No, this isn’t the start of a joke but rather an inspiring story about the meeting between the famous British-Jewish philanthropist and the Moroccan rabbi—and how it all connects to a letter preserved at the National Library of Israel.
Did He Write It or Not? The Mystery of the Torah Scroll Attributed to the Ran
This centuries-old Torah scroll underwent many travails, changing not only its geographical location multiple times but also its identity and history. “Everything depends on luck, even a Torah scroll in the Holy Ark,” says the Zohar. It seems this Torah scroll did not have the best of luck.
Keepers of Jewish Treasures: Meet the Participants of the International Judaica Curators Conference
Some 50 men and women charged with preserving the cultural treasures of the Jewish People came from all over the world to attend a professional conference which now took on a different, deeper, and more urgent significance. “Here, we felt a little less alone” was something we heard from everyone we spoke to. Here’s a peek behind the scenes into the world of those who seek to protect the cultural heritage for the Jewish People.
It Sounds Better in French… or Does It?
What happened when rabbinic courts in Morocco were under the authority of the French colonial government?
The Kindergarten That Became the Mossad HQ in Morocco
In 1954, Yehudit Galili arrived in Morocco as part of a Jewish Agency mission. She set up a kindergarten, an “Ulpan” for teaching Hebrew, and a network of contacts within Casablanca’s Jewish community. One day she discovered a group of strangers in the building that housed her kindergarten and was surprised to hear them speaking Hebrew. This is the true story of how a kindergarten teacher became a spy for the Jewish underground in Morocco.
“Half of My Soul Is Made of Longing”: One Man’s Mission to Preserve the Jewish Heritage of Debdou
If not for the efforts of “Rabbi Eli”, much of what we know about this particular Moroccan Jewish community would likely have been lost forever…
Why Did Moroccan Jews Bring Moses Into the Passover Haggadah?
Moroccan Jews (and the Jews of Western Algeria in the areas adjacent to Morocco) to this day begin the Passover Seder with a short text in Judeo-Arabic at the center of which is the figure of Moses…
Who Are You Calling a “Shluh”?!
In modern-day Israel, the word “shluh” is sometimes used as an offensive term to describe a person of disheveled or messy appearance. The word in fact hails from Morocco, where it referred negatively to a certain ethnic group, and was used disparagingly by city dwellers to describe uncultured village folk…
How Did Jews Flee to Israel From the Arab World?
A look at some of the brave souls who risked their lives to reach Israel before and just after the state’s founding…
A Look at Jewish Artisans and Crafts in Morocco
The story behind the professions of Moroccan Jews, including a look at some unique photographs documenting Jewish artisans in Morocco in 1953
