Download THE HOLOCAUST - IntrotoJudaism

INTRODUCTION TO JUDAISM
Portland State University
HST199/399 – Fall 2009
TTh 12.00-1.50pm
Prof. Natan Meir
[email protected]
Office: Cramer 492-B
This course has two primary goals: (1) to trace the
development of Judaism as a religious system and
civilization from the biblical period through the middle ages
and into the modern era, and (2) to introduce you to the
practices and beliefs of Judaism as a lived religion. Using
primary sources as our guideposts and historical context as
background, we will explore central themes such as
revelation and authority, text and tradition, orthodoxy and
heterodoxy, and belief and practice. After exploring themes
in the culture of Biblical Israel, we will examine the
transformation of Judaism undertaken by the rabbis of the
Talmud, the subsequent development of various modes of
Jewish religious thought and expression under medieval
Islam and Christendom, the emergence into the mainstream
of Kabbalah (Jewish mysticism) in the early modern period,
and the radically new understandings of Judaism offered by
modern religious movements. Class discussion will play a
central role in this course as we attempt to understand the
often complex texts and ideas at hand. One of the main objectives of the class is to give students
a firm grasp of the foundational ideas of Judaism and the skills necessary to read critically a wide
variety of Jewish texts. Taking a broadly interdisciplinary approach, we will use tools from the
fields of history, religious studies, literary criticism, and others.
Organization of Course: In general, the first half of class will be a lecture and the second half
will be presentations and discussion, though this may vary. This course uses Blackboard; please
make sure you register and familiarize yourself with it as soon as possible. You will find primary
sources, announcements, weblinks, and other resources on the site. We will also be creating a
class wiki (which will be part of your grade) at http://introtojudaism.wikispaces.com.
Hevruta: In class I will often ask you to read a particular text together with another person, so that
you can discuss your own questions about the text and spark each other’s ideas. This method is
taken from the rabbinic way of studying a text, a method that they called hevruta (fellowship). It
stems from the idea that learning is acquired best through the active interaction among self,
fellow, and text. Your hevruta partner may have different questions than you do, or different
answers.
Requirements:
HST199:
 Class attendance, completion of readings, and participation in discussions (10%).
 One text study paper (750-1000 words, about 3 pp.), providing a close reading of a primary
source, due either 10/20 or 11/10.
 Synagogue visit on Sabbath followed by one main entry (1000 words) and at least two
comments on class wiki. Due by 12/1 at the latest.
 Final exam (in-class, Thurs. Dec. 10, 12:30-2:20)
Your best work will be worth 35% of your total grade, the next 30%, and your lowest grade
will be worth 25% of the total course grade.
HST399:
 Class attendance, completion of readings, and participation in discussions are expected but
not graded.
 Two text study papers (750-1000 words, about 3 pp. each), providing a close reading of a
primary source, due 10/20 and 11/10.
 Synagogue visit on Sabbath followed by one main entry (1000 words) and at least two
comments on class wiki. Due by 12/1 at the latest.
 Five short (350-500 words) analytical comments on one of the assigned secondary source
readings, to be posted on the class wiki. You are encouraged to comment on your fellow
students' entries as well. (3% each x 5 = 15%)
Your two best pieces of work will be worth 30% of your total grade and the next 25%.
Texts
The JPS Bible (Tanakh), Pocket Edition (Jewish Publication Society)
Michael Satlow, Creating Judaism: History, Tradition, Practice (Columbia)
Barry Holtz, ed., Back to the Sources: Reading the Classic Jewish Texts (Simon and Schuster)
Raymond Scheindlin, A Short History of the Jewish People (Oxford USA)
Coursepack, available from Quick Copy, 1915 SW 6th Avenue. This coursepack contains almost
all the primary sources that we will study in this course. PLEASE BRING IT WITH YOU TO
EVERY CLASS.
Each week’s assigned reading is divided into primary and secondary sources.
Primary readings are marked with a  symbol.
Other useful reference material:
Jewish Encyclopedia: Published in 1906 but still authoritative for many of the topics covered in
this class. Available on at www.jewishencyclopedia.com
Encyclopaedia Judaica, 2nd ed.: an excellent place to start for any research in Jewish studies. REF
DS102.8 .E496 2007
The Encyclopedia of Judaism. REF BM50 .E632 1989
The New Encyclopedia of Judaism. REF BM50 .E632 2002
L. Jacobs, Oxford Concise Companion to the Jewish Religion. Available online through the PSU
library catalog (Oxford Reference Online).
The Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion. Available online through the PSU library catalog.
Also REF BM50 .O94 1997
L. Jacobs, The Jewish Religion: A Companion. Available online through the PSU library catalog.
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N. Solomon, Historical Dictionary of Judaism. REF BM50 .S65 1998
P. Birnbaum, Encyclopedia of Jewish Concepts REF BM50 .B55 1979
Atlases
Nicholas de Lange, Atlas of the Jewish World (1984). MAPS DS117 .D4 1984
Evyatar Friesel, Atlas of Modern Jewish History (1990). MAPS G1030 .F6513 1990
General course information
Students with disabilities who need additional consideration for the timely completion of any of
the course requirements should speak to the instructor at the beginning of the term, and must be
registered with PSU’s Disability Resource Center ([email protected]).
