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History for the Curious - The Jewish History Podcast: Daily Summaries Delivered
by JLE
History for the Curious The most talked-about Jewish History Podcast History for the Curious features the dynamic historian and famous tour guide & lecturer: Rabbi Aubrey Hersh, live from Olami UK in London, hosted by myself: Mena Reisner Join us as we cross continents, sail through the centuries, tracing lives, uncovering events and following epic journeys, to reveal the untold stories, the scandals, and the mysteries, that have impacted our history and shaped us into who we are today. Encounter leaders, visionaries, spies, heroes & traitors and unpack 2,000 years of Jewish heritage. Go back to the story of Jews in the Temple of Jerusalem. Confront the dilemmas of the Holocaust. Visit Paris, Prague, Vilna, London, Venice, New York & the Cairo Geniza. Meet The Russian Czar, Ramchal, Maharal, Maimonides, Churchill, Shabbetai Zvi and the Hapsburgs.
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- 4 days ago1h 21m
#194: Three Extraordinary 20th Century Lives feat. Dr Yossi Adler & Rabbi Dr Akiva Tatz
Exploring the lives of three Jewish doctors. Living in very different settings, yet linked by a common thread: compassion. They left a lasting mark on medicine and Jewish history and were dedicated to the strong belief that every fragile life matters. In New York, Dr Martin Couney helped save thousands of babies. His sideshow displays were controversial, but at a time when incubator technology was widely doubted, his exhibits brought life-saving technology into the public eye. Dr Mary Gordon was born in Lithuania and her trailblazing career as a pioneering female physician who was deeply connected to Jewish life, allowed her to carry her medical calling into some of the hardest moments of the twentieth century, in Palestine, in detention camps in Cyprus and through world wars. Dr Shlomo Adler’s reputation in London as a beloved doctor and trusted medical confidant to Gedolim and Torah leaders as well as to thousands of patients, rested on his complete commitment to care, innovation and halacha. We also hear from his son Dr Yossi Adler - who has continued a 3 generational family legacy - about AI and other issues confronting medicine today Timestamps: - **0:00:00 – 0:01:13** – Podcast intro, series context (Medicine Part 2), and mention of guests (Rabbi Tatz & Dr. Yossi Adler) - **0:01:13 – 0:02:16** – Introduction of Mary Gordon; granddaughter of Reb Eliezer Gordon; name changes (Miriam → Mary, Sara → Sylvia) - **0:02:16 – 0:03:49** – Background on the Gordon family, Telshe Yeshiva, and Reb Eliezer Gordon’s leadership and social conscience (matzah bakeries) - **0:03:49 – 0:06:21** – Fire in Telshe (1908), Reb Eliezer Gordon’s fundraising trip to England, his death, funeral, and Mary receiving apology from the Chief Rabbi - **0:06:21 – 0:09:00** – Mary’s struggle to enter university, re-doing exams in England, brilliance and speed of study, financial help from Rabbi Moishe Hirsh Siegel, graduation as a physician - **0:09:00 – 0:10:27** – Status of women doctors in England; WWI, shortage of male doctors; Mary becomes first female medical student allowed to practice in the army - **0:10:27 – 0:12:57** – Move to South Africa; reuniting with family; pioneering practice in Johannesburg General Hospital; treating rich and poor, all races; miners’ strike of 1922 - **0:12:57 – 0:15:30** – Plans to move to Palestine; WWII intervenes; army medical role, rank of captain then lieutenant colonel; final move to Palestine (1946) - **0:15:30 – 0:18:18** – Postwar DP situation; Anglo-American committee, Truman’s proposal for 100,000 DPs; British refusal; Cyprus detention policy and harsh camp conditions - **0:18:18 – 0:21:06** – Mary chosen by the Jewish Agency to serve in Cyprus; tiny medical team; overwhelming numbers, disease, births; her legendary dedication; quote