The Jewish World of Alexander Hamilton
Andrew Porwancher
After debunking myths about Hamilton’s origins, Prof. Porwancher arrives at a startling conclusion—Hamilton was, in all likelihood, born and raised Jewish. While he did not identify as a Jew in his American adulthood, Hamilton emerged as an important advocate for Jewry in the United States. This story offers a fresh insight into a young republic, torn between New World promises and Old World prejudices.
Breads of the Jews
Aliza Grayevsky Somekh
Wheat pancakes, matzah, challah, bagels, rye and pumpernickel bread and pita are all breads associated with Jewish life and culture. After a bird’s-eye view of Jewish breads, we bake some samples in the Urban Adamah kitchen.
Heritage and Memory: The Jews of Greece
Jim Mavrikios—Greek Jewry and the Little Shul that Could
Neither Ashkenazic nor Sephardic, the Romaniote Jews of Greece were there to welcome the Sephardim who fled Spain in the fifteenth century. Learn about the history and customs of the Romaniote Jews, and discover the only Romaniote synagogue in the western hemisphere, Kehila Kedosha Janina in New York City.
Heritage and Memory: The Jews of Greece, part 1
Jehon Grist—Genesis: Jews in Ancient Greece
Spanning back to at least the 4th century BCE, our ancestors built a distinctive culture that blended Biblical tradition with Greek ideas that helped forge our emergence into Classical Judaism. We’ll explore both text and archaeology to discover the world of the Jews of Greece through the centuries of antiquity.
“Old Boys” at the New Lehrhaus: The Rosenzweig-Buber-Scholem Debate...
Sam Shonkoff, Naomi Seidman & David Biale
What if Franz Rosenzweig, Martin Buber and Gershom Scholem were transported to 2023 Berkeley and asked to teach at New Lehrhaus? How would the passing of over a century since they established and taught at Lehrhaus Judaica in Frankfurt in 1920 change their debates about God and the Commandments, Zionism and Messianism, and Adult Jewish Learning?
Smiling through Tears? Jewish Humor in Antiquity, part 4
Prof. Erich Gruen
This program considers a number of texts composed by Jews dwelling under imperial rule in antiquity in order to understand how the humor in those texts reflects the experience and attitudes of a subordinate people. The topic of this lecture is “Jonah: Prophecy or Parody?”
What REALLY Happened at Sinai?
Dr. Jehon Grist & Rabbi Peretz Wolf-Prusan
Shavuot celebrates Matan Torah – the giving of the Torah at Sinai. But what really happened there? Jewish tradition holds that every Jew throughout all time was present at Sinai. What do we “remember” from it? And what does archeology tell us about it: was there a mass gathering? a golden calf? tablets inscribed with ten commandments? Or did something even more earthshaking happen in the Sinai desert?
The Bible on the Couch: A Rabbi and Psychiatrist Analyze Sacred Texts, part 1
Rabbi Judy Shanks & Dr. James Gracer
The presenters join forces to bring a psychological lens to our Biblical ancestors. We explore hidden motivations, possible diagnoses, and complicated relationships between siblings, spouses, G-d, and humans. Teachings draw on midrashic texts and modern psychological theories.
Smiling through Tears? Jewish Humor in Antiquity, part 3
Prof. Erich Gruen
This program considers a number of texts composed by Jews dwelling under imperial rule in antiquity in order to understand how the humor in those texts reflects the experience and attitudes of a subordinate people. The topic of this lecture is “Jonah: Prophecy or Parody?”
Blood Libel: On the Trail of An Antisemitic Myth
Magda Teter
Annual Pell Lecture presented by the UC Berkeley Center for Jewish Studies and The Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life
The talk explores how a medieval anti-Jewish lie became rooted in Christian imagination to persist into the twenty first century US and lead to a horrific crime in California.
Smiling through Tears? Jewish Humor in Antiquity, part 2
Prof. Erich Gruen
This program considers a number of texts composed by Jews dwelling under imperial rule in antiquity in order to understand how the humor in those texts reflects the experience and attitudes of a subordinate people. The topic of this lecture is “Judith and Susanna: Feminist Heroines?”
Smiling through Tears? Jewish Humor in Antiquity, part 1
Prof. Erich Gruen
This program considers a number of texts composed by Jews dwelling under imperial rule in antiquity in order to understand how the humor in those texts reflects the experience and attitudes of a subordinate people. The topic of this lecture is “Esther: Triumph or Travesty?”