Papers must be turned in as hard copies; e-mail attachments will not be accepted. Please make
sure you keep a copy of the paper. Material taken (quoted, paraphrased, summarized) from other
sources must be properly cited, and the sources properly documented; failure to do so constitutes
plagiarism. Plagiarized work will automatically receive a grade of “F.” Chicago/Turabian
citation style is preferred, but MLA style is also acceptable. Wikipedia is fine for background
reading, but may not be used as a source in papers.
Late work: Late work will automatically be marked down 5% per day. Example: a term paper
handed in three days late that would have received a B+ will receive a C- instead. So hand in on
your work on time! If you have a legitimate excuse (e.g. illness), please make sure to let me know
about your problem as early as possible and not on the day the assignment is due.
E-mail policy: E-mail is a useful tool for communicating with the course instructor about
questions concerning the course material, content, and assignments. It is especially useful for
providing feedback to student ideas and for commenting on student theses or paper topics. But
please bear in mind the following:
 E-mail is not ideal for urgent matters. I consider 24-48 hours to be a reasonable period in
which to respond to inquiries. I am usually much faster than this, but not always.
 I will not, in general, respond to student e-mails sent after 5:00 on Friday until Sunday
afternoon or, at times, Monday morning. Please plan accordingly.
 Please remember to identify yourself and state your query as clearly as possible.
 I will not fill in students who miss class on the details of a particular lecture or
discussion. Please seek that information from your fellow students.
Please note that this syllabus is subject to change.
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COURSE SCHEDULE
WEEK
1
TOPIC
Introduction
Biblical Israel: monotheism; covenant; reward and punishment; revelation
2
Biblical Israel: law and ritual; holiness
Biblical Israel: prophecy and exile
3
Varieties of Second Temple Judaism (Hellenistic and Roman periods)
Second Temple Judaism, continued; Rabbinic Judaism: The Mishnah
4
Rabbinic Judaism: Talmud and midrash
The Rabbis and the question of gender
5
Sabbath and the festival cycle
Prayer and liturgy
Dietary laws
6
Medieval Jews under Islam and Christianity; biblical commentary
Philosophy and poetry
7
Medieval Jewish mysticism and halakha
Early modern mysticism and Hasidism
8
Modern Jewish religious denominations; modern Jewish philosophy
Zionism and secular Jewish identities
9
Lifecycle rituals and charity; women, gender and sexuality
THANKSGIVING
10
The twentieth century: the Holocaust and the State of Israel
Contemporary Judaism in the U.S. and Israel
FINAL
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Week 1
Tuesday 9/29
 Introduction to the course
Thursday 10/1
 Biblical Israel: monotheism; covenant; reward and punishment; revelation
 Genesis 1; 2:1-3; 12:1-3; 15; 17:1-14
 Exodus 2:23-25; 19-20; 24; 34:1-28
 Deuteronomy 11:13-21; 26:16-19; 29
Satlow, Introduction (1-21)
Holtz, Introduction; chap. 1 part A: “Biblical Narrative” (11-81)
Scheindlin, Introduction and chap. 1 (viii-xiii, 1-24)
Week 2:
Tues. 10/6
 Biblical Israel: law and ritual; holiness
 Ex. 21-22
 Lev. 19
Satlow, chap. 2: “Creating Judaism” (69-95)
Holtz, chap. 1 part B: “Biblical Law” (83-103)
Thurs. 10/8:
 Biblical Israel: prophecy and exile
 Amos 5:14-15, 21-24; 8:1-8; 9:8-14
 Isaiah 1-2:4
 Jeremiah 29:1-14; 31:30-36
 Nehemiah 8:1-3; 9
optional: Holtz, chap. 1 part C: “Biblical Poetry” (105-127)
Week 3:
Tues. 10/13
 Varieties of Second Temple Judaism (Hellenistic and Roman periods)
 Matthew 22-23
 Josephus, The Antiquities of the Jews Book 13 chap. 5 par. 9; 13.10.6; 18.1.3-4
 Mishnah Yadayim 4:6-7
Satlow, chap. 3: “Between Athens and Jerusalem” (96-114)
Scheindlin, chap. 2 (25-50)
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Thurs. 10/15:
 Second Temple Judaism, continued
 Rabbinic Judaism: The Mishnah
 Mishnah Avot 1:1
 Mishnah Sanhedrin 10:1
Week 4
Tues. 10/20
FIRST TEXT STUDY PAPER DUE
 Rabbinic Judaism: Talmud and midrash




Babylonian Talmud Bava Metsi’a 59b
BT Berakhot 2a-3a (in Holtz chapter in Back to the Sources)
BT Berakhot 26b
BT Menahot 29b
Satlow, chaps. 5-6 (115-163)
Holtz, chaps. 2-3 (129-211)
Scheindlin, chap. 3 (51-70)
Thurs. 10/22
 The Rabbis and the question of gender
 readings TBA
Week 5
Tues., 10/27
 Sabbath and the festival cycle; prayer and liturgy
 Excerpts from the siddur (prayerbook)
 Abraham Joshua Heschel, “The Sabbath” (excerpts)
Satlow, chap. 6 (164-186)
Michael Fishbane, Judaism: Revelations and Traditions, 85-100 (“The Calendrical System of
Holiness”) (Blackboard)
Jacob Neusner, Judaism: The Basics, 38-60 (Blackboard)
Holtz, chap. 8 (403-429)
Thurs., 10/29
 Dietary laws
“Dietary Laws” in L. Jacobs, The Jewish Religion: A Companion. Available online through the
PSU library catalog (Oxford Reference Online).
