Professional Documents
Culture Documents
WORK ADDRESS
University of Kansas, Lawrence
Department of Religious Studies
1300 Oread Avenue, 106 Smith Hall
Tel.: (785) 864-5568 • Fax: (785) 864-5205
E-mail: sergey.berkeley@gmail.com, sbd@ku.edu
Web: www.people.ku.edu/~sbd
EDUCATION
2005 - 2006 Post-Doc. University of California, Berkeley; Departments of Rhetoric, Near
Eastern Studies; Center for New Media; The Townsend Center Strategic Working
Group in New Media, Theories of New Media and Interpretation in (Post)
Talmudic Thought.
May 2004 Ph.D. University of California, Berkeley. Joint Doctoral Program in Jewish
Studies.
Dissertation: The Rhetoric of the Talmud in the Perspective of Post-Structuralism
Examination Fields: Rabbinics, Modern Philosophy, Contemporary Philosophy
Committee: Daniel Boyarin (chair), Martin Jay, Dina Stein, David Bates, and
Naomi Seidman.
May 1996 M.A. Lomonosov Moscow University, Moscow. Hebrew Philology, with Honors.
1986 B.A. Rostov University, Rostov on the Don, Department of Philosophy, with
Excellence.
PROFESSIONAL TRAINING
Fall 1996 - Spring 1997 Methods of Education, Jewish and General, Hebrew University of
Jerusalem, Jerusalem.
Fall 1997 - Spring 1998 Educational leadership, Jerusalem Fellows, Jerusalem.
Fall 1996 - Spring 1998 Talmudic Studies The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem.
Fall 1997 - Spring 1998 Hartman Institute (Beth Midrash), Jerusalem.
Fall 1991 – Spring1994 Informal education (yeshiva), Moscow.
EMPLOYMENT
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August 2006 - Assistant Professor, Department of Religious Studies, University of
Kansas
2005 - 2006 Mellon Lecturer and Researcher, Department of Near Eastern Studies,
Department of Rhetoric, University of California, Berkeley,
Jan. 2005, Jan. 2006 Lecturer, Center of Jewish Studies, Graduate Theological Union,
Berkeley, Winter Beth-Midrash
Summer 2004, 2005, Lecturer, Department of Religious Studies, University of California,
Winter 2005 Davis
Spring 2004 Lecturer, Richard S. Dinner Center for Jewish Studies, Graduate
Theological Union, Berkeley
Fall 2000 - Spring 2003 Instructor, Department of Theology, University of San Francisco, San
Francisco
Fall 1998 - Spring 1999 Instructor, Center for Jewish Studies, Lomonosov Moscow University,
Moscow
Fall 1995, Fall 1998 Instructor, Institute for Psychoanalysis, Moscow
Spring 1999
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Rabbinics, Talmudic and Post-Talmudic Thought; Talmud and Philosophy; Jewish-Christian
Relationship; Jewish Thought; Classical and Contemporary Rhetorical Theory
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
BOOKS
Of Talmudic Rhetoric: An Analysis in View of Post-Structuralism. Affect and Figure. Ed. by Ilya
Dvorkin, New Horizons. Jewish Thought in the Modern World. Saint - Petersburg: The
United Publishing Project of Petersburg Jewish University and the Russian Jewry
Heritage Center (M.I.R.) in Jerusalem, 1998. [Russian with a Summary in English]
What Is Talmud? The Art of Disagreement N.Y. Fordham University Press. 2009 [333 p.]
Talmud, Philosophy, Virtuality In progress. Under a contract with Fordham University Press.
[due in press by October 2010]
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"From Topos to Figure: A Topolgy outside of Seeing." In Produced and Called, edited by Juri
Senokosov; Vitim Kruglikov, 220-34. Moscow: Ad Marginem, 1998. [Russian] Peer-
reviewed.
"The Hidden: Non-Expressionism in Philosophy." Logos. A Journal for Philosophy and
Literature 5, no. 15 (1999): 121 -33. [Russian]. Peer-reviewed.
"Interview with Mikkel Borch-Jacobsen." Logos. A Journal for Philosophy and Literature 5, no.
15 (1999): 149 - 54. [Russian]. Peer-reviewed.
"The Problem of Reflection in and Beyond Philosophical Speculation." Dissertation presented
for a degree of Candidate of Sciences in Philosophy, Rostov University, 1991. [Russian].
