Synchronous Webconferencing Courses

Spertus faculty members and students to learn together in real time.

These courses fulfill requirements for students enrolled in Spertus Institute's Jewish Studies MA and Doctoral programs. 

Contact Spertus Institute Registrar Victoria Blum at vblum@spertus.edu if you have questions relating to your registration.

Spring Quarter 2022 Webconferencing Courses
Each course meets online weekly for two-hour sessions held over eight weeks.
Register for one or both at the link below.

THE OTHER WITHIN
Taught by Dr. Dean P. Bell

Course 3373 | 3 quarter-hour credits
Fulfills MAJS Elective, DSJS/DHL Text Course, and DSJS Elective

Meets weekly via Zoom | Mondays 6 to 8 pm CT
February 21 to April 11, 2022 (8 Sessions)

Jews are often seen as the quintessential other—outsiders in the societies in which they live. But Judaism and Jewish society have always been complex, with “others” within as well. Ideas of otherness and alterity tell us about ourselves, our communities, our priorities, and the ways that we engage with the conditions around us. Explore theories of otherness within and beyond the Jewish thought, including notions of divine otherness. Key themes, across periods of Jewish history, include the other as outsider, diversity within Jewish society, and the hybrid nature of Jewish identity.

Image above: Detail from I am seven years old (After Isidor Kaufmann, The Son of the Miracle-Working Rabbi of Belz) by artist Ken Aptekar. Spertus Institute collection. Gift of Ruth Mayer.

THE NEW JEWISH CANON
Taught by Dr. Claire E. Sufrin

Course 3374 | 3 quarter-hour credits
Fulfills MAJS Core, MAJS Elective, DSJS/DHL Text Course, and DSJS Elective

Meets weekly via Zoom | Tuesdays 6 to 8 pm CT
February 22 to April 12, 2022 (8 Sessions)

Take a deep dive into the conversations that reflected and shaped the concerns of American Jewry between 1980 and 2015, with the award-winning New Jewish Canon: Ideas and Debates as a guide. Each week we will read a selection of material from the New Jewish Canon, edited by Yehuda Kurtzer and Claire E. Sufrin, along with supplementary primary sources and secondary articles that will provide further context. Central issues include the impact of the feminist and gay-rights movements on Judaism, Israel-Diaspora relations, the impact of the 1967 Six Day War and the 1982 First Lebanon War, and the legacy of the Holocaust.

Please note: This course satisfies the MAJS Contemporary Jewish Experiences Core Requirement. 

Register for one or both courses by January 17, 2022