#judaism — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #judaism, aggregated by home.social.
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Islamophobia is rising – and Britain’s politicians have been dangerously complacent in tackling it | Arun Kundnani https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/sep/14/britain-politicians-complacent-islamophobia-rising-hard-right-politics #Islamophobia #Islam #Religion #Judaism #Race #UkNews
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Islamophobia is rising – and Britain’s politicians have been dangerously complacent in tackling it | Arun Kundnani https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/sep/14/britain-politicians-complacent-islamophobia-rising-hard-right-politics #Islamophobia #Islam #Religion #Judaism #Race #UkNews
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Islamophobia is rising – and Britain’s politicians have been dangerously complacent in tackling it | Arun Kundnani https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/sep/14/britain-politicians-complacent-islamophobia-rising-hard-right-politics #Islamophobia #Islam #Religion #Judaism #Race #UkNews
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Islamophobia is rising – and Britain’s politicians have been dangerously complacent in tackling it | Arun Kundnani https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/sep/14/britain-politicians-complacent-islamophobia-rising-hard-right-politics #Islamophobia #Islam #Religion #Judaism #Race #UkNews
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Islamophobia is rising – and Britain’s politicians have been dangerously complacent in tackling it | Arun Kundnani
By Arun KundnaniMainstream figures have been enabling anti-Muslim racism, creating the ideal conditions for the rise of hard-right political parties
#Islamophobia #Islam #Religion #Judaism #Race #UKnews #TheGuardian #ArunKundnani
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Islamophobia is rising – and Britain’s politicians have been dangerously complacent in tackling it | Arun Kundnani
By Arun KundnaniMainstream figures have been enabling anti-Muslim racism, creating the ideal conditions for the rise of hard-right political parties
#Islamophobia #Islam #Religion #Judaism #Race #UKnews #TheGuardian #ArunKundnani
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Islamophobia is rising – and Britain’s politicians have been dangerously complacent in tackling it | Arun Kundnani
By Arun KundnaniMainstream figures have been enabling anti-Muslim racism, creating the ideal conditions for the rise of hard-right political parties
#Islamophobia #Islam #Religion #Judaism #Race #UKnews #TheGuardian #ArunKundnani
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Islamophobia is rising – and Britain’s politicians have been dangerously complacent in tackling it | Arun Kundnani
By Arun KundnaniMainstream figures have been enabling anti-Muslim racism, creating the ideal conditions for the rise of hard-right political parties
#Islamophobia #Islam #Religion #Judaism #Race #UKnews #TheGuardian #ArunKundnani
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From “The Forbidden Question,” (“De verboden vraag”) De Groene Amsterdammer, September 9, 2026, excerpted from Antizionisme: Een Joodse geschiedenis (Anti-Zionism: A Jewish History):
Benjamin Moser describes unlearning #Zionism as “a process of growth, a deconstruction,” comparing it to unlearning a mother tongue.
He writes that Zionism was a recent and contested project, not an ancient or inevitable expression of #Judaism. Anti-Zionism among Jews was older than Zionism; before Herzl, the idea of Jewish return to Palestine was originally Christian, while many Jews saw Zionist nationalism, separatism, and militarism as a step backward.
Rejecting Zionism was not “amputating” part of himself but entering a hidden Jewish tradition that Zionism had suppressed and that Zionism’s escalating cruelty ultimately vindicated. He’s calling for Jewish self-centeredness to end and for Palestinians, “the real victims of Zionism,” to be placed at the center.
Dutch https://www.groene.nl/artikel/de-verboden-vraag
#zionism #judaism #history #bookstodon #benjaminmoser #palestine #gazagenocide #nakba #antiszionism
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From “The Forbidden Question,” (“De verboden vraag”) De Groene Amsterdammer, September 9, 2026, excerpted from Antizionisme: Een Joodse geschiedenis (Anti-Zionism: A Jewish History):
Benjamin Moser describes unlearning #Zionism as “a process of growth, a deconstruction,” comparing it to unlearning a mother tongue.
He writes that Zionism was a recent and contested project, not an ancient or inevitable expression of #Judaism. Anti-Zionism among Jews was older than Zionism; before Herzl, the idea of Jewish return to Palestine was originally Christian, while many Jews saw Zionist nationalism, separatism, and militarism as a step backward.
Rejecting Zionism was not “amputating” part of himself but entering a hidden Jewish tradition that Zionism had suppressed and that Zionism’s escalating cruelty ultimately vindicated. He’s calling for Jewish self-centeredness to end and for Palestinians, “the real victims of Zionism,” to be placed at the center.
Dutch https://www.groene.nl/artikel/de-verboden-vraag
#zionism #judaism #history #bookstodon #benjaminmoser #palestine #gazagenocide #nakba #antiszionism
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From “The Forbidden Question,” (“De verboden vraag”) De Groene Amsterdammer, September 9, 2026, excerpted from Antizionisme: Een Joodse geschiedenis (Anti-Zionism: A Jewish History):
Benjamin Moser describes unlearning #Zionism as “a process of growth, a deconstruction,” comparing it to unlearning a mother tongue.
He writes that Zionism was a recent and contested project, not an ancient or inevitable expression of #Judaism. Anti-Zionism among Jews was older than Zionism; before Herzl, the idea of Jewish return to Palestine was originally Christian, while many Jews saw Zionist nationalism, separatism, and militarism as a step backward.
