UCLA Hosts 5th Annual Posen Conference for the Study of Jewish Secularisms

LOS ANGELES, March 25, 2009 -The 5th annual Posen Conference, the academic conference of professors involved with the research and teaching of Jewish secularization, was "without a doubt, our strongest conference to date," said Felix Posen, chair of the Posen Foundation.

The conference, held on March 15th-16th at the UCLA Center for Jewish Studies, convened thirty-five professors from various disciplines, all representing institutions involved with the North American region of the Posen Project - the eight-year-old grant program supporting Jewish Studies departments programs in North America, Israel and Europe. The busy agenda for the Conference included academic papers and discussions on philosophy, methodology, pedagogy, and how the study of Jewish secularisms and secularization is expanding the field of Jewish Studies.

"The group of scholars involved in this project are some of the most renowned in the field of Jewish Studies," said Dr. Andrea Lieber, who holds the Sophia Ava Asbell Chair of Judaic Studies at Dickinson College. "It's an incredible privilege to get to learn from one another in a seminar format." Dr. Lieber also serves on the Posen Foundation Academic Advisory Committee, which reviews annual grant applications and selects Posen Foundation grant recipients.

The conference was presented by the Center for Cultural Judaism and the Posen Foundation, which provides the Posen Grants for the study of secular Jewish history and cultures. Posen Grants are awarded annually to institutions of higher education; since 2001, more than forty colleges and universities in North America, Israel, and Europe have received Posen Grants and developed "core" courses in the study of Jewish secularism and secularization.

Those courses include "Theories of Secularization," taught at Harvard University; "Secular Jewish Thinkers," taught at UC-Davis; and "Secular Judaism from Spinoza to Seinfeld," offered at Dickinson University. Additionally, 60 junior or high schools in Israel now offer courses in Judaism as Culture. And UCLA this year began recording podcasts of its "core" course in Jewish secularization, which, for the first time, is available through iTunes.

"We are using everyday technology to expand our reach," said Dr. David Myers, director of the UCLA Center for Jewish Studies. Students have used the podcasts to review material or make up a missed class, he said. "Some even report sharing the experience of watching with friends and family."

As for the Conference, Dr. Myers said, it is "valuable by bringing together excellent colleagues from around the country to share ideas, approaches, and perspectives on secular Jewish culture.

"Those who attend the gathering," Dr. Myers went on, "leave with new energy and thoughts about how to teach this important subject."

The scholarly emphasis on secularization comes at a fortuitous time, as recent studies, including the 2001 American Jewish Identity Survey, show that almost half of American Jews see themselves as "secular" or "somewhat secular." Information will soon be extracted from another important study - the 2008 American Religious Identity Survey (ARIS), released on March 9th - to shed further light on the population of secular American Jews. ARIS 2008 shows a dramatic increase overall in secularity among the American population (from 8.2 percent in 1990, to 14.2 percent in 2001, to 15 percent in 2008). The subset of the Jewish population will be released in the coming months. More information on ARIS 2008, is available at http://www.americanreligionsurvey-aris.org/

"This underscores the need for innovative courses on the secularization of Jewish life and thought," said Mr. Posen. "It also spotlights the need for new approaches to the subject.

"The core courses are unique," Mr. Posen continued. "Unlike other Jewish Studies courses, which may touch on Jewish secularization, the "core" courses treat Jewish secularization as its own discrete subject, and devote an entire quarter, semester, or year to its understanding."

At this year's Conference - the largest since the first Conference, in 2005 - a crowded slate of papers and presentations focused on historically significant secular Jews, Jewish philosophers, modern trends in secular Jewish identity, and reflections on how the Posen Project has evolved.

Discussion also focused on the important details of pedagogy: strategies for conveying the full sweep of Jewish secularization in the classroom.

"The primary value of the conference," said Dr. Lieber, "is to have sustained time together where we can learn about the different ongoing projects, how people are using their funds, what kinds of courses are working, what kind of innovative projects are being done."

Institutions in North America that have been involved with the Posen Project include Bard College, Binghamton University, Brown University, Dickinson College, Goucher College, Graduate Theological Union, Hampshire College, Harvard University, Hunter College, Lehigh University, Miami University of Ohio, Muhlenberg College, Queens College, Rice University, Rutgers University, Temple University, Tulane University, University of California-Davis, UCLA, University of Cincinnati, University of Denver, University of Florida, University of Kansas, University of Massachusetts-Amherst, University of Michigan, University of Texas-Austin, University of Toronto, and University of Virginia.

The next round of grant recipients will be announced shortly.

The Posen Project grants and the Posen conference are administered by the Center for Cultural Judaism, which was established in 2003 in response to emerging new insights into American Jewish demography that confirm that the majority of Jews are secular. The Center for Cultural Judaism supports educational programs on behalf of this large, underserved population in North America. Information on the Posen Project and syllabi of courses underway are available online at www.posenfoundation.com

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