Fall 2026
Jerusalem: Holiness, Conflict, and Coexistence
Dates: August 31, 2026 – December 06, 2026Day/Time: Monday; Wednesday 8:30 AM - 10:00 AM EDT
Level: 200-Level
Certificate: Global Humanities, Global Studies
Global Humanities certificate requirement: Global thought (philosophical traditions).
Global Studies certificate requirement: Elective.
Instructor: Karen Barkey, Bard College
This seminar brings together the resources of Bard College, Al-Quds University, and the Colleges and Universities of the Anglican Communion and is convened to enable distance participation. The course explores Jerusalem as a site of profound religious significance across three traditions — Judaism, Christianity, and Islam — examining how the city has been seen, experienced, and constructed as "holy." It engages the wide range of phenomena gathered under that concept, from textual interpretation and historical disputation to social authorization and political appropriation, while also reflecting theoretically on what it means to speak of the "holy" at all. Drawing on this foundation, the seminar traces the historical periods during which Jerusalem was experienced as holy in different and often competing ways, giving rise to conflict as well as to distinctive forms of political authority, administration, and legitimation. In equal measure, it investigates the sources of that conflict and the effectiveness of measures designed to ensure peaceful coexistence in the city.
Credits: 4 US / 8 ECTS