Rejecting Zionism was not “amputating” part of himself but entering a hidden Jewish tradition that Zionism had suppressed and that Zionism’s escalating cruelty ultimately vindicated. He’s calling for Jewish self-centeredness to end and for Palestinians, “the real victims of Zionism,” to be placed at the center.
Dutch https://www.groene.nl/artikel/de-verboden-vraag
#zionism #judaism #history #bookstodon #benjaminmoser #palestine #gazagenocide #nakba #antiszionism
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From “The Forbidden Question,” (“De verboden vraag”) De Groene Amsterdammer, September 9, 2026, excerpted from Antizionisme: Een Joodse geschiedenis (Anti-Zionism: A Jewish History):
Benjamin Moser describes unlearning #Zionism as “a process of growth, a deconstruction,” comparing it to unlearning a mother tongue.
He writes that Zionism was a recent and contested project, not an ancient or inevitable expression of #Judaism. Anti-Zionism among Jews was older than Zionism; before Herzl, the idea of Jewish return to Palestine was originally Christian, while many Jews saw Zionist nationalism, separatism, and militarism as a step backward.
Rejecting Zionism was not “amputating” part of himself but entering a hidden Jewish tradition that Zionism had suppressed and that Zionism’s escalating cruelty ultimately vindicated. He’s calling for Jewish self-centeredness to end and for Palestinians, “the real victims of Zionism,” to be placed at the center.
Dutch https://www.groene.nl/artikel/de-verboden-vraag
#zionism #judaism #history #bookstodon #benjaminmoser #palestine #gazagenocide #nakba #antiszionism
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From “The Forbidden Question,” (“De verboden vraag”) De Groene Amsterdammer, September 9, 2026, excerpted from Antizionisme: Een Joodse geschiedenis (Anti-Zionism: A Jewish History):
Benjamin Moser describes unlearning #Zionism as “a process of growth, a deconstruction,” comparing it to unlearning a mother tongue.
He writes that Zionism was a recent and contested project, not an ancient or inevitable expression of #Judaism. Anti-Zionism among Jews was older than Zionism; before Herzl, the idea of Jewish return to Palestine was originally Christian, while many Jews saw Zionist nationalism, separatism, and militarism as a step backward.
Rejecting Zionism was not “amputating” part of himself but entering a hidden Jewish tradition that Zionism had suppressed and that Zionism’s escalating cruelty ultimately vindicated. He’s calling for Jewish self-centeredness to end and for Palestinians, “the real victims of Zionism,” to be placed at the center.
Dutch https://www.groene.nl/artikel/de-verboden-vraag
#zionism #judaism #history #bookstodon #benjaminmoser #palestine #gazagenocide #nakba #antiszionism
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I had too much time on my hands this morning. I know only 2% of one city will understand but let’s talk about Rosh Hashanah in Pittsburgh https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP83HmtWy/ #pittsburgh #judaism #IfJewKnowJewKnow #yinzer
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Sailing the Adriatic Sea on the Celestyal Journey https://www.byteseu.com/2362394/ #Croatia #Greece #Italy #JewishHistory #Judaism #Montenegro #TheBalkans #Travel
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Rothschild Out of Control: What Happened to Tel Aviv’s Most Upscale Boulevard?
Thursday evening, Rothschild Boulevard at the corner of Nahalat Binyamin in central Tel Aviv. Crowds of teenagers and…
#Israel #News #Israeliculture #Judaism #mizrahi #popculture #telaviv #TelAvivnightlife #Ultra-Orthodox
https://www.europesays.com/3247540/ -
https://www.europesays.com/iran/289276/ Dr. Phil and Sylvan Adams get Israel right #Activism #antisemitism #CampusProtests #CollegesAndUniversities #Israel #Judaism #Nonprofits #October7
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JIMENA convened a coalition of 14 leading Sephardic and Mizrahi Jewish organizations to challenge New York Magazine’s Habibi City feature and its exclusionary framing of Middle Eastern, North African, and SWANA identity.
“We are not asking to be tolerated as exceptions to an ideological rule. We are asking to be recognized as what we are: peoples of the region.”
Read the full letter: https://www.jimena.org/habibi-city/
Read the Forward coverage: https://forward.com/news/846803/sephardic-mizrahi-new-york-magazine-habibi-city/
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From Harif:
The ‘Arab world’ is a misnomer for a region comprising a rich mosaic of non-Arab and non-Muslim peoples, sects and religions, many of whom predate the Arab conquest and Islam in the Middle East.However, Middle Eastern minorities have suffered a decline due to conflict and persecution. Many have been forced to flee. Demands for autonomy and self-determination have been frustrated.
What is the future for Middle Eastern minorities? To discuss this pressing question, Middle East specialist Jonathan Spyer will chair a distinguished 90-minute panel comprising Kurdish spokesman Veysi Dag, Juliana Taimoorazy, representing Assyrian Christians, and Yusri Khaizran from the Druze community.
Join Zoom meeting:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85975251365?pwd=kvm3FsjSKb0ZzVL6mqchd1OeS3dt7J.1
Webinar ID: 859 7525 1365
Passcode: 948345 -
Voices of Distinctions:
A Library of Sages with Tamar ZakenJoin JIMENA for the second session of our Voices of Distinctions virtual conversation series, featuring contributors to Distinctions: A Sephardi and Mizrahi Journal, on Wednesday, August 26, 2026, at 11:00 AM PT / 2:00 PM ET.
