Shows
Israel BeatEmperor in Exile: Haile Selassie in JerusalemWhen Italian fascists invaded Ethiopia, Haile Selassie (Ras Tafari) took refuge in the Land of Israel. Hear rare audio from him and his daughter Princess Tsehai and how the Jewish community helped the exiled emperor. Gideon Force, led by Orde Wingate and Jews from the Land of Israel helped return the king to his throne. Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky at benbresky.substack.com/subscribe
2026-03-1208 min
Israel BeatRockefeller Museum. A Little Known Jerusalem GemInterview with Eilat Lieber, director of the Tower of David Museum who spearheaded the move to reopen the Rockefeller post-Oct. 7th and share it’s splendor with the public.From ancient menorah symbols to statues of Egyptian pharaohs and carvings from the Temple Mount, this is a fascinating tour of a little-seen architectural gem. Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky at benbresky.substack.com/subscribe
2026-02-1213 min
Israel BeatTu Bishvat Special – Galilee Eco Center – Regenerative, Sustainable Agriculture CenterOn this Tu Bishvat special, meet Avi Friedman and Ariela Solomon as they talk about their inspiration for buying a tract of land in Israel’s north to revolutionize farming methods and teach a Jewish environmentally friendly way of connecting to the land of Israel and the people of Israel in modern times.Galilee Eco Center official website Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky at benbresky.substack.com/subscribe
2026-02-0218 min
Israel BeatHistory of Kfar Chabad - Israeli hasidic villageJoin me as I travel to the Hasidic village of Kfar Chabad where I visited the rebbe’s office in 770 and wrote a kvitel. Learn about the etrog trees, and the humble beginnings of the displaced persons from the shtetels turned Israeli farmers.NOTES:* Founding of Chabad - The Rebbe’s Capital City* This Man Knows His Citrus—His Etrog, to Be Exact - Chabad.org* Vintage (1961) documentary on Kfar Chabad * The quest for the perfect Etrog - Jerusalem Post* Kfar Chabad official website - about...
2026-01-2908 min
Israel BeatHistory of Ancient Beersheba and the Horned AltarThe ruins of ancient Beersheba attest to the importance of the city where Abraham lived. But the most intriguing artifact is the horned altar. This is one of the idolatrous “high places” King Hezekiah ordered torn down. Or was it King Josiah? Find out as we delve into the historical debate between Prof. Yohanan Aharoni, a refugee from warn-torn Germany and founder of the Tel Aviv University Institute of Archaeology, and IDF Chief of Staff Yigael Yadin, a war hero who went on to become a noted archeologist.NOTES:* The Horned Altar of Beer...
2025-11-0608 min
Israel BeatJewish Brigade – Rescuing Holocaust Survivors in Secret MissionsYael Driver is the editor of the new book Dance of the Fire: The Jewish Brigade in WW2: Facts, Myths, Appraisal, based on the memoir of her father Shlomo Shamir, covert commander of the Brigade. She sheds some light on little-known daring missions to rescue Holocaust Survivors following the Brigade’s fighting against the Axis Forces.She explains how these Jewish volunteers from the Land of Israel fought in the Italian campaign and stayed in war-torn Europe after the war ended to track down Holocaust survivors. Through the process of her supporting research she met no...
2025-10-2934 min
Israel BeatThe Land God Chose - Interview with Cynthia HannahInterview with Cynthia Hannah of the new online course, The Land God Chose: What the Bible ACTUALLY says about Israel. Cynthia has spent over a decade studying Hebrew Scriptures and the wisdom of Chassidic, Kabbalistic, and Torah masters in Jerusalem. But it was after October 7th that she felt a profound calling to create a course that would cut through media distortion and reveal what the Bible actually says about the Land of Israel—its eternal covenant with the Jewish people, and how God’s redemptive plan is unfolding through the events we see in the world today.Cy...
2025-10-2317 min
Israel BeatThe Incredible Story of a 300-Year-Old Jewish Businesswoman’s DiaryThe diary of Glikl Bas Leib of Hamburg, begun in the 1690s, holds invaluable historic insight into Jewish life in Europe. Meet Mat and Julie Tonti who are turning Glikl’s Yiddish writings into a graphic novel for modern readers. The husband-and-wife team discuss their journey to Germany where they visited Hamburg, Hamelin and other towns to investigate the life, love and loss of a woman whose experiences mirror our own today.Learn about the mysterious disappearance of Avraham Metz and Aaron Ben Moses and the brave woman determined to find their murderers, one of the many st...
2025-09-0420 min
Israel BeatMaccabi Tel Aviv’s Dramatic 1977 Victory Put Israel “On the Map”The underdogs of basketball defeated the Soviet team in a dramatic game that led to the championship. Meet Tal Brody, the American Jew who made Aliyah and led the team to victory when he uttered the now famous words, “we’re on the map, and we are staying on the map – not only in sports, but in everything.” The dramatic reaction of Israel beating the Russian Soviet Union Red Army team led to cheering Israeli fans dancing through the streets.Plus, coach Ralph Klein, the German-born Jew who survived the Nazi Holocaust and became a sports hero, Aulcie P...
2025-08-2113 min
Israel BeatThe Polish Rabbis Who Founded Bnei BrakThe Hasidic Jews who founded Bnei Brak on an empty plot of land near Tel Aviv in 1924 left their middle-class homes and businesses to fulfill their dream of living in the Land of Israel. Meet Rabbi Isaac Gerstenkorn, the city’s first mayor, who describes the struggles with Polish authorities, desert raiders, and the harsh winds which threatened to blow out the Shabbat candles. Learn about the city’s origins as Rabbi Akiva’s home in the Passover Haggadah to becoming a thriving city and center for yeshiva life.NOTES:* The Foundi...
2025-08-1412 min
Israel BeatThe Queen Has Fallen – A Gush Etzion Family’s Journey from Captivity to Music FestivalInterview with musician Yativ Leucher on the Aharit Hayamim festival a “Jewish indie rave festival” held every year in Gush Etzion. He tells the story of his grandparents who helped found Kibbutz Masuot Yitzhak and were taken hostage by the Jordanians during the War of Independence in 1948. His grandmother Rachel Doron was separated from her infant son when she stayed behind to broadcast “Malkah naflah” -- the queen has fallen, a code for the Kfar Etzion massacre, allowing others to escape.Today, the family hosts the annual Aharit Hayamim festival, which this year features Din Din Aviv...
2025-08-0609 min
Israel BeatDinosaur Footprints Near JerusalemLearn about the picturesque agricultural community of Beit Zayit, just north of Jerusalem, founded by hard working Jewish immigrants, one of whom discovered ancient fossilized dinosaur tracks.Learn about the struthiomimus, a two-legged dinosaur that once roamed the land. These are the only dinosaur track fossils discovered anywhere in Israel or the Middle East and one of the only such finds of this period in the entire world.Meet Prof. Moshe Avnimelech who moved to Israel to become a paleontologist after serving in the Polish army in World War I and forming a Zionist group...
2025-07-2406 min
Israel BeatShofar Adventures Around the WorldMeet Nili Salem, author of the new book Awesome Blast: 40 Days of Shofar Intentions, Soul-Healing, and Spiritual Return. She discusses the history of the ram’s horn in Jewish tradition and spiritual religious ritual. Plus her adventures as a Jewish educator in remote places including having her shofar confiscated by the authority in Peru, slaughtering a lamp with the Bene Efraim community of India, celebrating Passover seder with the Lemba tribe in Zimbabwe, and singing in Hebrew on an island in Indonesia.For more information visit: https://awesomeblastbook.com/andhttps://www.nilibsimcha.com/...
