JUNE 27 In Jewish History
1096:
Massacres of the Jews took place in Xanten and Eller (Germany
1240: In Paris, a
commission that was making an inquiry into the nature of the Talmud with a
specific interest into alleged derogatory comments about Jesus ended its
deliberation after three days. The commission condemned the Talmud
be burned. The sentence of condemnation was not executed.
Apparently Archbishop Walter Cornutus of Sens, a prelate influential with the
King, interceded on behalf of the Jews and succeeded in having many of the
confiscated volumes of the Talmud returned to their rightful owners
1709:
Peter the Great defeats Charles XII of Sweden at the Battle of Poltava. The
Russian victory marked the beginning of the end for Sweden as a major European
military and political power. Charles XI, the father of Charles XII had banned
Jews from living in Sweden. Charles XII
did not adhere to his father’s wishes since he used Jewish merchants as court
treasurers and royal paymaster for his armies when they were in the field. The father’s religious concerns were
overridden by the son’s financial needs.
Peter the Great did not want Jews living in his ever expanding
kingdom. During the war with Sweden,
when the fighting reached Poland, Russian soldiers were given in a free hand in
looting and pillaging the Jewish property and taking whatever liberties they
wished with the Jewish populace.
1787:
After 25 years of work, Edward Gibbon completes the manuscript of the History
of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. Gibbon had a very low opinion of the Jewish
people describing them as the “disturbers of the religious harmony of the
ancient world” who had emerged from the deserved obscurity resulting from the
enslavement by the Assyrians and Babylonians to observe their “peculiar rites and unsocial manners” with “sullen obstinacy.” [Ed.
Note: It only gets worse after this.]
1854: An article entitled “The British Ministry” published today
reviewed the changing fortunes of various English political leaders. The author
expressed the belief that Lord John Russell would not enjoy the continued
support of London’s Jews if here running for election today. The authors stated
that “it was solely due to his bad management” and lack of tact “that Jews were
not declared eligible to sit in Parliament.” If Lord Russell had allowed Mr.
Rothschild to follow the same oath pattern when he was elected in 1847 as the
Quaker Mr. Pease had used in 1833, Jews would now be sitting in the House of
Commons. Lord Russell’s insistence on
solving the problem with an Act of Parliament was counter-productive since such
a solution was bound to fail.
1860:
The New York Times published the following:
To the Editor of the New-York Times:
Several New-York Archaeologists have, within the past
week, received various communications concerning the discovery of a very curious
stone relic, covered with Hebrew inscriptions, said to have been found by Mr.
WYRICK, of Newark, Ohio, in one of those artificial earthworks so numerous in
that vicinity. Some of these letters, which we had the pleasure to see, are
accompanied by full-sized drawings of the stone and inscriptions, together with
many-columns of newspaper notices, showing the deep interest the discovery has
created amongst Western antiquaries. One of these letters, we are informed, was
read at the last meeting of the American Ethnological Society; but, with their
usual caution, the members did not venture an opinion, preferring, we presume,
to defer an expression of it until after a more critical and scientific
examination of the relic itself, and all the circumstances connected with its
discovery shall have been entered into. For the purpose of giving your readers
some account of the discovery, we have condensed the various notices into a
reasonable length. First, as to Mr. WYRICK, the finder of the stone. He seems
to be an old and respected citizen of Licking County, by profession a surveyor,
and of late years has become enamored of archaeological pursuits. He has
recently been engaged in surveying, platting and constructing a topographical
map of the ancient earthworks so extensive in Cherry Valley. During this
process he has been prospecting in a quiet way by excavating the mounds and
embankments for the purpose of finding some implement or relic which might
repay him for the trouble. So on Friday morning, the 29th of June, he started
out with his digging implements, accompanied only by his son, a lad eight or
nine years of age. He concluded to try his luck in a new place, influenced, he
states, by a suggestion from Mr. SQUIER, that it might be well to examine the "dug
holes," conceiving they might be caches or hiding places -- cemeteries or
bone-pits, as they are called in New-York. "Having found one in the woods
more articulated than the others," he commenced a trench in the greatest
depression of the circle, and did not proceed down more than two feet (through
black loam) before he found a stone bale, then this wonderful emblematic stone
embedded in a bale of composition clay, adobe, or sunburnt brick. On cleaning
off the stone he discovered the inscriptions, but was totally ignorant of their
nature. Almost frantic with delight, he hastened to his friends, who informed
him that they were Hebrew characters.
