Exploring Jewish Law and Practice and the Holocaust's Impact on Jewish Identity

Mini-Essay 1: Jewish Law and Practice

This is a an assignment that consists of two mini essays totalled for The topics are: Halakha and Practice (mini essay 1) & The Holocaust and Israel (mini essay 2) 1. Halakha and practice: Compare and contrast the Orthodox approach to Jewish law and practice vs. Reform (or Reconstructionist, or Conservative) approaches. To answer this question, you should focus on only 1 or 2 practices. Suggested practices include keeping kosher and observing shabbat (but not the one you already wrote about, as well as same-sex marriage, ordination of LGBTQ or female rabbis, divorce, synagogue worship, holiday observance. Primary sources must include biblical and Talmudic sources related to the practice. You may additionally include historical sources related to the denomination. ALTERNATIVE: Answer this question but compare Ashkenazic and Sephardic approaches to Jewish law and practice. (recommended practices include Passover or other holiday observance, kosher and food customs, weddings, synagogue liturgy/practice, the Israeli rabbinate -issues in Israel.) 2. The Holocaust and Israel: How do the Holocaust and Israel both figure in Jewish identity and practice? To answer this question, include some historical details about both the Holocaust and Zionism / establishment of the state of Israel, reflect on the relationship between the Holocaust and Zionism in terms of identity AND practice in the Diaspora and Israel. i.e. Studies show that Jews from around the world care about both Israel AND the Holocaust and both are central to their identity. Give examples that illustrates this connection. (Suggested examples to discuss include: IDF and the Holocaust, public commemoration of the Holocaust in Israel, Yom HaShoah and Yom Haatzmaut, Birthright, March of the Living, planting trees in Israel, prayers for Israel in traditional liturgy etc.) Module 2 will be helpful to frame your discussion about identity. Primary sources for this question include biblical and rabbinic statements about the land of Israel and quotes from survivors or Jewish thinkers (i.e. modern Jewish philosophers or rabbis) about the Holocaust. • Observe all common guidelines indicated above • Do not repeat the same examples, discussions, in more than one mini-essay. • Submit both Mini-Essays in the same file. • Clearly label each Mini-Essay with its topic • Each Mini-Essay should include its own bibliography at the end of each Mini-Essay. •Your mini-essays should directly address major themes and use examples that illustrate that theme from the relevant modules • Please include page numbers • You must demonstrate comprehension of, and cite evidence from, required course content from Modules You must refer to, cite, discuss, quote required readings. This course offers a great deal of popular, insider, faith-based content (especially from web sites). Using this material is easier that working through the scholarly readings and primary sources. Your grade will reflect whether or not you engage the more difficult material or not. Required Historical context/ Disciplinary questions: In religious studies we understand religion as a human phenomenon that we study from a critical, historical, and evidence-based perspective. We think about Judaism as lived by humans in specific times and places, in particular cultural, social and political contexts, and in gendered bodies. We also want to understand what Jews have to say about themselves as a people, their own history, faith, and tradition. Your final assignment should explicitly address these questions. The focus of this assignment is on the modern period. That being said, the question “How did we get here?” is still very important and I expect you will need to reach back to earlier historical periods (and Modules 1-6) to thoughtfully answer these questions. Thoughtful use of this material (with citations of course) will contribute towards the “creativity” part of your grade as you need to think about how to do this in a way that enriches your answer. The more that you show that you understand that primary sources (including the bible and rabbinic texts) are historical documents, that practice and interpretation changes over time, that there is diversity within Jewish communities, the more you will demonstrate your comprehension of these key principles of the academic study of religion. Your grade will reflect your awareness of disciplinary questions about historical context. Primary Sources: As a bare minimum, you must refer to at least 4 primary sources for the assignment (these may be biblical and/or rabbinic sources or you may also use primary sources from the historical periods you are discussing i.e. New Testament examples of anti-Judaism, images of artwork or architecture, songs or prayers, sermons, responsa or Zionist speeches). Some of these are provided to you as course materials, some can be located through your own research. What is a primary source? A primary source is an original text, artefact or data that is contemporaneous from the historical period you are studying. Secondary Sources: Outside research & Course Materials: As a bare minimum you must refer to 2 insider, faith-based sources, as well as 4 scholarly sources for the assignment. These may be course materials or outside sources. You may (and should!) also use outside research for this assignment. Outside research should enrich your discussion of course materials, it cannot replace them. Students who do outside scholarly research regularly do better on this assignment. What is scholarly research? Scholarly research = peer reviewed journal articles and books by experts in the field. What are secondary sources? Secondary sources are sources that are not primary, but that analyse, comment on, or discuss primary sources and data.