Peer-reviewed.
"Speculation and Infinity: Hegel and Derrida (a Review)." Contemporary Research in German
Classical Philosophy Abroad. A Collection of Reviews, no. 4 (1991): 171-91. [Russian]
BOOK REVIEWS
“Judaism in Practice from the Middle Ages through the Early Modern Period, edited by
Lawrence Fine, Princeton Readings in Religions, Princeton and Oxford: Princeton
University Press, 2001” A Book Review. Shofar 22 (3):136-137.
PAPERS PRESENTED
‘Do two lives weigh the same? Translation and Construction of the Talmud from the Brisker Rav
to Mishneh Torah’ for the session““Translation in Medieval and Early Modern Jewish
Philosophy,” ” Accosiation of Jewish Studies (AJS), San-Diego, CA, December 20-22,
2009 [Planned]
‘In/Of: Rhetorical-Ontological Positioning of the Talmud’s Redactors’ for the panel “Rabbinics,
Philosophy, and Rhetoric” American Academy of Religion (AAR), Montreal, QC,
November 8, 2009 [Planned]
‘“With the Hand of His Heart” or Who speakes, thinks, and remembers in the Talmud?’ KU
Jewish Studies Intellectual Community Seminar, Lawrence, KS, September 24, 2009
‘Virtual Agents and Human Subjects in Talmud and philosophy’ Invited presentation for the
‘Past Approaches, New Directions’ conference, April 20–22, 2009 at McMaster
University and King's University College/University of Western Ontario, Canada.
[Invited]
‘In Front of the Text: Reading Self in Rabbinic Literature’ Association of Jewish Studies.
Washington, DC December 2008.
‘Reading Self in Rabbinic Literature’ Before 1500 Seminar’ Hall Center for Humanities, KU
Lawrence, November 11, 2008.
‘Animals Do Not Die: Autonomy of Expounding and Taxonomy of Mortality in Talmudic
Argument’ Association of Jewish Studies, Toronto, December 2007.
'Talmud, And, Philosophy: A Talmudic Perspective on Philosophical Call’ for the panel
“Talmud and Philosophy” American Academy of Religion (AAR), San-Diego,
November 2007
'What is the Sophist? Who is the Rabbi?' -- a presentation for a Seminar on Philosophy and
Literature, at the Hall Center for Humanities; October 29 2007
'Hermeneutics of Anonymity' Association of Jewish Studies (AJS), San-Diego, December 2006
'From Hermeneutics of Intellect to Exegesis of Scriptutre: Passover Haggada in the Making'
American Historical Assocation" Januray 2006
'Is Media Always Technology?' Center for New Media, Townsend Center, Berkeley, November
2005.
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'The Talmud as a Film: From Christian Chronoly to Jewish Genealogy' Pacific Theologcal
Society, November 2005
‘The Talmud as a Film: Orality and Temporality of the Stammaitic Argument’ Association of
Jewish Studies (AJS), Chicago, Dec.2004
‘Denying a Relative: on Rabbis and Philosophers’ A Culture of Hermeneutics: Judaism in Late
Antiquity. International Colloquium Sponsored by the Program of Jewish Studies, GTU
and UC Berkeley, Berkeley, 2003
‘And G-d created Wife: Transmission of the Talmud in Post-structuralism’. Academy of Jewish
Studies (AJS.) Los-Angeles, 2002
‘A Gap in the Jewish Bookcase: Talmudic Studies and Talmudic Learning.’ American Academy
of Religion (AAR) / WESCOR, Saint-Mary College, 2002
‘Rhetoric of Recollection and Economy of Language in the Megillah’ AARJ (American
Association of Jewish Research), University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, 2002
‘Against Rhetoric’ Colloquium at the department of Slavic Studies, Fribourg University,
Fribourg, Switzerland, 1998
‘Eliciting Language’ Colloquium at the department of Slavic Studies, Fribourg University,
Fribourg, Switzerland, 2001
PAPERS SUBMITTED
‘The Talmud as Film’; Under consideration with The Journal of Religion. 65 pages including
bibliography, Submitted January 2008. Revisions Pending
New Faculty General Research Fund, University of Kansas, Lawrence, 2007-2008, 7,986 per
year.
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Townsend/Mellon Strategic Working Group in New Media Fellowship, UC Berkeley, 2005-2006.
