The Jews: History, Culture and Religion

The class "The Jews: History, Culture, and Religion" is part of the formative activities of the M.A. degree in "Ancient Civilizations for the Cobntemporary World". The formative goal of the class is offering the students a detailed overview of Jewish Studies and of the most important events of the religious and cultural history of the Jews from antiquity to the early modern era through the analysis of themes and texts that represent the various expression of ancient, late-antique, medieval and early modern Judaism. Students will develop analytical skills and a critical thinking which will allow them to recognize central themes in the millenarian history of the Jewish people, to identify the many inter-cultural and inter-religious contacts between the Jews and their neighbors over time, as well as to understand the relevance of Jewish culture within the history of the Near and Middle East and in the European area.

Knowledge abilities on the course:

At the end of the course, students will:

- orientate themselves in the cultural and religious history of the Jews from antiquity to the early modern era;
- be familiar with the festivities, the most important texts, and the fundamental terminology/concepts of Judaism;
- recognize the major trends in Jewish thought and the central questions of Jewish history in relation also to the neighboring cultures;
- know: (a) to examine material and textual Hebrew sources from antiquity, the Middle Ages, and the early modern era, which are relevant for studying Jewish history; (b) to contextualize these materials, and (c) to relate them one with another, in comparison also with coeval texts and archaeological materials of non-Jewish origin.

Communicative and learning abilities:

Students will learn to:

- read and critically elaborate the reading materials proposed during the lessons and assigned in preparation;
- autonomously study topics not covered during frontal lessons;
- understand academic contents in English and read scientific papers/books in English;
- know the terminology, themes of, and the fundamental approaches to Jewish Studies, in order to orientate themselves in the field at both a conceptual and historical level;
- develop a clarity which will enable them to autonomously formulate evaluations and interpretations of the course-related topics with the appropriate terminology.