Reconstructionist Judaism

This essay argues that Reconstructionist Judaism, though first and foremost a Jewish movement, was profoundly influenced by quintessentially American ideals, values, and figures that shaped the denomination’s foundations. In doing so, the paper pays special attention to Reconstructionism’s founder, Mordechai Kaplan, delving into his personal history as well as relevant European Jewish history to contextualize his ideas. Additionally, this essay explores modernity as it applied to early and mid-twentieth century American Jewish life and what that meant to the practice and evolution of the Jewish faith. Seth Schoenhaus \u2718 is from Albany, NY and received his BA in Religion with a Political Science minor from Denison University

Indian Dalits and \u3ci\u3eHindutva\u3c/i\u3e Strategies

“Indian Dalits and Hindutva Strategies” by Seth Schoenhaus, ’18. The author tracks the evolution of India’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party alongside Scheduled Caste (specifically Dalit) self-conception to elucidate the BJP’s strategies to attract Dalit voters, who have historically not been receptive to the BJP’s muscular Hindutva thrust. Importantly, appropriating and recasting the Hindu story of Lord Ram in a nationalist light and engaging in historical revisionism regarding Dalit communal leader B.R. Ambedkar has proven vital in engaging with the Dalit electorate. These methods, combined with lingering sentiments of Sanskritization in many Dalit communities and increasing stratification with higher rates of urbanization, make an already fragile Dalit self-consciousness even more politicized and open to outsider appropriation. The author concludes with a brief examination of the politicizing of Hindu spaces as per the 1992 Ramjanmabhoomi riots and avenues for further inquiry