Our first faculty colloquium of the fall semester introduced the work of Daniel Fisher, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Near Eastern Studies at the University of California, Berkeley, who is completing a dissertation entitled “Memories of the Ark: Cultural Memory, Material Culture, and the Construction of the Past in Biblical Societies.”

Fisher outlined the fascinating cultural history of the Ark, from its origins in the Biblical text as the movable throne of the Lord, to its function as a vessel to hold the tablets of the covenant, to its placement in the tent of meeting, to its ultimate loss. Fisher’s research charts the course of the Ark of the Covenant as its values change over time in response to different communal values or communal needs and, in so doing, examines how people understand themselves in terms of material objects and how the values placed on objects reveal how a community interprets its past and its desires for the future. Continue reading →

On Thursday, April 23, 2015, Rabbi Deborah Waxman, President of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College and Susan Herbst, President of the University of Connecticut, led a conversation at the Konover Auditorium in the Dodd Center examining the role of Zionism in today’s North American Jewish life.  The public dialog fittingly took place on the 67^th anniversary of the establishment of the State of Israel.

Turnout was impressive with a mix of students, faculty, and members of the general public who were all able to ask questions.  Attention was paid to the need for a civil discourse, with both Herbst and Waxman noting that the current polarity within American political circles often renders discussion of sensitive topics difficult if not impossible.

In keeping with the inclusive nature of Reconstructionist Judaism, Waxman invited a celebration of multivocalities and presented an optimistic view of the future of Zionism in America, urging a transition from reaction to renewal in response to the Holocaust and noting that from the standpoint of progressive Judaism, it is possible to practice Zionism in America despite conflicting positions with the Israeli government, suggesting that a post-ethnic moment is needed to undercut antisemitism.

Did you miss the event?  View it here.