DESCRIPTION OF THE STONE.
The material is novaculite, or hone-stone, not found in
places within the limits of Ohio, yet may be seen in any carpenter's shop. Now,
mark the description. It is very hard, with perfectly smooth surfaces, and has
apparently been polished; 5 3/4 inches long, with two flat sides, each 2 1/2
inches wide at the top, tapering down to 1 1/4 inches at the end. The edges are
square, and nearly the same width. On each of the four sides is an inscription
in Hebrew, each complete in itself. The letters are about one inch in length,
and cut as clear as a die -- a fair specimen of letter-carving in stone.
THE INSCRIPTION is as follows, which may easily be
rendered by any Hebrew scholar:
1. Kedosh Kedoskim -- The Holy of Holies.
2. Torath, J[???]hovah -- The Law of God.
3. Melec Erets -- The King of the Earth.
4. Devar Jehovah -- The Word of the Lord.
So much for the history of this stone and the character
of the inscription. Of course suck a discovery must give rise to numerous and
various speculations. Some have suggested that it might be a Masonic emblem --
the keystone which Master Masons anciently deposited in the corner-stone of
their temples. (But, unfortunately for this hypothesis, the shape is not the
same.) Others have supposed it furnished evidence of the presence of the lost
tribes of Israel. Copies of the inscription have been submitted to some of our
learned Rabbis, who generally agree that the above is a fair rendering of the
text. But a difference of opinion has been expressed with regard to the
antiquity of the characters, some carrying them back to the rime of Ezra,
whilst others think them more modern. But this discussion is neither here nor
there. The first and most important question to be solved by the cautious
archaeologist is, whether or not this is a genuine relic of antiquity? Taking a
general view of the subject, we might say, at the recent discovery of America
by the Europeans, they found millions of inhabitants, but no well authenticated
instance of an alphabet, or a single page of written history, other than
symbolic pictures. We hold that no people, whether savage or civilized, ever
occupied the earth's surface without leaving in the soil some trace of their
existence and arts. If the Lost Tribes came to this Continent, it was after
they possessed a written language and knowledge of certain arts, evidences of
which might naturally be recorded upon imperishable materials, as stone,
pottery and coins. And these evidences should be of frequent occurence to prove
anything -- as no single isolated case, no matter how well authenticated,
should-establish a theory. But no one will admit that enough has as yet been
discovered to justify this hypothesis. We will next allude to the internal
evidence of its antiquity, as derived from the published accounts. The stone is
said to be novoculite, or hone stone, with a high polish, with the characters
as sharply cut as if recently done by a lapidary. Now, everyone who claims any
knowledge on the subject must be aware that few varieties of stone can remain
long in the soil without losing a polished surface, and showing evidence of
decomposition. And, even those substances, as quartz and obsidian, not liable
to such change, are invariably (in the oldest mounds) found incrusted with
lime. Indeed, from all that we can gather, both from private and published
sources, we must classify it thus: Genus-bug-species-hum -- recalling the
celebrated Pickwickian stone -- belonging to the same category as the gold
plates of the Mormon Bible -- the graphic mica -- the brass plates with Chinese
characters, found in Illinois, perhaps akin to the Louisiana Hebrew inscription,
the last so skillfully conceived as to deceive our most astute archeologist,
(Mr. SQUIER,) who favored one of our Societies with a very learned paper on
this 1st of April hoax! The West, especially Ohio, seems fertile in false as
well as genuine antiquities, so that we would fain hope the Newark stone may
not prove "Lapis offensionis, et petia scandali, to the local antiquaries.
D.
1865: In West Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, Louis Monash and
his wife Bertha, née Manasse, two German Jewish refugees gave birth to Sir John
Monash, a civil engineer who would become his nation’s leading general during
WW I, serving with distinction and intellectual brilliance on the Western
Front.
1869:
Birthdate of Emma Goldman. Goldman gained fame as an anarchist and
feminist. Goldman’s views on revolution
and violence changed after she witnessed the aftermath of the Russian
Revolution. She became disillusioned
with Bolshevism and became a pacifist as a result of the horrors she saw
firsthand.
