Academic Life ~ Center for Jewish Christian Studies and Relations
Center for Jewish Christian Studies and Relations
Welcome to the website of the Center for Jewish-Christian Studies and Relations at the General Theological Seminary of the Episcopal Church. Because of its location in New York City, home to the largest Jewish population outside of Israel, the Center (CJCSR) offers a unique opportunity among the Episcopal seminaries in the United States, and indeed the world, for Jewish-Christian dialogue and education. The mission of CJCSR is to foster learning about Judaism and its variegated relationship with Christianity through the ages and today. To that end, CJCSR sponsors films, events, lectures, an annual Yom Hashoah liturgical observance, and interfaith dialogue among seminary students. Our web pages are designed to inform you of upcoming events, keep you apprised of recent Center activities, and steer you to other resources for information about the Jewish-Christian relationship through links to other websites. Please browse and make return visits to our website. Better yet, come to one of our events. We look forward to seeing you!
The Center’s work is overseen by the Rev. Dr. Titus Presler, Sub-Dean and Vice President for Academic Affairs. <presler@gts.edu>
The Center for Jewish-Christian Studies and Relations endeavors to serve as a concrete embodiment of Christian commitment to the furtherance of Jewish-Christian relations. In fulfilling that purpose, the Center strives to provide an open, academic forum for dialogue, to combine academic study and practical performance of dialogue, to be a resource for the church and its agencies, and to assist in the creation of dialogues at every feasible level.
Our programs and events include:
- Inter-Seminary Dialogue Series
- Dinner-Dialogue Series with Hebrew Union College
- Our Annual Lectures
"Sharing the Journey: A Jewish Perspective on Learning with Christians" will be the theme of the 2008 Annual Lecture, which will be delivered by Rabbi Or Rose, Ph.D., Associate Dean, Hebrew College Rabbinical School, Newton, Massachusetts,
on Wednesday, March 26, 2008, 7:30 p.m., in Seabury Auditorium, with a reception to follow in the Faculty Common Room. - Yom Hashoah Service - Annual Holocaust Remembrance. Offered jointly with students of Hebrew Union College - Jewish Institute of Religion: Wednesday, April 30, 2008, 7:30 p.m., in the Chapel of the Good Shepherd at General Seminary.
- Film Screenings- Jewish Life and Culture
- Through the Center, General Seminary is offering a spring course in 2008, "Introduction to Judaism: Bridges to Understanding," taught by Diane Sharon, Ph.D., Director of Curriculum Development for Hadassah-WZOA (Women's Zionist Organization of America). Dr. Sharon taught for ten years as Assistant Professor at the Jewish Theological Seminary, where she was the first woman appointed fulltime to the department of Bible and Ancient Semitic Languages. She teaches at the Academy for Jewish Religion, and has taught comparative religion and Hebrew Bible at Fordham University, the Academy for Jewish Religion, and at other institutions of higher learning. See Part-Time Non-Degree Study for how to register for this course (CS150) and others like it.
- The Center needs special funding to offer such courses. CS150 is being offered through the generous gift of an anonymous donor. If you would like to make a financial contribution to help pay for these classes, or to help support the work of the Center generally, please click here.
Links to notable websites related to Judaism, Christianity, and Jewish-Christian Dialogue.
Contact us:
In order to keep you better informed of CJCSR news and events (and to save on mailing costs) we are developing an email contact list. If you would like to be on this list, or if you need to update your mailing information or add your name to our mailing list, please click here to let us know where you are. New things are always happening at the Center and we would like to let you know - and we would like to hear from you! (Please rest assured that we will not share your email address or other information!)
If you would like more information on the Center’s programs, please contact the Center by e-mail at cjcsr@gts.edu or by telephone at 212.243.5150, ext. 247 or 1.888.GTS.5649, ext. 247.
