Most of us picture Judaism and Christianity as two distinct religions from the moment Christianity appeared. For several centuries the two were entangled, overlapping, and often hard to tell apart. This course follows their shared history from the Babylonian exile in 586 BCE to the Council of Nicaea in 325 CE.

We begin with the rebuilding of Jewish life after the exile and the upheavals that followed: Hellenism, the Hasmonean revolt, and the arrival of Rome and Herod. We then turn to the many Second Temple “Judaisms,” the sects, movements, prophets, and revolutionaries among whom Jesus of Nazareth lived and taught, and to the Jewish revolts of 66–73 and 132–135 CE, which reshaped Jewish life and hastened the rise of both rabbinic Judaism and the early Jesus movement.

The final sessions follow the two traditions as they move apart. On one side are the codification of the Mishnah and the beginnings of rabbinic Judaism; on the other, the Jesus movement through persecution, martyrdom, and fights over orthodoxy and heresy, up to Constantine and the Church as an imperial institution. Drawing on recent scholarship, including the work of Daniel Boyarin, we’ll see how long the ties between the two communities lasted and how each came to define itself, and be defined, as separate from the other.

Who this is for:

• Anyone curious how Judaism and Christianity began and how they separated
• Readers interested in Second Temple Judaism, the historical Jesus, or early rabbinic Judaism
• Anyone who assumes the two were always separate religions and would like to see that assumption tested

What you'll leave with:

• An outline of Jewish history from the Babylonian exile to the Mishnah
• A picture of Jesus of Nazareth within the Jewish world of his time
• An account of when Judaism and Christianity became separate religions and who drew the lines between them

Four Mondays: October 5, 12, 19 and 26, 7–8:30pm Pacific

Questions? Our FAQ covers registration, recordings of missed sessions, refunds, and financial assistance.

This two-part illustrated class introduces ancient Egyptian history, religion, and daily life, with special attention to the periods and objects in the de Young Museum’s Treasures of the Pharaohs. We’ll begin with an overview of Egypt’s thirty dynasties, then turn to religious belief and everyday life, ending with the Lost City of Amenhotep III, a special feature of the exhibition. The class works whether or not you’ve seen the show.

Who this is for:

• Anyone planning a visit to the exhibition or who has already been
• Anyone curious about ancient Egypt; no background in Egyptology needed

What you'll leave with:

• Where the exhibition’s objects fit in Egypt’s long history
• What the Lost City of Amenhotep III reveals about life in ancient Egypt

Two Thursdays: October 15 & 22, 6–7:30pm Pacific Time

Questions? Our FAQ covers registration, recordings of missed sessions, refunds, and financial assistance.

Erich Gruen (UC Berkeley), has spent decades studying Jews in the Greco-Roman world, and much of his work questions popular assumptions about Jewish isolation, religious purity, and political resistance in antiquity. In four sessions he takes up some of the most debated episodes in ancient Jewish history.

Each session takes on a question that has divided scholars and puzzled general readers alike: Were Jews in antiquity accused of ritual murder, the charge later known as blood libel? Did they reject Greek mythology as incompatible with their traditions, or engage with it in surprising ways? And what is the history behind Hanukkah?

Who this is for

• Anyone curious about Jews in the ancient world
• Students of classical antiquity who want to go past the standard accounts
• Anyone who has wondered where Hanukkah comes from

What you'll leave with

• Answers to four contested questions about ancient Jewish history, and the evidence behind them
• A way of telling historical evidence apart from later myth-making

Four Sundays: November 1, 8, 15, and 22, 2–3:30pm Pacific Time

Questions? Our FAQ covers registration, recordings of missed sessions, refunds, and financial assistance.