an evening of multi-media one-acts based on the writing of the great Yiddish writer I.L. Peretz.
2010:A 1600 for 1600 rally was held on the mall in Washington, DC this evening. The goal was to attract at least 1600 people to protest against the abduction and continuing imprisonment of Gilad Shalit, who has spent 1600 days in captivity.
2010:Today Egyptian security forces arrested 25 members of a terror cell who allegedly intended to carry out attacks on Israeli tourists in Sinai. The terrorists were residents of the Egyptian cities of El-Arish, Sheikh Zuwaid and Rafah, according to the report.
2010:The remains of IAF pilot Maj. Amihai Itkis, 28, and navigator Maj. Emmanuel Levi, 30, whose F16I jet crashed at the Ramon Crater last night, were found this afternoon. IAF commander Major General Ido Nehushtan notified the pilot and navigator's families of their loss. Nehushtan arrived earlier to the scene of the crash so that he could oversee the search for the missing bodies. Army rabbis also arrived to help with the searches of the two servicemen who were feared dead. The IAF found the black box of the jet just a few hours after the discovery of the remains, IAF Brig.-Gen Nimrod Shefer said. The Air Force expressed hope that the black box will help them understand what occurred in the final minutes before the crash.
2011: Charlene Bry, Ellie S. Grossman, Jon Harris and Ari Axelbaum are scheduled to take part in “Missouri’s Own Program” at the St. Louis Jewish Book Festival.
2010:Today, the Anti-Defamation League criticized as “completely inappropriate and offensive” remarks by Glenn Beck on his radio and television programs, in which he drew a link between the behavior of US Jewish billionaire investor George Soros as a young boy and the actions of others in sending Jews to death camps during the Holocaust.
2011: “Jewish Political Behavior in Europe, Israel, and the United States,” a two-day