Course Descriptions
See Also: Major and Minors | Judaic Studies Major Guide
311 Ancient Hebraic Religious Traditions (3) (Religious Studies 311)
Development of ancient Israelite and early Jewish traditions with emphasis on those concerning the Exodus, Davidic kinship, and Zion in historical, prophetic and apocalyptic material. Writing-emphasis course.
312 Religious Aspects of Biblical and Classical Literature (3) (Religious Studies 312)
Ways in which contemporary modes of literary study enhance appreciation of biblical and classical material. Ways in which the western literary tradition has appropriated and recast the biblical and classical heritage. Writing-emphasis course.
320 Women and Religion (3) (Religious Studies 320/Womens Studies 320)
Concepts of gender in religious traditions, religious, social, and psychological dimensions of gender-related symbols (e.g. the Goddess, God the Father) that shape women’s and men’s experiences; contemporary feminist discussion of ways in which religions have liberated and oppressed women.
322 Medieval Philosophy (3) (WC) (Medieval Studies 322/Philosophy 322)
Development of medieval thought from St. Augustine to William of Occam. Secondary and primary sources. Writing-emphasis course.
350 German-Jewish Topics in Literature and Culture (3) (German 350)
Selected themes, issues, figures, movements, and problems in the German-Jewish relationship as reflected in literature and culture from the 1750s to the present. Variable content. Available for both majors and non-majors. Writing-emphasis course. May be repeated with the approval of the department. Maximum 6 hours.
369 History of the Middle East (3) (History 369)
Rise and spread of Islamic civilization to the 16th-century. Writing-emphasis course.
370 History of the Middle East (3) (History 370)
The Middle East from the 16th-century to the present. Impact of the West and background of current problems in the area. Writing-emphasis course.
381 Introduction to Judaism (3) (Religious Studies 381)
History, traditions, philosophy and religion of the Jewish people grounded in the ancient period, but includes diaspora, emancipation and haskalah. Writing-emphasis course.
383 History of Jewish Civilization I (3) (History 383)
Biblical-Talmudic Periods (1200 BCE-600 CE). Origins of the Israelites, development of independent Israelite and Jewish states in the ancient Near East, rise of Jewish Diaspora communities, cultural convergences with Hellenism and early Christianity, and the development of Rabbinic-Judaism. Writing-emphasis course.
384 History of Jewish Civilization II (3) (History 384)
Medieval – Present. The resiliency and Jewish civilization in the face of external pressures; of Sephardic and Ashkenazi Jewry in medieval Europe; North Africa and the Middle East; Jewish mysticism; Judaism’s encounter with modernity: Hasidism, the Haskala; the Reform movement and Zionism; the Holocaust; the foundation of the State of Israel; and assimilation and the future of Judaism. Writing-emphasis course.
385 Contemporary Jewish Thinkers (3) (Religious Studies 385)
Renewal trends in Nineteenth and Twentieth-Century Judaism. Writing-emphasis course. May be repeated. Maximum 6 credit hours.
386 Voices of the Holocaust (3) (Religious Studies 386)
Historical underpinnings of Nazi genocides such as that of the Jewish people, Gypsies, and homosexuals. The economic, religious, social, and philosophical trends supporting massive genocide.
395 The Crusades and the Medieval Christian-Muslim Relations (3) (History 395)
The major Christian crusades in the Middle East and Spain, 1050 to 1500; their political and military history; and the larger context of the medieval religious, cultural, intellectual, and diplomatic confrontation between Christians and Muslims. Writing-emphasis course.
405 Modern Jewish Thought (3) (Religious Studies 405)
History, culture, and geography of the now Israeli portion of the Levant from 150 to present. The founding of the modern state of Israel in 1948 and the political complexities of the Middle East. Israeli culture and literature. Writing-emphasis course.
425 Early Christian and Byzantine Art to 1350 (3) (Art History 425)
Art in Italy and the Eastern Empire from the beginnings of Christian art to c. 1350. Mosaic and painting, sculpture and architecture. Writing-emphasis course.
431 Medieval Art of the West 800-1400 (3) (Art History 431)
Western European art of the Dark Ages, Romanesque, and Gothic periods. Writing-emphasis course.
484 Studies in Jewish History (3) (History 484)
Variable content. Significant topics in the study of Jewish civilization and culture, including the development of the synagogue, Judaism and ethnicity, and the history of Jerusalem. Writing-emphasis course. May be repeated. Maximum 9 hours.
Contact Information
Gilya Gerda Schmidt, Ph.D.
Chair, Judaic Studies Program
Professor and Head of Department of Religious Studies
501 McClung Tower
University of Tennessee
Knoxville, Tennessee 37996-0450
Phone: 865-974-6985
Fax: 865-974-0965
Email: gschmidt@utk.edu