Issue Date: 11/14/05
Judaic studies professor draws lessons from history, faith
By Lisa Christiano Rose
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Shabatay moved to New York in 1960 at the urging of his parents. He graduated from the Jewish Theological Seminary of America and received his doctorate in Hebrew literature, history and the Bible. He then began teaching while working in Jewish education administration.
A job offer in San Diego brought him to the west coast. He became the executive director of the Bureau of Jewish Education while continuing to teach.
Today, Shabatay balances his time between teaching at Palomar and San Diego State University. He enjoys spending time with his wife, Virginia, an English professor at Palomar, and his grown children and grandchildren. He also writes a biweekly column entitled, "Our Past in Present Tense" for the San Diego Jewish Times.
This spring, Shabatay will teach, "The Middle East - Its Religions and Cultures" (MCS 197) at Palomar.
"It's not a controversial class," he said. "It's dealing with the Middle East since ancient days - from the days when Mesopotamia became the cradle of western civilization. And it continues with the cultural milieu in which Judaism, Christianity and Islam were born. We will touch on the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament and the Koran."
Shabatay believes in sticking to the facts.
"Although it's hard to ignore what is going on in the Middle East right now, I am not going to get into the politics. That can only backfire," he said. "We will talk about daily life and culture, changes in the cities and rural areas, the role of religion and ethnicity. And we will discuss the most outstanding literary, artistic and musical creations by middle easterners in the past century."
He said he is dismayed that Jews are commonly stereotyped. "You hear people say, 'He looks Jewish.' I met a black police officer in Israel. He was a Jew from Ethiopia. No one would say he looked Jewish," he said.
"Jews live all over the world. There have been Jews in India for the past 2,500 years," he added. "Jews have lived happily in Moslem countries for centuries, including Spain, Iraq, Morocco and Algiers. We all have different cultural backgrounds. And so do the students who attend my classes, which makes for an atmosphere that is challenging and always different."
A job offer in San Diego brought him to the west coast. He became the executive director of the Bureau of Jewish Education while continuing to teach.
Today, Shabatay balances his time between teaching at Palomar and San Diego State University. He enjoys spending time with his wife, Virginia, an English professor at Palomar, and his grown children and grandchildren. He also writes a biweekly column entitled, "Our Past in Present Tense" for the San Diego Jewish Times.
This spring, Shabatay will teach, "The Middle East - Its Religions and Cultures" (MCS 197) at Palomar.
"It's not a controversial class," he said. "It's dealing with the Middle East since ancient days - from the days when Mesopotamia became the cradle of western civilization. And it continues with the cultural milieu in which Judaism, Christianity and Islam were born. We will touch on the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament and the Koran."
Shabatay believes in sticking to the facts.
"Although it's hard to ignore what is going on in the Middle East right now, I am not going to get into the politics. That can only backfire," he said. "We will talk about daily life and culture, changes in the cities and rural areas, the role of religion and ethnicity. And we will discuss the most outstanding literary, artistic and musical creations by middle easterners in the past century."
He said he is dismayed that Jews are commonly stereotyped. "You hear people say, 'He looks Jewish.' I met a black police officer in Israel. He was a Jew from Ethiopia. No one would say he looked Jewish," he said.
"Jews live all over the world. There have been Jews in India for the past 2,500 years," he added. "Jews have lived happily in Moslem countries for centuries, including Spain, Iraq, Morocco and Algiers. We all have different cultural backgrounds. And so do the students who attend my classes, which makes for an atmosphere that is challenging and always different."