In the midst of increasingly diverse Jewish life in contemporary Germany, a new generation of writers is redefining questions of German-Jewish identity. The descendants of those who decided to remain or return after 1945 mingle with those who arrived in large numbers from Eastern Europe after the fall of the Iron Curtain in the early 1990s. Increasingly, young Israelis and Americans have joined them and declared cities like Berlin their new home. In the shadow of the Holocaust, the decision to live in Germany has raised enduring questions. Moreover, the sustained engagement of German society with the legacy of this history permeates many facets of everyday German-Jewish life. This has resulted in internal debates and conflicts about what it means to be Jewish, and specifically German-Jewish in the 21st century.

Since 2004 the UA has fielded an excavation project at the remote Sanctuary of Zeus at Mt. Lykaion, known in antiquity as the “birthplace of Zeus.” Located high in the Arcadian mountains of Greece is an altar composed of the ash of animal dedications, mostly from goat and sheep. Ritual use has been documented from as early as the 16th century B.C. during the early Mycenaean period, reflecting that this practice of offering burnt animal sacrifice began much earlier than previously known in the Greek world. Renewed excavation this past summer has yielded a stunning discovery amid the ash and burnt animal bones: a human skeleton. Likely an adolescent male, the skeleton was found near the middle of the ash altar at the highest part of the mountain peak. Faculty involved in the project will present these exciting new excavation results. Faculty colleagues will look at relevant ancient literary texts, including sources from the Judeo-Christian tradition, that may shed light on this discovery.

Russia is one of the world’s largest countries in terms of land mass, but it may come as a surprise to learn that it is also one of the most diverse. Learn about Russia’s ethnic and religious minority groups, including their relationship to mainstream society in the Soviet and post-Soviet eras. By discussing works of literature by Siberian indigenous writers, as well as theater performances by Central Asian migrant workers, discover how the country’s most vulnerable voices can offer new and crucial perspectives on life in contemporary Russia.