32,000 plus benefits (participated, but rejected funds)
Chancellor's Fellowship for Dissertation Research, UC Berkeley, 2003-2004, 15,000 plus tuition.
One of three awarded campus-wide from over two hundred submissions
Jewish Studies Block Grants, University of California, Berkeley, 1999-2004, $22,000 for the
first year, and 15,000 for each consequent year, plus tuition.
Faculty Seminar Fellowship, Center of Teaching Excellence, KU, Lawrence, Fall 2008, 1000.00
Best Practices Institute, Center of Teaching Excellence, KU Lawrence, May 2007, 700.00
fellowship.
LANGUAGES
Language Reading Writing Speaking Aural
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Modern Hebrew near native near native near native near native
Biblical and Mishnaic Hebrew Excellent n/a n/a excellent
Aramaic Excellent n/a fair good
French Excellent some some some
German Excellent fair fair fair
Russian Native native native native
Old Slavonic Good n/a n/a n/a
Greek Basic none none none
Latin Basic none none none
TEACHING INTERESTS
• Rabbinics, Talmudic and Post-Talmudic Thought, Jewish-Christian Interaction in Late
Antiquity
• Classical and Contemporary Jewish Philosophy and Rabbinical Thought
• Classical and Modern Literary/Rhetorical Analysis of the Texts
• Hermeneutics of Gender
• Philosophy of Religion
• Methodology of Religious Studies
• Rhetoric of Religious Discourse
• Classical Jewish Texts
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS
REL 560 Classical and Contemporary Jewish Thought [New Course] Fall 2010
REL 326 Introdution to Talmud and Interpetation [New Coures] Spring 2010
REL 761 [New Course] Seminar in Western Religious Thought: Dialogue in Religion,
Philosophy, Talmud; Fall 2008
REL 761 [New Course] Seminar in Western Religious Thought: Talmud and Philosophy; Fall
2007
REL 107 Living Religions of the West, Spring and Summer 2007, Summer 2008, Spring 2009
REL 325 Introduction to Judaism Introduction to the study of religion using examples from the
rituals, art and holy texts of Judaism, Spring 2007, Spring 2008, Spring 2009
REL 570 Studies in Judaism: Human, Animal, and Divine in Rabbinic Discourse, Fall 2006, Fall
2007 [Revised version], Fall 2008 [Revised version]
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A study of the relationship to others – human, animal, and Divine in classical rabbinical texts,
and their contemporary appropriations in philosophical and rhetorical theory; graduate course.
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UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA BERKELEY
Department of Near Eastern Studies, Department of Rhetoric, 2005-2006
Mellon Lecturer
Hermeneutical Approaches and Exegesis in Late Antiquity: the Talmud and the Church
Fathers, Spring 2004
A master-level course; a study in rhetoric of exegesis and interpretation
Jewish-Christian Relationship
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Upper Division; comparative study of selected classical texts in Jewish and Christian
Traditions
Introduction to Judaism
Upper Division; introductory course to main cultural and textual elements of Jewish
Tradition
INSTITUTE FOR PSYCHOANALYSIS, MOSCOW Fall 1995, Fall 1998, Spring 1999
Instructor
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
2003 - OSHS (Outstanding Student Honor Society)
2002 - 2009 AAR (American Academy of Religion)
2002 - 2009 AJS (Academy of Jewish Studies)
2005, 2006 New York Academy of Sciences
2003 - 2005 SBL (Society of Biblical Literature)
PROFESSIONAL SERVICE
SERVICE TO INSTITUTION
“Helping Students Think Like an Academic Scholar of Religious Studies” Reflections from the
Classroom (Spring 2009) 23- 26. A crtitical-reflective essay on the development of my teaching
strategies at KU. Published as an on-line teaching portfolio at KU CTE web cite and in April
2009 issue of 'Reflections.'
Humanities General Research Fond (GRF) Committee, Member; Since Spring 2008
Inviting, organizing, and coordinating a guest lecture visit of Prof. Azan Yadin. Planning phase
began in August 2008. Visit dates: February 115-17, 2009.
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Inviting, organizing, and coordinating a guest lecture visit of Prof. Bruce Rosenstock of the
University of Urbana, Illinois. Planning phase began in August 2006. Visit dates: February 19-21
2008.
Inviting, organizing, and coordinating a guest lecture visit of Prof Hindy Hajman of the
University of Toronto. Planning phase began in September 2006. Visit dates: February 27,
March 1, 2007.
