Paradesi Synagogue Kochi, India Of all of the places in the world that Jews settled in pre-Roman times, no location is quite so unlikely as distant India. And yet a Jewish community in India did exist possibly as early as the 6th century BC. While the exact time and means of their arrival there are a matter of conjecture, there is no doubt that the Jews inhabiting the … [Read more...]
Archives for September 2018
AMERICA’S BEST PRESERVED COLONIAL TOWNS (continued)
Richmond Town Staten Island, NY (founded 1661) Web: www.historicrichmondtown.org Richmond Town was one of the first settlements on Staten Island, and for many years its county seat. Founded by Dutch settlers in the 17th century, it served primarily as an agricultural center for the island’s prosperous farms. In 1776 the British occupied the Staten Island and Richmond … [Read more...]
WERE THERE EGYPTIANS AMONG THE ISRAELITES OF THE EXODUS (continued)
Akhenaten was one of Egypt’s greatest and most controversial pharaohs. During his reign he established, among other things, a monotheistic religion around the deity Aten, pushing all other Egyptian deities out of public life. It has been suggested that Akhenaten was strongly influenced by the ideas of the Hebrew slaves, and that the deity Aten (a sun god) may have been the … [Read more...]
HISTORIC SYNAGOGUES OF CALIFORNIA
The Jewish communities of California are some of the oldest, largest and most historic in the United States. Large numbers of Jewish immigrants flooded into California beginning with the Gold Rush, and quickly grew into some of the most important congregations in the country outside of New York and a few other cities on the Eastern Seaboard. The half century from the 1880s to … [Read more...]
OLDEST CHURCHES AND CATHEDRALS IN THE WORLD – A DEFINITIVE AND DETAILED LIST (continued)
AND THE WINNER IS – THE CHURCH OF THE NATIVITY Bethlehem, West Bank (565 AD) Yes, Bethlehem, the place where it all began, is home to the reigning champion of the world’s oldest church. Although the very first church built by Constantine in the 4th century was destroyed during the Samaritan Revolt, the 6th century replacement built by Justinian is still … [Read more...]
HOW MANY CHURCHES AND DENOMINATIONS ARE THERE IN AMERICA AND THE WORLD? (continued)
Google did not yield much in the way of specific numbers for the entire globe, but according to the World Christian Encyclopedia there are at least 33,000 Christian denominations in the United States. Going out on a limb and assuming that there is at least one person from every Christian denomination in the world living in America (not unreasonable), then we can … [Read more...]
HISTORIC JEWISH SITES OF ITALY
Italy is home to one of the oldest continually active Jewish communities in Europe. While there were older Jewish settlements in Greece and other places in the Balkans, these were more affected by wars and political strife than in Italy. Interestingly, the closer Jews lived to Rome, the less they were likely to be persecuted by the Papacy. Furthermore, Italy generally avoided … [Read more...]
OLDEST CHURCH IN EVERY STATE – PART SIX (NORTHWEST)
In part six of the series of oldest churches in every state, we are finishing in the Great Plains and the Pacific Northwest. Christianity was introduced to much of this area by Roman Catholic missionaries, although many of these churches were also established by settlers coming from the east (often in pursuit of Gold Rushes). The biggest exception is Alaska, which, while still … [Read more...]
