Course Description
Topics and problems concerning Judaism, with emphasis upon extensive reading in primary sources and individual and/or group research projects. Selection of topics will vary with instructor and interest of students.
Additional Requirements for Graduate Students:
Additional readings and a research paper along with more
extensive examinations to reflect the additional
responsibilities.
Athena Title
Topics in Judaism
Prerequisite
Permission of department
Semester Course Offered
Not offered on a regular basis.
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
Religious studies, including such areas as Arts, Literature, and Religion; Religion in America; New Testament; Hebrew Bible; and so on. To teach students research methods and to foster independent research. To strengthen skills in written composition, analysis, and presentation by means of projects such as essays, papers, reports, and examinations. To strengthen skills in oral expression, analysis, style, and interaction by means of class reports, class discussion, and oral examinations. To enhance and facilitate computer literacy by the use of word processing, the web, and email through research, preparation, and presentation of work such as oral class reports and completion of written assignments. To foster critical thinking by engaging in activities such as classroom discussion and debate, essay examinations, and oral presentations. To assist in the continued development of moral and ethical reasoning and reflection by encouraging creative thinking regarding individual and community concerns and needs, the challenging of prejudices and stereotypes, and examining rational and ethical bases of constructive social interactions.
Topical Outline
The topical outline may vary according to professor and topic. An example below concerns the history of Religion: Death and Afterlife in Judaism through the Ages A. Traditional views of afterlife 1. Mesopotamia 2. Archaic Greece 3. Egypt 4. Canaan B. The Biblical views of afterlife 1. Archaeological evidence 2. Textual evidence 3. The denial of afterlife 4. Jewish views in the New Testament and Qumran C. Afterlife in the Second Temple Period 1. Job 2. Ecclesiastes 3. Eschatologies 4. Archaeological evidence 5. The Jewish Patriarchate D. Rabbinic theories of afterlife 1. Mishnaic 2. Talmudic E. Medieval theories of afterlife in various communities 1. Eschatological 2. Realized afterlife 3. Common practice F. Early modern Jewish afterlife 1. France 2. Germany 3. England 4. Spinoza G. Contemporary issues in afterlife 1. Orthodox 2. Conservative 3. Reform 4. Other