Sir, - In the interview with me printed in your EL supplement of April 17th there were misunderstandings which I want to clarify. I did not say that Jewish "achievements" were "limited" in the Middle Ages and that Jews "had come into their own", whatever that means, only by the 19th century. My own area of specialisation is rabbinic Judaism in late antiquity, which includes medieval Jewish commentaries on the Talmud, so obviously I think that Jewish achievements in both antiquity and the Middle Ages were at least as great as in modernity.
Medieval Jewish philosophy, especially in the countries where Jews lived under Islam, as well as secular and religious poetry, flourished in the Middle Ages. What I did say was that in the Middle Ages the Jewish impact on non-Jewish culture was limited by external circumstances such as anti-Semitism and restrictions on Jewish occupations and settlement, but Jewish Studies is concerned with Judaism in its own right, not with Jewish contributions to Christianity or Western culture. The study of Judaism for its own sake is what I emphasised, but what you do not mention in your text.
I also don't want to be identified as a "German Protestant". I made it quite clear to the interviewer that I did not grow up in any religious environment whatsoever, am not a member of the church, and much prefer Judaism to Christianity as a religion. I am not mainly interested in Judaism as the culture of "outsiders". I said that because of my own identity problems I am interested in identity issues, which are an important aspect of the study of Judaism from a sociological point of view. I actually detest the term "outsiders", because this is used from the perspective of those who think that they are insiders and others are not. Jews in Germany at the turn of the century would not have considered themselves outsiders but proper Germans just like everyone else. They were turned into "outsiders" by the ruling anti-Semitic ideology.
Finally, I don't think and did not say that Jewish Studies in Ireland can actually compete with Jewish Studies programmes in Israel or America. What I said was that Jewish Studies in Ireland have to be conducted in an international context - that is, the curriculum of course should be similar to what is offered elsewhere. - Yours, etc.,
Catherine Hezser, Lippert Chair of Jewish Studies, Trinity College, Dublin 2.