Monuments mean something. They remind us of people and history. Sometimes they recall movements that are meaningful to some whilst not to others. Other times, they celebrate dictators or regimes. More […]
This year’s Tisha B’Ab marks 200 years since Benjamin Disraeli converted to Christianity. On 31 July 1817, Isaac Disraeli brought his son Benjamin to the baptismal font. Following a feud […]
I recently visited one of the world’s newest S&P congregations, and it couldn’t be located in a better place! The congregation’s home is the Istanbuli Synagogue in the historic ‘Four Sephardi Synagogues’ […]
Yerushalayim used to be a Sephardic town. Following the ravages of the Crusades, Sephardim led the way in restoring the Holy Land’s Jewish character. In the wake of the Spanish […]
The American Revolution pitted British subjects against one another. Patriots vs. Loyalists, Englishmen vs. Americans, brother vs. brother, and Jew vs. Jew. At that time there were only Sephardic congregations […]
Once upon a time one of the most noticeable features of Western Sephardic worship was their distinctive talet, the prayer shawl worn by men during prayer. The S&P talet stood […]
Up the Italian coast from Pisa is Liguria. This region encompasses the historic Republic of Genoa. Genoa was a major banking centre in the 16th century, and it maintained close […]
When you think Pisa, you think one thing and only one thing. To my delight, I discovered that Pisa should also be known for something else, and that is its […]
I was deeply moved by my visit to Florence. Of course, no one would be surprised by that reaction, but for me it wasn’t a result of the city of […]
As much as I love discovering the communities of the Western Sephardim, I’ve come to realise that sometimes travel isn’t enough – some things are only preserved in the pages […]
