Hebrew Studies 211                               Tim Mackie
Jewish Studies 211                                 1352 Van Hise Hall
Religious Studies 211                              Email: tpmackie@wisc.edu
Tu/Th 1:00-2:15 PM                               Office Hours: Tu/Th 2:15-3:15
+ Discussion Sections                             or by appointment
Social Sciences Bldg. 5208

Course Description

This course is a general introduction to Judaism, focusing on the historical development of its various traditions of belief and practice. For the first part of the semester, we will explore how the Hebrew Bible informed and shaped early Jewish communities, and how these were consolidated into rabbinic Judaism. In the latter part of the semester we’ll turn to medieval and modern traditions of Judaism, as well as major historical events that have shaped contemporary Jewish life.

Through engagement with primary and secondary sources, we will follow how various traditions and communities within Judaism have understood divine revelation, religious authority, sacred time (daily, weekly, and yearly ritual), and sacred space (land, temple, synagogue, household).

Our focus throughout the course will be on the dynamics of Judaism as a religious tradition, which retained certain elements of continuity with the past through ritual and tradition, but also underwent innovation and change, creating discontinuity with its ancient heritage.

Required Texts:
- A translation of the Hebrew Bible. I will use the New JPS (Jewish Publication Society) translation in class. If you have another scholarly version (such as the NRSV), you may use it, but check with your TA to make sure it is appropriate. Basic Principle: If you are already familiar with the Bible, I recommend reading in a translation different from the one you are used to.

- Raymond Scheindlin, A Short History of the Jewish People

- Rabbi Nathan Goldberg, Passover Haggadah

- Primo Levi, Survival in Auschwitz

- Course Readings: Available online at Learn@UW (see below)

Please bring your readings and a Bible to every class session.

Course Requirements:

1. Regular attendance of the lectures and discussion sections is mandatory (attendance and participation in discussion sections equals 10% of the grade). In grading quizzes, papers, and exams, we will be concerned that you are learning the materials and concepts taught in the class sessions, and discussed in the readings. Prior knowledge of Jewish sources or traditions is not a substitute for coming to class and doing the work. Any more than 2 unexcused absences from your discussion section will affect your grade.

2. Readings:
a. The assigned readings for each day on the syllabus are to be read following the lecture. The quizzes, two short papers, and two exams will all draw upon material from the lectures and from your interaction with the readings.
b. All the readings (except those from the required textbooks) will be posted on the Learn@UW course website. Your email address with the University must be current, or you should inform me of an appropriate one to add to the class email list.

3. Papers (12.5% each): Two short papers, three to four typed pages (double-spaced, 12pt, Times New Roman font, regular margins), will be assigned during the semester. These will be a sustained summary and interaction with the readings and lecture material. They must be turned in during lecture; no email submission accepted.
1st Paper: Due in Lecture on Thurs 10/18
2nd Paper: Due in Lecture on Thurs 12/6

a. University policies on plagiarism and cheating can be found at:
http://www.wisc.edu/students/saja/misconduct/UWS14.html
b. Late Paper Policy:
i. If you hand in a paper up to one class session late, the grade will be reduced one full letter grade (A to B, AB to BC, etc.).
ii. After that you may hand in late papers until the final class day (Dec 13), but the grade will be reduced by two full letter grades (A to C, AB to D, B to D, and everything else will be F)

4. Quizzes (20%): During the semester there will be five short quizzes that will be completed during the discussion sections. These will cover the readings and lecture material. The lowest quiz will be dropped, but any more missed due to unexcused absence will count as a zero. If you know of an excused absence coming up for your discussion section, be sure to contact your TA so that you do not miss a quiz.

5. Midterm Exam (20%): There will be one midterm, given in the lecture class on Thurs 11/1. It will be a short answer and essay exam.

6. Final Exam (25%): The final will be a take home exam, given out on the last day of class (Thurs, Dec 13), and will be due within one week, by Thurs 12/20. It will be open book, so you may draw upon your notes and readings from the entire semester and complete the essay questions within an allotted amount of time. You may study and prepare with friends, but your answers must be your own.

