Faculty

Professor
Raymond P. Scheindlin, Jewish Literature

Associate Professors
*Benjamin R. Gampel, Jewish History
Robert A. Harris, Bible and Ancient Semitic Languages

Assistant Professors
Eitan Fishbane, Jewish Thought

Program

The Middle Ages were a time of immense social and religious creativity for Jewish communities. During this era, some of the most influential classics of religious thought and literature were composed, and some of the most extraordinary dramas of Jewish history unfolded. The social, economic, and political experiences of the Jews under Islam and Christendom and the rich varieties of Jewish culture formed in the Arabo-Islamic world and European Christian worlds have endured as fascinating topics for study and analysis.

At The Jewish Theological Seminary, students have one of the richest and most dynamic educational opportunities in the world. They enjoy access to a remarkable range of scholars working in the full spectrum of medieval studies, with areas of specialty including social history, poetry, art, science, medicine, Kabbalah, philosophy, biblical exegesis, halakhah, and talmudic commentary.

Students may also take advantage of the many opportunities available at JTS to explore different aspects of medieval Jewish life. A few examples:

• Dr. Vivian Mann in the Department of Jewish Art and Visual Culture is a world-renowned expert on medieval Jewish art. An author of many scholarly books and articles, she was the editor of Convivencia: Jews, Christians, and Muslims in Medieval Spain.
• Dr. Evyatar Marienberg, recently appointed to the Talmud and Rabbinics Department, studies medieval halakhah and wrote his doctoral dissertation on the conceptualization of menstruation in medieval and early modern Jewish and Christian cultures.
• Dr. Menahem Schmelzer of the Jewish Literature Department, an authority on piyyut and Hebrew paleography, has written, for example, on Hebrew wedding poems in medieval Ashkenaz.

In addition, students have access to The Library and its unparalleled collection of sources for the social and intellectual history of medieval Jewish communities. The Library's collection of Hebrew manuscripts is one of the largest in the world, with more than 11,000 codices and 30,000 genizah fragments, holding manifold treasures for the medievalist. Some of these have been digitized and can be viewed online.

Exhibitions of items from The Library treat subjects ranging from ancient to modern and regularly include medieval works. For a taste of what The Library offers, explore these past exhibits online: The Prato Haggadah; Sonnets of Celebration: Hebrew Wedding Poems and Riddles in Honor of the Bride and Groom; Micrography: The Hebrew Word as Art; Precious Possessions: Treasures From The Library of The Jewish Theological Seminary.

Degrees

Bachelor of Arts
Master of Arts
Doctor of Hebrew Literature
Doctor of Philosophy

Fall 2010–Spring 2011 Courses