1875:
An article published today on the history of “Secret Societies” offered a novel
explanation for the conversation of the Roman Emperor Constantine to
Christianity. According to the article an unnamed “Jewish Rabbi” and Pope
Sylvester were contending with another in the presence of the Emperor. “The Rabbi whispered “Shemhamphorasch or the
Tetragrammaton “into the ear of an ox, which instantly fell dead.”
Sylvester responded by saying, “’Arise,
ox, in the name of the trinity!’” “This
showed the Emperor the superiority of the Christian religion, and he accepted
it at once.” [Editor’s note - “The Shemhamphorasch is a corruption of the
Hebrew term Shem ha-Mephorash (שם המפורש), which was
used in tannaitic times to refer to the Tetragrammaton. In early Kabbalah the
term was used to designate sometimes a seventy-two Letter name for God, and
sometimes a forty two Letter name. Rashi said Shem ha-Mephorash was used for a
forty two letter name, but Maimonides thought Shem ha-Mephorash was used only
for the four letter Tetragrammaton.” This is four Hebrew letters (Yod, He, Waw
and He) called The "Tetragrammaton" is the unpronounceable name of
God made up of four Hebrew letters – Yud, Hay, Vav, Hay. There was a Pope
Sylvester but his relationship with Constantine was apparently more invention
than fact; the invention having been used to promote the concept of Papal
authority over temporal rulers.]
1876: Moses Tannenholz obtained an affidavit
from Rachel Blumenthal stating that she was 18 years old. This affidavit, which was of questionable
validity would figure prominently in a divorce case in which, among other
things, it was contended that the bride below the age of consent at the time of
the marriage rendering the nuptials null and void.
1880: It was reported today that the throngs
attending the fair in Hungary’s capital city included “Jews…by the hundreds,
German Jews, Hungarian Jews” dressed as Magyars, “Polish Jews in black toga and
long corkscrew curls, Transylvanian Jews in greasy brown cloth dressing gown
and sandaled feet, looking like dissipated Capuchin friars.” [This serves as a
reminder of the rich variety of Jewish cultures that flourished in
pre-Holocaust Europe.]
1880: It was reported today that the parties
attending the conference on Morocco in Madrid have reached an impasse. The Moroccans are expected to tell the
European powers that they cannot protect the Jews from “popular fanaticism”
unless the Europeans agree to “strengthen the authority of the Sultan” – or in
plain English give up some of their colonial power. This is something that the French and Spanish
will never agree to. The issue of
protecting the Jews is a smokescreen behind which the Europeans can hide their
imperial designs and the Ottomans can hide their attempts to protect their crumbling
empire.
1882: “Bad for Russian Refugees” published
today described the financial crisis facing the Hebrew Emigrant Aid Society in
trying to care for the tidal wave of Jewish immigrants fleeing eastern Europe.
The American Jewish community, much of which had only been in the United States
for only one or two generations, was small when compared to the millions in
Russia, Romania, etc. and had only limited financial resources to deal with the
crisis.
1882: Referee Jerome Buck is scheduled to hear more testimony in the hearing to determine the sanity of Samuel Obreight a young Jew who had been institutionalized by his family after his recent marriage to a young Christian woman.
1882: Mr. Cohn chaired tonight’s meeting of the Cap-finishers’ Union which was held on Eldridge Street. The major concern was the declining wages of the workers. Wages have fallen percipitiously since last November when members were earning fifteen to twenty dollars a week. Now they can are earning between seven and eight dollars a week because the manufacturers have found sources of cheap labor including Russian Jewish immigrants who will work for $2.50 to 3.00 per week.
1883: The first cruise of the season for poor Jewish children and their mothers today sponsored by the Sanitarium for Hebrew Children is scheduled to leave at nine o’clock this morning.
1883: “The Alleged Jewish Murder” published
today reported that “all the Christian lawyers at Nyreghhaza, Hungary, where
the trial of the Jews charged with a murdering a Christian girl” is taking
place “have adopted a resolution attacking the conduct of the Public
Prosecutor. At the same time, the
Hungarian government claims that it could not prevent the trial from taking
place but that it does “not believe the accusation to be true.” [The allegation is that the Jews murdered a
Christian girl in their synagogue – a case based on the coerced confession of a
Jew named Moritz Scharf.]
