On October 2, 2023 the Department of Religion and the Program in Jewish Culture and Society hosted a symposium on the life and legacy of Prof. Bruce Rosenstock z"l. Four different panels convened and they can be viewed here:
Panel 1: Dov Weiss, Gary Porton, and Seth Schein
Panel 2: Rachel Havelrock, Martin Kavka, Adam Kotso
Panel 3: Martin Bjork, Helga Varden
Announcement from Mariselle Meléndez, interim director, School of Literatures, Cultures & Linguistics, soon after Bruce's passing:
It is with a heavy heart that the School of Literatures, Cultures & Linguistics announces the passing of Bruce Rosenstock, professor of religion and director of graduate studies in the Department of Religion.
Bruce joined the Department of Religion in 2002 and was an expert in biblical theology, political theology, and modern Jewish philosophy. He was the author of important books such as New Men: Conversos, Christian Theology, and Society in Fifteenth-Century Castile (2002); Philosophy and the Jewish Question: Mendelssohn, Rosenzweig, and Beyond (2009); and Transfinite Life: Oskar Goldberg and the Vitalist Imagination (2017).
He worked with various units across campus, including the Department of Classics, the Center for South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, the Unit for Criticism and Interpretive Theory, and the Program in Jewish Culture and Society. He was also very well known for his active participation in the faculty University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Senate.
Bruce was known for his energetic and serious commitment to faculty shared governance issues and for his active involvement in the mentoring of students within his department in his capacity as current director of graduate studies and former director of undergraduate studies. His leadership in service extended to the school, where he was currently a member of the SLCL Executive Committee and participated in many other committees throughout the years. He also served in important committees at the college level, including the LAS Committee on Admissions and Academic Standards and the LAS Awards Committee. We will sorely miss his active involvement in school matters and his generosity as a faculty member.
This is a tragic loss for the school and for everyone who worked with and knew Bruce, but especially for his wife, Harriet Murav, professor of Comparative and World Literature and Slavic Languages and Literatures. Please keep her in your thoughts.