Nathaniel Deutsch
Encyclopedia
Nathaniel Deutsch is an American
religious scholar
. He is a specialist in Judaism
, Gnosticism
, and early Christianity
and is on the faculty of University of California, Santa Cruz.
, where he received his Ph.D.
as well as his Bachelor of Arts
and Master of Arts
degrees
.
Deutsch has taught religion at Swarthmore, and is currently a Professor
of Literature and History at the University of California, Santa Cruz. He also is director of the University's Jewish Studies Center. Deutsch was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship
in 2006 to support his research on the Jewish ethnographer
S. Ansky
for his forthcoming book, The People’s Torah: Ansky and the Invention of Jewish Ethnography.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
religious scholar
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
. He is a specialist in Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
, Gnosticism
Gnosticism
Gnosticism is a scholarly term for a set of religious beliefs and spiritual practices common to early Christianity, Hellenistic Judaism, Greco-Roman mystery religions, Zoroastrianism , and Neoplatonism.A common characteristic of some of these groups was the teaching that the realisation of Gnosis...
, and early Christianity
Early Christianity
Early Christianity is generally considered as Christianity before 325. The New Testament's Book of Acts and Epistle to the Galatians records that the first Christian community was centered in Jerusalem and its leaders included James, Peter and John....
and is on the faculty of University of California, Santa Cruz.
Career
Deutsch attended the University of ChicagoUniversity of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
, where he received his Ph.D.
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
as well as his Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
and Master of Arts
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
degrees
Academic degree
An academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...
.
Deutsch has taught religion at Swarthmore, and is currently a Professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
of Literature and History at the University of California, Santa Cruz. He also is director of the University's Jewish Studies Center. Deutsch was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are American grants that have been awarded annually since 1925 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." Each year, the foundation makes...
in 2006 to support his research on the Jewish ethnographer
Ethnography
Ethnography is a qualitative method aimed to learn and understand cultural phenomena which reflect the knowledge and system of meanings guiding the life of a cultural group...
S. Ansky
S. Ansky
Shloyme Zanvl Rappoport , known by his pseudonym S. Ansky , was a Russian Jewish author, playwright, and researcher of Jewish folklore....
for his forthcoming book, The People’s Torah: Ansky and the Invention of Jewish Ethnography.
Works
- Inventing America's 'Worst' Family; Eugenics, Islam and the Fall and Rise of The Tribe of Ishmael (2009)
- The Maiden of Ludmir: A Jewish Holy Woman and Her World (2003)
- Maiden of LudmirMaiden of LudmirThe Maiden of Ludmir, , , also known as the "Ludmirer Moyd", was the only female Rebbe in the history of the Hasidic movement....
- National Jewish Book Award finalist
- Maiden of Ludmir
- Black Zion: African American Religious Encounters with Judaism (2000, co-editor with Yvonne Chireau)
- Black Jews and black-Jewish relations in the United States
- The Gnostic Imagination: Gnosticism, Mandaeism, and Merkabah Mysticism (1995)
- GnosticismGnosticismGnosticism is a scholarly term for a set of religious beliefs and spiritual practices common to early Christianity, Hellenistic Judaism, Greco-Roman mystery religions, Zoroastrianism , and Neoplatonism.A common characteristic of some of these groups was the teaching that the realisation of Gnosis...
, MandaeismMandaeismMandaeism or Mandaeanism is a Gnostic religion with a strongly dualistic worldview. Its adherents, the Mandaeans, revere Adam, Abel, Seth, Enosh, Noah, Shem, Aram and especially John the Baptist...
, and merkabahMerkabahMerkabah is the throne-chariot of God, the four-wheeled vehicle driven by four "chayot" , each of which has four wings and the four faces of a man, lion, ox, and eagle...
(early Jewish mystic beliefs)
- Gnosticism
- Guardians of the Gate: Angelic Vice Regency in Late Antiquity (1999)
- Vice-regency of angelAngelAngels are mythical beings often depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew and Christian Bibles along with the Quran. The English word angel is derived from the Greek ἄγγελος, a translation of in the Hebrew Bible ; a similar term, ملائكة , is used in the Qur'an...
s in late antiquityLate AntiquityLate Antiquity is a periodization used by historians to describe the time of transition from Classical Antiquity to the Middle Ages, in both mainland Europe and the Mediterranean world. Precise boundaries for the period are a matter of debate, but noted historian of the period Peter Brown proposed...
- Vice-regency of angel
External links
- "Swarthmore Professor Named 2006 Guggenheim Fellow" (Swarthmore press release)