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!['The Cossacks' Reply to the Sultan (Zaporozhtsy)', c1890, (1939). 'Reply of the Zaporozhian Cossacks to Sultan Mehmed IV of Turkey', also known as 'Cossacks of Saporog Are Drafting a Manifesto', 19th-century imagining of a supposed historical event of 1676, based on the legend of Cossacks sending an apparently rude and insulting reply to an ultimatum from Sultan Mehmed IV of the Ottoman Empire. 'On the right is Taras Bulba (in a white cap), the hero of Gogol's tale of the same name; on the left is Andrei, Taras Bulba's son; almost in the centre sits Ataman (Chief) Serko with a pipe in his mouth'. Ilya Repin (1844-1930) took nearly 20 years to paint the picture, for which Tsar Alexander III paid him 35,000 rubles, at the time the greatest sum ever paid for a Russian painting. In the collection of The State Russian Museum, St Petersburg, Russia. From "The Russian State Museum". [State Art Publishers, Moscow and Leningrad, 1939]](https://www.myjewishlearning.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/GettyImages-1085305746-430x245.jpg)
Who Were the Cossacks?
These 17th-century Ukrainian rebels perpetrated brtual pogroms against Jews.
Polygamy in Judaism
Once a tolerated and regulated practice, polygamy is virtually unheard of in Jewish life today.
Ali Sheqer Pashkaj
A shopkeeper in northern Albania, Sheqer rescued a Jewish man from the Nazis and sheltered him for three years.
Rainbows in Jewish Thought
God's promise never to again destroy the world with a flood is represented by a rainbow.
Martyrdom in Judaism
The notion of what constitutes a Jewish martyr has changed significantly since ancient times.
Where Do the Notes In the Western Wall Go?
Thousands of notes are placed in the wall each year. What happens to all that paper?
What Is the Green Line?
The boundary established at the conclusion of Israel's 1948 War of Independence, the Green Line has long formed the basis of territorial negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians.
Parashat Beha’alotcha: The Grand March Toward the Good
This Torah portion illustrates what happens when we put our individual needs first.
Parashat Nasso: Getting the Message
Two linguistic features of this Torah portion remind us of the need to speak carefully even when our message is true.
Main Characters in the Book of Ruth
Traditionally, the Book of Ruth is read on the second day of Shavuot each year. While the story is riveting ...
Parashat Bamidbar: When Women Are Invisible
How do we make sense of the census commanded in this Torah portion, which specifies only men be counted?
How Many Days is Shavuot in Israel?
In American Jewish society a joke has emerged over the past decades that supposedly summarizes all Jewish holidays: “They tried ...