Spanish Inquisition | David Solomon

April 14, 2022May 16, 2023

#113 Jewish History in Six Chapters (4)

The fourth lecture in David Solomon’s overview series of Jewish history examines the years 1000 to 1500, known as the period of the Rishonim.

The talk explores the complex and sometimes contradictory experiences of different Jewish populations over these centuries, their lives and safety often dependent on their location, rulers, and the whim of history.

In discussing this period, David primarily focuses on:

Western Europe

Feudal society
Rashi’s project
Ba’alei Tosafot
The motivations, events, and impacts of the crusades
The Inquisition
Meir of Rothenberg
The Rosh
The Tur
David Kimchi
The Ralbag.

Spain

The Golden Age of Spain – from the Moorish conquest to the Almohad Invasion
Shlomo Ibn Gabirol and Yehudah HaLevi
The Rif
The Rambam
The Christian reconquest
The Ramban and the Barcelona Disputation (1263)
Avraham Abulafia
The revelation of the Zohar (1290).

England

The first blood libel (1144)
The massacre at York (1190)
Raising the ransom for Richard 1 (1194)
The first nationwide expulsion (1290).

Filled with stories of the many remarkable Jews whose lives and work have left indelible marks on history, David reveals this five-hundred-year period to have been as rich with innovation and contribution as it is with darkness.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:28:22 — 98.4MB)

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December 15, 2021May 16, 2023

#108 The Messianic Idea in Jewish History (3)

David Solomon explores the post-Talmudic period to the Renaissance in the third lecture of his series “The Messianic Idea in Jewish History.”

David discusses:

The emergence of ‘the Midrashic Messiah’
The concept of the false messiah
The disappointment of Bar Kokhba
The influence of Islam on the messianic idea
Spiritual messianism
The impact of the Spanish Inquisition and Expulsion on Jewish messianism
Other messianic movements.

He examines several messianic figures, including:

Nehemiah ben Ḥushiel
David Alroy
Avraham Abulafia
Shlomo Molcho and David Ha Reuveni.

David also explores different messianic types, including:

The ‘classic’ Rabbinic messiah
Ishmaelic and Edomic models.

And discusses various ideas of messianic manifestations through Jewish history, including the messiah:

as warrior
as king
as magician
as persecuted
as kabbalist and wonder worker
as penitent
with a plan.

David examines passages from key Jewish texts which chart discussions about the concept and role of the messiah. He also provides historical context to the people, events, and developments mentioned throughout the lecture.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:19:50 — 60.5MB)

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November 19, 2020November 23, 2020

#64 Hope in Darkness: Jewish History of the 14th & 15th Centuries (Part Three)

The 1400s in Jewish history was a time of turbulence and uncertainty while also a period of tremendous Jewish intellectual and mystical exploration. In this podcast episode, the last of the three-part series ‘Hope in Darkness: Jewish History of the 14th and 15th Centuries’, David examines the lives of several fascinating figures and their contributions to Jewish and world thinking. However, it is the enormity of the historical events that shaped the Jewish experience of the time, particularly in Europe, that dominates much of the material discussed in this episode. David explores the impact of printing on Jewish life and learning; the increasing interest in Hebrew and Jewish texts among Christian scholars; and the devastating consequences arising from the union of Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile, leading to the unrelenting cruelty of the Inquisition and the eventual cataclysmic expulsion of the Jews of Spain.

Continue reading “#64 Hope in Darkness: Jewish History of the 14th & 15th Centuries (Part Three)”