2025-07-1014 min
Israel BeatSeashell Lottery and the Founding of Tel AvivIsraeli’s flourishing metropolis had humble beginnings as a barren sand dune. Learn about the seashell lottery which started the first Hebrew city and the personalities that built it such as Akiva Aryeh Weiss of the Ahuzat Bayit association, Rabbi Yehuda Margusa who settled Jaffa, Jacobus Henricus Kann, the assimilated financier, Yosef Eliyahu Chelouche, the interpreter, Zerah Barnett, the yeshiva student turned entrepreneur, and more.This mix of men and women, Ashkenazic and Sephardic, joined to build a cosmopolitan, modern, democratic society over 110 years ago, that today is a hub of high-tech innovation.
2025-07-0609 min
Israel BeatBiblical Jewish Harps Make a Comeback in IsraelTravel with me to a picturesque harp workshop to meet the husband-and-wife team of Micah and Shoshanna Harrari who build hand-crafted wooden harps based on the Bible. Learn about the history of the ancient Megiddo lyre, King David’s harp, the secret of the Psalms and hear music from one of the 10-stringed instruments. Plus, the snow-storm story of how the Harraris ended up in Israel.For more information visit: https://www.harrariharps.com/ Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky at benbresky.substack.com/subscribe
2025-06-2530 min
Israel BeatJewish War Hero David “Mickey” Marcus and the Founding of IsraelCol. David “Mickey” Marcus gave his life defending Jerusalem during the War of Independence. Find out how a Jewish kid from the rough streets of Brooklyn ended up a West Point graduate and part of the D-Day invasion of Normandy in World War II.His work with Holocaust refugees inspired him to join the fledgling Israel Defense Force. The film Cast a Giant Shadow is based on his legacy, starring Kirk Douglas, who saw the role as a personal reflection.Plus, his work standing up to New York mobsters like Lucky Luciano.NOTES:
2025-06-0512 min
Israel BeatHow Garbage Pail Kids had a Lasting Impact on Israeli PoliticsDr. Ido Noy was an art historian specializing in medieval Jewish art. But when COVID-19 hit, he rediscovered his childhood passion for Garbage Pail Kids and found others who grew up in the 1980s felt the same. Released in Hebrew as Havurat HaZevel, this fad continues to have a lasting impact on Israeli politics in election campaigns satirizing politicians from both the right wing and left wing. The pop culture phenomenon led to multiple spin-offs from secular, religious Zionist and haredi communities with rabbi cards and more.Plus, learn about how Art Spiegelman, award-winning writer...
2025-05-2819 min
Israel BeatThe Man Who Saved Safed – Earthquakes, Kidnappings and Bat AyinInterview with Rabbi Mordechai Gershon on the first ever English translation of the seminal Hasidic work Bat Ayin. Find out how this forgotten treasure of Kabbalistic thought has grown in popularity in recent years. Today thousands attend the annual memorial of Rabbi Avraham Dov Ber Auerbach of Avritch (circa 1760 – 1840) who left a prominent career in Ukraine to return to the Land of Israel and live in Tzfat (Safed).Hear the story of how he survived the great Safed earthquake and then led the efforts to help the victims and rebuild the city. Also, his miraculous re...
2025-05-2221 min
Israel BeatHistory of Klezmer Music in IsraelInterview with living legend Moshe “Musa” Berlin on klezmer music from its roots in Ashkenazic Yiddish-speaking shtetels to its development at Lag BaOmer celebrations in Israel where it fused with Sephardic and Mediterranean traditions.The famous clarinetist talks about his childhood, life as a Jewish musician, his influences which include Shlomo Carlebach and Artie Shaw, and thoughts on modern Hasidic music in Israel.NOTES:* Mussa Berlin official website* The Klezmer Tradition in the Land of Israel - Hebrew UniversityCheck out my previous podcast: History of Lag BaOmer in Mero...
2025-05-1518 min
Israel BeatHistory of Israeli Fighter JetsThe history of Israeli fighter jets starting with the Nesher, which was developed because France imposed an embargo on sending Israel the Dassault Mirage during the Six Day War. Learn about Holocaust survivor Marcel Dassault, the secret blueprints provided by a Swiss ally, and the innovative weapons developed by the Jewish State.Then there was the Kfir, the state-of-the-art plane of the 1970s pioneered by Air Force hero Benny Peled. And finally, the cutting edge Lavi, which promised to revolutionize the Israeli aircraft industry, until it was cancelled. Find out why, and listen to rare audio from...
2025-04-3010 min
Israel BeatGender, Passover and Jewish text in the HaggadahThis is a classic interview from 2004 with Leona S. Green, author of the New Traditional Egalitarian Haggadah which adheres to the authentic Jewish text while making it inclusive for all to enjoy the seder. Learn about her Orthodox upbringing from immigrant parents, her involvement with Zionism, and how a father’s love for his daughter inspired her create this unique and user-friendly Haggadah.Notes:* The New Traditional Egalitarian Haggadah* Charlotte Gould - celebrated artist whose paintings appear in the Haggadah. Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast wi...
2025-04-1513 min
Israel BeatPassover Memories – An Oral HistoryThank you to the following people who sent in their Pesach reminiscences of seder nights from their youth which range diverse Ashkenazic and Sephardic traditions from Jewish communities around the world. Learn about food, songs, and fond family memories from the festival of freedom.* Batya from Poland* Toby from Ohio* Rachel from Romania* Dov from Jerusalem* Suzi from Bulgaria* Yadidya* Shirley and Paul from Cleveland* Eitan from the Soviet Union* Lauren from Canada* Nili from Los Angeles...
2025-04-0825 min
Israel BeatThe Titanic, the Straus Brothers and JerusalemAlthough I have never seen the film Titanic, I have been to the Straus Medical Center in Jerusalem which has been treating people since the 1920s. As we approach the 113th anniversary of the Titanic disaster, I explore the lives of Isidor and Ida Straus, who gave up their space on the lifeboat to save others, and Nathan and Lina Straus who saved countless lives through their milk pasteurization project and philanthropy in Jerusalem.Learn about the struggle of Lazarus and Sarah Straus, who left Germany for a better life in the United States, lost everything in...
2025-04-0210 min
Israel BeatJudah Bibas, Forgotten Precursor to Zionism HonoredRabbi Judah Bibas predated Theodor Herzl and the Zionist movement by decades. In recent years his teachings on Jewish autonomy and self-determination have received the attention lacking for so many years. Hear what a Scottish church minister thought when meeting him in 1839 and his influence on Rabbi Yehuda Alkalai and other forerunners to the creation of the State of Israel.Learn of the desecration of the Hebron cemetery and how the exact location of the tombstone of Rabbi Bibas was lost for decades until this month when an elderly Hebron native and new aerial photos solved the...
2025-03-2710 min
Israel BeatIsrael in Eurovision: A RetrospectiveThe Eurovision Song Contest was won by Israel four times and has been hosted in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. Find out the inside story of such classic songs as Hallelujah, A-Ba-Ni-Bi, Happy Birthday, and the Hebrew singers who graced the stage. Plus, countries that attempted to boycott Israel and lost. Learn about the new inspiring performers such as Eden Golan and this year’s contestant Yuval Raphael, a survivor of the October 7th massacres.Dana International, Netta Barzilai, Gali Atari, Izhar Cohen, Ehud Manor, Eddie Butler, Eden, Teapacks and more are discussed in this special po...