Drawing on a rich library of Sephardi wisdom, Tamar will share practical ways educators can bring Sephardi perspectives into their classrooms and communities.
Register: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/YOFYS-ZDTHa2WUWWr6sEuQ#/registration
Read Tamar's Article: https://www.distinctionsjournal.org/a-library-of-sages-bringing-sephardi-wisdom-to-jewish-day-schools-2/
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"In a townhouse in #Greenpoint, #Brooklyn, a gathering for #TuBAv was underway. There was chanting and breathwork, singing and ceremony. Several Brooklyn-based #Jewish communities, including Temple of the Stranger and Lab/ #Shul, had come together for the experience.
These vibes are usually associated with Eastern traditions, paganism or indigenous American practices; most Westerners who want that form of spirituality go looking for it at Buddhist meditation centers or ayahuasca retreats, forms of engagement more often associated with the 1960s or ’70s #counterculture movement than with a #synagogue.
But a group of #rabbis, leaders and #spiritual seekers believe drum circles, chanting, #meditation and #mysticism are, in fact, just as core to #Judaism as any #rabbinic text — a sort of lost magic that has impeded vibrant, direct spiritual experience."
https://forward.com/culture/845078/ivri-judaism-jewish-ritual-practice-mysticism-spirituality/
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Join JIMENA for the first session of our Voices of Distinctions virtual conversation series featuring contributors to Distinctions: A Sephardi and Mizrahi Journal.
Whether you're an educator, student, or lifelong learner, this conversation will offer meaningful insights and practical tools for bringing Sephardi stories into classrooms and communities.
Read Denise's article: We Belong Here, Too: Cultivating Sephardi Presence in Jewish Education
https://www.distinctionsjournal.org/we-belong-here-too-cultivating-sephardi-presence-in-jewish-education/Register for the Webinar: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/j2Rk8eFlQlu0cZ1QYQ6zIQ
#Mazeldon #Judaism #Jewish #Sephardi #Mizrahi #MENA #JewishHistory
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!Electronical-Computer-Mechanical
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/373!COmputer & Programming
#компьютер, #компьютеры, #ЭВМ, ремонт компьютеров, компьютерная техника, железо, #программы, #настройка, #диагностика, операционные системы, игровые приставки, аппаратные средства, computer, #computers, computers, computer repair, computer equipment, #hardware, #programs, #setup, #diagnostics, operating systems, game consoles, #hardware, #комп'ютер, #комп'ютери, #ЕОМ, ремонт комп'ютерів, комп'ютерна техніка, #залізо, #програми, #налаштування, діагностика, операційні системи, ігрові приставки, апаратні засоби ремонт телевизоров, #мониторы
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/372_Фонд редких книг
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/371Энергетика и целительство
Energy and healing, Енергетика та цілительство
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/370Эзотерическая рунология
Esoteric runology, Езотерична рунологія
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/369Шаманизм, Шаманізм, shamanism
#Шаманизм, #Шаманізм, #shamanism
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/368Фэн - шуй
Фен Шуй, Feng Shui
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/367Тантрическая традиция, Tantric tradition
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/365Медитации и транс, Meditation and trance
#Медитации и #транс, #Meditation and #trance
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/364Магия, Magic
#Магия, #Magic
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/363Каббала и Тора, Kabbalah and Torah
#Каббала и #Тора, #Kabbalah and #Torah
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/362Йога, Yoga
#Йога, #Yoga
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/361Иудаизм, Judaism
#Иудаизм, #Judaism
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/360Индуизм, Hinduism
#Индуизм, #Hinduism
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/358веды, Veda
#веды, #Veda
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/356suteres, koans
#suteres, #koans
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/355esoteric эзотерика мистика мистицизм оккультизм
#esoteric #эзотерика #мистика #мистицизм #оккультизм
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/353RELIGION
религия секты учения
#RELIGION
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/352_Цигун, qigong Qi Books
#Цигун, #qigong #Qi Books
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/351_буддизм, Buddhism
#буддизм, #Buddhism
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/349_Дзен, zen
#Дзен, #zen
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/348_Даосизм
Taoism
#Даосизм
#Taoism
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/347 -
!Electronical-Computer-Mechanical
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/373!COmputer & Programming
#компьютер, #компьютеры, #ЭВМ, ремонт компьютеров, компьютерная техника, железо, #программы, #настройка, #диагностика, операционные системы, игровые приставки, аппаратные средства, computer, #computers, computers, computer repair, computer equipment, #hardware, #programs, #setup, #diagnostics, operating systems, game consoles, #hardware, #комп'ютер, #комп'ютери, #ЕОМ, ремонт комп'ютерів, комп'ютерна техніка, #залізо, #програми, #налаштування, діагностика, операційні системи, ігрові приставки, апаратні засоби ремонт телевизоров, #мониторы
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/372_Фонд редких книг
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/371Энергетика и целительство
Energy and healing, Енергетика та цілительство
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/370Эзотерическая рунология
Esoteric runology, Езотерична рунологія
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/369Шаманизм, Шаманізм, shamanism
#Шаманизм, #Шаманізм, #shamanism
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/368Фэн - шуй
Фен Шуй, Feng Shui
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/367Тантрическая традиция, Tantric tradition
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/365Медитации и транс, Meditation and trance
#Медитации и #транс, #Meditation and #trance
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/364Магия, Magic
#Магия, #Magic
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/363Каббала и Тора, Kabbalah and Torah
#Каббала и #Тора, #Kabbalah and #Torah
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/362Йога, Yoga
#Йога, #Yoga
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/361Иудаизм, Judaism
#Иудаизм, #Judaism
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/360Индуизм, Hinduism
#Индуизм, #Hinduism
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/358веды, Veda
#веды, #Veda
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/356suteres, koans
#suteres, #koans
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/355esoteric эзотерика мистика мистицизм оккультизм
#esoteric #эзотерика #мистика #мистицизм #оккультизм
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/353RELIGION
религия секты учения
#RELIGION
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/352_Цигун, qigong Qi Books
#Цигун, #qigong #Qi Books
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/351_буддизм, Buddhism
#буддизм, #Buddhism
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/349_Дзен, zen
#Дзен, #zen
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/348_Даосизм
Taoism
#Даосизм
#Taoism
t.me/scilib_yura15cbx/347 -
Spirituality & Religious Studies @spiritualityreligiousstudies.wordpress.com@spiritualityreligiousstudies.wordpress.com ·Ashkenazi Jews
Author’s Note: This post has mentions of Nazis, the Holocaust, & Nazi Germany. We completely understand if you wish to skip over this post. We’ll catch you in the next one!
