Defining Judaism: Religion, Law, Nation, and Our Current Moment

Please join us for the 17th Annual Robbins Collection Lecture in Jewish Law, Thought, and Identity, featuring Princeton Professor of Religion Leora Batnitzky. She will explore how the emergence of the modern nation-state shaped the way we understand religion, law, and Jewish identity. In particular, with the rise of the modern nation-state, “religion” and “law” came to be understood as distinct categories, and Jews came to define Judaism as a religion, as distinct from a nationality. The first part of the lecture reflects on some of the historical and conceptual implications of this convergence for thinking about modern Judaism and modern legal theory. The second part asks how this framing might help us make some sense of our current moment in which the definition of Judaism continues to be so hotly contested.

Leora Batnitzky, Professor of Religion, Ronald O. Perelman Professor of Jewish Studies; Director, Program in Judaic Studies, Princeton University

Register: https://robbinslecture.rsvpify.com

Light refreshments will be provided for all registrants. Hosted by the Helen Diller Institute and the Robbins Collection and Research Center. Cosponsored with the Center for Jewish Studies and the Berkeley Center for the Study of Religion.