about measuring temperature vs pain - **0:21:06 – 0:22:28** – New Year’s 1948 story (two big ships arrive, many pregnant women and newborns); Mary persuades nurses to stay; later work in Israel with Yemenite immigrants; return to South Africa, work in Soweto clinics, death and legacy - **0:22:28 – 0:24:04** – Introduction of Dr. Yossi Adler; recognition that “Dr. Adler” was a global communal institution - **0:24:04 – 0:26:24** – Growing up in a house that doubled as a practice; constant stream of patients; balancing family meals with emergencies, especially before Hatzalah - **0:26:24 – 0:28:18** – What made Dr. Adler’s practice unique: long-term relationships, personalized care, deep sense of responsibility, readiness to innovate - **0:28:18 – 0:32:24** – Early roots of his father’s connection to Gedolim (Gerrer Rebbe, Imrei Emes); later relationships with Gedolim and Rebbes (Stipler, R’ Shach, Satmar, Klausenburger, etc.) - **0:32:24 – 0:36:24** – Stories illustrating kavod from Rebbes (“Malach Refael goes with Dr. Adler”), and equal importance of all patients; how he handled treating Gedolim without intimidation - **0:36:24 – 0:40:21** – Lessons Dr. Yossi learned: time use, achrayus (responsibility), integrating halacha and derech eretz into medicine; a few character-defining stories - **0:40:21 – 0:44:04** – Role of a frum doctor today: giving clear medical facts for Rabbanim, especially in end-of-life, surgery, fasting, and shidduch situations; why doctor ≠ posek - **0:44:04 – 0:49:05** – Community health issues: - Vaccine hesitancy and mistrust of authorities - Halachic support for following broadly accepted medical guidance - SIDS reduction through “back to sleep” and risk of complacency - **0:49:05 – 0:53:59** – Discussion on modern weight-loss medications (semaglutide, tirzepatide): when benefits outwei
- 2 weeks ago58 min
#193: Vaccines, Potions & Charlatans - Jewish Medicine in the 19th Century.
The 1800s was an era when medicine sat at the crossroads of science, ruses and discoveries. New vaccines and medical impostors competed for public trust. People broke with tradition and created a new landscape. Mordecai Wolff Haffkine Haffkine stood out as an almost legendary figure. A Jewish bacteriologist, he developed and tested vaccines against cholera and bubonic plague, putting his life repeatedly at risk and fighting to save the lives of millions of people. Whereas Dr. Samuel Solomon showed how skilful wording and suggestion could build a reputation and a fortune. Although his contribution to public service is rather unknown, Liverpool remembers him to this day - on par with some of their other legends. We also look at what happens when medicine and surgery produce unexpected outcomes. What are the halachic ramifications? And how did the BBC cover a re-election campaign in Kentucky? Timestamps: - 0:00:00–0:00:31 — Opening advertisement read (Dr. Solomon). - 0:00:31–0:03:47 — Hosts intro: series overview and upcoming guests. - 0:03:47–0:08:36 — Start of Mordechai Wolf Hafkin biography (education, expulsion, Pasteur Institute). - 0:08:36–0:12:33 — Hafkin self‑inoculates and early cholera vaccine work. - 0:12:33–0:15:43 — Hafkin’s large vaccination campaigns in India; plague vaccine development. - 0:15:43–0:23:00 — Political opposition, 1902 tetanus deaths, inquiry and character attack. - 0:23:00–0:31:44 — Scientific exoneration, later life, return to Orthodoxy, philanthropy, death (1930). - 0:31:44–0:45:06 — Dr. Samuel Solomon biography: origins, balm of Gilead, marketing, bought MD. - 0:45:06–0:46:44 — Solomon’s social status, legacy, and mixed moral assessment. - 0:46:44–0:53:33 — Halachic case: wrong‑kidney removal that saved the patient; discussion of intent vs. outcome and liability. - 0:53:33–0:58:34 — Media segment: critique of BBC coverage of Thomas Massie’s election loss. - 0:58:34 — Episode close; call for listener feedback (podcast@jle.org.uk) and preview of part 2.
