Webcasts related to the Hebraic Section

June 17, 2009
The Approach of the Halakah and Sharia' to Contemporary Legal Issues
Judaic and Islamic legal systems (based on Halakah and Sharia', respectively) have endured for centuries despite the rapid changes and challenges of the modern world --from exploration of outer space to human cloning. They serve as a testimony to the relevance and universality of their underlying values and principles.

The potential application of these legal systems to the development of foreign policy was the subject of a program titled "The Approach of the Halakah and Sharia' to Contemporary Legal Issues."

In addition to explaining the historical development of Judaic and Islamic law, the program explored adaptations of these laws that could benefit policymakers in their legislative work on foreign policy and other areas affecting religiously oriented communities

June 4, 2009
What Stillness Illuminated
Aaron Taub presented a reading of his poetry in a program sponsored by the African and Middle Eastern Division.

May 19, 2009
Jewish Life in Mr. Lincoln's City
Laura Cohen Apelbaum and Wendy Turman spoke about and showed a power point presentation on the new exhibit at the Jewish Historical Society of Greater Washington on "Jewish Life in Mr. Lincoln's City."

May 13, 2009
Breaking the Holocaust Silence: A Hidden Hasidic Text of 1947 - and Elie Wiesel
Gershon Greenberg delivered the 10th Annual Myron M. Weinstein Memorial Lecture on the Hebraic Book. The lecture was titled "Breaking the Holocaust Silence: A Hidden Hasidic Text of 1947--and Elie Wiesel." The lecture series honors Myron M. Weinstein (1927-1998), whose 29-year tenure at the Library was spent in the Hebraic Section.

February 11, 2009
My Father's Paradise
Yona Sabar was born in a mud hut in the remote Kurdish region of Northern Iraq. Protected by towering mountains, the Jews of Zakho lived peacefully among Muslims and Christians for hundreds of years. But in the late 1940s, the outside world came crashing in, and Yona would be the last boy in Zakho to become a bar mitzvah. Yona's son Ariel Sabar discussed his new book, "My Father's Paradise: A Son's Search for His Jewish Past in Kurdish Iraq."

December 11, 2008
Jews and Shoes
Shoes are an integral part of Jewish material culture according to Edna Nahshon, author of "Jews and Shoes" (Berg Publishers, 2008). The book takes a fresh look at the makings and meanings of shoes, cobblers and barefootedness in Jewish experience. The book shows how shoes convey theological, social and economic concepts, and as such are intriguing subjects for inquiry within a wide range of cultural, artistic and historic contexts.

October 28, 2008
Song of Songs: The Honeybee in the Garden
The Song of Songs is the Hebrew Bible's love song. But who sings this song? While the literal words tell of the passionate love of a man and a woman, the early rabbis understood the verses as an allegory of the love between God and Israel. In her illuminated manuscript, "The Song of Songs: the Honeybee in the Garden," author and artist Debra Band interprets and illustrates the biblical text.

May 5, 2008
Traditional Judaism or Reform
As part of the Library's celebration of Jewish American Heritage Month, Marsha Rozenblit delivered the ninth annual Myron M. Weinstein Memorial Lecture on the Hebraic Book. The lecture focused on Viennese Jews in the 19th Century. Rozenblit is the Harvey M. Meyerhoff Professor of Modern Jewish History at the University of Maryland. The lecture series honors Myron M. Weinstein (1927-1998), whose 29-year tenure at the Library was spent in the Hebraic Section.

January 17, 2008
I Will Wake the Dawn: Illuminated Psalms
The Book of Psalms is probably the best-known book of the Hebrew Bible. In her new book, "I Will Wake the Dawn: Illuminated Psalms," author and artist Debra Band has selected 36 of the most well-known of the 150 psalms to interpret and illustrate.

November 2, 2007
Quick to the Party: Southern Jews and the Americanization of Hanukkah
Registrants attending the 32nd annual conference of the Southern Jewish Historical Society came to the Library as guests of the Hebraic Section, African and Middle Eastern Division, to learn about Judaic treasures in the Library's collections.

October 18, 2007
Jewish Washington: Scrapbook of an American Community
Laura Cohen Apelbaum and Wendy Turman of the Jewish Historical Society of Greater Washington spoke about the history of the Jewish community in Washington, D.C. The talk also included images from the new book, "Jewish Washington: Scrapbook of an American Community." The program was sponsored by the Library's African and Middle Eastern Division.

May 8, 2007
A Bibliographer Encounters the Muses: Reflections on the Yiddish Theater and Its Legacy
Zachary M. Baker delivered the eighth Annual Myron M. Weinstein Memorial Lecture on the Hebraic Book as part of the Library's celebration of Jewish American Heritage Month. The lecture was titled "A Bibliographer Encounters the Muses: Reflections on the Yiddish Theater and Its Legacy." The lecture series honors Myron M. Weinstein (1927-1998), whose 29-year tenure at the Library was spent in the Hebraic Section.

December 6, 2004
The live performance, “Haven to Home: An American Journey,” tells the stories of Emma Lazarus, an immigrant’s daughter who became known as Lady Liberty’s poet, and Irving Berlin, an immigrant who became one of America’s best loved composers. The original play, commissioned by the Hebraic Section and written and directed by Roberta Gasbarre, Director, The Discovery Theater, Smithsonian Associates, explores how the values of liberty, opportunity, and religious freedom shaped American history. The 45 minute presentation was one of the public programs related to the Library of Congress exhibition, “From Haven to Home: 350 Years of Jewish Life in America.”