1885: As the conflict between Orthodox and Reform rabbis continued Rabbi Alexendar Kohut took issue with remarks made by Rabbi Kaufmann Kohler of Temple Beth-El today by declaring that “We cannot all be authorities. No one is privileged to say for himself ‘I am the authority, and I alone.’ Or ancient believers had some very great prominent men, and should we not in this nineteenth century follow the doctrines which are laid down for us in the Talmud?” [The answer to this question is still one that some Jews are asking in the 21st century.]
1888: Birthdate of Ludwik Niemirowski, who gained fame as the English historian, Sir Lewis Bernstein Namier.
1893:
During the Panic of 1893, the crash of the New York Stock Exchange. The Panic of 1893-94 was the worst economic
depression to hit the United
States New York Greeley , Colorado
1900(30th
of Sivan, 5660): Rosh Chodesh Tammuz
1903:
In the wake of the exoneration of Colonel Dreyfus, the French government
ordered the closure of 120 religious (Catholic) schools as a sign of a loss of
clout of those on the political right.
1907:
Birthdate of British jurist Sir Alan Abraham Mocatta.
1911(1st
of Tammuz, 5671): Rosh Chodesh Tammuz
1912:
The Jewish Territorial Organization holds its annual meeting over four days in
Vienna. It passes a resolution thanking the Portuguese Chamber of Deputies for
the offer of land in Angola
1912:
Funeral to be held for Julia Rich New Yorker educator and defender of the
underdog including those suffering from consumption and Russian Jewish
immigrants at the synagogue in
1914:
Dr Max Raisin
of Brooklyn delivered the following address at Berith Dodesh Temple, a Reform
Jewish Congregation in which he declared that while some Reform Jews do not
proclaim their Zionism, at heart they hope for restoration as a people.
"Reform is what made Zionism what it is. Zionism has
found amongst reformers some of its staunchest upholders. Reform is only a
phase of religion, and religion makes for race consciousness. The integrity of
the Jews as a race depends upon the existence and survival of Judaism as a
religion. When a Gentile becomes a Jew by religion, he becomes ipso facto a Jew
by race; but when a Jew joins a Gentile religion he remains a Jew by race.
"When reform Jews in Washington some time ago told Congressmen some time
ago that the Jews were only a religious body, and not a race, opposition to the
statement arose from the very ranks of reform itself. Is the belief of the
reformer dogmatically different to that of the orthodox? Does it deny the hope
of the Jews for national restoration? There is a higher court than the
rabbinical conference. Reform Judaism goes to the prophets, and there is
nothing their opposed to national restoration. "You will say that all
reference to Zion has been stricken from your Prayer Book. That is quite true,
but that is a mere negative attitude for you to take. It is not true that
reform as a whole is opposed to Zionism. The Prayer book is one thing, and
Reform as a whole another thing. National restoration is a universal movement.
Reform looks upon nationalism, even if potentially, as a means to realize all
the hopes of Judaism. I content that Reform does stand upon national ground.
Zionism has again and again made itself felt in the camp of reform. If
nationalism is not included in your prayer book, it is not opposed or
denied."
1914:
In Rochester, NY, Dr Mordechai M. Kaplan of New York delivered a sermon at Beth
Israel Synagogue in Leopold Street this morning.
1914:
Fifty delegates to the convention of Zionists from Chicago and twenty-five more
from Cleveland reached Rochester tonight. They were among delegates invited to
attend an evening reception at the Jewish young Men's Association in Franklin
Square.
1915:
Birthdate of philanthropist, Bernard Roth, “an entrepreneur who built a major
company from a single gas station in Los Angeles by promoting self-service gas
pumps”
1918:
The volunteers of the Jewish Battalion in World War I were sent to the front.
In August 1917, thanks in part to the efforts of Jabotinsky; the formation of a
Jewish regiment was officially announced. Formation of such a unit had been
opposed by members of the British military and other members of the British
Establishment. By 1917, the Empire was desperate for soldiers. It
was probably this sense of desperation more than anything else that led to the
formation of the first Jewish combat unit since the Bar Kochba Revolt in 135.
The unit was designated as the 38th Battalion of the Royal Fusiliers. It
included British volunteers, members of the former Zion Mule Corps and a large
number of Russian Jews. In April 1918, it was joined by the 39th Battalion of
the Royal Fusiliers, more than 50 percent of whom were American volunteers. In
June 1918, The 38th Battalion of the Royal Fusiliers was sent to Palestine
1920:
Birthdate of Itek Dommnici, the native of Rumania who gained fame as I. A. L.
