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A Swiss university is hiring its next Jewish studies professor. Jews need not apply.
(JTA) — A public university in Switzerland is looking for its next Jewish studies professor, and one requirement on the job posting has drawn scrutiny from local Jews: all applicants to the position must be Catholic.
The opening, for a professor of Judaic studies and theology, is currently listed at the Faculty of Theology at the University of Lucerne, an hour south of Zurich.
Even though the university is public, that academic department is officially affiliated with the Catholic Church — which prohibits non-Catholic professors from teaching “doctrinal” courses such as philosophy, liturgy, scripture, Catholic theology and fundamental theology. That includes teaching about non-Christian religions such as Judaism. Non-Catholic professors may be invited as guest lecturers or visiting professors.
The Jewish studies and theology professor would be responsible for teaching and research related to Judaic studies, as well as leading the Institute for Jewish-Christian Research, according to the job posting.
Alfred Bodenheimer, who worked at the University of Lucerne from 1997 to 2003 in a Jewish teaching and research position, said the prohibition of non-Catholics hampered his career there.
“It seems to be the case that it simply doesn’t fit into our times anymore — that you say someone who teaches Jewish studies cannot be anyone else but a Catholic,” Bodenheimer, who now teaches at the University of Basel, told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
“I really saw that as a Jewish person at this university, I would always be something like a subaltern, with no chance to have more possibilities, influence and so on,” he added. “I became aware of the fact that this whole situation was very asymmetric, that I as a Jew would always be not on the same stage as my Catholic boss.”
Like Lucerne, the University of Basel is a public university. But its theology department is Protestant, rather than affiliated with the Catholic Church. In total, Switzerland has 12 public universities, at least two of which have Catholic Church-affiliated theology departments.
Margit Wasmaier-Sailer, the dean of Lucerne’s Faculty of Theology, told the Swiss publication Zentral Plus that the application included the Catholic Church’s restrictions “for reasons of fairness and transparency.” But though the Theology Faculty effectively bars Jews from being hired to its Jewish studies position, she said the department is committed to teaching the subject.
“The Theological Faculty of the University of Lucerne is the only Catholic Theological Faculty in the German-speaking world where Jewish Studies is part of the compulsory curriculum of theology studies,” Wasmaier-Sailer told Swiss-Jewish publication Tachles. She did not respond to JTA’s request for comment.
Jonathan Kreutner, general secretary of the Swiss Federation of Jewish Communities, said he is concerned about the requirement and that it is “really not understandable at this time.” Kreutner said his group is set to discuss the issue with the university and has already spoken with the area’s local bishop. He said that both seem “quite open” to finding a solution.
“On the one hand, it’s clear that the Theological Faculty have some rules how to set up their posts,” Kreutner told JTA. “This is one thing. On the other hand, of course, we think it’s a little bit questionable why they are so strict.”
He added, “If you’re talking about Jewish studies, why close this for Jewish applicants?”
Bodenheimer said that he wouldn’t be against a Catholic professor being hired to teach Jewish studies but feels Jews and others should be eligible.
“There are excellent experts of Judaic studies who are Catholics,” he said. “I happen to know people like this and I’m not against at all that in the end a Catholic will have the job. But open it up. Let people simply show what they can and then decide.”
A solution, he said, would be for Jewish studies to be moved to the department of philosophy, where the Catholic requirement would not apply. He said convincing the Catholic Church to give up the discipline may be “a little complicated administratively” but that the millennia-old institution should be able to adapt.
“The Catholic Church lives in the 21st century,” Bodenheimer said. “They also have to be in some way able to adjust themselves to a world that has changed dramatically.”
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The post A Swiss university is hiring its next Jewish studies professor. Jews need not apply. appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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250 Hezbollah Terrorists Including 21 Commanders Eliminated in Ground Op
DF operating in southern Lebanon. Photo: IDF Spokesperson
i24 News – The Israeli military eliminated 250 Hezbollah terrorists including 21 commanders in four days of ground combat, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement on Friday.
IDF soldiers operating in southern Lebanon have uncovered vast caches of weapons and munitions in civilian residences, showing how central embedding within civilian population is to Hezbollah’s mode of warfare.
Meanwhile, heavy strikes targeting the Hezbollah stronghold of Dahieh in southern Beirut were ongoing, Lebanese media reported.
The post 250 Hezbollah Terrorists Including 21 Commanders Eliminated in Ground Op first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Airstrikes Launched on Several Parts of Yemen, Houthi Al Masirah TV says
Illustrative. Hodeidah, Yemen, July 20, 2024. Houthi Military Media/Handout via REUTERS
Airstrikes were launched on Friday at several parts of Yemen including its capital Sanaa and Hodeidah airport, Al Masirah TV, the main television news outlet run by the Houthi movement controlling much of Yemen, and residents said.
Strikes also targeted the south of Dhamar city and the southeast of al-Bayda province, the channel added.
Residents said that the attack on al-Bayda province targeted several Houthi military outposts.
Al Masirah TV reported that the strikes had been carried out by the United States and British forces, but a British government source said Britain was not involved.
Iran-aligned Houthi militants have launched attacks on international shipping near Yemen since last November in solidarity with Palestinians in Israel‘s war with Hamas.
The attacks have drawn US and British retaliatory strikes and disrupted global trade as ship owners reroute vessels away from the Red Sea and Suez Canal to sail the longer route around the southern tip of Africa.
Following the airstrikes, a Houthi spokesman called the attack “a desperate attempt,” adding that “Yemen will not be deterred by these attacks and will continue its steadfastness in confronting the enemies.”
The post Airstrikes Launched on Several Parts of Yemen, Houthi Al Masirah TV says first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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IDF Kills Hamas Commander in Tulkarem
Illustrative. Israeli troops during counterterrorism activity in Tulkarem, northwestern Samaria, September 2024. Photo: IDF.
JNS.org – An Israeli Air Force fighter jet conducted a rare strike in Tulkarem in the West Bank on Thursday night, targeting top Hamas terrorist Zahi Yaser Abd al-Razeq Oufi.
The Palestinian Authority reported at least 18 fatalities in the strike, with a local security source telling Agence France-Presse it was the deadliest in Judea and Samaria since the Second Intifada.
Ayyth Radwan, the head of Islamic Jihad’s Tulkarem branch, was also reportedly killed.
Oufi was planning a terrorist attack “in the immediate time frame,” according to the Israel Defense Forces, and directed the thwarted car bombing last month near Ateret in the Binyamin region of Samaria.
There were no casualties in the incident, which Israel Ganz, the head of the Binyamin Regional Council, called a “great miracle.”
The IDF said Oufi was involved in smuggling weapons to terrorists who perpetrated several recent attacks against Israelis, including some that resulted in injuries to civilians.
He also “worked to establish terrorist networks on behalf of Hamas and assisted terror operatives in the area to carry out significant shooting and explosive attacks,” added the military.
The post IDF Kills Hamas Commander in Tulkarem first appeared on Algemeiner.com.