The Jewish Story

In this episode, I sit down with my sister, Emily Kroft, to discuss Maimonides, the Spanish Inquisition, internalized antisemitism, the nuances of Jewish assimilation, and what defines Jewish identity.

In this episode, I sit down with my friend Lainey Bokhaut to discuss the first 500 years of the common era. Listen as we discuss the state of modern Jewish rebellion, the importance of perspective-taking, and what it means to be on the right side of history.

In this episode, we will review the history covered in Season 3, spanning from the Great Schism of the church in 1054 CE until the expulsion of Jews from Spain in 1492.

In this episode, the Talmud itself stands trial in France and Spain, an epidemic rocks medieval Europe, a wave of Jewish pogroms sweeps Christian Spain, and we are introduced to Nahmanides and the Jews of India,

In this episode, we witness a wave of anti-Jewish bigotry and violence sweep across Christian Europe, watch Saladin and his Ayyubid caliphate re-take the Kingdom of Jerusalem, and meet Maimonides, one of the most influential Jewish leaders of the Medieval period.

In this episode, we revisit the highlights of Jewish history covered in Season 2, from the aftermath of the First Roman-Jewish War to the birth of the Ashkenazi Jewish community and the Fitnah of Al-Andalus.

In this episode, we explore Jewish life in the Muslim Empire during the late first millennium.

In this episode, we follow the rise of Christianity from a small prophetic following to a massive religion encompassing the entire Roman Empire, and we see its effect on the surrounding Jewish population.

In this episode, we recap the first 1300 years of Jewish history, from the exodus from Egypt to the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem.

In this episode, we follow Herod the Great's rise to power, watch Judea devolve into chaos under the rule of successively unstable Roman Emperors, and witness a climactic and devastating showdown between the Jews and their Roman occupiers.

In this episode, we watch the Ptolemies and Seleucids battle over control of Israel, follow the intrigue of Jewish elites fighting for the position of High Priest, hear of the brutal Greek repression of Jewish practice, and see the rise of a rebellion.

In this episode, we follow the parallel paths of Jews after the Babylonian invasion of Jerusalem. A temple is destroyed, a city is rebuilt, and the first public Torah reading is performed.

Welcome to The Jewish Story! In this brief introductory episode, I introduce myself, give some background on this podcast, lay out a roadmap for Season One, and describe my primary sources for this history.