Fall
4
History of Europe
Beginning with the heretic Spinoza, we’ll examine the giants of Jewish thought—religious reformers, philosophers, writers, and theologians wrestling with the challenges of modernity. Topics will include: the essence of Judaism; the nature of law; religion and the state; Jewish understandings of God and of evil; the status of women and non-Jews; and the legacy of the Holocaust. We’ll discuss the Jewish Enlightenment; Reform, Orthodox, Conservative and other Jewish denominations; Zionism and Israel; Jewish existentialism and the meaning of life; Jewish philosophical and theological responses to the Holocaust; and Jewish feminism.
Pre-requisite: Sophomore Status