Rabbinic Scholar W. David Nelson to Discuss ‘Race, Religion and the Realities of Reading the Bible’

W. David Nelson, a noted scholar of rabbinic literature and the Hebrew Bible at Groton School in Massachusetts, will discuss how the Bible has been used out of context in the past to promote anti-Semitism during a Thursday (Sept. 6) public lecture at the University of Mississippi.

Norton’s lecture, “Say Again!: Race, Religion and Realities of Reading the Bible,” is set for 5:30 p.m. in the Overby Center auditorium. The next day (Sept. 7), the scholar will participate in an informal discussion with faculty and students on how the Bible has been misused to advance racist agendas.

“Dr. Nelson’s presentation is the first in the lecture series, titled ‘Intertwining Legacies: Jews and African-Americans in the Deep South,’” said Kirk Johnson, UM associate professor of sociology and African-American studies. “The goal of the lecture series is to bring together scholars, students and community members to explore anti-Semitism, racism and the shared and divergent histories of these two groups.”Other scholars scheduled include Sander Gilman, an internationally-renowned cultural and literary historian from Emory University, who will address the twin legacies of anti-Semitism and racism in the deep South on Oct. 25; and Jonathan Kaufman, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author of “Broken Alliance: The Turbulent Times Between Blacks and Jews in America,” who will speak Feb. 6 on the historic relationship between Jews and African-Americans.

Last year, the UM Critical Race Studies Group, an interdisciplinary collection of scholars working to address racial and ethnic inequities on campus and in academia, applied for an Association for Jewish Studies-Legacy Heritage Jewish Studies Project grant to explore the complex relationships between African-Americans and Jews in the South. The proposal, written by Willa Johnson, associate professor of sociology, was funded for $22,000. The university is among only four institutions in the United States to receive this award for the 2012-13 academic year.
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