Diamond, the Hollywood screenwriter and the longtime collaborator of the
director Billy Wilder and won an Oscar for the “Apartment.”
1921:
Mrs. Edith R. Sulzberger, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Julius Rosenwald, went to
Crown Point, Indiana today and obtained a marriage license.
1923:
Catcher Moe Berg made his major league debut with the Brooklyn Robins.
1926:
The
twenty-ninth annual convention of the Zionist Organization of America opened
here today with more than 1,000 delegates from all parts of the country,
including 200 from New York. Louis Lipsky, Chairman of the ZOA, delivered a
lengthy keynote address in which, among other things, he criticized England for
failing to cooperate with the Zionists under the terms of the mandate. “Emanuel Neuman, national director of the
United Palestine Appeal reported that over five million dollars had been raised
since last October” for projects in Palestine.
1927:
Time magazine reported that “Pilot Clarence Duncan Chamberlin and passenger
Charles A. Levine were last week enjoying the hospitality of Germans, resting
in the watering place known as Baden-Baden, inspecting huge multi-motored
airships at the Dornier and Zeppelin plants. Some of their doings: Frau Thea
Rasche, Germany's only licensed woman pilot, was taken for a ride over Berlin
by Pilot Chamberlin. Skillful, she also took passenger Levine for a ride.
Correspondents heralded the trips as strengthening to U.S. - German relations.
Flyers Chamberlin and Levine hustled to Bremen to meet their respective wives,
who arrived from the U.S. Said Mrs. Chamberlin on seeing her husband:
"Why, your knickers are awful. Didn't you even have them cleaned?"
Then the two couples flew to Berlin in three hops. The two wives were reported
to be feeling ill after the first hop. "The Columbia is not on the
market," said Mr. Levine when Grover Cleveland Bergdoll, a rich American
then living in Germany, offered to buy the monoplane. Mr. Bergdoll let it be
known that he desires to fly to the U.S. to show that he is no coward, that
conscientious objection was his only reason for refusing to fight in the World
War.” [Levine was Jewish and laid claim to being the “first passenger” to cross
the Atlantic.]
1931:
Labor economist Theresa Wolfson was the principal speaker at the opening of the
Barnard College Summer School for Women Workers in Industry
1931:
Birthdate of Canadian businessman Charles Bronfman
1933:
Birthdate of Robert Katz, “an author and screenwriter who incurred the wrath of
the Vatican by accusing Pope Pius XII of failing to act to stave off a Nazi
massacre of Italians in 1944.”
1933: At a rally in London
1938:
“The Jews of Palestine observed a day of semi-mourning today in sympathy for
the Revisionist youth, Ben Yosef, who is under a death sentence for having
fired on an Arab-owned bus. There were
special prayers and sermons in synagogues throughout the country. Shops were closed in the evening and places
of amusement were shut all day.”
1940:
During a meeting of the Cabinet, Churchill again called for the arming of the
Jews of Palestine so that British troops could come back to defend the home
islands. Lord Lloyd spoke against the
move; anti-Semitism trumped strategic thinking as Lord Lloyd prevailed.
1941:
On a day known as Red Friday: German units in Bialystok Minsk
1941: German troops gathered in a synagogue
courtyard in Niéswiez , Poland
1941: Romanian Iron Guard Legionnaires,
encouraged by the anti-Semitic policies of dictator Ion Antonescu, undertake the
extermination of the Jews in Falesti. Thousands are killed.
1944: Jewish Resistance leader David
"Dodo" Donoff, 24, is executed near Lyons , France
1944:
Almost one half million Jews have been sent to Auschwitz since May 15, 19 44.
1945:
Having heard no further reply from Churchill over his request to suspend the
White Paper of 1939, a bitter Chaim Weizmann told his colleagues that the
“leaders of the Western world” had done what they had done to the Jews but did
not have “to swallow it.” He continued saying that Churchill and Roosevelt had
let the Jewish people down, “maybe not intentionally, but inadvertently. They made promises which did not carry out or
mean to carry out.” He had no faith in
the upcoming meeting of the Big Three – Stalin, Churchill and Truman because
“nobody cared about what happened to the Jews.
Nobody had raised a finder to stop them from being slaughtered.” And now they did not care about “the remnant
which had survived.” Weizmann, feeling
broken and betrayed expressed his willingness to resign his leadership position
regardless of the consequences.