Also known as Ashkenazic Jews, Ashkenazis, or Ashkenazim.
This is a form of distinct ethnic subdivision of the Jewish Diaspora. Emerging from the Jewish communities that consolidated during the 10th century in the Rhineland (Western Germany) & northern France. They migrated there from centers such as the Italian peninsula & the Southern Levant. This includes present-day Lebanon, Israel, Palestine, & Jordan.
After numerous massacres of Jews during the Crusades (11th-13th centuries), they began a gradual eastward migration due to mounting restrictions within the Holy Roman Empire & the favorable policies of Casimir the Great & others.
This diaspora ramped up after the persecution during the Black Death of the 14th century. The bulk of the Ashkenazi Jews had migrated to the Kingdom of Poland (which includes modern-day Poland, Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, & parts of Russia). This area became the main center of Ashkenazi Jewry until the Holocaust.
Ashkenazim adapted their traditions, rites, & customs to Europe. They traditionally followed the German rite synagogue ritual & until the Holocaust primarily spoke Yiddish, an offshoot of Middle High German written in a variety of the Hebrew script, with significant Hebrew, Aramaic, & Slavic influences.
The Yiddish language progressively declined in prestige, in favor of national languages & Hebrew, being stigmatized by assimilationists & later also Zionists. Though it was spoken by over 11 million people worldwide before the Holocaust. The Yiddishist movement, which sought to preserve & revive the language, faded through the 20th century. Including Duolingo adding Yiddish as a language.
As a proportion of the world Jewish population, Ashkenazim were estimated to be 3% in the 11th century, rising to 92% in 1930, near the population’s peak. The Ashkenazi population was significantly diminished by the Holocaust carried out by Nazi Germany during WWII, which killed around 6 million Jews. Before WWII, the estimated worldwide Jewish population was 15.3-16.7 million, with 92% being Ashkenazi. As of 2023, the population of Ashkenazim was estimated to be around 10-13 million out of 15.8 million total Jews.
The name Ashkenazi comes from the biblical figure of Ashkenaz. He’s the 1st son of Gomer, grandson of Japhet, great-grandson of Noah, & a Japhetic patriarch in the Table of Nations. The name for Gomer has often been linked to the Cimmerians.
The Biblical Ashkenazis are usually derived from Assyrian Askuza, a people who expelled the Cimmerians from the Armenian area of the Upper Euphrates. The name Askuza is identified with the Scythians.
In Jeremiah 51:27, Ashkenaz figures as 1 of 3 kingdoms in the far north, the others being Minni (or Mannaea), an ancient kingdom that flourished in northwestern Iran, & Arrat (corresponding to Urartu), called on by God to resist Babylon.
Ashkenaz is linked to Scandza/Scanzia (usually identified with Scandinavia), viewed as the cradle of Germanic tribes, in the 6th-century gloss to the Historia Ecclesiastica of Eusebius. In the 10th century, in the History of Armenia of Yovhannes Drasxanakertci, Ashkenaz was associated with Armenia.
As it was occasionally in Jewish usage, where its denotation extended at times to Adiabene, Khazaria, Chimea, & areas to the east. They’re also identified with the Slavim or Slavs. In keeping with the custom of designating areas of Jewish settlement with biblical names, Spain was called Sefarad (Obadiah 20), France was called Tsarefat (I Kings 17:9), & Bohemia was called the Land of Canaan.
Given the close links between the Jewish communities of France & Germany following the Carolingian unification, the term Ashkenazi came to refer to the Jews of both medieval Germany & France.
In later times, the word Ashkenaz is used to designate southern & western Germany, the ritual of which sections differs somewhat from that of eastern Germany & Poland. Thus, the prayer book of Isaiah Horowitz (a prominent rabbi & mystic), & many others, give the piyyutim (a Jewish liturgical poem), according to the Minhag of Ashkenaz & Poland. A Minhag is an accepted tradition or group of traditions in Judaism.
In a religious sense, an Ashkenazi Jew is any Jew whose family tradition & synagogue ritual follow Ashkenazi practices (German rite). Until the Ashkenazi community 1st began to develop in the Early Middle Ages, the centers of Jewish religious authority were in the Islamic world, at Baghdad & Islamic Spain. German Ashkenaz was so geographically distant that it developed a minhag of its own.