7. Jewish Heritage Lectures (extra credit): There are four Jewish Heritage Foundation lectures being offered at UW this Fall which touch upon topics relevant to this course. It is strongly recommended that you attend at least one. For extra credit, you may compose a short lecture interaction assignment of 1-2 pages (worth 2.5% each):
(1) Summarize the main point of the lecture (if there was one!)
(2) Questions and Critical Comment: Ask two critical questions of the speaker’s main point, and make one critical comment about that main point (perhaps something they should or did not consider)

Jewish Heritage Foundation Lectures - Fall 2007

(1) Thursday, October 18th - 4:00 pm
The Sanford J. Ettinger Lecture on Israeli Literature
Michal Govrin
Writing of Hope in Times of Despair: Jerusalem in Woman's Eyes
State Historical Society Auditorium, 816 State Street – Location not confirmed

(2) October 25th - 7:30 pm
Tobias Lecture on Holocaust Studies
Guy Stern
The Secret War of the Ritchie Boys and a Look Behind the Scenes of an Oscar Nominated Documentary
State Historical Society Auditorium, 816 State Street

(3) Monday, November 5th - 7:30 pm
Lubar Lecture on Biblical Studies
Leonard J. Greenspoon
Interpreting the Word, Hope, Hype and Habit in 50 years of Biblical Studies
Pyle Center Auditorium - 702 Langdon

(4) Thursday, November 8th - 4:00 pm
Mosse/Weinsten lecture on Holocaust Studies
Ruth Gruber, journalist and human rights activist
Witness: One of the Great Correspondents of the Twentieth Century Tells Her Story
Alumni Lounge, Pyle Center, 702 Langdon Street

Grade Summary
Papers - 25%
Quizzes - 20%
Midterm Exam - 20%
Final Exam - 25%
Section Attendance and Participation - 10%
Jewish Heritage Lectures - Extra Credit

Course Outline

9/4 T - Course Introduction
9/4 Th - Hebrew Bible - Creation, Land, and Covenant
9/11 T - Hebrew Bible - Land, Covenant, and Exile
9/13 Th - No Class - Rosh Ha-Shanah
9/18 T - Hebrew Bible - Sinai and the Law
9/20 Th - Hebrew Bible - Purity and Impurity
9/25 T -Hebrew Bible - The Temple
9/27 Th - Hebrew Bible - After the Exile - Emergence of Judaism
10/2 T - 2nd Temple Judaism - History & Diversity
10/4 Th - Rabbinic Judaism - Divine Revelation - Authority - Oral Torah
10/9 T - Rabbinic Judaism - Bible Interpretation: Midrash
10/11 Th - Rabbinic Judaism - The Daily Liturgy
10/16 T - Rabbinic Judaism - Shabbat
10/18 Th - Rabbinic Judaism - Passover, Shavuot, and Sukkot [1st Paper Due]
10/23 T - Rabbinic Judaism - Rosh Ha-Shanah, Yom Kippur, Hannukah
10/25 Th - Rabbinic Judaism - The World to Come: Afterlife, Messianic Age, Resurrection
10/30 T - Rabbinic Judaism - The Cosmic Torah
11/1 Th - Midterm Exam
11/6 T - Medieval Judaism - Diaspora Judaism - History and Diversity
11/8 Th - Medieval Judaism - Bible Interpretation: Peshat and Derash
11/13 T - Medieval Judaism - Philosophy
11/15 Th - Medieval Judaism - Kabbalah and Mysticism
11/20 T - No Lecture - Only Discussion Sections this Week
11/22 Th - No Class - Thanksgiving Break
11/27 T - Medieval Judaism - Hasidism
11/29 Th - Modern Judaism - Reform - Conservative - Orthodox
12/4 T - Modern Judaism - 19th cent. Zionism
12/6 Th - Modern Judaism - The Holocaust [2nd Paper Due]
12/11 T- Contemporary Judaism - European, American, and Israeli Judaism
12/13 Th - Conclusion and Review - Final Exam Given Out > Due by Thurs 12/20

Weekly Course Readings

9/4 Tu Intro to the course
Jaffee, Early Judaism, pages 4-12

9/6 Th Hebrew Bible: Creation, Land, and Covenant
Scheindlin, A Short History, pages 1-23
[Note: For biblical texts, all numbers are chapter numbers]
Genesis 1-3, 12, 15
Exodus 1-3, 12:29-14:31, 19-20

9/11 Tu Hebrew Bible: Land, Covenant, and Exile
Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28
Joshua 1
2Kings 17
2Kgs 24-25

9/13 Th No Class - Rosh HaShanah

9/18 Tu Hebrew Bible: Sinai and the Law
Exodus 19-20
Skim Exodus 21-23
Exodus 24, 32-34
Leviticus 1
Deuteronomy 4-5, 30
Sailhamer, Pentateuch as Narrative, 33-34, 44-51

9/20 Th Hebrew Bible: Purity and Impurity
Leviticus 11
Deuteronomy 14
M. Douglas, "The Abominations of Leviticus"
Klawans, “Concepts of Purity in the Bible” 2041-2047

9/25 Tu Hebrew Bible: The Temple
1Kings 6-8 (skim chapters 6-7)
2Kings 22-25
Jaffee, Early Judaism, 172-182, 187-188

9/27 Th Hebrew Bible: After the Exile - Emergence of Judaism
Ezra 1, 3-4
Nehemiah 8
Scheindlin, A Short History, 24-49.
Jaffee, Early Judaism, 20-28, 50-67

10/2 Tu 2nd Temple Judaism - History & Diversity
Anderson, “Issues that Divided the Jewish Communities” 79-96.

