JEWISH STUDIES

The class "Jewish Studies" is part of the course "Languages, Cultures and Societies of Asia and Mediterranean Africa - Middle East and Africa". The class aims at introducing students to the history of Israel and to the Jewish religious complex, framing the latter as a fundamental element for the study and understanding of other historical and religious phenomena, such as, for example, the cultures of the Ancient Near East, Christianity and Islam.

At the end of the course, students

- will have a general knowledge of the history of Israel and the Jewish people, from ancient to modern times;
- will know the main sources for the historical, religious and literary reconstruction of the Jewish history;
- will have had the opportunity to identify and deepen a specific area of interest, also on the basis of their own course of study.

No particular prerequisite are required.

The class offers students an introduction to the history of the Jewish people, focusing on the religious, geographical, archaeological and literary aspects that characterise the history of Israel from ancient to modern times. After a methodological introduction of the discipline, understood within the framework of the history of religions, the course will cover the following topics:

- geography of the Near East
- history and religion of the ancient Israel: from the origins to the Babylonian exile
- Second Temple Judaism
- the Dead Sea Scrolls (Qumran)
- Second Temple Jewish apocalypticism
- Rabbinic Judaism and its texts: Mishnah, Talmud, Midrash
- Jewish mysticism: Qabbalah and Zohar
- relations between Jews, Christians and Muslims in the Middle Ages
- Rashi and the commentary on the Talmud
- Moses Maimonides and medieval Jewish philosophy
- European Judaism in the Modern Era
- messianic movements between the Middle Ages and the modern era

Mandatory readings:
- Gunter Stemberger, “Introduzione all'ebraistica,” trad. ital. Morcelliana, Brescia 2013.
- Giovanni Filoramo (cur.), "Ebraismo", Bari, Laterza 2016

Oral exam.

Students will be asked to present the notions acquired during the course. Expository and synthesis skills will be assessed. Particularly relevant to the assessment will be the ability to reason independently about what has been learned and to make connections between the notions acquired.

Students will be invited to go deep into a topic of their own interest and to present it during the exam.

The course includes 30 hours of frontal didactics with the use of Power Point presentations. The active participation of the students will be encouraged.

Italian

oral