Join us for the final session of JTS in the Berkshires for the summer of 2024

What if the Torah is Forgotten? On the History of an Idea and the Legacy of the Rabbis
Dr. Yitz Landes, Assistant Professor of Rabbinic Literatures and Cultures, JTS
The concept of Torah is surely one of the most central ideas in Judaism. And yet, how exactly has this concept been defined over the course of Jewish history? By looking closely at how the rabbis of antiquity defined Torah and attended to its preservation, we will be able to better reflect on the meaning of Torah and the Jewish tradition in contemporary times. We will also think about how, on a personal level, we decide what to preserve and pass on to the next generation.

--
Dr. Yitz Landes (he/him) is Assistant Professor of Rabbinic Literatures and Cultures. His research focuses on the premodern transmission of Jewish knowledge, primarily vis-à-vis the history of rabbinic education and the history of the Jewish book. Additionally, Dr. Landes works on the development of Jewish ritual and liturgy, topics he addressed in his first monograph, Studies in the Development of Birkat ha-Avodah (The Mandel Institute for Jewish Studies, 2018).
Dr. Landes received a BA in Talmud and Halakhah and Comparative Religion and an MA in Talmud and Halakhah and Late Antique Studies from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, as well as an AM and PhD in Religions of Mediterranean Antiquity from Princeton University.