Service on the Search Committee for the Beren Professorship in Jewish Studies Fall 2007-Srping
2008.
Service on the Search Committee for the Professorship in Yiddish, Fall 2006. Service for the
Search Committee in Yiddish, Fall 2007.
Curriculum Development: Designed and Proposed two new courses for the KU Lawrence Jewish
Studies Minor: Classical and Contemporary Jewish Thought, and New Media and Interpretation.
Fall 2006; as well as a new course in Talmud and Interpretation designed in Spring 2007
Course Development: Designed and offered a new course in Human, Animal, and Divine in
Rabbinic Discourse; Proposed and applied for a grant for course development for the new
Introduction to Judaism course, Fall 2006.
Course Development, Designed and registered in catalogue a new course in Classical and
Contemporary Jewish Thought Fall 2006, Spring 2007
Center For Teaching Excellence, Ambassador for the KU Lawrence Department of Religious
Studies, Fall 2006 - 2009.
Best Practices Institute, CTE, KU Lawrence May 22-23; August 13, 2007
Studies Committee, Department of Religious Studies, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Fall 2006
– Fall 2009;
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Jewish Studies Advisory Committee, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Since Fall 2006, 2007,
2008, 2009
Developed research strategy for the next two years, and applied to NFGRF, Spring 2007
Participated in developing Hall Center Seminar Proposal for the Jewish Studies Seminar “Jews
and the Narrative Subject” – with Lynn Davidman. Spring 2008
SERVICE TO PROFESSION
Organized and submitted a panel “Dispute as a Virtue in Rabbinic Argumentation” for Rhetoic
Society of America (RSA) 2010 meeting
Organized and submitted a panel “Rabbinics, Philosphy, and Rhetoric” at AAR 2009 meeting
Served as a chair and respondent to the panel "New Studies in the Redaction of Rabbinic Texts" at the
40th Annual AJS Conference, December 2008
Internal committee book review for the 2008 ARTL prize committee, August 2008
Initiated, proposed, and set up a panel on “Talmud and Philosophy” at AAR 2007 meeting.
AAR Regional Conference Section Co-Chair Served for three years as a co-chair of the
Philosophy and Theology section of Western AJS, California, Fall 2002 to Spring 2005
Participated on long-distance basis in weekly research network seminar on the problem of Time
in post-Kantian traditions; with Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Spring & Summer 2007, 2009.
COMMUNITY OUTREACH
"Experiencing Jewish Community Life in US” Ocober 21 2009 Joint Distribution Committee,
Rostov on the Don, Russia. A public presentation gatherig some 50 people.
"An Invitation to the World of the Talmud” - a two lectures series at Jewish Agency in Rostov
on the Don, Russia, October 18, 2009. A public two-lectures introduction to the Talmud and in
historically different methods of its studying; an audience of 22 people.
Day of Discovery Presentation “To Disagree” Jewish Community Center (JCC), Overland Park,
KS, August 30, 2009. A public lecture gathering an audience of 28 people.
An Interview to Kansas City Jewish Chronicle “Agreeing to Disagree: KU Prof’s new book on
Talmud.” July 3, 2009
Adult Jewish Learning Program Lecture Series in Jewish Studies “Is Forgiveness a One-Person
Busness?” Public Lecture on March 19, 2009.
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Fall 2008 Three Lecture Series “The Guide of Perplexed: Past impact and contemporary
philosophical and religious significance.” Introductory lecture, Overland Park, September 14,
2008. Novenber 17, December 6 2008.
Fall 2007 Eight Lecture Series “How to study the Talmud: The Art of Talmudic Learning” at
congregation BIAV, Overland Park. The class met on Sundays in the Fall 2007, excluding
holydays.
"Misconceptions about Judaism, Christianity, and Islam"--a panel discussion with Tim Miller,
and Jessica Beeson at Ellthworth Program. November 2007
Two-lectures series "The Taste of Talmud" March 15 & 27, 2007, at Lawrence JCC.
Public Lecture surveying the history of studying nature and the Talmud in Europe in 15-17
centuries, offered in Hebrew at The Overland Park Hug of Hebrew Culture, February 2, 2006
Public lecture surveying the history of Jewish philosophy; offered in Hebrew at The Overland
Park Hug of Hebrew Culture, Fall 2006.
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