Soil to Soul: People of the Cookbook
Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett in conversation with Yoel Raviv of the Jewish Food Society
Read as a genre of literature, each recipe a poem, cookbooks and recipe collections offer a unique perspective on the history and diversity of Jewish life. This conversation will draw on Barbara’s collection and highlights from the Jewish Food Society archive of stories and recipes.
The Promiscuous World of Jewish Music, part 4
Josh Horowitz
Explore Jewish musical themes in wedding music, the synthesis of “Gypsy” and Jewish music, the case of a 19th-century traveling Hasidic musician, an analysis of the only surviving pre-war Yiddish opera, and an instrument that previously defined klezmer music but has since been forgotten.
Judaism in a Bottle: The Manischewitz Story
Jhos Singer
How did this Manischewitz wine—which transgresses oenophilic culture, defies epicurean standards of excellence, and is loved by winos and children everywhere‚—come to define Kosher wine and, in some ways, Jewish identity, in the 20th century?
What REALLY Happened on Passover?
Ron Hendel and David Biale
It’s not what you think, it’s not what the Hagaddah tells us, it’s not what you remember from Sunday School or “The Ten Commandments”. Hear an analysis of the Biblical text, both historical and literary, which will turn your Passover seder upside down.
The Promiscuous World of Jewish Music, part 2
Joshua Horowitz
Explore Jewish musical themes in wedding music, the synthesis of “Gypsy” and Jewish music, the case of a 19th-century traveling Hasidic musician, an analysis of the only surviving pre-war Yiddish opera, and an instrument that previously defined klezmer music but has since been forgotten.
The Promiscuous World of Jewish Music, part 1
Joshua Horowitz
Explore Jewish musical themes in wedding music, the synthesis of “Gypsy” and Jewish music, the case of a 19th-century traveling Hasidic musician, an analysis of the only surviving pre-war Yiddish opera, and an instrument that previously defined klezmer music but has since been forgotten.
The Fiddler Phenomenon, part 4
Naomi Seidman
Explore the ways Yiddish literature—and in particular Sholem Aleichem’s Tevye stories—expressed Jewish ambivalence toward what Ian Watt calls “the sex religion,” the modern ideology of freedom to choose one’s own mate.
Hasidism: New Perspectives on an Old Movement
Professor David Biale, UC Davis (Emeritus); Dr. Chen Mandel-Edrei, Open University of Israel; and Professor Marcin Wodziński, University of Wroclaw, Poland
Three academicians representing three generations of research will share their perspectives on Hasidism’s evolution and its shifting role within the global Jewish world.
The Fiddler Phenomenon, part 3
Bonnie Weiss
The essential contributions of composer Jerry Bock, lyricist Sheldon Harnick, director/choreographer Jerome Robbins and book writer Joseph Stein includes recorded interviews, captivating performances, and two fascinating songs cut from the show before opening night.
The Jews of Morocco, part 4
Dr. Sarah Levin
Jews Among Berbers (Imazighen) in the Atlas Mountains (photographs of Elias Harrus)
The Jews of Morocco, Part 3
Dr. Alma Heckman
Jews & Politics in 20th Century Morocco
The Jews of Morocco, Part 2
Dr. Vanessa Paloma Elbaz
Moroccan Jewish Music: Inner Power & Outer Politics
Violence and Non-Violence in Jewish Tradition, part 4
Howard Simon
This inquiry into violence and non-violence in Jewish tradition employs Gandhi’s model of satyagraha as a benchmark for non-violent resistance.
The Fiddler Phenomenon, part 1
Naomi Seidman
Matchmaking and Modernity: The Ambivalent Move from Arranged Marriage to Romantic Love
Violence and Non-Violence in Jewish Tradition, part 3
Howard Simon
This inquiry into violence and non-violence in Jewish tradition employs Gandhi’s model of satyagraha as a benchmark for non-violent resistance.
Jewish Attorneys Against Jim Crow
Prof. Steve Whitfield
Black lawyers were too few to make a difference in the 1960s, and local white lawyers rarely wished to advance civil rights. Mostly Northern Jewish attorneys stepped in to fill this historic vacuum.
