I have always been fascinated by Napoleon Bonaparte (in French it is Napoléon). As a schoolboy, I read the Dutch historian Pieter Geyl’s “Napoleon For and Against” and realized that there were so many different ways of understanding him. History was not clear cut or one-sided. Was he good or bad? A great mind, a brilliant general, a visionary, or…
General Topics
Kristallnacht
The 9th of November was the anniversary of the Kristallnacht attack on the Jews of Germany, Austria, and the Sudetenland in 1938. The Nazis unleashed a hugely popular, pogrom that murdered nearly a hundred Jews and injured thousands. They destroyed 267 synagogues, and seven thousand businesses, and homes. Some 30, 000 Jews were arrested, most of whom were never heard of…
Abraham’s Children
Anyone familiar with the art of Cathedrals and Churches in Europe will know that someone called Melchizedek figures prominently. Who was he? After rescuing Lot from captivity, “Malchizedek” (note the difference between Malchi and Melchi) king of Shalem, brought out bread and wine. He was a priest to God on High and he blessed Abraham who then gave him a tenth…
The Rainbow and Halloween
After Noah’s flood, God gave the rainbow as a sign that never again would humanity be destroyed because of its failings. To this day, there is a blessing of thanksgiving on seeing a rainbow “Who remembers and keeps His covenant and fulfills his promise” (Brachot 59a). In medieval times there was a debate about whether the rainbow was a new creation…
Angela Buxton and Althea Gibson
In my youth, Angela Buxton was the darling of the Anglo Jewish sporting scene. She was the most successful Jewish, and indeed British tennis player of the 1950s. In 1956 she reached the singles final at Wimbledon, the first Briton to do so in 17 years. She won two grand slam victories in the Doubles at Wimbledon and Roland Garros in Paris,…
Adam and Eve
It is Adam and Eve time again in the annual Torah reading cycle. It always reminds me of Sin! Original Sin! What unpleasant words. What awful baggage. I won’t deny that many human beings do horrible things and qualify as sinners. Still, the word sin in English a very negative one. I really dislike the English word, much more than…