BIB 516 Modern Torah Commentaries in Context
How do we engage with Torah—individually and with our communities? This course explores major modern English-language Torah commentaries used in American synagogues, including the Hertz Pentateuch (1938), Plaut and Bamberger’s The Torah: A Modern Commentary (1981; rev. 2006), Artscroll’s Stone Chumash (1993), the Conservative Movement’s Etz Hayim (2001), and Eskenazi and Weiss’s The Torah: A Women’s Commentary (2007). We will also consider Sefaria (2011–) and Stern and Fisher-Livne’s new Reform Torah commentary, currently in progress and due to press in 2028. We will analyze each commentary’s historical context, ideology, hermeneutics, goals, and audience. Students will compare translations, layouts, and use of sources. Attention will be given to the denominational and cultural changes that shaped these works—and to how they continue to shape Jewish learning today. Students will sharpen their interpretive skills for studying and teaching Torah, gaining perspective on Jewish life as it has and continues to evolve. This is an online All Campus elective.