A-Z of the Holy Land

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Come on a journey from biblical times to the modern day, exploring the connection between religion, history and politics and reflect on one of the most intractable conflicts in the last 100 years. Listen to a new episode every week.

Woolf Institute


    • Apr 29, 2021 LATEST EPISODE
    • infrequent NEW EPISODES
    • 8m AVG DURATION
    • 27 EPISODES


    Search for episodes from A-Z of the Holy Land with a specific topic:

    Latest episodes from A-Z of the Holy Land

    Z for Zion

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 29, 2021 10:22


    Can Zion prove to itself and to the world that it is capable of being a holy site to all?

    Y for Yerushalyim

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 26, 2021 8:57


    For Jews, Christians and Muslims, Jerusalem represents the divine–human encounter, linking heaven and earth.

    X for X-ray Archaeology

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 23, 2021 8:59


    Is the Jewish state's right to exist legitimised – or illegitimated – by stones or pottery from 3000 years ago?

    W for Words

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 20, 2021 9:36


    V for Violence

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 13, 2021 9:00


    The Israeli-Palestinian conflict therefore is not just about solving disagreement but rather who has the God-given right to this land. Religious faith not only easily leads to exclusive claims but can also inspire self-sacrifice.

    U for United Nations

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 9, 2021 8:47


    The rivalry of two nationalisms – Jewish and Palestinian – was set in motion well before then but despite the UN's involvement, they have continued, unabated, to this day.

    T for Trialogue

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 6, 2021 7:51


    Adherents of the Abrahamic faiths in the Holy Land have gained profound experience in polemic and apologetics but little in genuine dialogue.

    S for Status Quo

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 1, 2021 8:42


    Whilst plurality and diversity are under threat on and between all sides, the repairs in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is an example of how sometimes religious leaders can transcend partisan elements.

    R for Refugee

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 29, 2021 9:05


    While the State of Israel will not agree to their return since it would effectively destroy Israel as a Jewish state, the Palestinians steadfastly refuse to abandon their claim.

    Q for Qu'ran

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 23, 2021 8:10


    The Holy Land as a whole and Jerusalem in particular are, according to the Qur'an, sacred and retain an important place in Islamic consciousness.

    P for Palestine

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 18, 2021 9:12


    Palestine is the focus of attention - and contention – around the world.

    O for Ottoman

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 15, 2021 8:32


    Should we conclude that Ottoman rule in the Holy Land was one of harmony between Muslims, Christians and Jews? That's one heavily debated question.

    N for New Testament and Old Testament

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 11, 2021 7:09


    You might expect the Old and New Testaments to contain conflicting views of the Holy Land. However, there is surprising consistency.

    M for Music

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 8, 2021 9:54


    Did you know that the first accurate record of the melodies used for chanting the Torah was made by Christian scholars during the 15th century?

    L for Language

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 4, 2021 8:50


    Arabic and Hebrew have not always been dominant in the Holy Land.

    K for Kibbutz

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 1, 2021 8:34


    The kibbutz, a collective community traditionally run on socialist principles, is portrayed in the Israeli narrative as one of the guardians of the Holy Land

    J for Jesus

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 25, 2021 8:49


    The events that led to Jesus' death have been vigorously debated over the centuries.

    I for Israel

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 22, 2021 10:19


    The conflict will not be resolved in the long term by military means but only by compromise.

    H for Humour

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 18, 2021 7:24


    Don't know whether to laugh or express anger? Is the joke iconoclastic? Insensitive? That's Holy Land humour.

    G for God

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 15, 2021 8:40


    In a quest to encounter the Almighty, where better to go than the Holy Land?

    F for Fanaticism

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 11, 2021 9:54


    Jewish fanatics are no different from other land-centred religious fanatics. The argument is simple: “God gave us this land, it is Holy Land; it is ours and only ours”. Pictured here is Masada, the site of the mass suicide of Jewish Sicarii rebels in approximately 74 CE, and it's just one example of religious fanaticism in the extreme.

    E for Environment

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 8, 2021 9:10


    Nothing illustrates the environmental challenge facing the Holy Land better than the decline of the Sea of Galilee, also known as Lake Kinneret, to its lowest levels for 100 years.

    D for Dome of the Rock

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 4, 2021 9:43


    C for Christianity

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 1, 2021 9:43


    Christians are a minority in the Holy Land and a minority within the Arab minority. Purely on the psychological level, the Church is under pressure.

    B for Balfour

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 27, 2021 8:40


    In 67 words, the Foreign Secretary publicly declared the support of the British government for the Jewish claim to a ‘national home' in Palestine in 1917. What happened next?

    Introduction to A-Z of the Holy Land

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 22, 2021 3:25


    A for Arab

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 18, 2021 8:41


    It may seem obvious to begin an A-Z of the Holy Land with ‘A' for Arab but the term is more confusing than it may seem at first glance. Dr Ed Kessler introduces us to this subject in this first episode.

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