The Jewish Story

In this episode, we meet the first female rabbi in Jewish history, see the fallout from Shabbetai Tzvi's rise and fall in the Ottoman Empire, explore life in the European colonies of South America and the Caribbean in the 17th century, and meet the first Jews to set foot in North America.

In this episode, we make a brief pit stop in Safavid Iran, before turning to the Ottoman Empire. We see the first cracks form in the Empire, and watch as power shifts between the sultan, his harem, and his slave soldiers. We take an in-depth look at Jewish life in the Ottoman Empire, and then witness the rise and fall of Shabbetai Tzvi, global celebrity and purported messiah.

In this episode, we discuss the Khmelnytskyi rebellion, meet both the Court Jews and Betteljuden of Germany, explore Jewish life in Italy, watch the Jews of France and Spain slowly rebuild, and survey the foundling Jewish communities of Scandinavia.

In this episode, we meet the Chief Rabbis of Amsterdam, we hear an explorer's tale of finding ancient Jews in North America, we see the toppling of a king in England, we meet the two men who would go on to overturn the centuries-long ban on Jews in England, and we survey the life of Baruch Spinoza, a controversial secular Jewish figure.

In the first episode of Season 5, we explore the foundling Jewish community of Amsterdam, and watch it grow to become one of the most important Jewish communities in the world. We witness the explosion of Protestantism across Europe, and meet Uriel Dacosta, one of the first modern secular Jews.

In this episode, we recap Season 4 of the Jewish Story, spanning from the late 15th to the early 17th century. We review the routes of escape for Iberian Jews at the height of the Spanish Inquisition, the massive rescue network of Gracia Mendes, the first Jews to arrive in the New World, the small Jewish communities of the far East and Africa, and the rising Christian antisemitism of late 16th century Europe.

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 Belle Jarniewski to discuss the First Crusade, some of Maimonides's most influential ideas, the nature of Jewish resilience, and the expulsion of Jews from Europe.

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 return to India to meet two new groups of Jews who would become prominent populations in Indian society; we travel to China, where we see how Chinese Jews attempted to blend Jewish tradition with Chinese neo-Confuscian culture and philosophy; and we survey the Jews of East and West Africa, and briefly discuss the evidence of Afro-Jewish origin.