- May 13, 202659 min
#192: Reform vs Orthodoxy: The Battle of 19th Century Europe
With the advent of Napoleon and emancipation, Jews were given an offer they found hard to refuse and the Reform movement made significant inroads. Across many countries a war was waged for the soul of the Jew and many voluntarily even converted to Christianity. Shuls, marriage, Shabbos and Bris Mila were all subjected to question. How did the Chasam Sofer Rav Samson Refoel Hirsch and others deal with the critical issues that faced them? Why was Orthodoxy driven to the defensive? And what lesson can we take from it nowadays? Timestamps: - 0:00 — Introduction & dedication - 0:36 — Podcast intro; Mendelssohn recap - 1:36 — Reform emergence; 17th–18th c. precursors (Sabbatai Zevi, Spinoza) - 4:07 — Napoleon’s emancipation & identity shift - 6:24 — Conversions & assimilation (Heinrich Heine example) - 10:25 — Reform tactics: Bible over Talmud; “prophetic Judaism” - 18:59 — Jacobson/Westphalia reforms (state control of rabbis, synagogue changes) - 24:53 — Berlin vs. Hamburg differences; home services vs. public temples - 29:41 — Abraham Geiger’s ideology; opposition to circumcision noted - 34:49 — Philippson/Magdeburg — services, Sunday shift - 36:49 — Rabbinical conferences (1844–46) & intermarriage stance - 41:27 — Orthodox responses: Safer Berneis, Rav Ettlinger, haram strategy - 48:47 — Samson Raphael Hirsch’s Neo‑Orthodoxy response - 57:13 — Modern implications: erosion of minhagim; academia vs. masorah - 59:05 — Closing takeaway: small changes can lead to large identity shifts
- Apr 28, 202649 min
#191: Moses Mendelssohn - Father of Reform?
Moses Mendelssohn was raised in an orthodox family, attended yeshiva for a decade of his life and was involved in Kehilla life for many years afterwards. But he is remembered for his translation of Chumash, defined as a philosopher and linked to the beginning of the German Reform movement. What did he do to create a storm of controversy? And how did the Chasam Sofer relate to his writings? Timestamps: - 0:00:00 — Opening - 0:02:42 — Introduction to Moses Mendelssohn; early life and background - 0:07:03 — Education, secular learning, and early writings - 0:11:32 — Rise to public prominence and influence with non-Jewish intellectuals - 0:14:46 — Controversies: public challenges (Lavater) and the Halonas Hamas (burial) debate - 0:19:18 — Mendelssohn’s German Chumash translation/commentary and rabbinic opposition - 0:23:09 — Political engagement and Enlightenment connections; push for improved Jewish status (context of Joseph II’s reforms) - 0:31:03 — Arguments in Jerusalem: rationalist defense of Judaism, limits of communal coercion, and state jurisdiction over public law - 0:33:16 — Impact on Jewish education: introduction of secular subjects, changing communal autonomy, and long-term consequences - 0:39:09 — Mixed legacy: civil rights and assimilation pressures leading toward Reform; personal practice vs. societal outcomes - 0:47:07 — Hasidic/rabbinic responses and the disputed reference to Mendelssohn in the Hassam Sefar’s will; closing reflections
- Apr 21, 202620 min
Hesped: Mrs Fernande Hersh a''h (1930 - 2026)
Born in 1930, she lived through many challenging events. Raised a family and was a regal figure. Yehi zichroh boruch
- Apr 16, 20260 min
Baruch Dayan HaEmes: The Passing of Rabbi Aubrey Hersh’s Mother
Rabbi Aubrey Hersh’s mother was niftar on Tuesday 27 Nissan, aged 95. Rabbi Hersh is sitting shiva at Eagle Lodge, Golders Green Road. Messages can be sent via WhatsApp to +44 7973 178 236, or by email to historyforthecurious@gmail.com. We wish him chayim aruchim and send our collective nechama.
