Introduction to Judaism: Course outline
Section of Course | Unit |
Jewish History | |
Unit 1 | Beginnings: From the Creation of the World to the Exodus |
Unit 2 | From the time of the Judges to the Exile in Babylon |
Unit 3 | Restoration and Rebuilding: Second Temple Judaism |
Unit 4 | Conflict with Rome & the Creation of Rabbinic Judaism |
Unit 5 | Galut to Ghetto: the Diaspora Experience |
Unit 6 | Revolution & Reform: Jewish Responses to Modernity |
Unit 7 | The 20th Century: Catastrophe in Europe; Rebirth in Israel |
Unit 8 | The Jewish World Today |
The Life Cycle | |
Unit 1 | Birth and Youth: Circumcision to Bar & Bat Mitzvah |
Unit 2 | Joining the Family: Conversion to Judaism |
Unit 2 | Adulthood: Marriage and Family |
Unit 3 | Death, Funeral Practices and Mourning Rituals |
The Calendar | |
Unit 1 | Concepts of Time: Days, Weeks, Months, Seasons, Years |
Unit 2 | Pilgrim Festival: Harvests and History |
Unit 3 | Pesach: Haggadah and Seder, Freedom & History |
Unit 4 | Shavuot: Torah and Lifelong Learning |
Unit 5 | Sukkot: A Metaphor for Modern Life |
Unit 6 | Spiritual Highs: The High Holy Days |
Unit 7 | Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur: Prayers & Practices |
Unit 8 | Warriors and Maidens: Minor Festivals and Fast Days |
Section of Course | Unit |
Literature | |
Unit 1 | TaNaKh: The Jewish Canon of Scripture |
Unit 2 | Apocrypha, Pseudepigrapha and Dead Sea Scrolls |
Unit 3 | Mishnah Talmud and Codes |
Unit 4 | Midrash |
Unit 5 | Other Literature and Poetry |
Practices | |
Unit 1 | ‘A Temple in Time’: Shabbat |
Unit 2 | The Jewish Dietary Laws 1: Traditional Kashrut |
Unit 3 | The Jewish Dietary Laws 2: ‘Eco-Kashrut’ |
Unit 4 | Jewish Prayer and Prayerbooks |
Unit 5 | The Synagogue and its Services |
Unit 6 | Charity, Good Deeds and Social Justice |
Jewish Thought | |
Unit 1 | God |
Unit 2 | Torah |
Unit 3 | Israel |
Unit 4 | Jewish Philosophy & Mysticism |
Unit 5 | Jewish Identity in Modern Times: Nationalism & Zionism |