2025-03-1910 min
Israel BeatThe Inspiring Women Who Founded Hadassah HospitalThe history of the Hadassah Women's Zionist Organization and how they started hospitals, medical schools and infant care centers in Israel. Learn about Henrietta Szold, whose trip to Israel revealed the shockingly limited medical facilities. She went on to spearhead countless projects such as creating the first nursing school in Israel and youth villages for war refugees.Bertha Landsman founded Tipat Halav, which began delivering milk on donkeys and today serves new parents and babies throughout the country.Alice Seligsberg was a pioneering social worker who served as Hadassah’s president, helped orphans and was th...
2025-03-1210 min
Israel BeatSka, Reggae and Jewish Music with King DjangoIn 2004 I had the opportunity to interview King Django who discusses his album Roots and Culture which include a song about his grandfather’s experiences during the Holocaust and original Yiddish compositions. He discusses his youth in Brooklyn, getting into reggae and ska, and how a trip to KlezKamp, the Klezmatics, novelist Michael Wex and more inspired his music. This interview is one of the many oldies I am uploading for posterity. Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky at benbresky.substack.com/subscribe
2025-03-0212 min
Israel BeatEinstein on Zionism, Hebrew University and IsraelNobel Prize winning physicist Albert Einstein, famous for his Theory of Relativity, helped found Hebrew University of Jerusalem and was an ardent supporter of the Zionist movement. Learn how he was befriended by fellow scientist Dr. Chaim Weizmann and was tapped to be Israel’s president. Hear rare audio from Einstein on his stance on Israel, the Nazis, the Holocaust and more.Today, visitors to Jerusalem can see the official Albert Einstein Archive and in the Technion in Haifa, a tree still stands planted by Einstein in 1923. In the second row, fr. A. Se...
2025-02-2616 min
Israel BeatJazz Legend Arnie Lawrence live performanceIn 2005 I had the opportunity to interview the late, great Arnie Lawrence, teacher to countless musicians in Jerusalem. I met him at the Artel jazz club where he regularly performed, thinking this would be a simple interview about his days in Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show band, founding the New School jazz program in New York and how he ended up in Israel. It turned into a 2-hour live performance in which he brought ten musicians into the studio, from Russian immigrants to yeshiva students.He and his diverse students crammed into the studio with sax, flute, vi...
2025-02-231h 22
Israel BeatChaim Weizmann, Scientist and StatesmanBorn in a small Russian shtetel, Chaim Weizmann grew up to develop important scientific breakthroughs, defended the Jewish people at the United Nations, and led the Zionist movement. Learn about the creation of the Weizmann Institute of Science and the development of acetone–butanol–ethanol fermentation (the Weizmann Process). This week marks the 76 anniversary of his inauguration as the first president of the State of Israel. Hear Dr. Weizmann in his own words with rare audio and recordings. NOTES:* Trial and error: The Autobiography of Chaim Weizmann* The Impossible Takes Longer: The...
2025-02-1911 min
Israel BeatJerusalem’s Transformation from Quaint to High-RiseAward-winning architect David Kroyanker talks about his new book Jerusalem That Once Was: A Personal Perspective and discusses the historic gems that once stood in Israel’s capital city. Learn how he helped save the iconic clock tower of the Talitha Kumi orphanage which stood from 1873 until it was demolished in 1980 to build a department store.And what does this author of over 30 books on architecture think of modern Jerusalem? The new high-rise towers? The light-rail construction? The Zionist pioneers who built the suburbs? Did David Ben-Gurion really want the Old City walls torn down after the Si...
2025-02-0608 min
Israel BeatHow a Holocaust Survivor Inspired Today’s RabbisThe stories of how Rabbi Yisroel Zev Gustman survived World War II and reestablished the Netzach Yisrael yeshiva in Jerusalem have inspired the new generation of Israeli rabbis. Meet Rabbi Kalman Flaks of the Simcha Center who teaches at Netzach as he shares stories of Rabbi Gutman’s miraculous and inspiring life.A licensed tour-guide and IDF reserve soldier, Rabbi Kalman (Keith) Flaks explains the history of the Ramailes Yeshiva in the once thriving Jewish community of Vilna. Rabbi Yisroel Zev Gustman was the last great rabbi of Vilna before the Holocaust. He was helped Jews escape th...
2025-01-2912 min
Israel BeatThe UN, Zionism and RacismIsrael once honored the United Nations resolution of 1947 which was seen as a victory for the Zionist Movement. But in 1975, led by the Soviet Union and the Arab League, the UN voted to condemn Zionism as a form of racism. It resulted in rallies, protests and the renaming of UN Street to Zionism Street.Hear the voices of those who defended Zionism as a Jewish liberation movement including:* Jerusalem mayor Teddy Kollek, who renamed Rehov HaUm as Rehov HaZionut.* Israeli Ambassador to the UN Chaim Herzog, who tore up a copy of the...
2025-01-2218 min
Israel BeatRebuilding the Hurva Synagogue and Jerusalem’s Old CityEvery day Meir Eisenman would watch the reconstruction of the Hurva Synagogue which his great-great grandfather Rabbi Avraham Shlomo Zalman Zoref helped fund over 200 years ago. A licensed tour guide, Meir explains the history of the Perushim, the students of the Vilna Gaon, who left Lithuania to rebuild the Jewish community of Jerusalem. They sought to reconstruct the Hurva, or ruined courtyard, where once stood the grand synagogue of Judah HeHasid which was destroyed in 1720.In 1864 it was rebuilt to be an iconic community center for the Jews of Jerusalem. It was destroyed...
2025-01-1513 min
Israel BeatYemenite Aliyah - From the Desert to Israel on Iron Eagles WingsThe story of Operation Magic Carpet / Operation Wings of Eagles which airlifted tens of thousands of Jews from Yemen to Israel during the War of Independence.Hear from journalist Ruth Gruber about the dedication of the ancient Jewish community of Yemen who faced starvation and persecution and trekked across the desert to be airlifted to the promised land. Learn about the American pilots such as Warren Metzger and Elgen Long who flew non-stop over enemy territory to rescue the refugees who had never before seen an airplane. Find out how they modified the aircraft to...
2025-01-0814 min
Israel BeatInterview with Ethiopian Chief Rabbi on History of SigdInterviews from the Sigd festival at the Tayelet promenade in Jerusalem on the Jewish Ethiopian community and its traditions.Featuring:* Ethiopian Chief Rabbi Yosef Hadane* Chief Kes Raphael Hadane* Shoshana Ben-Dor, Israel director of the North American Conference on Ethiopian Jewry* Lior, an assistant to researcher Dr. Yossi Ziv, author of Festival and Holiday in the Ethiopian Jewish Tradition of Beta Israel* Dr. Avraham Neguise of the South Wing to Zion organization* Aviv Melese, musician and author of Circles of Life – From Ethiopia to Israel...
