"Twenty-Sixth Annual Klutznick-Harris Symposium, October 27 and October 28, 2013, in Omaha, Nebraska."

Jews and humor is, for most people, a natural and felicitous collocation. In spite of, or perhaps because of, a history of crises and living on the edge, Jews have often created or resorted to humor. But what is humor? And what makes certain types, instances, or performances of humor "Jewish"? These are among the myriad queries addressed by the fourteen authors whose essays are collected in this volume. And, thankfully, their observations, always apt and often witty, are expressed with a lightness of style and a depth of analysis that are appropriate to the many topics they cover. The scholars who contributed to this collection allow readers both to discern the common features that make up "Jewish humor" and to delight in the individualism and eccentricities of the many figures whose lives and accomplishments are narrated here. Because these essays are written in a clear, jargon-free style, they will appeal to everyone—even those who don't usually crack a smile!

Demonstrating that similarities between Jewish and Christian art in the Middle Ages were more than coincidental, Cultural Exchange meticulously combines a wide range of sources to show how Jews and Christians exchanged artistic and material culture. Joseph Shatzmiller focuses on communities in northern Europe, Iberia, and other Mediterranean societies where Jews and Christians coexisted for centuries, and he synthesizes the most current research to describe the daily encounters that enabled both societies to appreciate common artistic values. Detailing the transmission of cultural sensibilities in the medieval money market and the world of Jewish money lenders, this book examines objects pawned by peasants and humble citizens, sacred relics exchanged by the clergy as security for loans, and aesthetic goods given up by the Christian well-to-do who required financial assistance. The work also explores frescoes and decorations likely painted by non-Jews in medieval and early modern Jewish homes located in Germanic lands, and the ways in which Jews hired Christian artists and craftsmen to decorate Hebrew prayer books and create liturgical objects. Conversely, Christians frequently hired Jewish craftsmen to produce liturgical objects used in Christian churches. With rich archival documentation, Cultural Exchange sheds light on the social and economic history of the creation of Jewish and Christian art, and expands the general understanding of cultural exchange in brand-new ways.

A landmark project to collect, translate, and transmit primary material from a momentous period in Jewish culture and civilization, this volume covers what Elisheva Carlebach describes as a period "in which every aspect of Jewish life underwent the most profound changes to have occurred since antiquity." Organized by genre, this extensive yet accessible volume surveys Jewish cultural production and intellectual innovation during these dramatic years, particularly in literature, the visual and performing arts, and intellectual culture. The wide-ranging collection includes a diverse selection of sources created by Jews around the world, translated from a dozen languages. Representing a tumultuous time of changing borders, demographic shifts, and significant Jewish migration, this anthology explores the range of approaches of Jews, from welcoming to resistant, to the intertwining ideals of enlightenment and emancipation, "the very foundation of the Jewish experience in this period."

"Proceedings of the twenty-fourth annual symposium of the Klutznick Chair in Jewish Civilization and the Harris Center for Judaic Studies, October 23-24, 2011"--p. [i].

Charity is central to the Jewish tradition. In this formative study, Gregg E. Gardner takes on this concept to examine the beginnings of Jewish thought on care for the poor. Focusing on writings of the earliest rabbis from the third century c.e., Gardner shows how the ancient rabbis saw the problem of poverty primarily as questions related to wealth—how it is gained and lost, how it distinguishes rich from poor, and how to convince people to part with their wealth. Contributing to our understanding of the history of religions, Wealth, Poverty, and Charity in Jewish Antiquity demonstrates that a focus on wealth can provide us with a fuller understanding of charity in Jewish thought and the larger world from which Judaism and Christianity emerged.

Examines the development of the International Center for University Teaching of Jewish Civilization against the backdrop of university Jewish studies in different parts of the world, and provides a world register of university studies on Jewish civilization, listing institutions around the world in which Jewish civilization is taught or researched. Essays offer a historical perspective on issues confronting university Jewish studies, and look at specific projects and the Israel experience. No index. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Contrary to commonly accepted belief, the 16th and 17th centuries marked a radically new phase in Jewish history. Far more than a mere extension of the Jewish Middle Ages, this was an era in which European Jewry was partially set free from the stifling restraints and restrictions of the past. This historical survey focuses on the rapidly expanding Jewish role in the political, economic, and cultural realms that began in the 1570s, when the tide of mercantilism, politique attitudes, and raison d'Etat political theory swept Jews back into the mainstream of western life. The book highlights the interaction between Jewry and the European states, seeing the golden age of the "Court Jews" from 1650 to 1713 as the peak period of Jewish impact on European culture and affairs, and concludes with the decline of Jewish influence on European society in the 18th century.

"Proceedings of the Twenty-First Annual Symposium of the Klutznick Chair in Jewish Civilization--Harris Center for Judaic Studies, October 26-27. 2008"--P. [i].