In an “unveiling” of their newly published monograph, Judaism and Jesus, Dr. Zev Garber,
Emeritus Professor and Chair of Jewish Studies and Philosophy at Los Angeles Valley College and Dr.
Ken Hanson, Associate Professor and Coordinator of the UCF Judaic Studies Program relate their “hands-on”
experience in approaching the Jewish Jesus and the controversial subject of Messianic Judaism.
In discussing both the historical Jesus (himself a pious Jew) and whether Messianic Jews should be
welcome in the larger Jewish community, they seek to bridge the gap between the typically isolated
disciplines of Jewish and Christian scholarship and forge a fresh level of understanding across religious
boundaries. Their ultimate challenge is to view sound scholarship as a means of bringing together disparate faith traditions around a common academic table.
Zev Garber is Emeritus Professor and Chair of Jewish Studies and Philosophy at Los Angeles Valley College, and he has served as President of the National Association of Professors of Hebrew. He has presented and/or written hundreds of articles and reviews (academic and popular), and he has authored and edited 14 academic books, including, Mel Gibson’s Passion: The Film, the Controversy, and Its Implications, The Jewish Jesus: Revelation, Reflection, Reclamation, and Teaching the Historical Jesus.
Kenneth Hanson is an Associate Professor and Coordinator of the University of Central Florida Judaic Studies Program. His many scholarly articles focus on the Dead Sea Scrolls, the historical Jesus and Jewish Christianity. He has published several books of popular scholarship, including:Dead Sea Scrolls: The Untold Story and Secrets from the Lost Bible. He teaches a wide range of courses, including the Hebrew language and literature, the Hebrew Bible, and the historical Jesus.
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