2024-12-2542 min
Israel BeatAmerican Volunteers Inspire and Get Inspired in IsraelA group of Jewish American volunteers from Park Synagogue in Cleveland, Ohio visited Israel to work on farms, cook meals, visit communities affected by the war and listen to the stories of those who survived the October 7th terrorist attacks. Hear the inspiring stories of how Israelis and American Jews supported each other during difficult times during this life-changing trip. Interviews include: Rabbi Sharon Marcus, Paula Herman, Miriam Rose, Sandi Horwitz, and Scott Jacobson. Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky at benbresky.substack.com/subscribe
2024-12-1613 min
Israel BeatHow Zionist artists explored their Jewish identityJewish artists in the Zionist movement sought to revive both the Jewish State and Jewish culture. Meet E. M. Lilien, who befriended Herzl and depicted the merger of ancient and modern, Boris Shatz, who metaphorically met the Bezalel of the Bible, Ze’ev Raban, who drew the now ironic Visit Palestine posters, Abel Pann, who re-envisioned the Patriarchs and Matriarchs as exotic Mediterranean figures, Moshe Castel whose Hebron roots inspired him, Yudel Pen, the father of the Jewish Renaissance, and Marc Chagall, whose imagined new interpretations of the prophets.Plus, non-Jewish artists whose works could be...
2024-12-0511 min
Israel BeatRobert F. Kennedy and the Founding of IsraelA young Robert F. Kennedy describes first-hand the tense final days of the British Mandate of Palestine, the Arab preparations for war and the tenacity of the underequipped Jewish fighters seeking an independent Israel in 1948.“Jews Make Up for Lack of Arms with Undying Spirit, Unparalleled Courage” reads a headline from the Boston Post in a series of Kennedy articles that were lost for decades until being uploaded online in 1998. Hear about his close-calls in the days leading up to Israel’s War of Independence.Plus, the tragic assassination of Senator Kennedy by an Arab nation...
2024-11-2019 min
Israel BeatIsrael’s Oldest Reserve Soldier Praises Today’s YouthEzra Yakhin, author of the book Elnakam, talks about what it’s like to tell young Israel Defense Force soldiers about his life experiences from the days of the Jewish underground to the War of Independence in 1948. What is the reaction of youth who grew up with smart phones to a 96-year-old who grew up when most didn’t even have phones at home and the British still ruled the Land of Israel? Ezra says today’s youth are modern Maccabees, the brightest and most dedicated he has seen with motivated, inspired volunteers being the norm. He says spirit and lo...
2024-11-1313 min
Israel BeatCan the Chief Rabbi Shake a Woman’s Hand?Noted author Dr. Alan Unterman is interviewed about his famous uncle Chief Rabbi Isser Yehuda Unterman who stressed being kind and understanding as much as being loyal to Torah values. Hear about the controversies of the day when the State of Israel was founded and how the Zionist movement had to deal with Jewish religious issues for the first time.- What happens when a woman holds out her hand for the rabbi to shake?- How does one deal with losing an election for Chief Rabbi?- Does a rabbi hold a grudge when publicly embarrassed...
2024-11-0719 min
Israel BeatIsrael Strikes Iraqi Nuclear ReactorThe Israeli pilots who flew non-stop to Iraq to take out the Osiraq nuclear reactor felt they were doing it to prevent another Holocaust. Learn about the international condemnation Israel faced at the United Nations as well as the many who later thanked Israel for preventing Iraq from going nuclear. Hear from Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin, United States Secretary of State Alexander Haig, and others on the dramatic strike.Don’t forget to listen to the special Gulf War episode: Purim & the Gulf War – An Oral HistoryNOTES:* Israeli Planes Destroy Iraq Nucl...
2024-10-3009 min
Israel BeatHow I almost got arrested in UmanIn 2016 I visited Uman, Ukraine for the holiday of Rosh Hashanah and learned a great deal about this historic Jewish community and the famous rabbi who inspired generations with his songs and tales. Hear about the battle of Uman in the 1790s and how the tomb of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov was saved from being turned into a 9-story apartment building by the Soviet Union. Plus, a personal story of how I found my own name and almost got arrested for it.NOTES:* When a rabbi's grave became the site of an international incident...
2024-10-1007 min
Israel BeatS. Y. Agnon, Israel’s first Nobel Prize WinnerHebrew writer S. Y. Agnon became Israel’s first Nobel Prize laureate in 1966. In this special interview, Rabbi Jeffrey Saks, Director of Research at the Beit Agnon heritage center in Jerusalem, talks about this historic event, and his dramatic acceptance speech steeped in Jewish tradition. Plus, Agnon’s best-seller, Days of Awe, a compendium of High Holiday wisdom.NOTES* Beit Agnon center and museum in Jerusalem * WebYeshiva, directed by Rabbi Jeffrey Saks* Agnon Receives Nobel Prize - Israeli news, 1966* Shmuel Agnon Banquet speech, full text - official Nobel Prize site...
2024-10-0218 min
Israel BeatFrom Militant Zionist to Music Festival PioneerAaron Zvi Propes was the first member of Betar and a loyal follower of controversial Zionist leader Zev Jabotinsky. While his comrades like Menachem Begin went on to politics, he founded music festivals, including the Israel Festival which is taking place this week. Learn about how as a teen, Propes and his Jewish Latvian high school friend coaxed Jabotinsky out of retirement and into inspiring generations of young Zionists. Plus, the early days of the Zimriya World Choir festival, the International Harp Contest, and the reconstruction of the 2,000-year-old Roman theater in Caesarea all of which Propes initiated.
2024-09-2508 min
Israel BeatTop 5 Amazing Jewish / Israeli Board GamesThe World Rummikub Championships took place this month and to celebrate we look at some great Israeli / Jewish board games.1. Rummikub – Created by Ephraim Hertzano, who left Communist Romania to create the tile game in his Israeli home.2. Guess Who? Created by husband and wife team Theo and Ora Coster. Theo survived the Holocaust and was a classmate of Anne Frank. Hear excerpts from his book about her.3. Aliyah – The Jewish trivia game created by American Jewish Sunday School teacher Sallie Abelson.4. Juden Raus! – A German Nazi era game. Whoever sends the most Jews to Palestine...
2024-09-1209 min
Israel BeatThe First Hebrew Science Fiction BookElhanan Leib Lewinsky wrote the first sci-fi book in Hebrew in 1892 called Journey to the Land of Israel in the Year 5800. Find out how much of his futuristic vision came true. Would Lewinsky love Levinsky market in Tel Aviv which is named after him? Will Jerusalem’s Mount of Olives get an astronomical observatory as described in his book? Find out as we go back to the future and learn about the man who pre-dated Theodor Herzl’s Altneuland in envisioning a utopian Hebrew-speaking independent Jewish State.Thank you to tour guide Rachel Lazar who specializes in Tel...
2024-09-0407 min
Israel BeatWhen Israel Rescued Vietnamese RefugeesThe story of the Vietnam Boat People who were rescued in the late 1970s. Learn about the reaction of Israeli officials like Menachem Begin who compared them to Jews fleeing the Holocaust and how the Vietnamese felt arriving to a country they never heard of before.NOTES:* 35 years on, where are Israel’s Vietnamese refugees? - Times of Israel* 45 years on, Vietnamese refugees are still writing their story in Israel - JNS News* Israel and the boat people - Jewish Policy Center* Vietnamese Refugees Arrive in Israel, 1977 - JTA...
