The CEU Summer University announces the course
MESSIANISM - JEWISH AND CHRISTIAN PERSPECTIVES

JULY 5 - 16, 2010 BUDAPEST, HUNGARY

Course Directors:
Michael L. Miller, Central European University, Nationalisms Studies Program/Jewish Studies, Budapest, Hungary
Matthias Riedl, Central European University, Department of History, Budapest, Hungary

Faculty:
Ida Fröhlich, Pazmany Peter Catholic University, Hebrew Studies, Budapest, Hungary
Michael A. Gillespie, Duke University, Department of Political Science, Durham, US
Malachi Hacohen, Duke University, Department of History, Durham, US
Moshe Idel, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, The Mandel Institute of Jewish Studies, Israel
Vlad Naumescu, Central European University, Department of Sociology and Social Anthropology, Hungary

This course will explore the ancient messianic idea, its spatial expansion, and its ideational development up to the present. The topic will be approached from a wide variety of disciplines (Political Science, History, Philosophy, Anthropology), sharing a common focus on the messiah as a central and enduring symbol of Jewish and Christian societies and their interconnected eschatological expectations.

The main aim and objective of this course is to provide a solid knowledge of the role of messianism in shaping Jewish and Christian traditions in order to
- relate this knowledge to phenomena in modern society and thought,
- create the ability to evaluate the ongoing relevance of the messianic traditions in modern thought and politics, and
- identify the religious dimensions in seemingly secular ideologies and movements.

This summer school is divided into two one-week sections. The first week covers the ancient oriental origins of the messianic idea and its articulation in Judaism and Christianity up to the Late Middle Ages. The second week focuses on the messianic symbolisms in modern Christians and Jewish societies but also in the political visions of liberalism and socialism, in Romantic literature, as well as in idealist and existential philosophy.

Applications are invited from junior faculty and advanced graduate students.

Central European University's summer school (CEU SUN), established in 1996, is a program in English for graduate students, junior or post-doctoral researchers, teachers and professionals. It offers high-level, research-oriented, interdisciplinary academic courses as well as workshops on policy issues for professional development, taught by internationally renowned scholars and policy experts (including CEU faculty). Application from all over the world is encouraged. Financial aid is available.

Application deadline: February 15, 2010

In co-operation with the Center for Jewish Studies, The Gerst Program for Political, Economic, and Humanistic Studies, Center for International Studies at Duke University (USA) - Supported by the Carnegie Corporation of New York

For further academic information on the course and on eligibility criteria and funding options please visit the web site at
http://www.summer.ceu.hu/messianism