RELI 4070/6070 Judaism Spring Semester, 2007 Professor Richard Elliott Friedman

Tuesday & Thursday, 2:00-3:15, Peabody Hall 201

Office Hours: Tuesday & Thursday, 9:45-10:45, Peabody Hall 211

The interaction of Jewish history and Western civilization, with emphasis upon the development of Jewish religion in the biblical, rabbinic, and modern periods._____________________________________________________________________________

1 1/9 Distinctions

2 1/11 Priests, Judges, Kings:

Judges 4-5; 9; 17-18; 1 Samuel 8-13; 15-24; 27; 29; 31; Deuteronomy 17:14-20

Who Wrote the Bible?, pp. 33-38

3 1/16 Davidic Dynasty

2 Samuel

Who Wrote the Bible?, pp. 38-454

1/18 Two Kingdoms: Israel and Judah

1 Kings 1-2; 3-14; 16:23-32; 2 Kings 3; 10-11; 17-25

Who Wrote the Bible?, pp. 46-49, 89-995

1/23 Destruction, Exile, Return

Ezra 1; 3; 7; Nehemiah 1-2; 8-9

Who Wrote the Bible?, pp. 150-1606

1/25 The Religion of Israel: The Story They Wrote

Genesis 1-12; 15; 17-18; 22; 28; Exodus 1-15; 19-20; 34;

Numbers 11-14; 16-17; 20; 25; Deuteronomy 6-7; 9; 29-307

1/30 The Religion of Israel: The Laws

Exodus 21-23; Leviticus 19; 24-25; Deuteronomy 17; 19-258

2/1 The Religion of Israel: The Prophets

Amos 1-2; Hosea 1-6; Micah 1-4; Isaiah 1-2; 5-6; Jeremiah 1; 7; 42-43; Isaiah 409

2/6 The Religion of Israel: The Poetry10

2/8 The Religion of Israel: God

Psalms 29; 82; Leviticus 17; Deuteronomy 12

Who Wrote the Bible?, Chapters 2-311

2/13 The Torah

Who Wrote the Bible?, Chapters 5-7; 9-1412

2/15 Rabbinic Judaism: Mishna

From Text to Tradition, pp. 1-16, 60-11913

2/20 Midterm Examination14

2/22 Rabbinic Judaism: Gemara

From Text to Tradition, pp. 120-17615

2/27 Rabbinic Judaism: Midrash

From Text to Tradition, pp. 177-21916

3/1 Rabbinic Judaism: Siddur

From Text to Tradition, pp. 220-26917

3/6 Rabbinic Judaism: Commentary

18

3/8 Jewish Culture: Language, Life Cycle

19

3/20 Jewish Experience: Antisemitism

The Jew in the Modern World, VII20

3/22 Jewish Culture: Holidays, Food

Leviticus 11; 23; Zechariah 7-8; Esther21

3/27 Jewish Experience: Europe

The Jew in the Modern World, VIII22

3/29 Jewish Culture: Art, Music, Humor--

4/3 [No class]

The Essential Kabbalah23

4/5 Kabbalah

The Essential Kabbalah24

4/10 Jewish Experience: America

The Jew in the Modern World, IX25

4/12 Jewish Experience: Holocaust

The Jew in the Modern World, XI26

4/17 Movements: Reform

The Jew in the Modern World, IV27

4/19 Movements: Orthodox

The Jew in the Modern World, IV28

4/24 Movements: Conservative

The Jew in the Modern World, IV29

4/26 Return

The Jew in the Modern World, X

5/8 Final Examination

Tuesday, 3:30 - 6:30 pm

Books: Bible.  Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures, The New JPS Translation According to the Traditional Hebrew Text  (Jewish Publication Society)

Richard Elliott Friedman, Who Wrote the Bible?, 2nd edition (San Francisco: HarperCollins)

Lawrence H. Schiffman, From Text to Tradition  (Ktav)

Daniel Matt, The Essential Kabbalah  (San Francisco: HarperCollins)

Paul Mendes-Flohr and Jehuda Reinharz, eds., The Jew in the Modern World: A Documentary History 2nd edition  (Oxford)

Undergraduate prerequisite: Junior or senior standing or permission of department.Grading Policy: A Midterm Examination counts approximately one third. A Final Examination counts approximately two thirds. Participation (quantity and quality) also count in the final grade evaluation.All academic work must meet the standards contained in “A Culture of Honesty.” All students are responsible to inform themselves about those standards before performing any academic work. The course syllabus is a general plan for the course; deviations announced to the class by the instructor may be necessary.