Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to: articulate the challenges that Jewish immigrants faced from American culture and society; identify the obstacles that caused Jews to weaken in religious commitment and explain the various visions, methods and institutions involved in preserving tradition; discuss the accomplishments of Orthodox Jews in various aspects of American society; identify the cause and manifestations of anti-Semitism during this period; explain relations between Jews and Gentiles and Orthodox Jewish immigrant relations with previously established Jewish groups; and predict the behavior of typical immigrants under various circumstances; and draw parallels from leaders, methods, and ideas of the time period to apply them to similar circumstances. 6 Upper level credits.
Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to: demonstrate proficient knowledge about historical events and personalities involving or affecting the Jewish people in medieval Europe; express understanding of how historical figures (Kalonymus family, R'Gershom, Me' or HaGolah, the Chasidei Ashkanaz, and R Yaakov b. Yakar) made an impact on Jewish life through their major works and communal interactions; demonstrate an understanding of how the Jews living in medieval Europe interacted with their host countries and how major political and cultural events impacted the Jewish communities.
Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to: demonstrate proficient knowledge about historical events and personalities involving or affecting the Jewish people in medieval Europe; express understanding of how historical figures (Rashi and the Ba'alei Tosafos, the Rabainu Tam, R' Yitzchok b. Shmuel, the Ra'avad and R' Zerachyah HaLevi) made an impact on Jewish life through their major works and communal interactions; demonstrate an understanding of how the Jews living in medieval Europe interacted with their host countries and how major political and cultural events impacted the Jewish communities.
Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to: identify the origins of the Jewish American communities; describe Jewish life in the colonial days; discuss the roles of the Jewish community in the early American culture and government; identify the effects of the American Revolution on the American Jewish community; distinguish between the culture of the American Jews and that of the European Jews who immigrated in the 1800s; distinguish between the cultures of the religious and non-religious Jews in American society; identify the political roles assumed by both the religious and non-religious Jewish communities in the United States; describe the disunity that has occurred between the religious and non-religious Jewish communities in the United States; identify and describe the different levels of religious observances of Jews in the United States; and discuss the cultural impact of the Jewish communities on contemporary American society.