The Jews of Morocco, part 1
Rabbi Yoel Kahn
A broad introduction to the arc of Moroccan Jewish history
Violence and Non-Violence in Jewish Tradition, part 1
Howard Simon
This inquiry into violence and non-violence in Jewish tradition employs Gandhi’s model of satyagraha as a benchmark for non-violent resistance.
What Really Happened on Hanukkah?
Dr. David Biale
The reason we celebrate Hanukkah turns out to be more complicated than what we learned as children. We may also be surprised at how little the rabbis of the Talmud understood about Hanukkah, the only Jewish holiday not mentioned in the Bible.
Time to Cancel “Cancel Culture”? Part 3
Rabbis Chai Levy and Peretz Wolf-Prusan
The Jewish Community and Clergy
Time to Cancel “Cancel Culture”? Part 2
Moderator: Riva Gambert
Discussion of Stephen Fry’s documentary film “Wagner & Me”
Time to Cancel “Cancel Culture”? Part 1
Profs. Michael Krasny, Robert Alter, Eva Mroczek and Liora Halperin
Cancel culture in literature and scholarship
Qohelet (Ecclesiastes), part 4
Robert Alter & Ron Hendel
We explore the poetry and philosophy of Qohelet (or Kohellet, Ecclesiastes) in the context of biblical and ancient Near Eastern wisdom literature.
Qohelet (Ecclesiastes), part 3
Robert Alter & Ron Hendel
An exploration of the poetry and philosophy of Qohelet (or Kohellet, Ecclesiastes) in the context of biblical and ancient Near Eastern wisdom literature
The Intractable Middle East: Dual Narratives, part 6
Eleanor Shapiro
1988-2008: From Oslo to Stalemate
Qohelet (Ecclesiastes), part 2
Robert Alter & Ron Hendel
An exploration of the poetry and philosophy of Qohelet (or Kohellet, Ecclesiastes) in the context of biblical and ancient Near Eastern wisdom literature
The Intractable Middle East: Dual Narratives, part 5
Eleanor Shapiro
From the Six-Day War to the First Intifada (1968 – 1988)
Pharaoh of the Exodus? Ramses II and His Times, part 2
Dr. Jehon Grist
Many scholars believe king Ramses II was the Pharaoh of the Exodus. We’ll examine the pros and cons of this claim and also delve into the fascinating world he ruled.
Qohelet (Ecclesiastes), part 1
Robert Alter & Ron Hendel
An exploration of the poetry and philosophy of Qohelet (or Kohellet, Ecclesiastes) in the context of biblical and ancient Near Eastern wisdom literature.
Oh, the Hora! American Klezmer and Israeli Folk Music in Conversation
Uri Schreter
Musicologist Uri Schreter presents his research on American Jewish weddings in the 1950s, based on recordings, archives, and interviews with klezmorim from that era.
The Intractable Middle East: Dual Narratives, part 4
Eleanor Shapiro
1948 – 1967: Independence / Nakba
Pharaoh of the Exodus? Ramses II and His Times, part 1
Dr. Jehon Grist
Many scholars believe king Ramses II was the Pharaoh of the Exodus. We’ll examine the pros and cons of this claim and also delve into the fascinating world he ruled.
The Intractable Middle East: Dual Narratives, part 3
Eleanor Shapiro
Mandate Palestine, part 2 (1936 -1948)
The Intractable Middle East: Dual Narratives, part 2
Eleanor Shapiro
Mandate Palestine (1922-1936)
The Intractable Middle East: Dual Narratives, part 1
Eleanor Shapiro
Setting the Stage: Late Ottoman Empire – end of WWI
Mexico and Its Jews in a Nutshell, part 2
Dr. Jehon Grist
This session explores how Jews made their way to Mexico in the early 16th century, and how they suffered and prospered through the centuries.
Mexico and Its Jews in a Nutshell
Dr. Jehon Grist
An overview of the history of Mexico from the Olmec to Aztec pre-colonial cultures, through the Spanish occupation, and on to the birth and growth of the independent state
Divinity and Infinity: Exploring the Infinite in Mathematics and Judaism
Dr. Larry Lesser
Explore—in a lively, interactive way—how math concepts can help illuminate some big ideas in Judaism, including the value of life, the value of commandments, and the coexistence divine transcendence and immanence.
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