Intended only for highly qualified undergraduates. Midrash is a fitting theological genre, for it mirrors the complexity of life. Exploration of the rich and varied themes of rabbinic literature in Midrash, Mishnah, and Talmud through careful reading of texts. In Torah and Prophets, God reaches out to human beings. In the Psalms, human beings reach out to God as the human soul extends itself beyond its confinement.
Psalms thus constitute a revealing portrayal of the human condition.
Readings from the Bible, Plato, Augustine, Pascal, St. Theresa of Avila, the Upanishads, selected Buddhist texts and the works of Tolstoy, Rilke, Kafka, Dickenson, Goyen, Celan and Jabes. Impact of Kierkegaard on 20th century philosophers of religion from Barth to Levinas.