1950:
Admiral Sir John Edelsten, Commander in Chief of the British Mediterranean
Fleet completed a two-day courtesy visit to the Jewish state. The Admiral’s
visit included stops at Haifa and Tel Aviv.
1951: The Jerusalem Post reported that 283,000 votes were
cast for the Zionist Congress elections. According to the rough estimates Mapai
was expected to send 103, Mapam 46, Hapoel Hamizrahi 26, Herut 21, Progressives
12 and Revisionists one delegate to the Congress. More than one million dollars
worth of food parcels sent by relatives abroad arrived in Israel
1965: Birthdate of British author and historian Simon
Sebag-Montefiore, a member of one of Britain’s oldest and most distinguished
Anglo-Jewish families. While he has written on a variety of topics, his Jerusalem:
The Biography is one that anybody with an interest in Jerusalem, the Middle
East or the three so-called Abrahamic Faiths should read. His brother Hugh
Sebag-Montifiore is also an author whose works include two World War II
histories Dunkirk: Fight to the Last Man and Enigma: The Battle for
the Code.
1968(1st of Tammuz, 5728): Rosh Chodesh Tammuz
1971: The New York Times featured a review of St. Urbain's
Horseman by Mordecai Richler
1976: The Jerusalem Post reported that US Israel Ein
Karem Hadassah-Hebrew
University Medical
Center Jerusalem
1976: News broke that four hijackers from the Popular Front for the
Liberation of Palestine and the German Revolutionary Cells had captured an Air
France flight from Tel Aviv to Paris
1976: A revival of Rodgers and Hart’s “Pal Joey” opened at the
Circle in the Square Theatre.
1987: Daniel Barenhboim is scheduled to conduct his final in a
series of concerts with the IPO that include performances by members of the
Paris Opera all of which are part of the celebrations marking the 50th
anniversary of the founding the Israeli Philharmonic Orchestra.
1999: The New York Times featured reviews of books by
Jewish authors and/or of special interest to Jewish readers including The
Holocaust in American Life by Peter Novick.
2000: U. S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright arrives in
Israel. She met with Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian leader Yasser
Arafat.
2004:
Israel's renowned composer and songwriter Naomi Shemer was laid to rest today
at 6 p.m. in Kvutzat Kinneret cemetery in the Galilee ,
where many of Israel Jerusalem Old City Ichilov
Hospital
"Y'rushalayim
shel zahav, v'shel n'choshet v'shel or; Halo l'chold shi-rayich ani kinor
The
mountain air is clear as water
The
scent of pines around
Is
carried on the breeze of twilight,
And
tinkling bells resound.
The
trees and stones there softly slumber,
A
dream enfolds them all.
So
solitary lies the city,
And
at its heart -- a wall.
Oh,
Jerusalem
bronze,
I am the lute for all your songs.
I am the lute for all your songs.
The
wells ran dry of all their water,
Forlorn
the market square,
The
Temple Mount
In
the Old City there.
And
in the caverns in the mountain,
The
winds howl to and fro,
And
no-one takes the Dead Sea highway,
That
leads through Jericho
Oh,
Jerusalem
bronze,
I am the lute for all your songs.
I am the lute for all your songs.
But
as I sing to you, my city,
And
you with crowns adorn,
I
am the least of all your children,
Of
all the poets born.
Your
name will scorch my lips for ever,
Like
a seraph's kiss, I'm told,
If
I forget thee, golden city,
Jerusalem
of gold.
Oh,
Jerusalem
bronze,
I am the lute for all your songs.
I am the lute for all your songs.
The
wells are filled again with water,
The
square with joyous crowd,
On
the Temple Mount
The
shofar rings out loud.
Within
the caverns in the mountains
A
thousand suns will glow,
We'll
take the Dead Sea road together,
That
runs through Jericho
Oh,
Jerusalem
bronze,
I
am the lute for all your songs.
2004(8th
of Tamuz, 5764): Mordechai
Yosefov, 49, and three-year-old, Afik Zahavi, were killed outside a
kindergarten when Palestinian terrorists in Gaza launched Kassam rockets into
the southern Israeli city of Sderot. Zahavi's mother, Miriam, was seriously
injured in the attack, and is struggling to recover in a local hospital.
