Monthly Archives: August 2021

Virtual International Workshop: Ventes, échanges, mutations… De la reconfiguration des maisons entre juifs et chrétiens (XIIe-XVIIe siècles), 8-10 September 2021

(English/Français)

A hybrid event based in Perpignan and Gérone, the conference is organized by Prof. Claude Denjean (Université de Perpignan), Prof. Johannes Heil (Hochschule für jüdische Studien Heidelberg), and Dr. Amelie Sagasser (Institut historique allemand de Paris).

This conference will explore the history of houses in and outside the Jewish quarter, as well as the topographical issues relating to property and habitation among Jews and Christians in the medieval period.

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H-Judaic is seeking a new book review editor

The position involves soliciting reviewers, editing reviews, corresponding with authors or publishers seeking to have materials reviewed.

Review editors must have strong field qualifications in Jewish Studies, and must be regularly available by email. Reviews will go through H-Net’s online Reviews Management System. H-Net will provide training in the use of the review management system and basic H-Net Commons editing.

The book review editor works closely with the chair of the H-Judaic board and the moderators. Although unpaid, the position provides access to reviews, announcements, and other postings relevant to a variety of fields and disciplines, and makes one known in the profession. For more information, or to nominate yourself or someone else, please contact H-Judaic chair, Jonathan Sarna at sarna@brandeis.edu .

New Postdoc Positions: The Cluster of Excellence “Religion and Politics. Dynamics of Tradition and Innovation” at the Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität (WWU)

The cluster incorporates the disciplines history, political science, sociology, Catholic and Protestant theology and law; representatives from Islamic studies, Islamic theology, Jewish studies, Egyptology, classical and early Christian archaeology, philosophy, philology, art history and ethnology complete the interdisciplinary spectrum. More information on the participating departments and on the general research profile of the Cluster of Excellence can be found at www.uni-muenster.de/Religion- und-Politik/en/.

Deadline: 22 October 2021

Continue reading New Postdoc Positions: The Cluster of Excellence “Religion and Politics. Dynamics of Tradition and Innovation” at the Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität (WWU)

The Elusive Line between Ornament and Meaning

by Julie Harris

For the last twenty years or so, I have worked on illuminated books made for Iberian Jews. One of the most enduring themes in my research is the “impulse to illuminate” and the tensions generated by that impulse. We all know by now that medieval Jews made and enjoyed art, and that interpretation of and adherence to the Second Commandment was historically fluid. In Iberia, we observe a collision between two visual languages: the Islamicate language of abstract ornament and the Gothic language of figuration. The tension generated by this collision is best observed in the peninsula’s Hebrew illuminated Bible codices which were produced from the mid-thirteenth century nearly until the Expulsion.

Continue reading The Elusive Line between Ornament and Meaning

The Claremont Prize for the Study of Religion just opened for applications.

The prize is dedicated to the publication of first books by early career scholars working in any discipline of the humanities or social sciences. Submissions can be on any aspect of the study of religion, including the study of secularism. Prize-winners will be invited to IRCPL to participate in a workshop and the books will appear in IRCPL’s series, “Religion, Culture, and Public Life,” published by Columbia University Press.

Deadline for submissions: September 17, 2021

Call for Applications for the Next Issue of CHIDUSHIM: קול קורא להגשת מאמרים – חידושים

כתב העת מבקש לעורר את הדיון בדבר ההיסטוריה של יהדות גרמניה והמרחב הדובר גרמנית לאורך ההיסטוריה. בהקשר זה יש לציין כי כתב העת מתייחס להיסטוריה במובנה הרחב והמאמרים יכולים לעסוק בהיבטים שונים של הפרספקטיבה ההיסטורית: תרבות, פילוסופיה, חברה, כלכלה, אנתרופולוגיה, ספורט ואמנות.

The journal aims to stimulate discussion of the history of the Jews living in Germany and the German-speaking sphere.

Deadline: 1 October 2021