About The Jewish Theological Seminary and The Finkelstein Institute

The Jewish Theological Seminary was founded in 1886 through the efforts of two distinguished , Dr. Sabato Morais and Dr. H. Pereira Mendes, along with a group of prominent lay leaders from Uneasy Allies? and . Its mission was to preserve the knowledge and practice of historical Judaism. In 1887, the first class of ten students was held in the vestry of the Spanish-Portuguese Evangelical-Jewish Relations Today Synagogue, New York City's oldest congregation. Since then, JTS has greatly expanded its mission, created a beautiful Manhattan campus, and evolved into the prestigious center of Jewish learning it is today. A Jewish university with a world-class faculty and diverse student body, JTS grants undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees through its five schools and offers enriching programs for the Jewish community in the United States, Israel, and around the world. November 30-December 1, 2005 The Jewish Theological Seminary's schools and facilities include The Graduate School; The Rabbinical The Jewish Theological Seminary School; H.L. Miller Cantorial School and College of Jewish Music; William Davidson Graduate School of Jewish Education; Albert A. List College of Jewish Studies; the Rebecca and Israel Ivry Prozdor, a New York City model supplementary high school; a summer school; five research institutes, including the Melton Research Center for Jewish Education; lay leadership and professional institutes; community A conference cosponsored by education programs; student residence halls; and the incomparable collections of The Library. The acclaimed Jewish Museum, established by JTS in 1904 and now an independent affiliated institution, is the foremost conservator of Jewish culture in North America. Consortia with renowned academic The Louis Finkelstein Institute for neighbors, including Union Theological Seminary and Columbia University, further support and Religious and Social Studies enhance the scholarly ambiance of the learning community. Since 1938, The Jewish Theological Seminary's Louis Finkelstein Institute for Religious and Social The Feinstein Center for American Studies has maintained an innovative interfaith and intergroup relations program emphasizing , Temple University conversation between communities about matters of public significance. Its ability to join voices from different academic, social, and religious communities has resulted in unique conferences and interfaith cooperation. It has brought the relevance of Judaism and other religions to prominence in The Center for Religious Inquiry scholarly and practical fellowship on theological, ethical, and scientific issues. Across the Disciplines, Baylor Today, The Finkelstein Institute maintains this objective with a renewed focus on the problems of University religion and the public sphere. The proper public role of religion in a liberal democracy, both in the United States and abroad, is a persistent and controversial problem. The Institute sponsors conferences on the theoretical, political, and theological dimensions of this problem, looking at such enduring issues as the role of virtue in liberal societies or the place of religion in national self- definition. In addition to its theoretical interest, the Institute sponsors conferences on current topical This two-day conference will explore the state issues, such as the current state of the law of church and state, or bioethical problems, such as stem cell research and cloning. of relations between Protestant evangelicals, the largest segment of American Then as now, The Finkelstein Institute strives to be a venue for advancing the democratic conversation at the intersection of religion and public affairs. Protestantism, and the Jewish community. Issues to be addressed include: what and evangelicals think about each other, the level and quality of contacts between the organized Jewish community and evangelical groups, nature of support for Israel, attitudes toward mission and conversion, and approaches toward www.jtsa.edu the role of religion in public and political life. Conference Program Thursday, December 1, 2005 All sessions will be held in the Mendelson Convocation Center. 8:30-9:00 a.m. Registration and Continental Breakfast Wednesday, November 30, 2005 9:00-10:30 a.m. Panel Four 12:30-1:00 p.m. Registration Evangelicals and Israel Gerald R. McDermott, Professor of Religion, Roanoke Welcome College Alan Mittleman, Director, The Finkelstein Institute, JTS Respondent Yehiel Poupko, Judaic Scholar, the Jewish Byron Johnson, Baylor University Federation of Metropolitan Chicago Nancy Isserman, Temple University Moderator Shari Dollinger, The Donor Forum, Assistant Director 1:05-3:00 p.m. Panel One 10:45 a.m.-12:15 p.m. Panel Five What Do Evangelicals Think About Jews? John Green, Director, Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics, Christian America? Professor of Religion, University of North University of Akron Yaakov Ariel, Carolina at Chapel Hill How Wide is the Social Distance Between Jews Respondent Richard Cizik, Vice President of Governmental Affairs, and Evangelicals? National Association of Evangelicals Barry Kosmin, Director of the Institute for the Study of Secularism in Society and Culture, Trinity College Moderator Shuly Rubin Schwartz, Dean, Albert A. List College of Jewish Studies; Acting Dean of Academic Affairs, Associate Respondent Jack Wertheimer, Provost, JTS Professor of Jewish History, JTS Moderator Byron Johnson, Professor of Sociology; Director, Center for Religious Inquiry Across the Disciplines, Baylor University 12:15-1:30 p.m. Lunch Break 3:20-5:00 p.m. Panel Two 1:30-3:30 p.m. Panel Six The Organized Jewish Community and the Jews and Evangelicals in American Public Life: Evangelical Community Looking to the Future Lawrence Grossman, Coeditor of the American Jewish Year Gary Dorrien, Reinhold Niebuhr Chair of Social Ethics, Book; Associate Director of Research; American Jewish Union Theological Seminary Committee Mark Silk, Professor of Religion; Director, The Leonard E. Greenberg Center for the Study of Religion in Public Life, Respondent George Mamo, Executive Vice President, International Fellowship of Christians and Jews Trinity College Respondent Michael Cromartie, Director, Evangelicals in Civic Life, Ethics Moderator Bob Guzzardi, Vice Chair, Advisory Board, Feinstein Center and Public Policy Center 5:00-7:30 p.m. Dinner Break Moderator Michael Alexander, Murray Friedman Professor in American Jewish History; Director, Feinstein Center for American 7:30-9:00 p.m. Panel Three Jewish History, Temple University Conversation on Current Issues Alan Wolfe, Professor of Political Science; Director, Boisi Center for Religion and American Public Life, Boston College This conference has been funded by contributions from Bob Guzzardi, David Neff, Editor, Christianity Today Robert M. Segal, Jeffrey Orleans, Edward L. Snitzer, The Finkelstein Moderator W. Bradford Wilcox, Assistant Professor of Sociology, Institute, the Feinstein Center for American Jewish History, and the Center University of Virginia for Religious Inquiry Across the Disciplines.