| Northwestern launched its Jewish Studies Program in 1984 under the direction of Professor Kenneth Seeskin. Since then, thanks to the generosity of numerous benefactors and the leadership of Professor Seeskin and his successors, Professors Jacob Lassner and Benjamin Sommer, the Program has expanded steadily. Especially important in this process was the naming gift provided by the Crown family, which permitted the founding of the Center in 2000 and the hiring of additional faculty. The Center now has 17 affiliated faculty members offering approximately 40 quarter courses per year on historical, literary, philosophical, political, and religious topics, as well as in the study of Hebrew and Yiddish. Students can expect to find classes that satisfy their curiosity about nearly all dimensions of Jewish civilization, from the biblical period to the present day. Whatever the specific subject, teachers emphasize critical thinking, close analysis of texts, the evolution of ideas and themes across time, and the mutual influence of developments among Jews and the cultural and temporal settings in which these occurred.
| NewsThe Crown Center has awarded the Jill Stacey Harris Prize for the 2007-2008 academic year to Joshua Urich for his essay, “Deuteronomy 34 Via Chuck Palahniuk.” This prize is awarded each year to the best paper submitted by a Northwestern undergraduate in the area of Jewish Studies. Urich, a Senior in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences majoring in Religion, wrote the paper for Religion 320 ("The Art of Biblical Narrative"). In the paper, he retells the narrative of Moses' death from the point of view of Moses' successor Joshua -- who speaks in a narrative voice borrowed from the contemporary novelist Chuck Palahniuk. The faculty committee responsible for the prize found Urich's writing extraordinarily imaginative and well-written; it manages to be wry and touching even as it sheds light on the nature of ancient Hebrew narrative style. Congratulations, Josh! |
