Why Religion Matters for Educational Stratification

Zoom

It's well-known that Americans’ academic outcomes vary by race, class, and gender. But what about their religious upbringing? In this talk, Dr. Ilana Horwitz will discuss findings from her recent book, God, Grades, and Graduation: Religion’s Surprising Impact on Academic Success (January 2022, Oxford UniversityPress). Drawing on 10 years of survey data with over 3,000...

The Origins of Judaism: An Archaeological-Historical Reappraisal

Haines 39/Zoom

Throughout much of history, the Jewish way of life has been characterized by strict adherence to the practices and prohibitions legislated by the Torah: dietary laws, ritual purity, circumcision, Sabbath regulations, holidays, and more. But precisely when did this unique way of life first emerge, and why specifically at that time? In his talk, Professor...

At the Origins of Monotheism: A Socio-economic Confrontation in Ancient Syro Mesoptamia

Bunche Hall 2209A 11282 Portola Plaza, Los Angeles, United States

  What is known as monotheism may be seen, in it earliest manifestation, in the light of an epistemic confrontation of the biblical tradition with the system of knowledge that had developed in the great cities of Mesopotamia. The paper presents a view that is at variance with the communis opinio, both in terms of...

Grupo Madera: 20th Century Afro-Venezuelan Religiosity, Rhythms, and Resistance

Kaplan 365

  Grupo Madera (Wood Group) was founded in 1977 in San Agustín del Sur – an Afro-Venezuelan working-class barrio – by Afro-Venezuelan youth committed to Third World liberation struggles, global Pan-Africanism, and Black consciousness. As a traditional Afro-Venezuelan musical ensemble and community organization, Grupo Madera responded to the people’s calls for economic justice and political...

A Royal Osirian Funerary Rite? The Awakening of Osiris Ritual in Tutankhamun’s Tomb

Kaplan 365

  Over 100 years after its discovery, the tomb of Tutankhamun continues to be the focus of numerous Egyptological studies and scholarly research. Due to Howard Carter’s meticulous documentation of the tomb, it’s possible to continue to “excavate” the tomb and make new discoveries about ancient Egyptian religious beliefs, kingship ideology, and funerary practices, including...

Where Was Adam Buried? Textual Communities and the Changing Location of a Sacred Site

Online on Zoom

Join Zoom: https://ucla.zoom.us/j/95410494359   Because neither the Hebrew Bible, New Testament, nor Qur’ān specify the place of Adam’s burial, its location became an object of contention over the ages among Jews, Christians, and Muslims. The oldest Jewish traditions locate Adam’s tomb in the Cave of Machpelah in Hebron, thereby associating Adam with the biblical patriarchs...