The counterpart of Ashkenazi is Sephardic. Since most non-Ashkenazi Orthodox Jews follow Sephardic rabbinical authorities, whether or not they’re ethnically Sephardic. By tradition, a Sephardic or Mizrahi (a.k.a. Oriental Jews; Jews who lived in the Muslim world) who married into an Orthodox or Haredi (a.k.a. ultra-Orthodox) Ashkenazi Jewish family raises her kids to be Ashkenazi Jews.
On the other hand, an Ashkenazi woman who married a Sephardi or Mizrahi is expected to take on Sephardic practices & the kids will “inherit” a Sephardic identity. Though in practice, many families do compromise. A “convert” usually follows the practice of the rabbinical court (beth din) that converted them.
Culturally, an Ashkenazi Jew can be identified by the concept of Yiddishkeit, which means “Jewishness” in the Yiddish language. Before the Haskalah (a.k.a. the Jewish Enlightenment) & the emancipation of Jews in Europe, this meant the study of the Torah & the Talmud for men, & communal life governed by the observance of Jewish Law for men & women.
From the Rhineland to Riga (the largest city in Latvia) to Romania, most Jews prayed in liturgical Ashkenazi Hebrew, & spoke Yiddish in their secular (worldly) lives. But with modernization, Yiddishkeit now includes not just Orthodoxy & Hasidism, but a broader range of movements, ideologies, practices, & traditions in which Ashkenazi have participated & somehow kept a sense of Jewishness. Although pockets of Jews still speak Yiddish, Yiddishkeit can be identified in manners of speech, styles of humor, & in patterns of association.
As Ashkenazi Jews moved away from Europe, mostly in the form of aliyah to Israel. Or immigration to North America, South Africa, Europe (particularly France), & Latin America, the geographic isolation has given way to mixing with other cultures, & with non-Ashkenazi Jews who, similarly, are no longer isolated in distinct geographic locales.
Hebrew has replaced Yiddish as the primary Jewish language for many Ashkenazi Jews. Although many Hasidic & Hareidi groups still use Yiddish in daily life. Aliyah is the immigration of Jews from the diaspora to, historically, the geographic Land of Israel or the Palestine region, where the State of Israel was established.
France’s blended Jewish community is typical of the cultural recombination that’s going on among Jews throughout the world. Although France expelled its original Jewish population in the Middle Ages, by the time of the French Revolution, there were 2 distinct Jewish populations.
One consisted of Sephardic Jews, originally refugees from the Inquisition (which no one expects! Sorry, we’re Monty Python fans here.) & concentrated in the southwest. While the other community was Ashkenazi, concentrated in formerly German Alsace, & mainly speaking a German dialect similar to Yiddish.
The 3rd community of Provencal Jews living in Comtat Venaissin was technically outside France, & was later absorbed into the Sephardim. Comtat Venaissin (called Comtat, for short) was a part of the Papal States from 1274 to 1791.
But after emancipation, a sense of a unified French Jewry emerged, especially when France was wracked by the Dreyfus Affair in the 1890s. (We’ll be doing a post about the Dreyfus Affair.) In the 1920s & 30s, Ashkenazi Jews from Europe arrived in large numbers as refugees from antisemitism, the Russian Revolution, & the economic turmoil of the Great Depression.
By the 1930s, Paris had a vibrant Yiddish culture, & many Jews were involved in diverse political movements. After the Vichy years & the Holocaust, the French Jewish population was augmented once again, 1st by Ashkenazi refugees from Central Europe, & later by Sephardi immigrants & refugees from North Africa, many of them francophone. Francophone refers to people/organizations who use French (language) regularly.
Ashkenazi Jews didn’t transmit their traditions or achievements by text. Instead, these traditions were passed down orally from one generation to the next. The desire to maintain pre-Holocaust traditions relating to Ashkenazi culture has often been met with criticism by Jews in Eastern Europe.
In an ethnic sense, an Ashkenazi Jew is a descendant of the Jews who settled in the Central European region of “Ashkenaz.” For roughly 1,000 years, the Ashkenazim were a reproductively isolated population in Europe.
Despite living in many countries, with little inflow or outflow of countries from migration, conversion, or intermarriage with other groups, including other Jews. Since the mid-20th century, many Ashkenazi Jews have intermarried, both with members of other Jewish communities & non-Jews.
Religious persecution of the Jews in Western & Central Europe led to a significant migration of the Ashkenazi Jews into Eastern Europe. This resulted in a major cultural divide between Western/Central & Eastern Ashkenazi communities. In particular, this was reflected in the division of Yiddish into Western & Eastern Yiddish dialects. As well as in other cultural distinctions: traditions, food, dress, etc.
Initially, the Jews of Eastern Europe enjoyed relative freedom in terms of movement, being invited by the kings of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Over time, the situation was reversed. By the 19th century, the Jews in the West had gradually been integrated into the general society.
While the Eastern Ashkenazi maintained their strict Jewish traditions & were mostly confined to ghettos, especially in the Pale of Settlement of the Russian Empire, which incorporated a considerable amount of land where the Eastern Ashkenazi lived: Poland & Lithuania.
