Dr. Stephen Fine to present at
Food For Thought Luncheon Lecture

Dr. Stephen Fine, department head of Judaic Studies at University of Cincinnati, will present "When I Went to Rome, I Saw the Menorah…the Jerusalem Temple Implements Between 70 CE and the Fall of Rome" at the next Food for Thought Luncheon Lecture. The lecture will take place at noon on Wednesday, October 23, 2002 in Mayerson Hall Auditorium, 3101 Clifton Avenue.

During this intriguing lecture, Dr. Fine will review rabbinic literature of the second through sixth centuries that contains descriptions of Palestinian rabbis visiting Rome and viewing the Temple implements, including the golden Menorah and the table of the showbread, which were taken to Rome as war booty after the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem in 70 CE. These descriptions, considered to be "eye-witness" reports, will be accessed for their historicity, and Dr. Fine will place them within the contexts of Roman archaeological and literary sources. Both ancient and contemporary sightings of the Menorah in Rome will be explored as well as modern Jews', continual visits to the Eternal city hoping to "see" this no longer existent holy relic.

Steven Fine holds the Jewish Foundation Chair of Judaic Studies and is head of the Department of Judaic Studies at the University of Cincinnati. Dr. Fine received his doctorate in Jewish History at Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 1994, and his M.A. in Art History from the University of Southern California in 1984. He has lectured before popular and academic audiences throughout the US and Israel and has written or edited five books. Dr. Fine's interest in the Temple Menorah is part of a larger project, Art and Judaism During the Greco-Roman Period, to be published by the Jewish Publication Society of America.

In its thirteenth season, Food For Thought features scholars and HUC-JIR faculty who discuss their fields of expertise and recent research with the public. The Department of Outreach Education invites the community to this fascinating lecture with Dr. Stephen Fine. A hot buffet lunch will be available for $8; reservations are necessary. There is a $2 fee to attend the lecture only. To learn more about Food For Thought, the Department of Outreach Education of HUC-JIR, or to make a reservation contact Marcia Cruse, (513) 221-1875 ext. 353.

Founded in Cincinnati in 1875, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion is the oldest institution of higher Jewish education in the western hemisphere and the academic and professional leadership development center of the Reform Movement. The College-Institute trains rabbis, cantors, religious school educators, and Jewish communal workers at its four campuses in Cincinnati, New York, Los Angeles, and Jerusalem. In addition to training professional leadership to serve the Jewish community, HUC-JIR's School of Graduate Studies awards Masters and Doctoral degrees to men and women of all faiths.