Grey Areas: Two Centuries of Wissenschaft des Judentums
Conference in Heidelberg, 16-19 June 2019

MODERN JEWISH HISTORY AND CULTURE IN GERMAN/SLAVIC CONTACT ZONES

Joint undertaking by the

 BKM-Assistant Professorship in Social and Economic Networks of Germans in Modern Eastern Europe at TU Dresden

and the Taube Department of Jewish Studies at Wrocław University

7–20 July, 2019

The history of Central and Eastern Europe is marked by multiple cultural contacts, transfers, and conflicts within and between linguistic milieus and traditions.  Due to multilingualism, considerable spatial and social mobility, and transnational networks, many Jews and Jewish communities played a special role in processes of contact and communication. Yet the idea of a profound divide between East European and German Jewish culture still informs current academia and obscures the understanding of the dynamics in Jewish culture of East Central Europe and beyond. This dynamic finds its most paradigmatic expression in cultural and language contacts. Yiddish language and culture, for example, were influenced by Germanic and Slavonic languages and cultures on the one hand, but simultaneously influenced those languages and cultures on the other. These influences and interactions are the premise of the summer program.

Participants will examine these issues in depth during seminars and World Cafe discussions with outstanding scholars of Jewish history and culture. The emphasis is on small groups and individual contact with experienced scholars working with primary source materials (all in English translation), and Yiddish immersion language courses. Participants are encouraged to present their current or planned projects.

The summer program is targeted at masters and doctoral students, but is also open to emerging scholars in the humanities and social sciences. It is a joint undertaking by the BKM-Assistant Professorship in Social and Economic Networks of Germans in Modern Eastern Europe at TU Dresden and the Taube Department of Jewish Studies at Wrocław University, and is financed by the German Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and Media. The entire program will be conducted in English.

The program offers four modules daily, three compulsory and one optional. The first module from 9:00-10:30 am consists of Yiddish language classes in small groups. The second module from 11:00-12:30 is a lecture for all participants that is also open to other academic participants. After the lunch break, participants will attend a third module from 14:30-16:00  with a narrower focus. The fourth, optional, block in the early evening will offer specially selected guest lecturers, thematic tours, and film screenings. The program ends with diplomas presented during an official closing ceremony. 

• Lectures and seminars with renown specialists including Prof. Michael Brenner (LMU-Munich/American University), Prof. Tim Buchen(TU Dresden), Prof. KateřinaČapková, (New York University), Prof. Moshe Rosman (Bar Ilan University), Dr MałgorzataStolarska-Fronia, (Polish Academy of Sciences), Dr Karolina Szymaniak(University of Wrocław), Dr. MarcVolovici (Birkbeck College, London), Prof. Marcin Wodzinski (University of Wrocław), and others. 
• Day trip with an expert guide to Jewish Prague including the Jewish Museum and cemetery
• Guided tours and daily events
• Dormitory accommodations in Dresdenand Wrocław included in the fee
• Transportation between Dresden and Wroclaw by coach
• 6 ECTS credit points will be awarded to qualifying participants
• Program certificate

Cost: 

• 390 euro full price
• 190 euro student discount price
• 90 euro for participants granted financial aid from the program organizers

Insurance is not included.  Participants must provide their own policy.

In order to apply, please submit:

• Motivation letter, including first and last names, postal address, date of birth, short bio information
• An abstract of your MA or PhD thesis or current research project, if applicable
• Indicate whether you would like to apply for a scholarship. If so, please provide an academic letter of recommendation
• Scan of current student ID and university affiliation, if applicable

Decisions regarding acceptance and scholarships will be announced by 10 June 2019.

Protestant Bible Scholarship: Antisemitism, Philosemitism, and Anti-Judaism (26-27 May 2019, Oxford)

This conference brings prominent biblical scholars and scholars of Judaism together for a conversation about the foundations of our fields. We want to generate a discussion of how a biased understanding of Judaism became integral to the discipline. This conversation is about understanding, healing and changing that discussion through critical thinking and ethical reading.

The conference will take place on Sunday 26 and Monday 27 May in Oriel College, Oxford.

To download the conference programme, please click here

This event is organised by the Centre for the Study of the Bible in the Humanities at Oriel College, Oxford.

All are welcome and participation is free, but places are limited and registration is required. Please register as soon as possible by filling out the online registration form here.

Hindy Najman and Arjen Bakker

Hindy Najman

Oriel and Laing Professor of the Interpretation of Holy Scripture, University of Oxford

Director of the Centre for the Study of the Bible in the Humanities

Oriel College

OXFORD OX1 4EW

UNITED KINGDOM

Dr Arjen Bakker

Lecturer in Hebrew Bible

Programme Coordinator of the Centre for the Study of the Bible in the Humanities

Oriel College, University of Oxford

Ages of Diaspora

Jewish Cultural History International Workshop

Goethe University Frankfurt

29 – 30 May 2019

Supported by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)

Info: yaelalmog6@gmail.com

This workshop seeks to propose a historical exposé of the notion of diaspora based on liturgical, literary, and philosophical texts by Jewish authors. The event will feature lectures on antiquity; the Middle Ages; the Early Modern; and modernity; as well as an overarching commentary. This historical analysis will discern the differences between diaspora and exile in Jewish thought and the (re)appearances of theological images of diaspora and return in diverging political contexts. The participants will not only discuss the transformation of the notion of diaspora in Jewish communities throughout the period of their expertise but will also reflect on the echoes of this change in other epochs.

The workshop will opt to challenge common notions of Jewish diaspora. Complicating the binary opposition of diaspora to a homeland, we will discuss sources that constitute the attachment to multiple homelands; non-territorial national identities; and competing diasporist ideologies that adhere to diverging political visions and depictions of the world.

Wednesday – 29 May 2019 – Campus Westend Seminarpavilion 2.03

15.30 Welcoming/Coffee

16.00 Introduction, Yael Almog, Goethe University Frankfurt

16.15 Christian Wiese, Goethe University Frankfurt

17.00 Hindy Najman, Oxford University

18.00-18.30 Coffee break

18.30 Keynote address by Daniel Boyarin, The University of California, Berkeley: “Diasporic Nationalism: An Old Solution to a New Problem”

Thursday – 30 May 2019 – Campus Westend NG 1.701

10.00 Andrea Schatz, King’s College London

11.00 Yael Almog, Goethe University Frankfurt

12.00 Adam Stern, Yale University: “Ages of Diaspora: A Response”

Free and open to the public