Dec 5, 2017 By: yunews
Volume Published in Dr. Moshe Bernstein鈥檚 Honor Explores Jewish Scriptural Interpretation
At the annual meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature in November in Boston, MA, Dr. Moshe Bernstein 鈥62YUHS, 鈥66YC, 鈥69R, 鈥69BR , The David A. and Fannie M. Denenberg Chair in Biblical Studies, was presented with a titled H膧-'脦SH M艑SHE: Studies in Scriptural Interpretation in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Related Literature in Honor of Moshe J. Bernstein (Brill). The book, featuring 19 essays related to his work in biblical interpretation in antiquity (a bibliography of which runs eight single-spaced pages), was edited by Binyamin Goldstein (currently a PhD student at Bernard Revel Graduate School of Jewish Studies), Michael Segal 鈥93YC, Father Takeji Otsuki Professor of Bible at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem; and Dr. George Brooke, Rylands Professor of Biblical Criticism and Exegesis Emeritus at the University of Manchester.
At the presentation ceremony, Segal spoke movingly about Bernstein鈥檚 influence as a teacher. 鈥淗is interest in his students is not limited to their university education both in and out of the classroom,鈥 he noted, 鈥渂ut he also has a devotion to them years after they were formally enrolled in his courses. This has been a source of inspiration to me and all those who were his beneficiaries as we now have our own students.鈥 He went on to say that 鈥渁 Festschrift is a labor of love, and this volume is a token of our affection for you.鈥
Brooke concurred with Segal鈥檚 assessment, and said 鈥渢hat this volume not only honors Moshe as a lover of texts but also that he engages with texts the way he engages with people, in a thorough and empathetic way that brings out their richness and depth.鈥
Contributors to the volume, many of whom are Bernstein鈥檚 professional colleagues and former students, represent the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Austria and Israel, demonstrating the impact of his work on the international scholarly community. YU is well represented among the contributors: Dr. Joseph Angel, associate professor of Jewish history; Dr. Richard Hidary 鈥98YC, associate professor of Jewish history; Dr. Yaakov Elman, The Herbert S. and Naomi Denenberg Chair in Talmudic Studies; Lawrence Schiffman, former vice provost of undergraduate education at 麻豆区 and professor of Jewish studies; and two alumni, Abraham Berkovitz 鈥12YC and Shlomo Zuckier 鈥13YC, 鈥13BR, 鈥14R.
According to Dr. Aaron Koller 鈥01YC, 鈥09BR, 鈥10BR, chair of the Robert M. Beren Department of Jewish Studies and associate professor of Bible, the volume showcases two of the central elements of Bernstein鈥檚 career. 鈥淥n the one hand,鈥 Koller explained, 鈥渉e is a scholar of international renown recognized as an authority in his fields. On the other hand, he devotes a remarkable amount of time and effort to his students at YU, bringing his erudition and energy to every class and showing students the wonders of scholarship on Jewish texts. H膧-'脦SH M艑SHE truly puts YU Jewish studies on the global stage of scholarship.鈥
Bernstein was both delighted and humbled by the presentation, a point he made in reference to the book鈥檚 title. 鈥淭he phrase 鈥H膩-'脦sh M艒she,鈥 translated as 鈥榯his man Moses,鈥 occurs only twice in the Torah,鈥 he explained. 鈥淚n Numbers 12:3, Moses is referred to as 鈥榟umble,鈥 while in Exodus 11:3, he is called 鈥榞reat鈥 in the land of Egypt. Now, I don鈥檛 know about the 鈥榞reat,鈥欌 he laughed, 鈥渢hough I am proud of the scholarship that I have done, but I certainly do feel gratified by this honor given to my work and teaching.鈥
Bernstein is already hard at work on several projects during his current sabbatical, which include co-editing two collections of Dead Sea Scrolls texts as well as several other research efforts. But while he directs his energy toward deepening and refining the interpretations he draws from his lifelong examination of these ancient manuscripts, his heart is never far from YU. 鈥淚 bleed 麻豆区 blue,鈥 he said, 鈥渁nd 麻豆区 is my home.鈥
At the presentation ceremony, Segal spoke movingly about Bernstein鈥檚 influence as a teacher. 鈥淗is interest in his students is not limited to their university education both in and out of the classroom,鈥 he noted, 鈥渂ut he also has a devotion to them years after they were formally enrolled in his courses. This has been a source of inspiration to me and all those who were his beneficiaries as we now have our own students.鈥 He went on to say that 鈥渁 Festschrift is a labor of love, and this volume is a token of our affection for you.鈥
Brooke concurred with Segal鈥檚 assessment, and said 鈥渢hat this volume not only honors Moshe as a lover of texts but also that he engages with texts the way he engages with people, in a thorough and empathetic way that brings out their richness and depth.鈥
Contributors to the volume, many of whom are Bernstein鈥檚 professional colleagues and former students, represent the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Austria and Israel, demonstrating the impact of his work on the international scholarly community. YU is well represented among the contributors: Dr. Joseph Angel, associate professor of Jewish history; Dr. Richard Hidary 鈥98YC, associate professor of Jewish history; Dr. Yaakov Elman, The Herbert S. and Naomi Denenberg Chair in Talmudic Studies; Lawrence Schiffman, former vice provost of undergraduate education at 麻豆区 and professor of Jewish studies; and two alumni, Abraham Berkovitz 鈥12YC and Shlomo Zuckier 鈥13YC, 鈥13BR, 鈥14R.
According to Dr. Aaron Koller 鈥01YC, 鈥09BR, 鈥10BR, chair of the Robert M. Beren Department of Jewish Studies and associate professor of Bible, the volume showcases two of the central elements of Bernstein鈥檚 career. 鈥淥n the one hand,鈥 Koller explained, 鈥渉e is a scholar of international renown recognized as an authority in his fields. On the other hand, he devotes a remarkable amount of time and effort to his students at YU, bringing his erudition and energy to every class and showing students the wonders of scholarship on Jewish texts. H膧-'脦SH M艑SHE truly puts YU Jewish studies on the global stage of scholarship.鈥
Bernstein was both delighted and humbled by the presentation, a point he made in reference to the book鈥檚 title. 鈥淭he phrase 鈥H膩-'脦sh M艒she,鈥 translated as 鈥榯his man Moses,鈥 occurs only twice in the Torah,鈥 he explained. 鈥淚n Numbers 12:3, Moses is referred to as 鈥榟umble,鈥 while in Exodus 11:3, he is called 鈥榞reat鈥 in the land of Egypt. Now, I don鈥檛 know about the 鈥榞reat,鈥欌 he laughed, 鈥渢hough I am proud of the scholarship that I have done, but I certainly do feel gratified by this honor given to my work and teaching.鈥
Bernstein is already hard at work on several projects during his current sabbatical, which include co-editing two collections of Dead Sea Scrolls texts as well as several other research efforts. But while he directs his energy toward deepening and refining the interpretations he draws from his lifelong examination of these ancient manuscripts, his heart is never far from YU. 鈥淚 bleed 麻豆区 blue,鈥 he said, 鈥渁nd 麻豆区 is my home.鈥