2024-08-2808 min
Israel BeatDesert Miracle – History of Gush Katif, the Jewish communities of GazaFor about 30 years, Gush Katif was a miracle in the desert where Jewish agricultural towns grew bug-free lettuce, cherry tomatoes and developed thriving communities with innovative, organic farming techniques. Join Avner Franklin of the Gush Katif Museum as he takes us on a journey from the 1970s when Golda Meir, Ariel Sharon and Yitzhak Rabin developed the Five Finger Plan to develop Israeli Gaza. Over the next several decades, barren deserts were turned into lush, green farmland and tourists flocked to the white sand beaches of Hotel Neve Dekalim. It was just a short drive from Ashkelon through Gaza...
2024-08-2118 min
Israel BeatGeorge Eliot, Jewish Identity and ZionismGeorge Eliot was neither Jewish, nor religious, but her 1876 novel Daniel Deronda influenced many Jewish leaders to become Zionists and seek the repatriation of the Jews to the Land of Israel. Learn about Eliot’s relationship to Emanuel Deutsch, the Jewish scholar who taught her Hebrew and about the reaction of Victorian-era England to the celebrated writer’s unusual subject matter for the time. Included are sound bytes from rare adaptations of the novel.Will Gwendolen escape her abusive husband and marry Daniel? Or will Daniel marry Mirah, who is also being courted by his best friend Hans...
2024-08-1412 min
Israel BeatSecrets of Jerusalem's National Institutions BuildingJoin me on a tour of the National Institutions building in Jerusalem with Eitan Behar of the World Zionist Organization as he shows us the secret chambers where Jews hid weapons to prevent them from being confiscated by the British as the War of Independence loomed close. Learn about the deadly terrorist attack in 1948 which injured the parents of today’s Israeli President Isaac Herzog and the dramatic stories of this historic landmark that served as a center for Israel’s critical decisions.Plus, vintage news reels from the watershed United Nations vote of November 29, 1947 and the reac...
2024-08-0815 min
Israel BeatJewish Olympics - History of the Maccabiah GamesJewish athletes were discriminated against in Europe, so in the late 1800s they created their own sports clubs which grew into the Maccabiah Games, an international competition held in the Land of Israel, despite British opposition. Learn about Zionist leader Max Nordau’s “Muskeljuden” or Muscular Jews, and Yosef Yekutieli who created what was called the “Jewish Olympics” during a time when the Nazis were gaining strength. Find out about the Jewish motorcycle club involved in a riot against the Anti-Semitic National Democratic Party in Poland, and the men and women who escaped the Holocaust to participate in the Jewish spo...
2024-07-3112 min
Israel BeatLegends of the Ohr HaChaim, from Morocco to JerusalemRabbi Chaim ibn Attar, author of the seminal work on Torah, the Ohr HaChaim led the Jewish community in Morocco. Learn about the difficulties the community faced including the tale of how he survived being thrown into a pit of lions. He led a group to make Aliyah to the Land of Israel in the mid 1700s and founded a yeshiva in Jerusalem which still stands to this day.Find out about how his writings influenced the Baal Shem Tov and the growing Hasidic movement and why the Ohr HaChaim is still revered 281 years after his passing.
2024-07-2509 min
Israel BeatWas Mark Twain Anti-Semitic or Philo-Semitic?Famous American writer Mark Twain visited the Land of Israel in the 1860s and found “its soil rich enough” but “a silent, mournful expanse.” Were his words insulting, or simply the reality of Ottoman-era Palestine? Compare his biting wit to that of a writer of the same period whom Twain mocked: William Cowper Prime, who poetically praises the Holy Land. Plus, Mark Twain’s classic essay Concerning the Jews in which he discusses Herzl and marvels over the secret of Jewish immortality. Learn about the anti-Semitic European parliament meeting that prompted it. Also, the story of Mark Tw...
2024-07-1818 min
Israel BeatAudio Bible - Psalms: Book 1: Chapters 1 - 41This is from the audio Bible project I worked on. I read the Book of Psalms in its entirely. This is Book 1, chapters 1 - 41. I tried to pronounce all the Hebrew names and terms as they would be in Hebrew as opposed to their common English translation i.e. Daveed instead of David. Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky at benbresky.substack.com/subscribe
2024-07-111h 28
Israel BeatThe Story of WEIZAC, Israel’s First ComputerIn the 1950s, the pioneers at the Weizmann Institute of Science built WEIZAC, a groundbreaking computer that launched Israel’s high-tech industry. Learn about Dr. Chaim Pekeris who had to convince Albert Einstein and Robert Oppenheimer of the idea, the immigrant-run bicycle repair shop that supplied the material, and how Shimon Peres found a way to have the computer run seven days a week without breaking Shabbat. Plus, Israel’s second computer, the Golem, the powerful, silent machine that revolutionized the field. Hear from engineers Gerald and Thelma Estrin, Prof. Aviezri Fraenkel and how the writer Gershom Scholem poetically comp...
2024-07-0510 min
Israel BeatThe Truth about the Golem and the Maharal of PragueThe Golem is a legendary creature made of clay who comes to life through holy Hebrew words to protect the persecuted Jewish villagers. Learn the true history of Rabbi Yehuda Loew ben Bezalel, the Maharal of Prague who befriended Emperor Rudolph II, Johannes Kepler and whose Kabbalistic spiritual teachings are still studied 400 years later. Plus learn about Rabbi Eliyahu Baal Shem, credited with creating the first Golem, silent, lumbering and super-strong, who turns on his master. Also, the dramatic true story of the Israeli community of Kerem Maharal, named after the famed rabbi and created...
2024-06-2710 min
Israel BeatHistory of the Jewish Community of Rafah in GazaLearn about the thriving Jewish community in Rafah during the Byzantine era, the attempt to establish a modern community and the detention of over 1,000 Jews by the British during Black Sabbath (Operation Agatha). Plus, the success of Kfar Darom, a kibbutz in Gaza populated by Holocaust refugees in the 1940s and Moshe Smilansky, the peace activist who purchased the land. Hear about their idealistic life, a dramatic Gazan Passover seder under Egyptian gunfire and their eventual evacuation.NOTES;* 222: The Days of Kfar Darom 1948 : The Height of Bravery in Israel’s Wars by Aryeh It...
2024-06-2016 min
Israel BeatWhy I Don’t Like Cheesecake – A Shavuot podcast with special guest Joel HaberIn his most personal podcast reveal ever, Ben Bresky shares the shocking truth about his dislike for the traditional Jewish Shavuot delicacy of cheesecake. He interviews Jewish and Israeli food connoisseur Joel Haber, licensed tour guide and host of the 18 Jewish Foods podcast about how cheesecake and dairy food came to be associated with the Shavuot holiday. Learn about Arnold Reuben, the New York deli owner sometimes credited with creating “Jewish cheesecake,” frozen cheesecake by Sara Lee, and the Bikkuim (First Fruit) parades that used to be held on Shavuot by the kibbutz and moshav Zionist pioneers to celebrate the...
2024-06-1109 min
Israel BeatThe Story of the Song “Jerusalem of Gold”Shuly Nathan and a young amateur singer in the Israel Defense Forces was almost rejected from performing at the Israel Song Festival, but songwriter Naomi Shemer insisted that this young IDF soldier be the one to debut her now classic anthem, performed just weeks before the dramatic victory of the Six Day War in 1967. Hear Shuly in her own words describe her life and learn the back-story of how the song became one of the most well known modern Hebrew anthems. Plus, authentic audio from the battlefield as soldiers recite Jewish prayers and spontaneously sing Jerusalem of Gold as...