2004: The New York Times featured
reviews of books by Jewish authors and/or of special interest to Jewish readers
including 'Letters, 1928-1946': The Book of Isaiah (Berlin) by Sir
Isaiah Berlin and 'Sweet Land Stories': The Call of the Wild Ones by
E.L. Doctorow
2005: Author and Civil War Historian Shelby Foote
passes away at the age of 88. A native
of Greenville , Mississippi
2005:
The United States Air Force appointed Rabbi Arnold Resnicoff, who had served as
a chaplain for 25 years in the United States Navy, to the newly-created position of Special Assistant (for Values and
Vision) to the Secretary and Chief of Staff of the U.S. Air Force. Resnicoff
served in this position from for a year “at the equivalent military rank of
Brigadier General, responsible for making recommendations regarding policy and
guidance in support of the Air Force initiative to integrate core values into
all Air Force operating concepts and policies. His assignment took him around
the world, beginning in the Middle East, with Iraq, Qatar, and the United Arab
Emirates, and continuing to military bases throughout Europe and the Pacific,
as well as installations within the United States, including the United States
Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, CO, and the Air War College, in Montgomery,
Alabama, where he met with Air Force leaders at every level of command. During
this appointment, Resnicoff was instrumental in terms of beginning service-wide
discussions on policies for religious free exercise within the Air Force.”
2005:
Rabbi Arnold E. Resnicoff who had served 25 years as a Chaplain in the United
States Navy began serving “as Special Assistant to the Secretary of the Air
Force and Chief of Staff of the Air Force
2006: Rabbi, Arnold E. Resnicoff completed his
one year assignment as Special Assistant to the Secretary of the Air Force and
Chief of Staff of the Air Force. He was awarded the Air Force Decoration of
Exceptional Civilian Service for his year’s worth of work.
2006(1st of Tamuz, 5766): Rosh
Chodesh Tamuz
2007:
David Milliband’s last day as Secretary of State for Environment, Food and
Rural Affairs
2007: In Jerusalem, legendary Israeli composer/singer Shlomo Gronich
presents his newest compositions of biblical sources on a wide spectrum of
themes: justice, righteousness, integrity, man and his identity, love songs
& prayers. Performance includes Gronich on piano & shofar, the
Jerusalem String Quartet and percussion.
2007: Dr. Ashraf Marwan, an
Egyptian businessman identified as the Mossad agent who tipped Israel off on
the eve of the Yom Kippur War about the coming surprise attack was found
dead outside his home in London's Mayfair neighborhood. Dr. Ashraf Marwan was
the son-in-law of the Egyptian President, Gamal Abdel Nasser. There is a dispute as to whether Marwan was
really a spy for Israel
2007:
Social justice was the theme of the first Jurisprudence Awards dinner sponsored
by the Jewish Council on Urban Affairs at the Hilton Chicago. The event raised $50,000 for the work of the
Jewish Council on Urban Affairs which began during the civil rights struggles
of the 1960s and how promotes social justice through working with community
organizations in Chicago.
2009:
The final
performance of “Dov and Ali” by Anna Ziegler, at the Cherry Lane Studio
Theater, in the West Village. The drama revolves around the relationship
between Dov, a high school teacher and Orthodox Jew, and Ali, a 17-year-old
student and strict Muslim.
2009: At the Durham Performing Arts Center, the Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet presents the final
performance Israeli modern choreographer Ohad Naharin's “Decadance” which was acclaimed
by The New York Times as "dancing that pulls viewers right out of their
seats.”
2009: Today, the London-based A-sharq Al-awast reported
that a deal trading Shalit for over 1,000 Hamas prisoners was imminent. Hamas
leader Haniyeh, however, said that reports of a breakthrough on Shalit
negotiations were exaggerated. Israeli sources also continued to deny any
impending deal.
2010: The Jewish Feast-ival is scheduled to take place at
The Jewish Center in Rock Island, Illinois.
2010: "The Adventures of
Hershele Ostropolyer," a new musical adaptation of the classic Yiddish
play by Moyshe Gershenson, is scheduled to have its final performance at The
Baruch Performing Arts Center, 55 Lexington Avenue.
2010: The New York Times featured books by Jewish
authors and/or of special interest to Jewish readers including Faith and
Power: Religion and Politics in the Middle East by Bernard Lewis and Crisis
Economics: A Crash Course in the Future of Finance by Nouriel Roubini and
Stephen Mihm.
2010: Jews from more than 15
countries are scheduled to compete in a “Jewish World Cup" in New York today.
