School of Jewish Studies Conducted in Kyiv

KYIV – On July 6, 2010, in the assembly hall of the Dragomanov National Pedagogical University in Kyiv, the International Youth Religious Studies School of Jewish Studies was opened.  This Fourth School is conducted on the initiative of the Youth Association of Religious Studies experts jointly with the Interdisciplinary Certificate Program in Jewish Studies of the Kyiv Mohyla Academy.

As Oleksii Gordieiev reported to RISU, the official opening was attended by representatives of the academic circles of Latvia, Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine and representatives of the State Committee on Nationalities and Religions, the Youth Association of Religious Studies Experts, and Jewish educational institutions.

According to Hanna Maria Basauri Zuzin, one of the organizers of the event, about 30 people applied to participate in the school. Most of them are post graduate students of the leading Ukrainian and Russian higher education institutions planning to deepen their knowledge in the area of Judaism. Others included teachers of specialized educational institutions and theologians.

The deputy director of the Institute of Philosophical Education and Science of the Drahomanov National Pedagogical University, Vitalii Khromets, noted that “the school is not only topical but vitally important.” According to the organizers, the multitude of prejudices connected with the Jews is one of the main reasons why the school has a right to exist and develop.

The advisor of the Israeli Embassy, Felix Mindel, who was present at the event, noted that the role of such meetings for the development of tolerance in Ukraine can hardly be overestimated. “The very existence of such a school demonstrates the presence of young people with knowledge and enthusiasm and readiness to changes and innovations. The school is a small part of learning about Judaism,” he noted.

The program of the school includes lectures, excursions to Jewish sites of Kyiv, workshops in Hebrew and Jewish art. The highlight of the school is the visit on July 15-18 to the town of Uman, where Rabbi Nakhman is buried.

“First of all, the school stands out for being a religious studies one. The study of Judaism at a high academic level has been so far represented in the broadest sense of the word, mostly by the Interdisciplinary Program of National University Kyiv Mohyla Academy. Now we want to study not simply the history and culture of the Jewish people (one must say, the subjects which are rather studied) but consistently apply religious studies methodology in our research,” noted Anna Maria Basauri Zuzina, the director of the Center for Jewish Study of the Youth Association of Religious Studies Experts.