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Week 6
Tues. 11/3
 Medieval Jews under Islam and Christianity; biblical commentary
 Rashi, commentary on the Bible
Satlow, chaps. 7-8 (187-208)
Holtz, chap. 4 (213-258)
Scheindlin, chaps. 4-5 (71-122) (read for today and Thurs.)
Thurs. 11/5
Medieval philosophy
 Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, “The Book of Knowledge” and “Thirteen Principles”
Satlow, chap. 8 (209-228)
Holtz, chap. 5 (261-303)
Week 7
Tues. 11/10
SECOND TEXT STUDY PAPER DUE
 Medieval Jewish mysticism and halakha
 Excerpt from the Zohar (The Book of Splendor)
Satlow, chap. 9 (229-249)
Holtz, chap. 6 (305-359)
Thurs. 11/12
 Early modern mysticism and Hasidism
 Hasidic tales
 The Besht’s Epistle of the Ascension of the Soul
 Excerpt from the Shulhan Arukh
Holtz, chap. 7 (361-401)
Scheindlin, 123-136, 149-156, 182-183 (“The Hasidic Masters”)
Week 8
Tues. 11/17
 Modern Jewish religious denominations; modern Jewish philosophy

“The Reform Rabbinical Conference at Frankfurt: The Question of Messianism” (1845)
in Reinharz and Mendes-Flohr, eds., The Jew in the Modern World, 2nd ed. (1995), pp.
183-185
 Z. Frankel, “On Changes in Judaism,” in Dan Cohn-Sherbok, Judaism (1999), p. 266.
 S. R. Hirsch, “The Secession of the Orthodox,” in The Jew in the Modern World.
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 Reform Pittsburgh Platform of 1885
Satlow, chap. 10 (250-287); begin reading chap. 1 (yes, chapter 1)
Scheindlin, 137-147, 157-171, 173-197
“Reform Judaism,” “Orthodox Judaism,” and “Conservative Judaism” in Judaism: A People and
Its History, ed. Robert M. Seltzer (New York: Macmillan; London: Collier Macmillan
Publishers), 1989 (Blackboard)
Thurs. 11/19
 Zionism and secular Jewish identities
GUEST SPEAKER (TENTATIVE): David Ehrlich, Hebrew writer, proprietor of Jerusalem’s
foremost literary café, “Tmol Shilshom,” and Artist-in-Residence at PSU Judaic Studies for
Fall 2009
 Herzl, “A Solution of the Jewish Question” (1896) in Reinharz and Mendes-Flohr, eds.,
The Jew in the Modern World, 2nd ed. (1995)
 The First Zionist Congress, “The Basle Program” (1897) in idem
 Ahad Ha-am, “The First Zionist Congress” (1897) in idem
Scheindlin, 217-233
“Zionism” in Judaism: A People and Its History
Week 9
Tues., 11/24
 Lifecycle rituals and charity; women, gender, and sexuality




http://www.circumcision.net/Bris_Ceremony.htm
Mourning rituals and prayers (Blackboard)
Tkhines (women’s petitionary prayers)
Contemporary Jewish ritual
Neusner, Judaism: The Basics, 61-70 (Blackboard)
“Women” in The Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion, 726-729 (accessible as an e-book
through Vikat)
Thurs., 5/27: NO CLASS (THANKSGIVING BREAK)
Week 10
Tues., 12/1
 The twentieth century: the Holocaust and the State of Israel
 Rabbi Kalonymus Shapiro (The Rebbe of Piaczesno), excerpt from The Fire of Holiness
in Roskies, ed. The Literature of Destruction (Jewish Pub. Society, 1989)
 Yitzhak Katzenelson, “The Song of the Murdered Jewish People,” canto IX (Oct. 1943Nov. 1944), in Roskies, The Literature of Destruction
 Kadia Molodowsky, “God of Mercy” (1945) in Roskies, The Literature of Destruction
 Declaration of Independence of the State of Israel (http://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/israel.asp)
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 Yehuda Amichai, “On the Day of Atonement,” in T. Carmi, ed. and trans., The Penguin
Book of Hebrew Verse (1981), 571-572
Scheindlin, chaps. 9-11 and Afterword (199-263)
Satlow, Epilogue (288-296)
Thurs., 12/3
 Contemporary Judaism in the U.S. and Israel
Satlow, finish reading chap. 1 (22-68); Epilogue (288-296)
Scheindlin, chap. 11 and Afterword (235-263)
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