“The soccer tournament, hosted by the Jewish Community Relations Council of New
York, will take place Sunday on Randall's Island, between Manhattan and the
Bronx. The tournament is for adults; soccer clinics are planned for children.
The tournament is part of JCRC’s effort to reach out to overseas Jews living in
New York and integrate them into the American Jewish community. “There are many
different groups of international Jews in New York who are not connected to
each other as a community, nor are they connected to the broader community of
New York Jews,” said Hindy Poupko, director of Israel and international affairs
at the JCRC. “Our goal is to bring these groups together as international Jews
and as a part of the broader Jewish community.”
2010(15th
of Tamuz, 5770): Martin David Ginsburg “an internationally renowned taxation
law expert” who “was Professor of Law at Georgetown University Law Center in
Washington, D.C. and of counsel to the law firm Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver
& Jacobson” passed away today. He
was the husband of Associate Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. (As
reported by Gardiner Harris)
2011:
Israeli violinist Misha Vitenson and the Jupiter
musicians are scheduled to perform Beethoven’s brilliant Sextet for 2 virtuoso
horns and string quartet, the Flute Quartet in E Minor by his pupil Ferdinand
Ries, Webern’s Romantic Langsamer Satz, and the Brahms String Quartet No. 3 in
B-flat Major at the Church for All Nations in New York City.
2011:
Kiryat Arba Chief Rabbi Dov Lior, one of the senior
figures of religious Zionism, was arrested today after he refused to appear for
questioning for his endorsement of the controversial book, “Torat Hamelech,”
which justifies killing non-Jews. Following the publication of the book, police
opened an investigation on grounds of incitement. The author of the book, Rabbi
Yitzhak Shapira, was detained, questioned and released. An endorsement written
by three rabbis was added to the book, following a standard practice in books
pertaining to the Torah when a junior rabbi ask for approval from a rabbi
senior to him. Rabbi Yosef Ginsburg, one of the approvers, was investigated a
year ago. Two other rabbis, Dov Lior and Ya’akov Yosef, were summoned for
questioning but refused to attend. The police arrested Rabbi Lior this
afternoon, who has said in the past that the Torah is above the law, and that
it is unacceptable for a rabbi to be investigated for publishing Torah-related
work. National Union MK Michael Ben-Ari said in response that the “Public
Security Minister should be fired,” claiming that the police always treat Arab
leaders carefully and here they are disparaging a great figure in Israel. In
February , Knesset members of the National Union party, Shas and Agudath Israel
proposed a “Dov Lior Law” that would grant immunity for rabbis regarding
halachic material they publish, or concerning opinions they have given in
relation to “The Torah of Israel.”
2011: Today Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu's inner cabinet instructed the Israel Defense Forces to be firm
in preventing the flotilla from reaching the Gaza Strip while operating with
maximal restraint to avoid causing injuries. The senior government ministers
also instructed the Foreign Ministry to continue its diplomatic efforts to
prevent the flotilla from setting sail to Gaza.
2011: Israeli director Guilhad Emilio
Schenker won an award at the Detroit Windsor International Film Festival 2011 today
for his short film Lavan. He picked up
the award for Best Short Film, a week after he received the Best Director Prize
at a Washington film festival.
2011: Kiryat Arba Chief Rabbi Dov Lior,
one of the senior figures of religious Zionism, was arrested today after he
refused to appear for questioning for his endorsement of the controversial
book, “Torat Hamelech,” which justifies killing non-Jews.
2012: The Jewish Community Relations
Council of Greater Washington, The American Jewish Committee, and The American
Association of Jewish Lawyers and Jurists are scheduled to present the next
session in its brown bag lunch speakers’ series: “Haunting Legacy: Vietnam and
the American Presidency from Ford to Obama” with Marvin and Deborah Kalb.
2012: "Going Up: Jerusalem" - a pilgrimage by
artists, social activists and intellectuals that is inspired by social protests
in Israel and abroad is scheduled to come to an end.
2012: Funeral services are scheduled to be held at B'nai
Israel Synagogue, 2601 Chestnut St. in Wilmington, NC for of Wendy Block, z”l,
of Wrightsville Beach, NC. She was the former chair of the Network of
Independent Communities of The Jewish Federations of North America, former
board member of National Women’s Philanthropy and campaign vice chair for
National Women’s Philanthropy. Mrs. Block passed away on June 25 at the age of
72.
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