The Pillars: Jerusalem, Athens, and the Western Mind
Lobel Center for Jewish Classical Education
Welcome to The Pillars: Jerusalem, Athens, and the Western Mind, a podcast that tells the story of the prophets, philosophers, and poets who created the West.
In this podcast, Rabbi Dr. Mitchell Rocklin guides listeners through more than 3,000 years of Western history, offering a coherent, civilizational story of how the West came to be—along with a deepened understanding of the challenges it now faces. While many of the texts discussed will be familiar to students of the humanities, Rabbi Rocklin offers a new framework for understanding them—a framework in which the teachings of the Jewish religious tradition play a central role. For, as Rabbi Rocklin explains, Western civilization can only be understood as the product of a transformative and ongoing collision between the great traditions of Jerusalem and Athens—between the religious spirit of the Jews and the philosophical spirit of the Greeks.
In this podcast, Rabbi Dr. Mitchell Rocklin guides listeners through more than 3,000 years of Western history, offering a coherent, civilizational story of how the West came to be—along with a deepened understanding of the challenges it now faces. While many of the texts discussed will be familiar to students of the humanities, Rabbi Rocklin offers a new framework for understanding them—a framework in which the teachings of the Jewish religious tradition play a central role. For, as Rabbi Rocklin explains, Western civilization can only be understood as the product of a transformative and ongoing collision between the great traditions of Jerusalem and Athens—between the religious spirit of the Jews and the philosophical spirit of the Greeks.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Sep 3, 2025 • 34min
Martin Luther: Reformer or Revolutionary
Few events in Christian history had a more dramatic impact than the Protestant Reformation. As we survey this seismic event, Rabbi Rocklin will answer the following questions: How did the spirit of the Renaissance that swept through Europe foster a culture that could lead to the Reformation? What theological debates led to Martin Luther's eventual split from the Roman Catholic Church? How is Luther's insistence that the Bible can be translated into the vernacular an outgrowth of his view of the ordinary man?
Aug 27, 2025 • 48min
The Age of Exploration: Europe's Commerce and Classes
The spirit of discovery in the Renaissance will push Europe to expand its trade horizons and reshape its economy. On today's episode, we'll address the following questions: What were the technological innovations in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries that made long-distance sailing easier? Why did Portugal, of all countries, become a dominant force in expanding European trade in the East? How did the Age of Exploration completely pull Europe out of a feudal economic system and into an era of mercantilism?
Aug 20, 2025 • 35min
Of Kings, Nobles, and Commoners: The Emergence of the New Monarchs
Consolidation of power will dramatically alter politics, wars, and loyalties in Europe. To help us expand this notion, we'll explore the following questions: What caused political power in Europe to shift from being localized in the hands of the lords to being wielded by royal families ruling vast territories? How did a rise in national loyalties lead to increasing suspicion of divergent religious groups? Why were the common people important to kings such that kings allied themselves with the populace against the nobility?
Aug 13, 2025 • 34min
The Northern Renaissance: Aesthetics, Mystics, and Humanists
The Northern Renaissance may be infused with the same spirit as the Italian Renaissance, but it manifested in uniquely northern European ways. On today's episode, we'll take a look at the following questions: How does Goethe's Faustus grapple with the relationship between knowledge and goodness? What was the danger in Nicholas of Cusa's philosophical innovation regarding man's relationship with God? Why did the Northern Renaissance produce great thinkers and reformers? Recommended Viewing: Northern Renaissance paintings at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) Northern Renaissance paintings at the Museo del Prado (Madrid, Spain)
Aug 6, 2025 • 43min
To be Loved or Feared: Machiavelli and the Politics of Power
Modern politics cannot be fully understood without Machiavelli. To help us unpack this claim, Rabbi Rocklin will explore the following questions: How does Machiavelli shift the way that virtue is understood? Why do some scholars consider Machiavelli to be the first modern political philosopher? How does Machiavelli justify his claim that a ruler should use cruelty and fear as tools to control the people? Recommended Reading: Machiavelli, Niccolo. The Prince, 2nd edition. Translated by Harvey Mansfield, University of Chicago Press: 1998.
Jul 30, 2025 • 32min
Human Dignity: Petrarch and Pico della Mirandola
The notion of human dignity takes center stage as humanism comes to the fore with Petrarch and Pico. To help us explore the topic, Rabbi Rocklin will address the following questions: Why did Petrarch, who is often considered the father of humanism, heavily criticize Medieval philosophers? According to Pico, what makes man unique and uniquely dignified? How does that shift the general understanding of man's relationship with God? Both Pico and the Greeks seem to have asserted that man can change through culture. How is Pico's assertion notably different? Recommended Reading: Pico della Mirandola, Giovanni. Oration on the Dignity of Man. 1486.
Jul 23, 2025 • 44min
An Era of Rebirth: The Italian Renaissance
A new era dawns on history as the Renaissance begins. As we begin to explore this period, Rabbi Rocklin will help us answer the following questions: Can the Renaissance truly be characterized as a new period, as opposed to simply an outgrowth of the Middle Ages? Why does the re-examining of Greco-Roman thought lead to a religious emphasis on man's greatness and centrality to creation? What was the Church's reaction to the changes of the Renaissance era?
Jul 16, 2025 • 35min
Medieval Literature IX: Drama and Tales
Professor David Levinsky, Associate Professor of English at Yeshiva University and specialist in medieval literature, discusses Chaucer's life, how he accessed texts outside academia, the innovative vernacular forms he pioneered, the Canterbury Tales' ambitious structure, provocative pieces like The Pardoner and the Wife of Bath, and Chaucer's ties to Italian influences and Jewish-Christian relations.
Jul 9, 2025 • 49min
Medieval Literature VIII: Dante and Boccaccio
Anthony Nussmeier, Chair of Modern Languages and Italian scholar of Dante, Petrarch, and Boccaccio, dives into Dante’s innovations in the Commedia and why it still resonates. He traces Dante’s sources, political tensions, and his shaping of the Italian vernacular. Then he explores Boccaccio’s Decameron, its everyday realism after the Black Death, and his turn to classical humanism.
Jul 2, 2025 • 33min
Medieval Literature VII: Medieval Chivalry III
Medieval chivalry comes alive through tales of knights, honor, and testing promises. The Green Knight's challenge, fear and resolve, and conflicts between courtly love and feudal loyalty are explored. Arthurian loyalty, Lancelot and Guinevere's failings, and Camelot's ideals versus human flaws are discussed. Robin Hood appears as resistance to tyranny, guided by conscience, compassion, and limits on violence.
