On Thursday, January 29, 4 p.m., in 1014 Tisch Hall, the Eisenberg Institute continues its winter 2015 programming with Ra'anan Boustan's lecture, "Matter of Contention: Relics of the Biblical Past Between Jews and Christians in Late Antiquity." The talk follows the Institute's 2013-15 theme, "Materials of History." Link for a lecture abstract. Free and open to the public.

Ra‘anan Boustan is an Associate Professor in the Ancient and Jewish history fields in the Department of History at the University of California, Los Angeles. Boustan is the author of From Martyr to Mystic: Rabbinic Martyrology and the Making of Merkavah Mysticism (2005), has published widely in leading journals such as The Jewish Quarterly Review, Jewish Studies Quarterly, and Medieval Encounters. He has also co-edited eight volumes, most recently a special issue of the journal Archiv für Religionsgeschichte on “Authoritative Traditions and Ritual Power in the Ancient World” (forthcoming 2015). He is currently writing a book entitled, The Holy Remains: Tokens of Cult and Kingship between Jews and Christians in Late Antiquity, which traces the history of sacred objects associated with the ancient Israelite past within Jewish and Christian cultures in late antiquity.

 

On Friday, January 30, 12 p.m., in 1014 Tisch Hall, the Eisenberg Institute presents the workshop, "Absent Matter." Link for workshop details, including a short description of the proceedings. This discussion will feature Ra’anan Boustan (Associate Professor, History, University of California, Los Angeles), Ismail Alatas (Ph.D. Candidate, Anthropology and History, University of Michigan), Jonathan Brack (Ph.D. Candidate, History, University of Michigan), Michail Kitsos (Ph.D. Program, Near Eastern Studies, University of Michigan), and Shira Schwartz (Ph.D. Program, Comparative Literature, University of Michigan); Rachel Neis (Associate Professor, History, Judaic Studies, Law, University of Michigan) will serve as chair. Lunch provided. Free and open to the public.

These events are made possible by a generous contribution from Kenneth and Frances Aftel Eisenberg.