The Levantini Podcast

We've curated a special highlight version of the podcast for those in a hurry. You can listen to the full episode here. 

Jonathan Klawans is a specialist in the religion and religious literature of ancient Judaism and a Professor at Boston University. In 2001 he published an article titled 'Was Jesus' Last Supper a Seder?'  that argued it was not a Passover meal nor a Seder and the article has received continued ...

We've curated a special highlight version of the podcast for those in a hurry. You can listen to the full episode here. 

Haggai Olshanetsky, a historian and archaeologist focusing on the Hellenistic and Roman periods at the University of Warsaw, came back on the show to discuss a paper he authored in 2024 that re-examines Queen Zenobia’s relationship with Judaism and how she may have converted in order to support her political ...

Haggai Olshanetsky, a historian and archaeologist focusing on the Hellenistic and Roman periods at the University of Warsaw, came back on the show to discuss a paper he authored in 2024 that re-examines Queen Zenobia’s relationship with Judaism and how she may have converted in order to support her political and military objectives. Zenobia ruled in Palmyra which is in modern day Syria during the 3rd century and she’s one of the mo...

We've curated a special highlight version of the podcast for those in a hurry. You can listen to the full episode here. 

Haggai Olshanetsky is a historian and archaeologist focusing on the Hellenistic and Roman periods at the University of Warsaw. He came on the show to discuss his research arguing that the Second Jewish Revolt against Rome, otherwise known as the Bar Kokhba Revolt, may have had more than one leader, specifical...

Haggai Olshanetsky is a historian and archaeologist focusing on the Hellenistic and Roman periods at the University of Warsaw. He came on the show to discuss his research arguing that the Second Jewish Revolt against Rome, otherwise known as the Bar Kokhba Revolt, may have had more than one leader, specifically Jewish veterans of the Roman army, and it was only later that Bar Kokhba assumed leadership of the revolt. 

Here is a link ...

We've curated a special highlights version of the podcast for those in a hurry. You can listen to the full episodes here and here. 

Baruch Halpern discusses his book David’s Secret Demons: Messiah, Murderer, Traitor, King. The book examines the textual and archaeological evidence of David to help paint a better picture of his life, reign, and impact. This second episode covers the Absalom Revolt and Solomon’s rise to power. The...

Baruch Halpern discusses his book David’s Secret Demons: Messiah, Murderer, Traitor, King. The book examines the textual and archaeological evidence of David to help paint a better picture of his life, reign, and impact. The first episode focuses on the origins of David and his part in overthrowing the House of Saul. The second episode covers the Absalom Revolt and Solomon’s rise to power. There’s a link above to purchase the book.

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Baruch Halpern discusses his book David’s Secret Demons: Messiah, Murderer, Traitor, King. The book examines the textual and archaeological evidence of David to help paint a better picture of his life, reign, and impact. This second episode covers the Absalom Revolt and Solomon’s rise to power. The first episode covers David's origins and his role in overthrowing the House of Saul. There’s a link above to purchase the book. 

Ba...

Tal Ilan is a retired professor of Jewish studies at the Free University, Berlin (Germany), and has researched the Diaspora Revolt of 115-117 CE against the Romans that broke out across Libya, Egypt and Cyprus. The rebellion is less well known than the two other Jewish revolts against Rome, namely the Great Revolt which resulted in the destruction of the Second Temple and the Bar Kochba Revolt. The Diaspora Revolt had disastrous co...

Seth Schwartz is a professor of classical Jewish civilization at Columbia University and the author of Imperialism and Jewish Society, 200 BCE to 640 CE. The book examines the effects of Persian, Greek, and Roman rule of Jewish society in antiquity and how it shaped Jewish life and identity. Episode 1 focuses on the return of Judahite exiles from Persia and the establishment of the Torah of Moses as the official law code of the peo...

Seth Schwartz is a professor of classical Jewish civilization at Columbia University and the author of Imperialism and Jewish Society, 200 BCE to 640 CE. The book examines the effects of Persian, Greek, and Roman rule of Jewish society in antiquity and how it shaped Jewish life and identity. Episode 2 discusses the impacts of the Hasmonean territorial expansion as well as how Judaism was transformed following the failed revolts aga...

Aren Meir and Sue Frumin come back on the show to discuss a paper they co-authored that examined plant-related Philistine ritual practices at Tell Es-Safi, which is believed to be the biblical Gath. You can find a link to the study here.  Aren is a professor at Bar Ilan University and director of the Tell es-Safi/Gath Archaeological Project. His research has a particular focus on the Bronze and Iron Ages of the ancient Near East. S...

Liane Feldman discusses her book The Consuming Fire, which presents a complete translation of the Priestly Source of the Bible, offering a distinctive account of the origins of the people of Israel and their relationship with God.  By presenting the complete translation of the Priestly Source without the other sources that are believed to also be part of the compiled Bible as we have it today, the reader is presented with a story t...

In this episode of the podcast, Abigail Krasner Balbale discusses her book The Wolf King: Ibn Mardanish and the Construction of Power in Al Andalus. The Wolf King explores how political power was conceptualized, constructed, and wielded in twelfth-century al-Andalus, focusing on the reign of Muhammad ibn Sad ibn Ahmad ibn Mardanīsh also known as The Wolf King. 

Abigail is an Assistant Professor of Islamic History at New York Univers...