CLASS CALENDAR, COURSE DESCRIPTIONS>
Title: The Siddur: History, Structure and Theology Instructor: Eliezer Diamond
Course Description: Other than the Torah and the Haggadah, the siddur is probably the book used most often by Jews. Unfortunately, it is nonetheless, figuratively speaking, a closed book. This is partially because the Hebrew original is inaccessible to most Jews; however, it is also a result of the ideology and structure of the siddur being poorly understood. In this course, we will study how the siddur came into being and look at some of the tensions between spontaneous prayer and fixed liturgy that were discussed beginning in the rabbinic period. We will also see how the structure of a prayer is often a key to understanding its purpose. Finally, we will examine the theology expressed in Jewish liturgy. On the one hand we will consider the ways in which the liturgy is still meaningful for the modern Jew. On the other, we will look at alternative liturgies that have been composed in response to problematic theological claims in the siddur.
Instructor Biography: Eliezer Diamond is the Rabbi Judah Nadich Associate Professor of Talmud and Rabbinics at The Jewish Theological Seminary. He received his PhD in Talmud and Rabbinics from JTS and was ordained at the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary. Dr. Diamond teaches introductory, intermediate, and advanced Talmud courses as well as courses on halakhic midrash, asceticism, and environmental issues from the perspective of Jewish law. In 2003 he published a book titled Holy Men and Hunger Artists: Fasting and Asceticism in Rabbinic Culture (Oxford University Press). The book provides a thorough reassessment of the role that asceticism plays in Rabbinic Judaism, suggesting that asceticism is more pervasive than is generally thought. Dr. Diamond is currently working on two projects. He is editing and providing a historical and methodological introduction to a commentary on Yerushalmi Pesahim by the late Professor Louis Ginzberg, as well as writing a book about prayer. The main goal of the latter book is to make the siddur accessible to those who have difficulty with the theology of the traditional liturgy.
For more information, please contact: Dr. Alisa Braun, Academic Director The Institute for Jewish Learning JTS
(212) 678‐8819
Context is the flagship program of The Institute for Jewish Learning at The Jewish Theological Seminary.