Rabbi Joseph Fred Benson Archives - JURIST - Commentary

Commentaries by Rabbi Joseph Fred Benson

This Day in History: The Law of Gobblers and Other Tasty Sides

November 23, 2023 01:02:16 pm

It is Thanksgiving Day. The aroma of turkey; of dressing; candied sweet potatoes; green bean casserole; cranberry sauce; freshly baked yeast rolls; giblet gravy, and of pies emanating from the kitchen fills our nostrils. Home is the place to be today. But have you ever given thought to the law of the gobbler? This Day in [...]

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Beyond the Declaration: Discovering the Meanings of American Independence

Rabbi Joseph Fred Benson

July 4, 2022 08:45:38 am

Few periods in the history of western intellectual thought have been more productive in so little time than the work product which flowed from the Continental Congress during the summer of 1776. On April 19, 1775, when the “shot heard around the world,” would forever become part of our history – British North America was [...]

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38 Santee Sioux hanged by US for rebellion

On December 26, 1862, 38 Santee Sioux men were hanged in a mass execution for their roles in a rebellion against US authorities in Minnesota which left hundreds dead and made refugees of some 40,000 white settlers. Government annuities promised under a treaty with the Sioux had failed to arrive on schedule and credit for purchases was not advanced in the meantime, threatening the tribe with starvation. The Santee Sioux Tribe's members were deported first to South Dakota and ultimately to Nebraska, where they remain today. Learn more about the 1862 Minnesota Sioux Rebellion.

Louis XVI put on trial during French Revolution

On December 26, 1792, Romain de Sèze, a defense attorney for deposed King Louis XVI, presented a defense of his client. The former King was on trial before a French Revolutionary court on thirty-three charges, including treason and other crimes against the state. He was convicted on January 15, 1793 executed by guillotine on the following January 21.