- Mar 26, 20261h 9m
#190: Bread of Defiance: Matzah and Pesach in the Soviet Union
For Soviet Jews, matzah represented a longing for freedom – one we take for granted. This episode tells the hidden story of those heroes who risked everything to keep Pesach alive behind the Iron Curtain, and of the global networks that brought matzah into the USSR by every means, under the watchful eyes of the NKVD. Jewish life in the USSR was strongly policed. Starting with Stalin in 1925, Judaism was actively hunted down. But every spring, Jews in Moscow, St Petersburg and Odessa as well as in far‑flung provincial cities risked surveillance, arrest, and labour camps to fulfill this mitzva on Seder night. Clandestine matzah bakeries sprung up, with children posted as lookouts. In 1929 the 6th Lubavitcher Rebbe succeeded in bringing 10,000s of matzos into Russia. In later years, there would be the suitcases stuffed with contraband food moving through international airports, carried by tourists, businessmen, and non-Jewish acquaintances, given to them by people in the free world who never stopped caring for their fellow Jews. This is the story of how a fragile food became a symbol of spiritual defiance, and how a festival of freedom was observed under totalitarian rule. _____________________________________________________ "Undaunted" by Rabbi Eliezrie is available on Amazon for purchase
- Mar 19, 202656 min
#189: Chida: 40 Years of Danger, Journeys & Discovery
Rabbi Chaim Yosef David Azulai traversed Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa on behalf of his brethren in Eretz Yisrael. His missions raised vital funds, to keep the Jews from being driven out of town, whilst facing bandits, maritime disasters, and oppressive authorities along the way. With the aid of his diary, this episode gives a vivid first-hand account of his challenges, deprivation, triumphs and breadth of travel. Beyond his journeys, the Chida's genius is seen through his prolific writings. Author of 100 different sefarim on Halacha, Tanach, Kabbala & Talmud, they continue to guide Judaism today. Shem HaGedolim, remains a monumental encyclopedia of rabbinic authors and works, which reflect his incredible memory and knowledge. Birkei Yosef and Yosef Ometz are cornerstones of psak, written as he travelled thousands of miles over many decades. But the final act was written in 1960. Timestamps: - 0:00 — Intro mention of Shem ha‑Gdolim editions - 0:21 — Podcast intro by Mena Reisner - 1:00 — Hosts reconnect; travel note and dedication - 2:32 — Episode topic: life & travels of Rabbi Chaim Yosef David Azulai (the Chida) - 3:01 — Family origins; great‑grandfather and signature story - 4:13 — Birth in Jerusalem, early life, prodigy and writings - 7:53 — Teachers, Kabbalistic training, reason for emissary mission - 10:26 — Language issues, letters of recommendation, mixed receptions in Europe - 15:04 — Collection logistics, contacts with non‑Jewish authorities, successes - 18:46 — Travel hazards and accidents; manuscript research in libraries - 22:32 — England/France encounters and sightseeing - 26:29 — Return to Eretz Yisrael (1758), political troubles, five‑year stay in Egypt - 31:05 — Tunis episode, personal losses, diary entries - 35:49 — Second mission, Livorno quarantine, composing Shem ha‑Gdolim - 39:05 — Scope of travels, settlement in Livorno, later life and death (1806) - 42:23 — Burial details, estate instructions, study practices, halachic/Kabbalistic approach - 48:55 — Stories/legends (attempts to hasten redemption, miracles) - 55:07 — Reburial efforts to Jerusalem; episode closing and contact info
About History for the Curious - The Jewish History Podcast
History for the Curious The most talked-about Jewish History Podcast History for the Curious features the dynamic historian and famous tour guide & lecturer: Rabbi Aubrey Hersh, live from Olami UK in London, hosted by myself: Mena Reisner Join us as we cross continents, sail through the centuries, tracing lives, uncovering events and following epic journeys, to reveal the untold stories, the scandals, and the mysteries, that have impacted our history and shaped us into who we are today. Encounter leaders, visionaries, spies, heroes & traitors and unpack 2,000 years of Jewish heritage. Go back to the story of Jews in the Temple of Jerusalem. Confront the dilemmas of the Holocaust. Visit Paris, Prague, Vilna, London, Venice, New York & the Cairo Geniza. Meet The Russian Czar, Ramchal, Maharal, Maimonides, Churchill, Shabbetai Zvi and the Hapsburgs.
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