2024-06-0411 min
Israel BeatHistory of Lag BaOmer in MeronLearn about the “fiery and passionate merriment” of the Jewish festival of Lag BaOmer in Meron as described by Rabbi Hayyim Vital in the 16th century, Haym Zvi Sneersohn in the 19th century and today in the 21st century State of Israel. Not much has changed. Plus, the biography of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, the Kabbalist who hid from the Romans and inspired generations of Torah scholars. Also, the history of modern Meron, which was liberated in the War of Independence after being used to shoot rockets into Tzfat.Notes:* Jewish holi...
2024-05-2914 min
Israel BeatFlying Camels and Clandestine Pilots - The History of Israeli AviationIsraeli civilian aviation had humble beginnings as the Flying Camel Club, to the respected El Al airline of today. Learn about the French daredevil who became the first person to land in Israel, the tragedy of moshav Atarot, and how an American Jewish WWII vet snuck airplanes into beleaguered Israel during the War of Independence.NOTES:* From Flying Camels to Flying Stars: Israel Reborn - Israel Airline Museum* Shir El Al - music, Hanan Yovel, words, Zev Jabotinsky* A Wing and a Prayer - Putting Nazi Weapons in Jewish Hands
2024-05-2307 min
Israel BeatThe Jewish Refugee Musicians who Created the Palestine OrchestraThe Israel Philharmonic Orchestra started as the Palestine Symphony Orchestra when violinist Bronisław Huberman took Jewish musicians fired from their jobs by the Nazis and brought them to the Land of Israel. Learn about classical music during wartime including the dramatic Isaac Stern performance during a Gulf War Iraqi missile attack as the audience donned gas masks.Plus the stories of composer Paul Ben-Haim, pianist Pnina Salzman, conductor Zubin Mehta and a young Leonard Bernstein.NOTES:* The Palestine Orchestra - Central Zionist Archives rare photos* The Israel Symphony Orchestra - J...
2024-05-0906 min
Israel BeatPinhas Rutenberg - from Scowling Socialist to Zionist Hydro-Power VisionaryThe Israel Electric Corporation didn’t just build itself, it was the brainchild of the scowling ex-Socialist Pinhas Rutenberg. After almost getting shot in the Bloody Sunday massacre of 1905, he gravitated to Zionism, Zev Jabotinsky, and eventually building a hydro-electric station on the banks of the Jordan river. Learn about the humble beginnings of Palestine Electric Company and the First Jordan Hydro-Electric Power House in Naharayim.NOTES:* Hydro-electric development of Palestine : the Rutenberg project : detailed prospectus - 1922. Full text* History of the Israel Electric Corporation - IEC website* Forgotten Biography of th...
2024-05-0208 min
Israel BeatJewish Man Falsely Accused in Blood Libel Moves to IsraelMendel Beilis was falsely accused of murder in a sensational 1913 Russian blood libel trial. After his not-guilty verdict he moved to the land of Israel and visited the Western Wall and Temple Mount. “I saw for the first time a race of proud, uncringing Jews, who lived life openly and unafraid,” wrote Beilis. Learn about his dramatic murder trial in which the matzah, afikoman and other Passover traditions were successfully defended against the slander of the Czarist Empire and the Black Hundreds and hear about the simple Russian peasants who refused to condemn an innocent man.NO...
2024-04-1814 min
Israel BeatA Jewish homeland in Palestine or New York?Mordechai Manuel Noah was a prominent Jewish-American who advocated creating a Jewish State in the Land of Israel. But in the interim, he created Ararat, City of Refuge in New York State. Thousands attended the inauguration but no one actually moved there. The Ararat cornerstone can be seen today at the Buffalo History Museum. Learn about this fascinating figure and hear in his own words his passion to see the Jewish people return to their indigenous homeland decades before the modern Zionist movement came into prominence. NOTES:* Ararat City of Refuge exhibit - Jewish Buffalo...
2024-04-1010 min
Israel BeatMan Goes on Trial for Insanity after Converting to JudaismIn 1844 Warder Cresson, born a Philadelphia Quaker, became the first United States Consul to Jerusalem. While there, he fell in love with the Jewish faith and promoted the return of Jews to the land of Israel. Upon his return his family sued him for his estate claiming he was a lunatic for converting to Judaism. The trial was called a fight for American religious freedom. Upon his return to Jerusalem, Cresson remarried and continued his proto-Zionist activity. Hear Warder Cresson in his own words, news coverage of the trial and his connection to Moby Dick author Herman Melville and...
2024-04-0412 min
Israel BeatHistory of Shaare Zedek Hospital and its foundersDr. Moshe Wallach was strict with his own Jewish observance and strict with the staff and maintenance of the Shaare Zedek hospital, which opened in 1902, a 20-minute donkey ride from the Old City of Jerusalem. Hear stories of this colorful Jerusalem character, who ran the hospital for 45 years and of head nurse Schwester Selma Mayer whose kindness was as legendary as her dedication. NOTES:* My Life and Experiences at Shaare Zedek by Schwester Selma * Saints Among Us - Time Magazine, 1975* HaAchot Selma - Central Zionist...
2024-03-2811 min
Israel BeatPurim & the Gulf War – An Oral HistoryThe Jewish holiday of Purim celebrated the defeat of the wicked Haman and the victory of Esther and Mordechai. Back in 1991, Saddam Hussein of Iraq shot Scud missiles into Israel. The Gulf War ended on Purim and the similarities were not lost on those who lived through the gas masks, safe rooms, and rocket attacks. Hear from those who lived through it in their own words in this special Purim podcast.Thank you to the participants who appear in the following order:* Reb Yankala Shemesh* Haim Roman* Mordechai Fisher...
2024-03-2013 min
Israel BeatHow a 12-year-old girl became the first person to explore the Cave of MachpelaHebron’s ancient Tomb of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs was banned for Jews to enter for 700 years. But after Israel’s stunning victory in the Six Day War, General Moshe Dayan was determined to explore it. The only person small enough to fit inside the opening was 12-year-old Michal Arbel. Hear her description of this extraordinary exploration and the mysteries hidden below.NOTES:* Living with the Bible by Moshe Dayan, 1978. * Written on the Dog's Skin: On the perception of the work in S. Y. Agnon by Michal Arbel* Times of Change: Jewi...
2024-03-1310 min
Israel BeatHow Max Nordau Switched from Assimilationist to ZionistDr. Max Nordau helped Theodor Herzl found the Zionist Congress. Despite his secular background he was inspired by the words “VeShavu Banim l'Gvulam – Our children will return to their borders.” Hear Nordau in his own words describe how he was swayed to the Zionist cause and seek a homeland of Jews in the Land of Israel.NOTES:* Address by Max Nordau at the First Zionist Congress* Max Nordau biography - Jewish Virtual Library* Max Nordau: A Man of Vision and Obscure Legacy* Rachel and the power of prayer* V...
2024-03-0707 min
Israel BeatHow Rachel's Tomb inspired Lady Judith MontefioreFor generations, Rachel’s Tomb (Kever Rochel) has attracted Jewish women for prayer and blessing. One of these was Lady Judith Montefiore, a British philanthropist who funded the rebuilding of the site after it was damaged in the 1837 earthquake. Hear here eloquent, poetic descriptions of the Land of Israel’s beauty and why the Tomb of Rachel inspired her. Plus, learn beauty tips and recipes from lady Judith’s Jewish Manual, the first Jewish kosher cookbook in English.NOTES:* Rachel Weeping by Frederick M. Strickert* Judith Montefiore biography - Jewish Women’s Archiv...