10/4 Th Rabbinic Judaism - Divine Revelation - Authority - Oral Torah
Scheindlin, A Short History, 51-71
Mishnah, Aboth 1:1-2:1
Jaffee, Early Judaism, 74-85

10/9 Tu Rabbinic Judaism - Bible Interpretation: Midrash
Exodus 23:19; 34:26 and Deuteronomy 14:21
J. Lauterbach, Mekhilta, 187-190
Genesis 25:22
Genesis Rabbah on Genesis 25:22
Holtz, Back to the Sources, 177-189

10/11 Th Rabbinic Judaism - The Daily Liturgy and the Synagogue
Mintz, Back to the Sources, 403-417
The Shema and Amida/Shemoneh Esreh
Mishnah, Berakhot, pages 2-5

10/16 Tu Rabbinic Judaism - Shabbat
Heschel, The Sabbath, 3-10
The Sabbath Liturgy
Mishnah, Shabbat, pages 100-101, 106-107

10/18 Th Rabbinic Judaism - Passover, Shavuot, and Sukkot [1st Paper Due]
Exodus 11-13, 23:14-19
Leviticus 23
Deuteronomy 16
Goldberg, Passover Haggadah [assigned selections]
Mishnah, Sukkah, pages 172-173, 179-181

10/23 Tu Rabbinic Judaism - Rosh Ha-Shanah, Yom Kippur, Hannukah
Mishnah, Rosh-Hashanah, pages 188-189
Leviticus 16
Mishnah, Yoma, 162-163, 178-181
Maimonides, “Megillah and Hanukkah,” 463-464

10/25 Th Rabbinic Judaism - The World to Come: Afterlife, Messianic Age, Resurrection
Isaiah 2:1-4, 11:1-10
Daniel 12:1-13
4 Ezra 7:26-44
Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a-b, 98a

10/30 Tu Rabbinic Judaism - The Cosmic Torah
Genesis 1:1
Proverbs 8 (especially 8:22-31)
Ben Sirah / Sirach 24
Genesis Rabbah pages 1, 8-10

11/1 Th Midterm Exam

11/6 Tu Medieval Judaism - Diaspora Judaism - History and Diversity
Scheindlin, A Short History, 71-123

11/8 Th Medieval Judaism - Bible Interpretation: Peshat and Derash
Signer, Bible Interpretation in Jewish Tradition: Medieval Period, 70-77
Rashi on Genesis 3:8
Rashbam on Gen 37:2

11/13 Tu Medieval Judaism - Philosophy
Maimonides’ 13 principles

11/15 Th Medieval Judaism - Kabbalah and Mysticism
Scheindlin, A Short History, 123-147
L. Fine, chart of the Sefirot, from Holtz, Back to the Sources, pages 320-321
D. Matt, Zohar, pages 49-53, 207-214

11/20 Tu No Lecture - Only Discussion Sections this Week [Quiz Week]
11/22 Th No Class - Thanksgiving Break
[NOTE: I suggest reading Survival in Auschwitz, for 12/6, over the break, so that it’s not left for the final weeks]

11/27 Tu Medieval Judaism - Hasidism
Green, “Teachings of the Hasidic Masters” in Holtz, Back to the Sources
Readings of the Hasidic Sages

11/29 Th Modern Judaism - Reform - Conservative - Orthodox
Scheindlin, A Short History, 149-197
Meyer, "Reform Platforms," in Response to Modernity, pages 387-394

12/4 Tu Modern Judaism - 19th cent. Zionism
Scheindlin, A Short History, 217-233
A. Hertzberg, The Zionist Idea (on Theodore Hertzl): assigned selections.

12/6 Th Modern Judaism - The Holocaust [2nd Paper Due]
Scheindlin, A Short History, 199-215.
Primo Levi, Survival in Auschwitz

12/11 Tu Contemporary Judaism - European, American, and Israeli Judaism
Scheindlin, A Short History, 235-263.

12/13 Th Conclusion and Review - Final Exam Given Out > Due by Thurs 12/20

If you have trouble accessing this page, contact: Chris Dargis (cadargis@wisc.edu)
Latest revision date: 8/29/2007  (cad)

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