It was on this day in the year 66 A.D. that the historian Josephus arrived to assume command of some insurgent Jewish forces in the Galilee and consequently save the local Jewish population from an attack by non-Jewish forces. Two months later, the official outbreak of the Jewish rebellion against the Romans began and it […]

Today is the 30th day of Adar, the last day of the first month, Adar and tomorrow will mark the beginning of the new month, Adar Shini, or Adar II. The beginning of the month, in Hebrew, is called Rosh Chodesh (“Head of the month”) and is typically every 28 to 30 days, depending on […]

It was on this day in the year 42 A.D. that King Agrippa began construction on a gate within the walls of Jerusalem. Six months later, the gate was dedicated and that day became an ancient holiday. If you ever traveled to Jerusalem, you have seen that there are several gates in the Old City. […]

It was on this day in 1891 that a petition was sent to President Benjamin Harrison that requested the aid of the U.S. government in the reestablishment of a sovereign Jewish state in the Holy Land. This petition was initiated by Reverend William E. Blackstone, and included the signatures of such notable people as J.P. […]

It was on this day in the year 1451 that Pope Nicholas the Fifth issued a bull banning all social interaction between Christians and Jews. His motivation for setting this boundary was a fear that Christians would become Judaized. Indeed, any Christian who converted to Judaism or who adopted what was considered to be “Jewish […]