2024-02-2908 min
Israel BeatThe Yiddish Cowboys of ArgentinaThe Jewish farmers who escaped the pogroms in Eastern Europe and Russia rebuilt their lives in Latin America. Learn about Baron Maurice de Hirsch and the Jewish Colonisation Association, his connection to Theodor Herzl and the once thriving town of Moisés Ville. Hear excerpts from Alberto Gerchunoff’s famous book Los Gauchos Judíos (The Jewish Gauchos of the Pampas).Thank you to Kehila Latina. NOTES:* Kehila Latina community Jerusalem - Facebook page* Kehila Latina: Bringing Jerusalem's Latino immigrants together - Jerusalem Post* Moisés Ville wants to be a...
2024-02-2206 min
Israel BeatA Blessing for Israel’s First Elections in 1949Many recited blessings when they voted for the first time in an independent, democratic Jewish State in 1949. Hear memories of the exciting days of Israel’s first elections amid war and learn about the colorful candidates including Rachel Cohen-Kagan of WIZO, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, Amin-Salim Jarjora, the Christan-Arab mayor of Nazareth, former militant Lechi fighter Nathan Yellin-Mor, Rabbi Yehuda Leib Maimon who was arrested by the British for Zionism, Zecharia Glosca of the Association of Yemenis in Israel and a moving memoir by Rabbi Moshe Yekutiel Alpert who wore his Shabbat best to the polling bo...
2024-02-1410 min
Israel BeatThe Hidden Cemetery of Jerusalem’s Gan Sacher and the victory of the Six Day WarThe Jerusalem park called Gan Sacher attracts picnic-goers, athletes, and families but back in 1967 it was the planned site of a cemetery for the projected mass casualties of the invading Arab armies. But Israel’s lighting victory in the Six Day War meant a large cemetery was not necessary. Learn about Harry Sacher, the Zionist philanthropist for whom the site is named who helped draft the Balfour Declaration which declared Palestine as a Jewish homeland. Also learn about the little-known cemetery from 1948, above Gan Sacher, created when the Jordanians occupied the Mount of Olives. Today, people still vi...
2024-02-0804 min
Israel BeatMiracle of Moroccan AliyahDavid Littman never knew his job helping Jewish children in Morocco was part of a secret illegal immigration mission called Operation Mural. He was one of the many who risked their lives helping Jews leave move to Israel after the Moroccan government banned aliyah. Another hero is Yehudit Yehezkeli Galili, a member of the Misgeret, a Jewish underground that ran self defense units and helped Operation Yachin in which tens of thousands of Moroccan Jews escaped persecution for a better life in the holy land. Learn about the 1948 Anti-Jewish riots in Oujda and Jerada, the Bloody Days...
2024-02-0110 min
Israel BeatTu Bishvat Special: History of Israeli Drip IrrigationTu Bishvat is the new year for the trees and Israel is a pioneer in creating sustainable agriculture and water management. Meet Simcha Blass who invented modern drip irrigation and built Israel’s first pipeline to the Negev. Learn about his rabbinical family from Europe and the struggle to revive the deforested and arid land through the Netafim company, born in Kibbutz Hatzerim, an agricultural community pioneered by the Tehran Children who escaped the Holocaust via Iran.Click here for last year’s History of Tu Bishvat podcast!NOTES:* Pollution in a Promised Land...
2024-01-2407 min
Israel BeatBiography of the Baba Sali, Mystical Moroccan RabbiThousands flocked to the Baba Sali both during his lifetime and on the annual memorial of his passing for miracles of healing and salvation. But the Baba Sali rejected all honor and insisted the miracles came not from him, but through the individual’s faith in God. Learn about Rabbi Yisrael Abuhatzeira and his illustrious family of sages: Rabbi Shmuel Elbaz, the Father of the Carpet, the musical poems of the Abir Yaakov, and the cruel execution of Rabbi David Abuhatzeira during the battles between the French and Moroccans. And finally, the story of the Baba Sali who settled in...
2024-01-1709 min
Israel BeatEthiopian Aliyah – Jewish Ethiopian Struggle to Immigrate to IsraelOperation Solomon, the massive airlift to rescue the Ethiopian Jewish community made history. Learn about the tragedy of the trek through the Sudanese desert, the abrupt halt of Operation Moses and Jewish-Ethiopian community leaders who risked their lives to covertly arrange immigration of thousands to Israel amid famine and political turmoil such as Baruch Tegegne, Ferede Aklum and Yona Bogale. Plus the little-known back-story of Ethiopian Jews and their yearning for the land of Israel which dates back to the 1800s with Abba Mahari and the Ashkenazic Jewish leaders who connected to their struggle such as Dr...
2024-01-1107 min
Israel BeatUziel Gal, inventor of the Uzi submachine gunThe story of Uziel Gal, creator of the Uzi submachine gun, which defended Israel from the 1950s and beyond. Born in Germany, his family fled the Holocaust to a small kibbutz where young Uzi developed an early interest in innovative weapons. Learn about his father, the noted Bauhaus artist Erich Glas who was forced from his job and home by the Nazis, his brother the award-winning educator Michael Gal, and a side-note about the film Terminator 2.NOTES:* How a Kid Who Liked to Saw Rifles Became the Inventor of the Uzi...
2023-12-2807 min
Israel BeatTenth of Tevet, the Holocaust and Soviet JewryThe Tenth of Tevet is a Jewish fast day which marks the beginning of the siege on Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians. But it also served as Holocaust memorial day before Yom HaShoah and was used to protest unfair treatment of Russian Jews during the Soviet era. Learn about the Chamber of the Holocaust on Mount Zion, Rabbi Mordechai Nurock who initiated Holocaust commemoration in Israel, and how this minor fast day had major implications for keeping memory alive.NOTES:* Biography of Rabbi Mordechai Nurock * Rabbi Lau at Tenth of...
2023-12-2108 min
Israel BeatChanukah During World War IIIn the 1940s, American Jewish soldiers lit the Chanukah candles with Holocaust survivors, Tel Aviv was ordered to hide their menorahs, and the annual torch relay marathon took place starting from the graves of the Maccabees in Modiin. Hear about Chanukah during World War II, during the fight against the British Mandate’s White Paper, and finally culminating with the first Chanukah in the newly established State of Israel in 1948. Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky at benbresky.substack.com/subscribe
2023-12-1209 min
Israel BeatIsraeli Musicians Inspire IDF Soldiers at Gaza Army BasesSinger-songwriter Yitzchok Meir Malek (Mayer Malik) talks about his 20 years of performing at Israel Defense Force army bases and compares today's conflict to the Second Lebanon War of 2006 during which he lost his friend Michael Levin. His Notes of Strength project helps boost the morale of Israeli soldiers. Hear stories about singing Jewish songs amid tanks, sirens, and hostage negotiations and getting lost on the Gaza border.Notes of Strength projectEmpty Smiles new single by Mayer Malik on Spotify Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky...
2023-12-0608 min
Israel BeatKindertransport Refugee Walter Bingham Returns to GermanyInterview with almost 100-year-old journalist Walter Bingham about his recent trip to Germany, the Netherlands and England for a special reenactment and commemoration of the Kindertransport which rescued nearly 10,000 Jewish children from Nazi-occupied Europe during the Holocaust. He describes the change in attitude of the German public towards Holocaust survivors and the reactions to the current Israel-Gaza war.Notes:Walter’s World with Walter Bingham podcast The Walter Bingham File podcastWalter Bingham article archive - Jerusalem PostKindertransport refugees retrace historic journey from Germany to UK - Jewish Ch...
