Jewish Studies

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  • CAS JS 387: Environmental Law in Israel and the Mediterranean
    Principles, theories and tools for environmental law and regulation, and implementation through cases in Israel and the Eastern Mediterranean. Through case studies, students critically analyze a range of environmental issues: nature protection, air pollution, marine protection, climate change and more. Effective Spring 2024, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU HUB areas: Ethical Reasoning, Critical Thinking.
    • Critical Thinking
    • Ethical Reasoning
  • CAS JS 416: Biblical Fakes and Forgeries
    Undergraduate Prerequisites: Religion, philosophy, or archaeology majors or minors with junior or s enior standing, or consent of instructor. - Examines issues regarding forged documents and artifacts relating to the Hebrew Bible and New Testament. Examples of forgeries (alleged and certain) include: book of Daniel, Letter of Aristeas, Gnostic Gospels, Secret Gospel of Mark; forged Scrolls in museum collections. Proposed Edit: Examines forged documents and artifacts relating to Hebrew Bible and New Testament, probing historical and ethical questions they raise. Examples (alleged and certain forgeries) include: book of Daniel, Gnostic Gospels, Secret Gospel of Mark, and forged Dead Sea Scroll fragments. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Ethical Reasoning, Historical Consciousness, Critical Thinking.
    • Critical Thinking
    • Ethical Reasoning
    • Historical Consciousness
  • CAS JS 455: Religion, Community, and Culture in Medieval Spain
    Interactions between Muslims, Christians, and Jews in medieval Europe's most religiously diverse region -- from the establishment of an Islamic al-Andalus in 711 CE to the final Christian "reconquest" of the peninsula and expulsion of the Jews in 1492 CE.
  • CAS JS 460: Seminar on the Holocaust
    This course will examine historical, ethical and religious issues arising from the Holocaust. We will discuss antisemitism and ideology; what communities were considered "other"; human motivation regarding collaborators, perpetrators and bystanders; the role of individuals, organizations and governments; the treatment of women; the ethics of resistance; the behavior of the Jewish Councils; and attitudes to the existence of God during and after the Holocaust. We will also compare the Holocaust to contemporary crises now occurring around the world. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Oral and/or Signed Communication, Ethical Reasoning, Historical Consciousness.
    • Ethical Reasoning
    • Historical Consciousness
    • Oral and/or Signed Communication
  • CAS JS 499: Topics in Jewish Studies
    Topics vary. May be repeated for credit as topics change.