Well-known differences in practices include:
- Observance of Passover (Pesach)
- Ashkenazi Jews traditionally refrain from eating legumes, grain, millet, & rice. Quinoa has become accepted as a food grain in North American communities. Sephardi Jews typically don’t prohibit these foods.
- Notwithstanding stricter requirements for the ACTUAL slaughter, Sephardi Jews permit the rear portions of an animal after proper Halakhic removal of the sciatic nerve. While many Ashkenazi Jews don’t.
- Ashkenazi Jews often name newborns after deceased family members, not after living relatives. Sephardi Jews often name their kids after their grandparents, even if those grandparents are still living. An exception to this is among Dutch Jews, where Ashkenazi for centuries used naming conventions otherwise attributed exclusively to Sephardim, such as Chuts. Chuts is the name given to Jews who immigrated to London from the Netherlands in the 1850s-1860s.
- Ashkenazi tefillins are wound toward the body, not away from it. Ashkenazim put on the tefillin while standing up. Other Jews generally do so while sitting down. A tefillin(s) is/are sets of small black leather boxes with leather straps having scrolls of parchment written with verses of the Torah inside.
- The prayer shawl (tallit/tallis) is worn by all Ashkenazi men AFTER marriage. Except for Western European Ashkenazi men who wear it from the bar mitzvah. In Sephardi or Mizrahi Judaism, the prayer shawl is commonly worn from early childhood.
The term Ashkenazi also refers to the Nusach Ashkenaz, the liturgical tradition used by Ashkenazi Jews in their siddur (prayer book). A nusach is defined by a liturgical tradition’s choice of prayers, the text of prayers & melodies used in the singing of prayers. 2 other major forms of nusach among Ashkenazi Jews are Nusach Sefard (not to be confused with the Sephardic ritual), which is the general Polish Hasidic nusach, and Nusach Ari, used by those in Chabad.
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#10thCentury #11thCentury #1274 #13thCentury #14thCentury #1790 #1791 #1850s #1860s #1890s #1920s #1930 #1930s #19thCentury #20thCentury #21stCentury #6thCentury #Adiabene #Aliyah #Aramaic #Armenia #Arrat #AshkenaziJews #Ashkenazim #Askuza #Assyrian #Babylon #Belarus #BethDin #BlackDeath #Bohemia #Canaan #Carolingian #CasmirTheGreat #CentalEurope #CentralEurope #Chabad #Chimea #Chuts #Cimmerians #Comtat #ComtatVenaissin #Crusades #DreyfusAffair #Duolingo #EarlyMiddleAges #EasternEurope #Europe #Eusebius #France #GermanAlsace #GermanRite #Germany #Gomer #GreatDepression #Halakic #Haredi #Hasidism #Haskalah #Hebrew #HistoriaEcclesiastica #HistoryOfArmenia #Holocaust #HolyRomanEmpire #IKings179 #IsaiahHorowitz #Islam #Israel #ItalianPeninsula #Japhet #Jeremiah5127 #JewishDiaspora #JewishEnlightenment #JewishLaw #Jordan #Judaism #Khazaria #KingdomOfPoland #LatinAmerica #Lebanon #Levant #Lithuania #London #Mannaea #MiddleAges #MiddleHighGerman #Minhag #Minni #Mizrahi #Muslim #Netherlands #Noah #NorthAfrica #NorthAmerica #NorthernFrance #NorthwesternIran #NusachSefard #OrientalJews #Orthodox #PaleOfSettlement #Palestine #PapalStates #Paris #Passover #Pesach #Piyyutim #Poland #PolishLithuanianCommonwealth #prayerBook #PrayerShawl #Provencal #Rhineland #Riga #Romania #Russia #RussianEmpire #RussianRevolution #Scandinavia #Scythians #Sefarad #Sephardic #Siddur #Slavic #SouthAfrica #SouthernLevant #Spain #StateOfIsrael #synagogue #TableOfNations #Tallis #Tallit #Talmud #Tefillins #Torah #Tsarefat #Ukraine #UltraOrthodox #UpperEuphrates #Vichy #WesternGermany #WorldWarII #Yiddish #Yiddishkeit #YovhannesDrasxanakertci #Zionists - Observance of Passover (Pesach)
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JIMENA Featured Educational Resources
Florida Sephardi Demographic Study:
https://sephardicstudy.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/11.-Demographic-study_Latin-Sephardic-Jews-in-S.Florida.pdf#Mazeldon #Judaism #Jewish #MENA #Sephardi #Mizrahi #JewishHistory
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JIMENA Featured Educational Resources
Lesson Plans, including Cuisine: https://www.jimena.org/sephardic-and-mizrahi-lesson-plans/
#Mazeldon #Judaism #Jewish #MENA #Sephardi #Mizrahi #JewishHistory
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JIMENA Featured Educational Resources
Bring Sephardi Wisdom to Dayschool Article: https://www.distinctionsjournal.org/a-library-of-sages-bringing-sephardi-wisdom-to-jewish-day-schools-2/
#Mazeldon #Judaism #Jewish #MENA #Sephardi #Mizrahi #JewishHistory
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JIMENA Featured Educational Resources
Tunisia Archive Link: http://jimenaexperience.org/tunisia/
#Mazeldon #Judaism #Jewish #MENA #Sephardi #Mizrahi #JewishHistory
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JIMENA Featured Educational Resources
Holocaust Studies Link: https://www.sepharditoolkit.org/recommendation/holocaust/
#Mazeldon #Judaism #Jewish #MENA #Sephardi #Mizrahi #JewishHistory
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From Harif UK:
For all the attention the Middle East conflict attracts, the expulsion of nearly a million Jews from Arab countries is rarely acknowledged. This is why Lyn Julius has written ‘Cast Out’, a long-form essay published by the Jewish Quarterly.For thousands of years, Jewish communities lived across the Middle East and North Africa, forming significant parts of the populations of cities such as Baghdad, Tunis, Cairo and Casablanca. Today, those communities have almost entirely disappeared.