2023-11-3008 min
Israel BeatHistory of Krav MagaLearn about Krav Maga and its founder Imi Lichtenfeld who fought Anti-Semitic gangs in Slovakia. He escaped Europe during World War II on the ill-fated Pancho, an immigration vessel that was shipwrecked near Greece. He eventually made it to Israel where he taught hand-to-hand combat to the newly formed Israel Defense Force. Hear rare audio of this Israeli martial arts expert and his unique story of survival and resilience.NOTES:Imi Lichtenfeld news story 1981Imi Lichtenfeld Wikipedia article (Hebrew)Krav Maga Wikipedia article (Hebrew)The man who developed Krav...
2023-11-2205 min
Israel BeatHistory of Pro-Israel RalliesA brief review of Jewish and Pro-Israel rallies in Washington DC including the Rabbis March in 1943, the Six Day War rally in 1967, Freedom Sunday for Soviet Jewry in 1987 and the National Rally in Solidarity With Israel in 2002 featuring rare sound bytes from Natan Sharansky, Elie Wiesel and more. Did you or a family member attend one of these rallies? Let me know in the comments section. Notes:50,000 Jews Participate in Public Rally for Israel in Washington - 1967When the Rabbis Marched on WashingtonWashington Post article on Rabbis MarchThe Day the Rabbis MarchedRabbis March videoHistory is...
2023-11-1507 min
Israel BeatPODCAST: History of Israel TanksThe history of Israeli tanks includes the locally produced Merkava, the Magach, the secret Pereh missile carrier, and the new AI-powered Barak. Learn about IDF General Israel Tal who developed the Merkava, early armored division head Major General Jackie Even, and the Ma'ale Akrabim massacre and fedayeen infiltrations that preluded the Sinai War and led to Israel liberating the entire Gaza Strip in 1956. Notes: Yad Lashiryon Tank Museum at LatrunTanks of the Israel Defense ForcesGeneral Israel TalIDF Maj.-Gen. (res.) Israel Tal dies at age 86
2023-11-0805 min
Israel BeatWhat it's like to be an Israeli tour guideTimes are tough for Israeli tour guides, but Rachel Lazar knows both the joys and challenges that come with showing people the ancient, historic sites in the land of the Bible. Click here for more information on Rachel Lazar Tours. Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky at benbresky.substack.com/subscribe
2023-11-0105 min
Israel BeatPODCAST: History of Magen David Adom, Israeli paramedicsNOTES:Magen David Adom historyUnited Hatzalah emergency medical servicesZAKA emergency response teamDr. Nancy CarolineDr. Meshulam LevontinDr. Moses ErlangerFounding of Magen David Adom Magen David Adom in 2020Magen David Adom 90th BirthdayForeign Magen David Adom volunteers reflect on saving lives in IsraelThe Origins Of Magen David Adom by Saul SingerMagen David Adom: History & OverviewTo Organize International Red Magen David, JTA, 1923...
2023-10-2506 min
Israel BeatPodcast: History of Am Yisrael ChaiThe slogan Am Yisrael Chai — the Nation of Israel Lives — has returned to public consciousness in recent days due to the current war in Israel with Hamas controlled Gaza. This phrase has its roots in the Torah. It was recited by Rabbi Leslie Hardman at the Bergen Belson concentration camp in 1945, heard by Soviet Jews during the visit of Golda Meir in 1948, turned into a song by Shlomo Carlebach for the Student Struggle for Soviet Jewry in 1965 and sung at the Western Wall in Jerusalem in 1967. Below is a collection of Am Yisrael Chai signs on the stre...
2023-10-1806 min
Israel BeatPODCAST: History of Jewish GazaThe famous commentator on the Mishnah, Ovadia of Bartenura sipped wine with the Jews of Gaza in the 1480s. The founder of Wissotzky Tea spearheaded the revival of a thriving Jewish Gazan community in the 1880s. Today, there is still a section of Gaza City known as the Jewish Quarter. Find out about the history of the Jews of Gaza who lived, worked and prayed along Israel’s southern Mediterranean coastline.NOTES:Jewish communities in Gaza throughout the yearsThe lost history of Gaza's Jewish quarterGaza, like you never knew itA Brief Historical Review of the Ga...
2023-10-1107 min
Israel BeatAudiobook: If Not Higher by I. L. PeretzFor more stories by I. L. Peretz see here: https://archive.org/details/stories-and-pictures/page/18/mode/2up Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky at benbresky.substack.com/subscribe
2023-10-0507 min
Israel BeatHistory of the Carlebach MoshavBefore the city of Modi'in, amid the archeological ruins of the Maccabees, there was a small, idealistic community with one road, one phone line and one car that they shared. Also known as Moshav Meor Modiin, the students of Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach paved the way.Video: Early Days on Moshav Mevo Modi'in, 1977 Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky at benbresky.substack.com/subscribe
2023-09-2708 min
Israel BeatYom Kippur MiracleThe classic Yom Kippur story "Tenth man for the Minyan" and the history of the Avraham Avinu synagogue in Hebron. Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky at benbresky.substack.com/subscribe
2023-09-2106 min
Israel BeatPODCAST: Inspirational Rosh Hashannah StoriesA medley of stories for the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashannah. Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky at benbresky.substack.com/subscribe
2023-09-1411 min
Israel BeatHistory of Jerusalem's First Train Station, Silo Cafe & WoodstockTracey Shipley talks about Jerusalem Woodstock and music as a way to help troubled teens. Nadav, a manager at the Silo Cafe talks about the history of the unique site. The Jerusalem train station was inaugurated in 1892 after much effort by Yosef Navon, a community leader from a prominent Sephardic Jerusalem family. After funding by Jewish investors, the Land of Israel’s first modern train was inaugurated. Eliezer Ben-Yehuda was in attendance and wrote an inspiring poem about the wonders of modern transportation in the ancient city. Get full access to Jewish Hi...
2023-08-3109 min
Israel BeatClassic: Young American yeshiva band rocks out at Unity of the Bands concertYoung American yeshiva students rock out at Unity of the BandsBen BreskyPublished: Mar 10, 2009https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/130359English-speaking yeshiva students studying in Israel competed against each other at Unity of the Bands. The contest drew an audience of 700 at Jerusalem’s Great Synagogue this past Saturday night. Thirteen different bands competed.Unity of the Bands drew about 700 people to the Great Synagogue in Jerusalem, almost all of them young American yeshiva students. Proceeds of the ticket sales went to charity.First place went to Az Yas...
2023-07-0746 min
Israel BeatPODCAST: Yonatan Ben Uzziel and AmukaThanks for reading Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky at benbresky.substack.com/subscribe
2023-06-2206 min
Israel BeatPODCAST: Martin Buber in Abu Tor, JerusalemStart writing today. Use the button below to create your Substack and connect your publication with Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky at benbresky.substack.com/subscribe
2023-06-1509 min
Israel BeatPODCAST: Eliezer Ben-Yehuda, Father of Modern Hebrew - 100 Years Get full access to Jewish History Moment podcast with Ben Bresky at benbresky.substack.com/subscribe
2023-02-0705 min