For the past twenty-five years a group of North American scholars called "The Christian Scholars Group on Judaism and the Jewish People" (CSG) has come together to study anti-Jewish tendencies within the Christian tradition and to replace these distortions with constructive understandings. Since 1987 the ICJS has sponsored the CSG. Meeting semiannually, the Christian Scholars Group provides a forum in which participants can discuss innovative research within a collegial setting and explore the implications of their scholarship for the life of the church and society. Their meetings have provided an uncom-mon opportunity for critical exchange and reflection that has inspired a new level of conversation and study in both the academy and the Christian community, one that goes to the core issues of theological and communal identity.

Recognizing that there is no comparable group within the Jew-ish community, the ICJS sought funding to establish just such a group. During the 1994-95 programming year, the ICJS wrote and received grants from the Lilly Endowment and the Charles Revson Foundation to establish "The Jewish Scholars Group" (JSG). In the Fall of 1995 the ICJS will bring together twenty-five distinguished Jewish academicians from across the country for the first meeting of the JSG. The professional con-tributions of these outstanding men and women have already opened up new insights into the complex relationships between Jews and Christians. Their coming together to explore the dramatic theological shifts that are unfolding within Jewish and Christian circles promises to be a truly exciting project.

ICJS
Jewish Scholar Participants

Daniel Boyarin -- University of California, Berkeley
Robert Chazan -- New York University
Elliot Dorff -- University of Judaism, LA
David Ellenson -- Hebrew Union College, Los Angeles
Steven Fine -- Baltimore Hebrew University
Paula Fredriksen -- Boston University
Tikva Frymer-Kensky -- University of Chicago, School of Divinity
Nancy Fuchs-Kreimer -- Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, Philadelphia
Susan Handelman -- University of Maryland
Susannah Heschel -- Case Western University, Cleveland
Larry Hoffman -- Hebrew Union College, New York City
Steven Katz -- Cornell University
Sara Lee -- Hebrew Union College, Los Angeles
Jon Levenson -- Harvard University, School of Divinity
Alan Mittleman -- Muhlenberg College, Pennsylvania
David Novak -- University of Virginia
Peter Ochs -- Drew University, New Jersey
Marc Saperstein -- Washington University, St. Louis
Jonathon Sarna -- Brandeis University
Michael Signer -- University of Notre Dame
David Stern -- University of Pennsylvania
Sara Tanzer -- McCormick Theological Seminary, Chicago
Burton Vizotsky -- Jewish Theological Seminary, New York City
Elliot R. Wolfson -- New York University

Four times over the next two years these scholars will examine the topic Resistance and Accommodation: Jewish Identity and Christian Culture. The ICJS expects that this new programming initiative will provide an opportunity for Jewish scholars both to explore vital concerns for the Jewish community that have emerged in the light of Jewish-Christian studies and probe the consequences of these studies for contemporary Jewish prac-tice, teaching, and faith. In addition, the Institute anticipates that these meetings will help establish a network of Jewish scholars who can, in turn, provide leadership and counsel in shaping the direction of Jewish-Christian studies in North America.

Dr. Michael A. Signer, Abrams Professor of Jewish Thought and Culture at the University of Notre Dame, will chair the JSG. All meetings will be held in Baltimore. The ICJS anticipates that the fourth meeting will be a joint session with the Christian Scholars Group.

In addition to chairing the Jewish Scholars Group, Dr. Signer will serve as Jewish Scholar-in-Residence at the Institute dur-ing the 1995-96 academic year. In that capacity, Dr. Signer will meet with a variety of ICJS study groups, advise the ICJS staff and Program Committee regarding future programming initiatives, and assist in long range planning.