More Info: https://www.harif.org/event/cast-out-the-untold-refugee-story/
#Mazeldon #Jewish #Judaism #JewishHistory #MENA #Sephardi #Mizrahi
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From Harif UK:
Baghdadi Jews have shaped Singapore’s history since 1819, yet their stories often go untold. This talk highlights the lives of David Marshall, Singapore’s first Chief Minister and a champion of inclusive citizenship, and Felice Isaacs, a leading figure in Jewish communal life—both of whom survived Japanese internment and helped rebuild the city. Their resilience and leadership in politics, law, and communal work helped forge Singapore’s multicultural identity—a legacy that still resonates today.More Info: https://www.harif.org/event/the-baghdadi-builders-of-singapore/
#Mazeldon #Judaism #Jewish #JewishHistory #MENA #Sephardi #Mizrahi
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…For example, the Book of Genesis likely had four [groups of] authors -- the Yahwist, Elohist, Deuteronomist, and Priestly source -- writing between 900-500 BCE, and none of those is likely to have included Moses or Aaron, who are estimated to have lived around the 1200s BCE, if they existed at all.
#judaism #genesis #bookofgenesis #author #authorship #attribution #identity #moses #context #socialcontext #motive #scripture #history #text #collection #canon #deception #falsehood #faith
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This fall, JIMENA invites you to join Voices of Distinctions, a six-part virtual conversation series that brings the pages of our latest Distinctions Journal education issue to life.
Through live conversations with the journal's contributors, we'll explore the ideas, research, and personal experiences shaping Sephardi and Mizrahi education today.
Register Here: https://linktr.ee/VoicesOfDistinctions
Whether you're an educator, student, community leader, or lifelong learner, these discussions offer an opportunity to engage directly with the authors and continue the conversation beyond the written page.
#Mazeldon #Judaism #Jewish #Sephardi #Mizrahi #MENA #JewishEducation #JewishHistory
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For our Friends in LA:
Holocaust Museum LA has expanded its educational exhibits to include the experiences of Jewish communities in the Middle East and North Africa during the Holocaust era, helping bring greater attention to histories that have often been overlooked in mainstream Holocaust education.More Info: https://www.holocaustmuseumla.org
Among the featured stories is that of Joseph Samuels, a cherished member of the JIMENA community and survivor of the 1941 Farhud in Baghdad.
Holocaust Museum LA's digital guide now includes educational content on Jewish experiences in the Middle East and North Africa during the Holocaust era, including testimony from Joseph Samuels.
Jews of the Middle East: https://guides.bloombergconnects.org/en-GB/guide/holocaustMuseumLa/item/df1a085e-92eb-4ecc-b388-c81e4528c48fJews of North Africa: https://guides.bloombergconnects.org/en-GB/guide/holocaustMuseumLa/item/5f81b709-7ca3-48f9-bcc9-ceb61aa639b4
Joe Samuels Story: https://guides.bloombergconnects.org/en-GB/guide/holocaustMuseumLa/item/216eb006-3bb6-4095-b5ea-bd028633bda3
#Mazeldon #Judaism #Jewish #MENA #Sephardi #Mizrahi #JewishHistory
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From JIMENA:
Ghosts of a Holy WarZoom Registration: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/4K6lu7ouRke71ehmJUHU9Q#/registration
Date & Time
Jul 15, 2026 02:00 PM in
Eastern Time (US and Canada)#Mazeldon #Jewish #Judaism #Sephardi #Mizrahi #MENA #JewishHistory
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From Hadassah:
Executive Editor Lisa Hostein hosts a discussion with three women shining a light on the Sephardic & Mizrahi experience in the United States. Syrian Jewish writer Esther Chehebar, author of the best-selling novel Sisters of Fortune & a co-host of the new podcast GOLDA Girls; Sarah Levin, executive director of JIMENA, a San Francisco-based nonprofit that advocates for Jews from the Middle East and North Africa, who has Turkish Jewish roots; and Rozeeta Mavashev, North America executive director of Masa Israel, who is of Bukharian Jewish descent, will share their perspectives as well as stories of how their experiences have evolved in an America—now celebrating its 250th birthday—where Sephardic Jews were the first to settle but where Ashkenazi Jews have long comprised the overwhelming majority of the Jewish population.#Mazeldon #Jewish #Judaism #Sephardi #Mizrahi #JewishHistory #MENA #JewishWomen
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Random Reflections from the overnight of #ShavuotLive when I was passing between times of sleeping and being awake (hours #10-16)
1. Was Essau a vampire? What about the angel that wrestled with Jacob? - Not as crazy as it sounds, as Essau fell up on Jacob's neck when they reconciled and the angel had to go when the sun came up after the night of wrestling!
