Fifty years ago, the then-new Wisconsin Society for Jewish Learning undertook as one of its first projects helping create the Hebrew and Semitic Studies Department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
And that department, which opened in the academic year 1955-56 with Prof. Menachem Mansoor as its chair, was one of, if not the, first of its kind in a U.S. academic institution.
Today, that department remains unique in the country, according to its current chair, Prof. Rachel Feldhay Brenner. Hebrew is certainly taught elsewhere, but usually either within departments of Judaic studies or of Middle Eastern or Far Eastern studies or languages, or as part of theological education.
But UW-Madison’s department focuses on “the academic study of Hebrew texts and their contribution to civilization,” Feldhay Brenner told The Chronicle in a telephone interview.
And that embodied the vision of Milwaukee Rabbi Joseph L. Baron, to whom “we owe a great debt of gratitude,” she said.
The department will begin its celebration of its 50th anniversary on Monday, March 6, 7:30 p.m., at the Pyle Center, 702 Langdon St., in Madison. This event, for which admission is free, will feature two speakers:
• Michael Satlow, associate professor of Judaic studies at Brown University, speaking on “Peoples of the Land: Jewish Piety in Late Antiquity.”
• Marc Saperstein, professor of Jewish history and director of the Judaic studies program at George Washington University, discussing “Preaching to a Congregation of ‘New Jews’: The Sermons of Spinoza’s Rabbi.”
The primary event in the celebration will be three days of scholarly lectures plus a banquet that will be held in early April, all taking place at the Pyle Center.
On Sunday, April 2, beginning at 3 p.m., Eugene Ulrich and James C. VanderKam, both professors of theology at the University of Notre Dame, will speak about the Dead Sea Scrolls. This will be followed by a reception and banquet.
On Monday, April 3, beginning at 7:30 p.m., two scholars will discuss aspects of biblical studies. Leonard J. Greenspoon, professor at Creighton University, will speak on “Interpreting the World: Hope, Hype, and Habit in 50 Years of Biblical Studies.”
Then Prof. Bruce Zukerman of the University of Southern California, will discuss “Reclaiming History Letter-by-Letter: How Modern Technologies are Unlocking Ancient Texts from Biblical Times.”
The celebration will conclude on Tuesday, April 4, 7:30 p.m., with a look at aspects of modern Hebrew literature. Hannah Naveh, associate professor of women’s and gender studies at Tel Aviv University, will speak on “Home and Away: Places and Spaces in Hebrew Literature.”
Looking into the future, Feldhay Brenner has plans for the department. It is already is strong in biblical and modern Hebrew; it next will strive to develop its offerings in early rabbinical and medieval Hebrew, she said.
“Another thing we want to do is reach out to the community,” she said. Already, many students in the department teach in Madison Jewish religious schools; their contribution to the community will be celebrated in next month’s issue of the Monthly Reporter, published by the Madison Jewish Community Council, she said.
The department is also engaged in raising funds for a graduate fellowship in honor of Menachem Monsoor, who died in 2001, and his wife, Claire, who died in 2003.
For more information about the 50th celebration and the department, call 608-262-3204, or visit http://polyglot.lss.wisc.edu/Hebrew.
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