Search Results
Back to 91 Torah Online's Main page
The Early Modern Travel Pass:
Controlling the Plague and Jewish Mobility in 16th Century Tuscany
Aug 2, 2021 By Stefanie B. Siegmund | Public Event video | Video Lecture
In the wake of the Black Death, governments in the Italian states began to enlarge their departments of health and sanitation in an effort to control the plague. Over time they experimented by banning travel to and from suspect regions and quarantining merchants’ goods. Italian Jews, heavily invested in local and regional commerce, were among the merchants affected, attracting the attention of the authorities.
Read More
Gifts of Wisdom: The Historical Traditions and Values of the Ethical Will
Oct 19, 2020 By Stefanie B. Siegmund | Public Event video | Video Lecture
At pivotal moments that make us think about death—encounterswith serious illness,the loss of loved ones,advancing age,orevenbringingchildren into our lives—weturnto lawyers to write or revise our wills.Writing awill is an opportunity toconsider our priorities aswe plan to distribute our estates to the people, organizations, and causes that we care about.What if you also tried to write a letter that would be readby your descendants,perhaps even at your funeral,about your values? What would you say? How does Judaism inform these values?
Read More
Purim Heroines
Mar 18, 2016 By Stefanie B. Siegmund | Commentary | Purim
I did not wear the crown and satiny dress, or stand in line for the beauty pageant. Queen Esther was not a role model I—or many other children—could choose. Later, in the academy, I understood that Esther’s subterfuge and seduction were the strategies of the weak, the politics of the minority.
Read MoreSUBSCRIBE TO TORAH FROM 91
Our regular commentaries and videos are a great way to stay intellectually and spiritually engaged with Jewish thought and wisdom.