2. Some words are rolling in my head about games of chance, of how humans want to see divine messages in randomness. -
Random reflection from hour #7 of #ShavuotLive - Mazel M's program "GODHOLE THEORY: A Kabbalistic, Quantum, Classroom Cosmology" was crazy trippy. Zany. Provacative. I'm glad this was one was late, as I think I had more fun with it.
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Random reflections from hour #6 of #ShavuotLive from Judaism Unbound
This hour was by John Argaman on the topic of "Why do we need sermons" was excellent. The most important message he gave was an encouragement that religious communities should ask good questions about why they do sermons, and then give serious thought to how to change services and sermons to meet these goals.
I also agreed with several in the chat that discussed how that we wish that Jewish sermons looked more like sermons in non-white traditions, especially with providing opportunities for call-and-response, sponateous immediate responses, etc. -
Random reflections on Hour #4 of #ShavuotLive - This is a great shift in gears - to a study session about erotic Yiddish poetry written by and for women. The presenter is Arielle Stein.
My main take away is that everything is #Torah, even erotic literature. And if Torah is in Song of Songs, it can certainly be in Ginsberg's Howl, and it can most certainly be in erotic Yiddish poetry. -
(from last night)
Very random reflections from hour #3 of #shavuotlive
It is so helpful to hear Miriam speak with painful vulnerability about the weirdness of living in today's fascist dysopian reality.
This hit me hard because 2 hours ago I was at a local hispanic grocery store, buying some ingredients for a BBQ happening this weekend. They had all kinds of great food and as always I was given very friendly helpful service, by folks who are patient and kind with my espanol muy limitado. --- This store is still open thankfully, but the experience of being there has changed for many shoppers. A lot of folks come in fast, get what they want and leave quickly --- I assume some must fear being that being too long in a store that serves an immigrant community could make them vulnerable to ICE raids, and I assume that many folks aren't even making it to the store, but instead are shopping elsewhere or doing without.
And yet, it was for me an ordinary Friday afternoon. I was in zero danger of any problems, by the hands of either criminals (who are nearly non-existent these days) or law enforcement (because I'm white-appearing person). The worst thing that might happen is that I might order too much meat at the butcher shop thanks to my bad Spanish (this happened to me many years ago in Elkhart, Indiana when I miscommunicated that I wanted 3 kg rather than 3 lbs).
This disconnect of experience is really jarring to me, especially because I gave it little thought in the moment while I was leisurely and unhurriedly browsing the aisles at the market.Anyway thanks Miriam Terlinchamp for opening up this revelation for me.
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(from last night)
Random Reflections from hour #2 of #ShavuotLive
The experience of time and memory is so subjective. It is not fixed at all in our lived experience, which is amplified by some through being either neurodivergent or by having a mind-altering experience (such as that spurred by meditative pracitce or drug use).
Enjoying the peaceful evening. It's overcast here, cool and damp. #Oklahoma can be a nice place sometimes.
Also, it's not long until #Shabbat. -
Random reflections from hour 1 of #ShavuotLive
Presenter was @lexaphus
Wordplay is holy
YHWH is all breath sounds - so is God's name breath itself?
Shavuot is about 49 (49th day of the omer), which seems big to me as Im 49 years old but turning 50 soon (under the Jewish calendar, tomorrow, while under the secular calendar in early June). This feels important somehow.
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#ShavuotLive is starting in 1 hour and 20 minutes!!!!
24 hours of Unbound Torah learning via Zoom!!!
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Whether you’re learning late into the night or taking a quiet moment during the day, we’ve gathered resources to help you bring this sacred time into your own home. Here, you’ll find texts, teachings, and reflections shared by SVIVAH’s community. We invite you to learn in the ways that feel right to you. Join us virtually, or sit with a friend. Bring these resources to people you learn with, or let them spark something new. However you may be walking into Shavuot this year, know that you are with us.
Shavuot Resources: https://www.svivah.org/shavuot
Source Sheet plus Conversation Starters (google, unfortunately): https://drive.google.com/file/d/1T3LAI1KuednFz1eGDQsUMGlKIAocwdoi/view
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Reboot has compiled a guide to help you reimagine your Shavuot with a collection of content that can easily complement or supplement your traditional ritual experiences to personalize how you embrace this holiday season: https://rebooting.com/article/shavuot-guide/
n Schott's 'Round Midnight, he has slowed down Thelonious Monk's legendary composition of 'Round Midnight to eight hours, creating one of the most powerful musical pieces of our lifetime, an improvisational production steeped in Jewish stories and philosophy.
You can see an hour of his solo performance here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RfrWUUhZb4
...and part of his extraordinary 14 piece orchestra here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BxYv05wjJg
Support Reboot: https://rebooting.com/about-us/donate/
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Wine accessories central to Israeli homes despite global consumption decline
Global wine consumption fell to a 27-year low in 2025, according to research by the International Organization of Vine and Wine. Meanwhile, the wine cooler has moved from a niche product to a central product in Israeli h…
#dining #cooking #diet #food #Wine #art #Israel #Jewishholidays #judaism #Shavuot
https://www.diningandcooking.com/2649930/wine-accessories-central-to-israeli-homes-despite-global-consumption-decline/ -
JIMENA
Jews Indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa presentsThe Iranian Experience Webpage: http://jimenaexperience.org/iran/
Personal Stories of Jewish Refugees
Jewish History in Persia & Iran
Culture of Jewish Persia & Iran#Mazeldon #Judaism #Jewish #Mizrahi #Sephardi #MENA #JewishHistory
