About Howard Kramer

Judaism is one of the oldest religions in the world (among the major active religions it is only predated by Hinduism). Despite this, little if anything remains of Jewish religious sites prior to the Middle Ages.  Thousands of years of wars and persecutions have left little in the way of ancient synagogues.  The world’s last intact Roman-era synagogue was sadly destroyed when a … [Read more...]

Over the last few years, The Complete Pilgrim has featured stories about synagogues all over the United States, looking at the most historic by region. Today The Complete Pilgrim is narrowing it down to a highly subjective top ten list of America’s must-see synagogues, which would be difficult in just New York (which I just realized I have never done a list for!).  Actually, I … [Read more...]

New York City has what is arguably the greatest collection of must-see churches and religious sites in the United States.  And ground zero for church hopping here is the island of Manhattan.  Many of the most historic churches, such as Trinity Church, are packed into the downtown area, which we looked at in Part One.  However, for New York’s most famous and visited churches, … [Read more...]

Washington DC, the capital of the United States, receives millions of visitors every year.  People come from all over the world to see the historic government district, with its immense, stately buildings, museums and monuments.  What most visitors to Washington do not often see are its equally magnificent religious buildings.  This is due in large part to the fact that there … [Read more...]

The period that lasted from the early 17th century to the early 20th century was one of nearly constant warfare between white settlers and Native Americans.  There were approximately one hundred named conflicts, or roughly one every three years.  These wars ranged in scale from small scale skirmishing that ended in days to massive uprisings that lasted for decades.  But they … [Read more...]

The story of African Americans serving in the military is a long and historic one.  African Americans have fought in every American war since the Revolution, with huge numbers fighting for the Union during the Civil War.  Among America’s most storied military units are the Buffalo Soldiers, who served on the frontier and in the Spanish American War, and the Tuskegee Airman, who … [Read more...]

  From Memorial Day at the end of May until Independence Day in early July, America goes flag crazy. Flags both old and new are flown with pride.  Temporary flags on makeshift stands pop up everywhere.  At no time is this more true than on Flag Day, a nearly forgotten holiday that falls roughly halfway between its two much more famous relatives.  Honoring the … [Read more...]