On April 7, 1944 two Slovakian Jews named Rudolf Vrba & Alfred Wetzler made a daring escape from Auschwitz and made their way back to Slovakia. They submitted a detailed and accurate report of the horrifying truth of the Auschwitz extermination facilities, along with details regarding the transports arriving in the camp and the overall camp structure. The Slovakian Jewish leadership attempted to pass on the vital information to the outside world, and crucially to the Hungarian Jewish leadership as well. Although the Hungarian Jewish leadership received the information by the end of April, the truth about Auschwitz was not disseminated to the Hungarian Jewish masses by the time the deportations from Hungary to Auschwitz commenced on May 15. Till the end of his life, Rudolf Vrba bitterly accused both the Slovakian and Hungarian Jewish leadership of not spreading the truth about Auschwitz to the Hungarian Jewish masses. Rudolf Kastner was one of many Hungarian Jewish leaders who received the Vrba-Wetzler report. What did he do with the information he received? What could he have done? Was his actions different in any way from other leaders who had access to this information?    Subscribe to Jewish History Soundbites Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/ or your favorite podcast platform Follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram at @Jsoundbites For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history or feedback contact Yehuda at: [email protected]

What did Hungarian Jewry look like on the eve of World War II? What was its size, religious composition and communal organization? What happened to Hungarian Jewry prior to the Nazi invasion in March 1944? What were the Nazi plans for Hungarian Jewry following the occupation? How were the deportations carried out and what was their scope? Who was the Jewish leadership in Budapest during this time? What were the roles of the Neolog (Hungarian Reform), Orthodox, secular and Zionist leaders in Budapest during the Nazi occupation? This overview will provide much needed context to understand the broader story of the Kastner train and ensuing controversy. Subscribe to Jewish History Soundbites Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/ or your favorite podcast platform Follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram at @Jsoundbites For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history or feedback contact Yehuda at: [email protected]

NEW SERIES ON JEWISH HISTORY SOUNDBITES On June 30, 1944, a train departed Budapest, Hungary, carrying 1,684 Jews as its passengers. This occurred during the peak of the Nazi deportations of Hungarian Jewry to Auschwitz in the horrific summer of 1944. This particular trainload however, following a short stint in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, was permitted to cross the border into Switzerland and freedom. The entire project was orchestrated through direct negotiations with the SS through the efforts of a young Zionist leader in Budapest named Rudolf Kastner. Though the lives of those on the train were saved, the entire operation was deemed controversial due to the fact that Kastner chose not to spread the word of the impending deportations among the wider masses of Hungarian Jewry. This resulted in an even more controversial courtroom drama in the 1950’s in Jerusalem, in a trial erroneously known to history as the Kastner trial. This multi part series now being launched on Jewish History Soundbites podcast will examine the story of the negotiations, rescue, aftermath, trial and legacy. It will attempt to provide a historical context as it was understood by the diverse array of characters involved in the narrative at the time. Subscribe to Jewish History Soundbites Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/ or your favorite podcast platform Follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram at @Jsoundbites For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history or feedback contact Yehuda at: [email protected]

Unfortunately the phenomenon of isolated instances of Jews consumed with self hatred, while projecting antisemitic stereotypes on their brethren is nothing new. It has existed in one form or another throughout Jewish history. This historical saga is worth examining, coupled with specific stories of Jewish self hatred during the Nazi era.  Subscribe to Jewish History Soundbites Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/ or your favorite podcast platform Follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram at @Jsoundbites For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history or feedback contact Yehuda at: [email protected]

During the 18th & first half of the 19th centuries, many members of the financial and rabbinical elite in Jewish Eastern Europe engaged in the practice of marrying off their children at a very young age. Why did they do that? How widespread was this practice? Why did it end? And what ramifications did this have on European Jewish life during this time and afterwards? Subscribe to Jewish History Soundbites Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/ or your favorite podcast platform Follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram at @Jsoundbites For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history or feedback contact Yehuda at: [email protected]

With the expulsion from the Iberian Peninsula in the last decade of the 15th century, the Spanish Jewish diaspora spread across the world. Jews from Spain were called Sephardim, and many of them settled in preexisting Jewish communities in North Africa and across the Mediterranean basin, the Middle East & the Balkans, primarily within the borders of the expanding Ottoman Empire. The huge influx of Sephardic Jews into these communities, overwhelmed them demographically, and the culture, customs and religious way of life of Sephardic Jewry came to dominate the region. Sephardic Jews and the preexisting local Jews integrated, and often intermarried, but at times they each chose to remain apart. Many Spanish Jews had chosen to remain in Spain and embrace Christianity, and were referred to as Converso’s. When they or their descendants migrated from Spain to the Ottoman Empire or elsewhere, they often had a challenge reintegrating into Jewish communal life. The established Sephardic communities took pride in their own ancestors not having succumbed to the pressure to apostatize. The confluence of the above two factors led rise to a trend of Sephardic purity pride.   Cross River, a leading financial institution committed to supporting its communities, is proud to sponsor Jewish History Soundbites. As a trusted partner for individuals and businesses, Cross River understands the importance of preserving and celebrating our heritage. By sponsoring this podcast, they demonstrate their unwavering dedication to enriching the lives of the communities in which they serve. Visit Cross River at https://www.crossriver.com/   Subscribe to Jewish History Soundbites Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/ or your favorite podcast platform Follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram at @Jsoundbites For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history or feedback contact Yehuda at:  [email protected]  

With the World Series currently taking place, it's high time that Jewish History Soundbites takes leave of Eastern Europe and examine the Jewish People's connection to professional baseball. From the famous stories of Hank Greenberg and Sandy Koufax, to the less well known ones of the '69 Mets Jewish connection, America's favorite pastime has deep connections to the Jewish story in the United States. On the 50th anniversary of the 1969 NY Mets World Series victory, we'll delve into the story of why they won. Aside from Jewish players, managers, owners and broadcasters, Jewish fans of baseball have been a barometer of integration into American life and culture. So, as we bask in the pride of various different Jewish players not playing on Yom Kippur, enjoy your kosher hot dog in the stands at "the ole Ball Game"! Subscribe To Our Podcast on:   PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/   Follow us on Twitter or Instagram at @Jsoundbites You can email Yehuda at [email protected]

For nearly two thousand years Jews lived in the shadow of the Catholic Church. As heads of the church, popes throughout the ages formulated an official papal policy regarding the Jews as a religion, as a local community in Rome, as subjects of the pope in the Papal States, and broadly regarding the Jews across Europe. This relationship was complex and lopsided. On one hand, although often forced to convert or be killed, the official general papal policy was not to forcibly convert the Jewish People as a whole. On the other hand, the Jews were to be subjugated, humiliated and discriminated against, as the official church policy down to modern times. The Vatican and the Catholic Church more broadly played a decisive role in the rise of modern antisemitism in the 19th century as well. In 1858 the kidnapping of the Jewish boy Edgardo Mortara was a modern example of church persecution with direct papal approval. The 20th century brought two contrasts in papal relationship with the Jews. Pope Pius XII became infamous for his complicity during the Holocaust, while Pope John Paul II, who grew up with Jews in prewar Poland, changed course and had a much more positive relationship with the Jewish People and State of Israel.   Subscribe to Jewish History Soundbites Podcast on: PodBean: https://jsoundbites.podbean.com/ or your favorite podcast platform Follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram at @Jsoundbites For sponsorship opportunities about your favorite topics of Jewish history or feedback contact Yehuda at:  [email protected]