The Max and Pearl Herman Lecture Series

Mon., Mar. 11, 2013 7:00 p.m.

The Max and Pearl Herman Lecture Series
'Transgressing Boundaries: The Study of Judaism in a Time of Crisis'
By Aaron Hughes, University of Rochester
Monday 11 March 2013
7:00 pm, Riffel Auditorium, Campion College

Since the first encounter of Judaism with Hellenism, a particular type of Judaism – one that is deemed rational and good – has articulated itself through philosophical practice. But why should we assume that reason is naturally authoritative? (Rational discourse, in the contemporary West, for example, does not sway people’s passions on many political issues.) What is it about the genre called “philosophy” that has in the past and continues today to give it authority over its audiences? Is this authority deserved? By answering such questions, I hope to show how Jewish philosophy problematically mythologizes – both in the past and in the present – boundaries between Judaism and non-Judaism.

Presented by the University of Regina Department of Religious Studies. All are welcome. Contact the Department of Religious Studies for more information.