Jewish history

Middle Israel: How Jews and Palestinians became masters of historical denial

Had the Jews studied their history impartially, they would've understood centuries before Herzl that regaining their land and restoring their power is their task, not God's.

Palestinian women walk past a mural of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in Hebron on the 21st anniversary of Arafat’s death. Ruth Wasserman Lande argues that the Palestinian narrative was created by the Soviet Union.
Worshipers are seen at the Western Wall in Jerusalem on Tisha B'Av.

The foreign policy lesson hidden in Lamentations - opinion

Jewish community at the opening ceremony of the Beit Shvidler Jewish Center of Iceland.

Chabad couple turns a small dream into Iceland's historic first Jewish cultural center - interview

Image of the Nabatele installation at the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia

Venice art installation grapples with its Jewish history at 61st International Art Exhibition


Parashat Beshalach's lessons on unity, shared risk, and IDF service

A segment of Israeli society – largely comprising traditional, Religious-Zionist, and secular Jews – carries the overwhelming weight of military service.

A STATUE of Deborah dated 1792 stands in Aix-en-Provence, France.

Parashat Beshalach: The joy of ‘mitzvot’

Recounting for the first time the story of an entire people who, after long years of harsh and grueling bondage, emerge into freedom.

JOSEPH’S TOMB in Nablus.

Does history repeat itself? Recognizing the potential danger of modern antisemitism - opinion

It seems that when the term antisemitism is replaced by anti-Zionism, in a twisted manner, legitimacy is achieved globally.

 A pro-Palestinian demonstrator holds a sign, as they take part in a protest against US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's visit to Turkey, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Istanbul, November 4, 2023.

A new exhibit honors writer Lore Segal, a child survivor and lifelong skeptic of easy truths

The title of a new exhibit mounted by the Leo Baeck Institute in New York: “And That’s True Too: The Life and Work of Lore Segal,” will be available on April 15.

Actress Toni Kalem, who appeared in “The Sopranos,” reads an excerpt from “Other People’s Houses" at the opening of an exhibit of the life and work of writer Lore Segal, Jan. 22, 2026.

This week in Jewish history: Nobel prize winners, biochemists, and the Baba Sali

A highly abridged weekly version of Dust & Stars – Today in Jewish History.

Baba Baruch, heir of Baba Sali, speaks to prime minister Yitzhak Shamir during traditional ceremonies in Netivot, 1988.

The high price of not listening: What Pharaoh teaches us about power and humility

Pharaoh ignored every warning until his nation collapsed. His mistake isn’t ancient, it’s painfully familiar today.

Statue of a mans head wearing headphones.

One degree of separation: How Jews connect through trauma, unite in hope - opinion

By every rational measure, such repeated traumas should have left the Jews scattered, fragmented, and broken. But as our story goes, that’s not what happened.

A memorial ceremony at the Nova festival marking two years since the October 7 massacre when Hamas terrorists infiltrated southern Israel, murdering more than 1200 people. October 07, 2025.

Zionism didn’t start in Europe, and Ethiopian Jews can prove it - opinion

For more than 2,500 years, Ethiopian Jewish leaders preserved Jewish law, ritual, and identity in one of the most isolated Jewish communities on Earth.

ETHIOPIAN JEWS take part in a prayer of the Sigd holiday on the Armon Hanatziv Promenade overlooking Jerusalem, in November 2025.

Vayigash after October 7: Tears, envy, and consolation pedagogy - opinion

What Joseph teaches Israeli society today

 Rembrandt - Joseph Accused by Potiphar's Wife

Hanukkah: The Maccabees weren’t symbols; they were fighters - opinion

The Maccabees prevailed because they refused erasure – militarily, culturally, and spiritually. Contemporary Jewish survival requires the same multi-front refusal.

The Maccabees receive their father's blessing, 1873.